東道主人

春秋時代，晉國邀約秦國一起出兵攻打鄭國。鄭文公聽到這個消息，想自己沒辦法抵禦兩個大國，非常恐懼。鄭國的一位大夫佚之狐就建議；派老臣燭之武去遊說秦穆公，因為燭之武口才好。鄭文公很誠懇地請燭之武為國家效力，終於感動了燭之武，整裝前往秦國。

燭之武被守將欄阻，見不到秦王。眼看日落西山，他就放聲大哭。兵士把他帶到秦王面前，問他哭的原因。他說：「鄭國在晉國的東邊。秦國在晉國西邊。如果晉國佔領了鄭國，疆土擴展，秦國也就很危險了。所以我為鄭秦兩國而哭。」秦王點點頭，覺得很有道理。他接著說：「如果秦國不攻打鄭國，鄭國願意做東邊道上的主人，招待來鄭國的秦人。」秦王終於被說動撤兵，解除了鄭國的危機。

The Host of The East

During the Spring and Autumn Period, the kingdom of Chin was planning to collaborate with kingdom of Ch'in to attack the kingdom of Cheng. Duke Wen of Cheng was sure that he didn't have a chance against these two large kingdoms, and very afraid. So, at the suggestion of one of his official, the duke sent his minister Ju Jr-wu to Ch'in to try to convince the king not to attack Cheng.

Upon arriving in Ch'in, Ju Jr-wu was stopped by a soldier on duty and not allowed into court. When he saw the sun set in the west, he began to cry, at which point he was taken to see the king to find out why he was so upset. Ju replied, "Cheng is to the east of Ch'in, and Ch'in is to its west. If Ch'in were to take over Cheng and expand its border, Ch'in would also be in danger. I am crying for the kingdoms of Cheng and Ch'in." The king agreed that Ju Jr-wu had a point, and Ju Jr-wu continued, "If Ch'in does not attack Cheng, Cheng will be the host of the east, willing to entertain anyone from Ch'in who goes there." The king of Ch'in was finally persuaded, He withdrew his troops, and relieved Cheng's crisis.

Today, anyone who acts as a host can be referred to as "the host of the east."