Annotations
士別三日 卽更刮目相待
“When men of purpose part for three days, you must rub your eyes before you look at them again.”
— Lü Meng呂蒙
ko선비란 헤어진 지 사흘이면, 눈을 비비고 다시 대해야 하는 법입니다.
ja士たる者、別れて三日もすれば、目をこすって改めて向き合うべきものです。
The scene behind the words
Lü Meng’s comeback when Lu Su marveled that he was "no longer the A-Meng of backwater Wu." The dignity of the line is in its posture: growth declared, not begged for. Two idioms — "rub your eyes" and "the old A-Meng" — were born in this single scene.
Source: Jiangbiao Zhuan (annotations to Lü Meng’s biography)