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断袖之癖

duànxiùzhīpǐ

Traditional: 斷袖之癖

lit. cut sleeve (idiom); fig. euphemism for homosexuality, originating from History of Western Han [[漢書|汉书]]: emperor Han Aidi (real name Liu Xin) was in bed with his lover Dong Xian, and had to attend a court audience that morning. Not wishing to awaken Dong Xian, who was sleeping with his head resting on the emperor's long robe sleeve, Aidi used a knife to cut off the lower half of his sleeve.

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