Bo Le was a famous master of horse-judging. He wrote a book titled Xiang Ma Jing (classics of how to judge a horse) to explain how to recognize a good horse. "A good horse has a wide forehead, bulging eyes and round hoofs," he wrote.
One day, according to a tale in the book, the son of Bo Le went out to look for a good horse. After a while, he came back, bringing with him a toad. He told his father, "I have found a horse similar that fits your description but its eyes are not bulging enough and hoofs not round." Bo Le did not know whether to laugh or to cry at this. He teased his son, "This horse is good at jumping rather than being ridden. What you have found matches my description, but it's not a good horse"
From what Bo Le said we draw the idiom, depicting those who work mechanically or try to locate something by following a description.
àn tú suǒ jì
按圖索驥
?????? 伯樂是一位著名的相馬師，他寫了一本叫《相馬經》的書來教別人區分馬的好壞。書上寫著：良馬有高高的額頭，鼓起的眼睛，馬蹄是圓圓的。
?????? 一天，他的兒子按著《相馬經》上寫的出去找好馬。過了一會兒，他拿著一只癩蛤蟆回來了，對他的父親說：“我找到了一匹馬，大致跟你書上的一個模樣，只是眼睛鼓得不夠，蹄子也不是圓圓的。” 伯樂哭笑不得，開玩笑地說：“這匹馬喜歡跳，但是不能騎啊。你這是照著圖畫找馬。”
?????? 這個成語就來自伯樂的話，指機械地按著教條辦事。
xǐ qì yáng yáng
喜氣洋洋
Full of joy; radiant with happiness; jubilant
