周科长 我也不想为难您 可是这件事
“Mr. Zhou, I hate making things difficult. But Mr. Zhang himself promised this to Mr. Zheng.”
THE DIALOGUE REEL
这厂长吩咐的事情 我也没办法的
“I had to do as Mr. Zhang instructed.”
周科长 我 也不 想 为难 您 可是 这件事
“Mr. Zhou, I hate making things difficult. But Mr. Zhang himself promised this to Mr. Zheng.”
“But Mr. Zhang himself promised this to Mr. Zheng. We can't just stand by.”
“I know you're just following orders, but you still have to give us a real solution.”
Saying 'I don't mean to make things hard for you' is standard diplomatic etiquette in Chinese negotiations; it separates the individual official's face from the institutional conflict.
LEARNING CHUNKS & PARTICLES
to put someone in a difficult spot; to embarrass or press someone
Frequently paired with '不想' (don't want to) to show tact and maintain harmony before stating an unwelcome demand.
Section Chief
A standard mid-level administrative title in Chinese state-owned enterprises and civil service.
VOCABULARY & EXPRESSIONS
Parallel Spoken Cinema Scenes (语义近邻切片)
“Chief Wang, I really have nothing else to do.”
“Chief Wang told me everything.”
“Chief Wang, how about this?”
“This depends on what Chief Wang says.”
“Thanks, Chief Wang. Go on. It's fine.”
“Section Chief Guo, what brings you here? You didn't give us a heads-up.”