怎么 你大儿子死了
“What? Your eldest son died,”
THE DIALOGUE REEL
“Save some karma for your two grandsons.”
怎么 你大 儿子 死了
“What? Your eldest son died,”
儿媳跟人跑了
“and your daughter-in-law ran off with someone.”
“Don't lecture me about morality when your own household is already cursed with tragedy.”
In traditional Chinese culture, bringing up the death of a son or family misfortune in an argument is considered one of the most offensive personal attacks possible.
LEARNING CHUNKS & PARTICLES
what / how come
Often used confrontationally at the beginning of a sentence to challenge someone's audacity or attitude.
eldest son
A standard kinship term referring specifically to the first-born son in a family.
VOCABULARY & EXPRESSIONS
Parallel Spoken Cinema Scenes (语义近邻切片)
“die in place of your eldest?”
“His son has long been dead.”
“How exactly did Liao Guangyong kill your son?”
“I've lost one of my sons.”
“every last one of my sons dies,”
“My father's death was suspicious.”