窃钩者诛，窃国者侯

qiègōuzhězhū,qièguózhěhóu

He who steals a belt buckle pays with his life; he who steals a state gets to be a feudal lord.

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qie4 gou1 zhe3 zhu1 , qie4 guo2 zhe3 hou2

steal a hook and they hang you, steal the whole country and they make you a prince (idiom, from Daoist classic Zhuangzi 莊子, 庄子)

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窃钩者诛，窃国者侯

qiè gōu zhě zhū qiè guó zhě hóu

He who steals a hook gets hanged as a crook; he who steals the kingdom makes himself a duke -- little thieves are hanged, but great ones become dukes.

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竊鉤者誅，竊國者侯|窃钩者诛，窃国者侯 [qiè gōu zhě zhū , qiè guó zhě hóu] ► steal a hook and they hang you, steal the whole country and they make you a prince (idiom, from Daoist classic Zhuangzi ↑莊子|↑庄子)