Rényán-kěwèi, tā zuìhòu xuǎnzé le líkāi zhège xiǎozhèn.
Gossip is a fearful thing, in the end she chose to leave the small town.
Tips
history
From the 《诗经·郑风·将仲子》 (Book of Songs), where a young woman tells her would-be suitor: 人之多言，亦可畏也 'people's many words are also to be feared'. Famously cited again in 1935 when Shanghai actress 阮玲玉 took her life leaving a note reading 人言可畏.
usage
Used as a standalone four-character comment, often after recounting something destroyed by rumor: relationships, reputations, careers.
1930s Shanghai film star whose 1935 suicide note read '人言可畏', cementing the phrase in modern Chinese consciousness; subject of Stanley Kwan's 1991 film 'Center Stage'.
