Zhànchǎng shàng de zhēngzhēngtiěhàn, huí dào jiā yě shì cífù.
An iron man on the battlefield can still be a tender father at home.
Tips
memory
铮铮 (zhēngzhēng) is onomatopoeia for the clanging ring of metal striking metal — picture two iron blades clashing. The doubled syllable plus 铁 (iron) and 汉 (man) gives you the image: a man who rings true like steel.
history
Found in Sun Kaitai and Sun Dong's novel 《吴起传》 (Biography of Wu Qi), describing the Warring States general Wu Qi as 'an iron man who feared not even death' when he set fire to an enemy granary.
