Speak of the Chinese devil

You must have heard the English saying “Speak of the devil”, but what is its Chinese equivalent?

说曹操曹操到

Shuō Cáo Cāo Cáo Cāo dào

Speak of Cao Cao and Cao Cao arrives

You don’t believe me? Check this comic below:

I got this comic from this website. Check it out for more Cao Cao and other Chinese comics.

So who exactly is Cao Cao? Here is the Wikipedia excerpt:

"Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled Emperor Wu of Wei. Although often portrayed as a cruel and merciless tyrant, Cao Cao has also been praised as a brilliant ruler and military genius who treated his subordinates like his family."

The fact that Cao Cao is portrayed as a cunning and deceitful man in the Chinese opera has also helped his negative image. Below is the Cao Cao mask used in Chinese opera: