Everything is ready except the east wind.万事俱备,只欠东风

万     事    俱备， 只欠     东风
Wànshì jùbèi, zhīqiàn dōngfēng

Everything is ready except the east wind.

In the Three Kingdoms period (220-280), the allied forces of the Kingdoms of Wu ans Shu withstood an attack by the Kingdom of Wei’s army led by the famous strategist Cao Cao. Zhou Yu of the Kingdom Wu schemed to send fire ships to burn Cao Cao’s fleet.

But it was winter at that time, and Zhou Yu’s fleet was in the EAST on the lower reaches of the Yangtze river, while Cao Cao’s fleet was in the west, on the upper reaches. Everyhting was ready for the attack except an east wind, which was needed to blow the fire ships towards Cao Cao’s fleet.

万事俱备,只欠东风 wanshi jubei, zhiqian dongfeng. This proverb, derived from the above story, means that everything is ready except what is crucial. Sometimes, the second part of the proverb is omitted and the east wind is replaced by the actually crucial fact.

For example:

All is ready, we are looking forward to your presence only.

万事俱备, 就等您出场了。

Wanshi jubei, jiu deng nin chuchang le.