a deaf person lets off a firecracker: it falls apart
Saying俗语俗語
Two-part saying歇后语歇後語 · Widely known
May offend: mocks disability
Meaning
Said when a group breaks up or a plan falls through; the whole thing just disbands.
Wordplay
The same character 散 has two readings: sǎn (fall to pieces, as the firecracker bursts) and sàn (disperse, as a group breaks up); the book treats them as a near-sound pun.