Chinese idiom · 成语
言归正传
Meaning
Words return to the main story; back to the point.
Character by character
Origin and story
Storytelling formulaThis expression comes naturally from the voice of a storyteller returning after a digression. 正传 means the main story or subject, rather than the act of transmitting something correctly. Han Dian records the exact wording in Qing novels including Qi Lu Deng, Er Nü Ying Xiong Zhuan, and Wen Ming Xiao Shi.
In Er Nü Ying Xiong Zhuan, chapter 23, the narrator says the necessary background has now been explained and the main story can resume. That is a documented use, not necessarily the first invention of the formula. Modern speakers use it in much the same way to bring a wandering conversation or meeting back to its purpose.
Sources and further reading
In everyday life
旅行的趣事下次再聊，咱们言归正传，先把预算定下来。
Let's save the travel stories for next time and get back to the point: deciding the budget.
A conversational transition back to the main subject; 传 is zhuàn here.