披荊斬棘

lit. to cut one's way through thistles and thorns (idiom) / fig. to overcome all obstacles on the way / to break through hardships / to blaze a new trail

to drape over one's shoulders / to open / to unroll / to split open / to spread out

chaste tree or berry (Vitex agnus-castus) / alternative name for the Zhou Dynasty state of Chu 楚國|楚国[Chu3 guo2]

to behead (as form of capital punishment) / to chop

thorns