先斩后奏
xiān​zhǎn​hòu​zòu

to act first and report later

  1. 先 xiān adverb
    first
    earlier in time or sequence; beforehand; in advance
  2. 斩 斬 zhǎn
    to behead
    to behead; to execute by decapitation, especially as a form of capital punishment in historical contexts
  3. 后 後 hòu locativepreposition
    after
    (bound form) later in time; afterwards; future; subsequent in a sequence
  4. 奏 zòu
    to memorialize
    to report to or petition a throne; to present a formal document to an emperor