鹬蚌相争，渔人得利
Mandarin
| simpl. | 鹬蚌相争，渔人得利 | |
|---|---|---|
| trad. | 鷸蚌相爭，漁人得利 | |
Etymology
Literally: When the snipe and the oyster fight, it is the fisherman that reaps the reward.
- c. 77 BCE - 6 BCE: Liu Xiang, Zhan Guo Ce, Strategies of Yan, Chapter 2 (战国策)
- 赵且伐燕，苏代为燕王谓惠王曰：“今者臣来，过易水，蚌方出曝，而鹬啄其肉，蚌合而钳其喙。鹬曰：‘今日不雨，明日不雨，即有死蚌。’蚌亦谓鹬曰：‘今日不出，明日不出，即有死鹬。’两者不肯舍，渔者得而并禽之。今赵且伐燕，燕、赵久相支，以弊大众，臣恐强秦之为渔父也。故愿王之熟计之也。”惠王曰：“善。”乃止。
- When Zhao was about to attack Yan, Su Dai spoke to King Hui of Zhao on behalf of the king of Yan. He said, "On my way here today, as I crossed the Yi River, I spotted an oyster that had opened its shell to sun itself. Just then, a snipe began to peck at the flesh inside its shell. The oyster closed its shell on the beak of the snipe so that it could not get away. The snipe said, "It is not raining today, nor will it rain tomorrow. You shall die Mr. Oyster." To which the oyster replied, "You shall not escape my grip today, nor shall you escape it tomorrow. It is you who will die (of hunger) Mr. Snipe." Neither side would yield, at which point, a fisherman came by and snatched them both into his net. Today, Zhao is on the verge of attacking Yan. Yan and Zhao have been at odds for a long time, and have caused their people to suffer. I am afraid that the fisherman in this case will be the mighty Qin. For this reason, I hope that your highness will give the matter your mature consideration. King Hui said, "ok fine" and called off the attack. (Wiktionary translation)
- 赵且伐燕，苏代为燕王谓惠王曰：“今者臣来，过易水，蚌方出曝，而鹬啄其肉，蚌合而钳其喙。鹬曰：‘今日不雨，明日不雨，即有死蚌。’蚌亦谓鹬曰：‘今日不出，明日不出，即有死鹬。’两者不肯舍，渔者得而并禽之。今赵且伐燕，燕、赵久相支，以弊大众，臣恐强秦之为渔父也。故愿王之熟计之也。”惠王曰：“善。”乃止。
Proverb
鹬蚌相争，渔人得利 (simplified, Pinyin yù bàng xiāng zhēng, yúrén dé lì, traditional 鷸蚌相爭，漁人得利)
- When two sides contend, it's always the third party that benefits.
Synonyms
- 鹬蚌相争，鱼翁得利
Related terms
- 渔人之利
- 两败俱伤