渔人得利 yú rén dé lì fisherman's gain

Explanation

指双方争执不下，而第三者从中获利。

Refers to a situation where two parties are locked in a dispute, and a third party profits from it.

Origin Story

战国时期，燕国与赵国剑拔弩张，一触即发。燕王担心战争爆发，于是派苏代前往赵国游说。苏代向赵王讲述了鹬蚌相争的故事：一只鹬鸟想吃河蚌，河蚌紧紧地夹住鹬鸟的嘴不放，双方僵持不下。这时，一个渔翁轻松地将鹬和蚌一起捉走了。苏代以此比喻如果燕赵开战，秦国将像渔翁一样坐收渔翁之利。赵王听后，深思熟虑，最终放弃了攻打燕国的计划。

zhànguó shíqī, yàn guó yǔ zhào guó jiànbá nǔzhāng, yī chù jí fā. yàn wáng dānxīn zhànzhēng bàofā, yúshì pài sū dài qiánwǎng zhào guó yóushuō. sū dài xiàng zhào wáng jiǎngshù le yùbàng xiāngzhēng de gùshì: yī zhī yù niǎo xiǎng chī hé bàng, hé bàng jǐnjǐn de jiā zhù yù niǎo de zuǐ bù fàng, shuāngfāng jiāngchí bù xià. zhè shí, yī gè yúwēng qīngsōng de jiāng yù hé bàng yīqǐ zhuō zǒu le. sū dài yǐ cǐ bǐyù rúguǒ yàn zhào kāizhàn, qín guó jiāng xiàng yúwēng yīyàng zuòshōu yúwēng zhī lì. zhào wáng tīng hòu, shēnsī shúlǜ, zuìzhōng fàngqì le gōng dǎ yàn guó de jìhuà.

During the Warring States period, Yan and Zhao were on the verge of war. King Yan, worried about the outbreak of war, sent Su Dai to Zhao to negotiate. Su Dai told King Zhao the story of the egret and the clam: an egret wanted to eat a clam, the clam tightly clamped the egret's beak, and both were in a deadlock. A fisherman easily caught both of them. Su Dai compared this to the impending war between Yan and Zhao; Qin would benefit just like the fisherman. After thinking about it, King Zhao finally abandoned the plan to attack Yan.

Usage

常用来比喻双方争斗，而第三者从中获利。

cháng yòng lái bǐyù shuāngfāng zhēngdòu, ér dìsānfāng cóng zhōng huòlì

Often used to describe a situation where two parties are fighting, and a third party profits from it.

Examples

• 鹬蚌相持，渔人得利。

  yùbàng xiāngchí, yúréndélì

  The鹬蚌相持，渔人得利。

• 这场纷争，最终让第三方渔人得利了。

  zhè chǎng fēnzhēng, zuìzhōng ràng dìsānfāng yúréndélì le

  This conflict ultimately benefited a third party, the fisherman.

Related Idioms

• 渔翁得利

• 坐山观虎斗

Opposite Idioms

• 两败俱伤

• 互不相让