火上添油 add fuel to the fire
Explanation
比喻使情况恶化，使矛盾加剧。
A metaphor for worsening a situation and intensifying conflicts.
Origin Story
从前，有两个村庄经常因为水源问题发生争吵。一天，一个小男孩在河边玩耍，不小心把一堆干草扔进了河里，结果干草堵塞了河道，导致水位上涨，淹没了部分田地。两个村庄的人更加愤怒，互相指责，冲突升级，几乎酿成大祸。这个故事告诉我们，即使是无意中的小事，也可能在矛盾激化的时候火上添油，所以我们应该谨慎对待任何可能加剧矛盾的行为。
Once upon a time, there were two villages that often quarreled over water resources. One day, a little boy was playing by the river and accidentally threw a pile of dry grass into the river. As a result, the grass blocked the river, causing the water level to rise and flooding some fields. The people of the two villages became even more angry, blaming each other, and the conflict escalated, almost causing a great disaster. This story tells us that even unintentional trifles can add fuel to the fire when conflicts escalate, so we should be cautious about any behavior that could exacerbate conflicts.
Usage
主要用于比喻使本来就存在的问题或冲突更加严重。
Mainly used as a metaphor to illustrate how already existing problems or conflicts are made worse.
Examples
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他火上浇油，导致矛盾激化。
tā huǒ shàng jiāo yóu, dǎozhì máodùn jīhuà
He added fuel to the fire, leading to the intensification of the conflict.
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不要火上添油，这样只会让事情更糟。
bú yào huǒ shàng tiān yóu, zhèyàng zhǐ huì ràng shìqíng gèng zāo
Don't add fuel to the fire; it will only make things worse.