疲于奔命 exhausted from running around
Explanation
形容人非常忙碌，疲惫不堪。
describes someone who is very busy and exhausted.
Origin Story
春秋时期，晋国有个大夫叫申公巫臣，他非常仰慕陈国夏姬的美貌。夏姬美貌绝伦，是当时有名的美女，很多人都想娶她。可是，她却嫁给了郑国国君。申公巫臣为了得到夏姬，可谓是费尽心机。他先阻止楚庄王娶夏姬，又阻止子反娶她。他为了夏姬，在各国之间奔走，疲于奔命，最终却还是没能如愿以偿，夏姬最终还是没有嫁给他。他的努力并没有换来爱情，反而让自己陷入了疲于奔命的状态，最终耗尽精力，一无所获。这则故事告诉我们，有些事情即使再怎么努力，也未必能够得到想要的结果，有时候适当地调整策略，或者放弃不切实际的目标，或许才能让自己不至于疲于奔命，身心俱疲。
During the Spring and Autumn period, there was a minister in the Jin state named Shen Gong Wuchen, who admired the beauty of Xia Ji from the Chen state. Xia Ji was of exceptional beauty, a famous beauty at that time, and many wanted to marry her. However, she married the king of Zheng. To get Xia Ji, Shen Gong Wuchen went to great lengths. He first stopped King Zhuang of Chu from marrying Xia Ji, and then he stopped Zi Fan from marrying her. For Xia Ji, he ran around between countries, exhausted himself, but still could not get what he wanted, and Xia Ji eventually did not marry him. His efforts did not bring him love, but instead put him in a state of exhaustion, ultimately exhausting his energy and gaining nothing. This story tells us that no matter how hard we try, we may not get the desired result. Sometimes, adjusting the strategy appropriately or giving up unrealistic goals may prevent us from exhaustion.
Usage
形容人忙得不可开交，非常疲倦。
describes someone who is incredibly busy and very tired.
Examples
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他为了这个项目，最近真是疲于奔命。
ta wei le zhe ge xiangmu, zuijin zhen shi pi yu ben ming
He's been running around like crazy for this project lately.
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自从接手这个项目后，他就一直疲于奔命，身心俱疲。
congci jieshou zhe ge xiangmu hou, ta jiu yizhi pi yu ben ming, shenshen ju pi
Since taking on this project, he's been running around non-stop, exhausted.
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为了赶上deadline, 她最近疲于奔命，几乎没有休息时间。
wei le gan shang deadline, ta zuijin pi yu ben ming, jihu meiyou xiuxi shijian
To meet the deadline, she's been running around non-stop recently and has almost no time to rest.