鱼死网破 Yú sǐ wǎng pò fish-or-cut-bait

Explanation

比喻双方争斗，不顾一切，拼个你死我活。

It describes a situation where both sides fight fiercely, regardless of the consequences, until one side is completely defeated.

Origin Story

话说很久以前，在一个偏僻的小村庄里，住着两位老渔民。他们世代以捕鱼为生，世代相传的捕鱼技巧使得他们的渔获总比别人多，自然而然地，彼此间也存在着竞争，竞争日益激烈。一天，两位老渔民同时撒网捕鱼，发现这次捕获的鱼竟然一样多，两人都十分生气，互相指责对方作弊，两人争吵不休，最后决定进行一场鱼死网破的比拼，看谁能捕到更多的鱼，谁就是赢家，输家就退出这片海域。于是他们约定在第二天日出时，同时开始捕鱼，比拼持续到日落。这一天，他们两人都使出了浑身解数，为了多捕鱼，不惜一切代价，两人拼尽全力捕鱼，一直持续到日落。最终，结果出乎意料，他们捕获的鱼的数量几乎一样多。两败俱伤，他们都精疲力尽，意识到争斗并不能带来真正的利益，只会导致两败俱伤。最后他们决定握手言和，共同维护这片海域的生态平衡，一起守护这片他们赖以生存的海域。从此以后，他们相处的越来越和谐，并分享彼此的捕鱼经验，共同维护这片海域的繁荣昌盛。

huì shuō hěn jiǔ yǐqián, zài yīgè piānpì de xiǎocūn zhuāng lǐ, zhù zhe liǎng wèi lǎo yúmín. tāmen shìdài yǐ bǔ yú wéi shēng, shìdài xiāngchuán de bǔ yú jìqiǎo shǐde tāmen de yúhuò zǒng bǐ biérén duō, zìrán'éryán de, bǐcǐ jiān yě cúnzài zhe jìngzhēng, jìngzhēng rìyì jīliè. yī tiān, liǎng wèi lǎo yúmín tóngshí sā wǎng bǔ yú, fāxiàn zhè cì bǔhuò de yú jìngrán yīyàng duō, liǎng rén dōu shífēn shēngqì, hùxiāng zhǐzé duìfāng zuòbì, liǎng rén zhēngchǎo bùxiū, zuìhòu juédìng jìnxíng yī chǎng yú sǐ wǎng pò de bǐpīn, kàn shuí néng bǔ dào gèng duō de yú, shuí jiùshì yíngjiā, shūjiā jiù tuìchū zhè piàn hǎiyù. yúshì tāmen yuēdìng zài dì'èr tiān rì chū shí, tóngshí kāishǐ bǔ yú, bǐpīn chíxù dào rìluò. zhè yī tiān, tāmen liǎng rén dōu shǐ chū le hūnshēn jiěshù, wèile duō bǔ yú, bù xī yīqiè dàijià, liǎng rén pīn jìn quánlì bǔ yú, yīzhí chíxù dào rìluò. zuìzhōng, jiéguǒ chūhū yìliào, tāmen bǔhuò de yú de shùliàng jīhū yīyàng duō. liǎng bài jū shāng, tāmen dōu jīngpí jìn jìn, yìshí dào zhēngdòu bìng bù néng dài lái zhēnzhèng de lìyì, zhǐ huì dǎozhì liǎng bài jū shāng. zuìhòu tāmen juédìng wòshǒu yánhé, gòngtóng wéihù zhè piàn hǎiyù de shēngtài pínghéng, yīqǐ shǒuhù zhè piàn tāmen làiyǐ shēngcún de hǎiyù. cóngcǐ yǐhòu, tāmen xiāngchǔ de yuè lái yuè héxié, bìng fēnxiǎng bǐcǐ de bǔ yú jīngyàn, gòngtóng wéihù zhè piàn hǎiyù de fánróng chāngshèng.

Once upon a time, in a remote village, there lived two old fishermen. They had made their living by fishing for generations, and their traditional fishing techniques always resulted in larger catches than others. This led to a fierce competition between them. One day, they cast their nets simultaneously and were shocked to discover that their catches were almost identical. Furious, they accused each other of cheating and their quarrel escalated. Finally, they agreed on a 'fish-or-cut-bait' competition to see who could catch more fish. The loser would have to leave the fishing grounds. The next day, at dawn, they began their competition, fishing relentlessly until sunset. Both men gave it their all, using every trick they knew to increase their catches. However, the result was unexpected – they caught nearly the same amount of fish. Exhausted and bruised, they realized that their competition had only led to mutual destruction. They decided to reconcile, agreeing to work together to maintain the ecological balance of their fishing grounds. From that day on, they lived in harmony, sharing their knowledge and preserving the prosperity of their fishing grounds.

Usage

通常用作谓语，有时也作宾语；形容双方争斗，决一死战。

tōngcháng yòng zuò wèiyǔ, yǒushí yě zuò bǐnyǔ; xíngróng shuāngfāng zhēngdòu, jué yī sǐ zhàn.

It's usually used as a predicate, sometimes as an object; it describes a fierce fight to the death.

Examples

• 两家公司为了争夺市场份额，最终闹到了鱼死网破的地步。

  liǎng jiā gōngsī wèile zhēngduó shìchǎng fèn'é, zuìzhōng nào dào le yú sǐ wǎng pò de dìbù.

  The two companies fought fiercely for market share, ultimately leading to a complete breakdown of their relationship.

• 面对强敌的步步紧逼，他们决定鱼死网破，放手一搏。

  miànduì qiángdí de bùbù jǐnbī, tāmen juédìng yú sǐ wǎng pò, fàngshǒu yībó.

  Faced with relentless pressure from their rivals, they decided to fight to the death, putting everything on the line for one final showdown.

Related Idioms

• 你死我活

• 同归于尽

• 殊死搏斗

Opposite Idioms

• 和平共处

• 友好相处

• 合作共赢