This is the backstory behind the Chinese idiom 鹬蚌相争 yù bàng xiāng zhēng, which translates to “The Sandpiper and the Clam Fight Each Other”, and means “Two parties fight and a third party benefits.”
赵国将要讨伐燕国，苏代(战国时策士，纵横家苏秦的弟弟)替燕国游说赵惠文王，讲了如下的寓言故事:
“我来的时候经过易水，恰好看到蚌出来晒太阳。鹬趁机啄蚌的肉，蚌把两扇介壳一闭就夹住了鹬的喙。鹬说:‘今天不下雨，明天不下雨，就有死蚌。’蚌也针锋相对地说: ‘今天不出，明天不出(夹住不放)，就有死鹬。’两者谁也不肯罢休，这时过来一个渔父把两者一起拎走了。”燕赵相对抗，都搞得很疲劳，我恐怕强大的秦国正在扮演渔父的角色，所以希望大王深思熟虑。
惠文王赞同苏代的意见，停止对燕国用兵。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 赵 | zhǎo | surname Zhao; the Former Zhao 前趙|前赵[Qian2 Zhao4] (304–329) and Later Zhao 後趙|后赵[Hou4 Zhao4] (319–350), states of the Sixteen Kingdoms |
| 国 | Guó | surname Guo |
| 将要 | jiāng yào | will; shall; to be going to |
| 讨 | tǎo | to invite; to provoke; to demand or ask for; to send armed forces to suppress; to denounce or condemn; to marry (a woman); to discuss or study |
| 伐 | fá | to cut down; to fell; to dispatch an expedition against; to attack; to boast; Taiwan pr. [fa1] |
| 燕国 | Yān guó | Yan, a vassal state of Zhou in modern Hebei and Liaoning; north Hebei; the four Yan kingdoms of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Yan 前燕[Qian2 Yan1] (337-370), Later Yan 後燕|后燕[H… |
| 苏 | sū | used in 嚕囌|噜苏[lu1 su1]; variant of 蘇|苏[su1]; to revive; surname Su; abbr. for Soviet Union 蘇維埃|苏维埃[Su1 wei2 ai1] or 蘇聯|苏联[Su1 lian2]; abbr. for Jiangsu 江蘇|江苏[Jiang1 su1]; abbr. for Suzhou 蘇州|苏州[Su1 zhou1]; old variant of 蘇|苏[su1] |
| 代 | dài | to be a substitute for; to act on behalf of; to replace; to substitute; generation; dynasty; age; period; (historical) era; (geological) eon |
| 战国 | Zhàn guó | the Warring States period (475-221 BC) |
| 时 | shí | old variant of 時|时[shi2]; surname Shi |
| 策士 | cè shì | strategist; counsellor on military strategy |
| 纵 | zǒng | vertical; north-south (Taiwan pr. [zong1]); military unit corresponding to an army corps (Taiwan pr. [zong1]); to indulge; (literary) even if |
| 横 | héng | horizontal; across; crosswise; horizontal stroke (in Chinese characters); to place (sth) flat (on a surface); to cross (a river, etc); in a jumble; chaotic; (in fixed expressions) … |
| 家 | jiā | used in 傢伙|家伙[jia1 huo5] and 傢俱|家俱[jia1 ju4]; home; family; (polite) my (sister, uncle etc); classifier for families or businesses; refers to the philosophical schools of pre-Han China; noun suffix for a specialist in some act… |
| 秦 | qīn | surname Qin; short name for 陝西|陕西[Shan3 xi1] |
| 的 | de | of; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); (used after a noun, verb or adjective to… |
| 弟弟 | dì di | younger brother; CL:個|个[ge4],位[wei4] |
| 替 | tǐ | to substitute for; to replace; on behalf of |
| 游 | Yóu | surname You; to walk; to tour; to roam; to travel |
| 说 | shuì | to persuade; variant of 說|说[shuo1] |
| 惠 | huǐ | favor; kindness; benefit; to benefit; surname Hui |
| 文 | Wén | surname Wen |
| 王 | Wáng | surname Wang |
| 讲 | jiǎng | to speak; to explain; to negotiate; to emphasize; to be particular about; as far as sth is concerned; speech; lecture |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (bound form) clear in one's mind; to understand clearly |
| 如下 | rú xià | as follows |
| 寓 | yǔ | (bound form) to reside; to inhabit; (bound form) to imply; to place; to contain (sth abstract) |
| 言 | yán | words; speech; to say; to talk |
| 故事 | gù shì | old practice |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 来 | lái | to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来[hui2 lai5]); ever since (as in 自古以來|自古以来[zi4 gu3… |
| 候 | hòu | to wait; to inquire after; to watch; season; climate; (old) period of five days |
| 经过 | jīng guò | to pass; to go through; process; course; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 易 | Yì | surname Yi; I Ching; Book of Changes (abbr. for 易經|易经[Yi4 jing1]) |
| 水 | Shuǐ | surname Shui; Shui ethnic group |
| 恰 | qiǎ | exactly |
| 好看 | hǎo kàn | good-looking; nice-looking; (of a movie, book, TV show etc) good; in an embarrassing situation |
| 到 | dào | to reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoug… |
| 蚌 | bǎng | mussel; clam |
| 出 | chū | to go out; to come out; to arise; to occur; to produce; to yield; to go beyond; to exceed; (used after a verb to indicate an outward direction or a positive result); classifier for…; variant of 出[chu1] (classifier for plays or chapters of classical novels) |
| 晒太阳 | shài tài yáng | to be in the sun (getting warm or sunbathing etc); to put sth in the sun (e.g. to dry it) |
| 鹬 | ||
| 趁 | chěn | to avail oneself of |
| 机 | Jī | surname Ji |
| 啄 | zhuó | to peck |
| 肉 | ròu | meat; flesh; pulp (of a fruit); (coll.) (of a fruit) squashy; (of a person) flabby; irresolute; Kangxi radical 130 |
| 把 | bǎ | to hold; to grasp; to hold a baby in position to help it urinate or defecate; handlebar; classifier: handful, bundle, bunch; classifier for things with handles; (used to put the ob… |
| 两 | liǎng | two; both; some; a few; tael, unit of weight equal to 50 grams (modern) or 1⁄16 of a catty 斤[jin1] (old) |
| 扇 | shān | to fan; to slap sb on the face |
| 介壳 | jiè qiào | (zoology) shell |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out … |
| 闭 | bì | to close; to stop up; to shut; to obstruct |
| 就 | jìu | (after a suppositional clause) in that case; then; (after a clause of action) as soon as; immediately after; (same as 就是[jiu4 shi4]) merely; nothing else but; simply; just; precise… |
| 夹 | gā | used in 夾肢窩|夹肢窝[ga1 zhi5 wo1]; variant of 夾|夹[jia2] |
| 住 | zhù | to live; to reside; to stay; to stop; to cease; (result complement indicating firmness or a stable achieved state) |
| 喙 | ||
| 今天 | jīn tiān | today; the present time; now |
| 不下 | bù xià | to be not less than (a certain quantity, amount etc) |
| 雨 | yǔ | rain; CL:陣|阵[zhen4],場|场[chang2] |
| 明天 | míng tiān | tomorrow |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 死 | sǐ | to die; impassable; uncrossable; inflexible; rigid; extremely; damned |
| 也 | Yě | surname Ye |
| 针 | zhēn | needle; pin; injection; stitch; CL:根[gen1],支[zhi1]; variant of 針|针[zhen1], needle |
| 锋 | fēng | point of a spear; edge of a tool; vanguard; forward (in sports team) |
| 相对 | xiāng duì | relatively; opposite; to resist; to oppose; relative; vis-a-vis; counterpart |
| 地 | de | -ly; structural particle: used before a verb or adjective, linking it to preceding modifying adverbial adjunct |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 放 | fàng | to put; to place; to release; to free; to let go; to let out; to set off (fireworks) |
| 两者 | liǎng zhě | both of them; the two of them |
| 谁 | shéi | who; also pr. [shui2] |
| 肯 | kěn | old variant of 肯[ken3]; to agree; to consent; to be willing to |
| 罢休 | bà xīu | to give up; to abandon (a goal etc); to let sth go; forget it; let the matter drop |
| 这时 | zhè shí | at this time; at this moment |
| 过 | Guō | surname Guo |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 渔 | yú | fisherman; to fish |
| 父 | fù | (bound form) father; (bound form) male relative of father's generation (as in 伯父[bo2 fu4]); (computing) (bound form) parent- |
| 一起 | yī qǐ | (in) the same place; together; in company (with); altogether; in total; an instance of; a case of (murder, accident, dispute etc) |
| 拎 | ||
| 走 | zǒu | to walk; to go; to run; to move (of vehicle); to visit; to leave; to go away; to die (euph.); from; through; away (in compound verbs, such as 撤走[che4 zou3]); to change (shape, form… |
| 燕 | Yān | Yan, a vassal state of Zhou in present-day Hebei and Liaoning; north Hebei; the four Yan kingdoms of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Yan 前燕[Qian2 Yan1] (337–370), Later Yan 後燕…; variant of 燕[yan4] |
| 抗 | kǎng | to resist; to defy |
| 都 | Dū | surname Du |
| 搞 | gǎo | to do; to make; to go in for; to set up; to get hold of; to take care of |
| 得很 | de hěn | (after an adjective) very |
| 疲劳 | pí láo | fatigue; wearily; weariness; weary |
| 恐 | kóng | afraid; to fear |
| 怕 | Pà | surname Pa |
| 强 | qiāng | strong; powerful; vigorous; better; to force (qiang3); stubborn (jiang4); surname Qiang |
| 大 | dà | big; large; great; older (than another person); eldest (as in 大姐[da4 jie3]); greatly; freely; fully; (dialect) father; (dialect) uncle (father's brother) |
| 正 | zhēng | first month of the lunar year |
| 在 | zài | to exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress) |
| 扮 | bǎn | to disguise oneself as; to play (a role) |
| 演 | yǎn | to perform (a play etc); to stage (a show); (bound form) to develop; to play out; to carry out (a task) |
| 角色 | jué sè | role; part (in a play or movie etc); also pr. [jiao3se4] |
| 所以 | suǒ yǐ | therefore; as a result; so; the reason why |
| 希 | xī | to hope; to admire; variant of 稀[xi1] |
| 望 | wàng | full moon; to hope; to expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); to look towards; towards; 15th day of month (lunar calendar); old variant of 望[wang4] |
| 大王 | dà wáng | king; magnate; person having expert skill in something |
| 深 | shēn | old variant of 深[shen1]; (lit. and fig.) deep |
| 思 | sī | to think; to consider |
| 熟虑 | shú lu:4 | careful thought |
| 赞同 | zàn tóng | variant of 贊同|赞同[zan4 tong2] |
| 意见 | yì jiàn | idea; opinion; suggestion; objection; complaint; CL:點|点[dian3],條|条[tiao2] |
| 停 | tíng | to stop; to halt; to park (a car) |
| 止 | zhǐ | to stop; to prohibit; until; only |
| 对 | duì | right; correct; towards; at; for; concerning; regarding; to treat (sb a certain way); to face; (bound form) opposite; facing; matching; to match together; to adjust; to fit; to sui… |
| 用 | yòng | to use; to make use of; to employ; (coverb) with; using; to need; to have to (usu. used in the negative or in questions); usefulness; utility; (bound form) expense; outlay; (courte… |
| 兵 | bing | soldiers; an army; arms; warlike |
The Zhao State was taking up arms against the Yan State, and Su Dai (a military strategist during the Warring States period, and little brother to Su Qin of the School of Diplomacy) traveled to speak with King HuiWen of Zhao on behalf of the Yan State, and he told the following fable:
“When I was coming here I passed over some gentle water, and by chance I happened to see a clam sunning itself. A sandpiper seized the opportunity to peck at the clam’s meat, but the clam slammed the two wings of its hard shell shut on the sandpiper’s beak. The sandpiper said, ‘Today it won’t rain, tomorrow it won’t rain, and there will be one dead clam!’ The clam gave as good as he got, saying: ‘I won’t come out today, I won’t come out tomorrow (so your beak won’t be free), and there will be one dead sandpiper!’ Neither party was willing to give up, and at this time, a fisherman scooped them both up and carried them off. If Yan and Zhao oppose each other, we’ll both fight ourselves weary. I’m afraid the strong Qin State is playing the role of the fisherman, so I hope that your majesty will carefully deliberate on this matter.”
King HuiWen approved of SuDai’s message, and stopped using armed forces against the Yan State.