Fish in Troubled Waters

Guāndù bīngbài zhīhòu, Yuán Shào yōufèn-chéngjí, bùjiǔ biàn bìngshì, liúxià liǎng ge érzi Yuán Tán yǔ Yuán Shàng zhēngduó tā de jīyè.

After the defeat at Guandu, Yuan Shao fell ill from grief and shame and soon died, leaving his two sons Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang to fight over his legacy.

Xiōngdì èr rén gè yōngyǒu yí pài shìlì, hù bù xiāngràng, Héběi yídùn xiànrù nèiluàn.

The two brothers each commanded their own faction and refused to yield, plunging the region of Hebei into civil strife.

Shuí yě méiyǒu xiǎngdào, yuǎn zài Huánghé yǐnán de Cáo Cāo, zhèng lěngyǎn-pángguān zhè chǎng nèihòng, děngdài hùnshuǐ-mōyú de zuìjiā shíjī.

No one imagined that Cao Cao, far away south of the Yellow River, was watching this feud coldly, waiting for the perfect moment to fish in troubled waters.

Guǒrán, dāng Yuán Tán bèi Yuán Shàng jībài, zǒutóu-wúlù shí, jìngrán pài rén xiàng Cáo Cāo qiúyuán, Cáo Cāo dàxǐ-guòwàng.

Sure enough, when Yuan Tan was beaten by Yuan Shang and had nowhere to turn, he sent to Cao Cao for help — and Cao Cao was overjoyed.

Cáo Cāo biǎomiàn shàng chūbīng xiāngzhù, àndìlǐ què chèn Yuánshì xiōngdì zìxiāng-cánshā, yílù běishàng, bīngbùxuèrèn de jiēguǎn le dàpiàn chéngchí.

Outwardly Cao Cao rode to the rescue, but in secret he used the brothers' mutual slaughter to march north, taking over vast stretches of cities virtually without bloodshed.

Děngdào Yuánshì xiōngdì zhōngyú xǐngwù guòlái, xiǎng yào liánshǒu dǐkàng, wéishí-yǐwǎn.

By the time the Yuan brothers finally woke up and tried to join forces, it was already too late.

Cáojūn shìrú-pòzhú, xiān miè Yuán Tán, zài zhú Yuán Shàng, xīrì xióngjù Héběi de Yuánshì shìlì, zhuǎnyǎn jiān tǔbēng-wǎjiě.

Cao's army swept all before them — destroying Yuan Tan and driving out Yuan Shang — and the mighty Yuan clan that once dominated Hebei crumbled to dust in the blink of an eye.

Zhè jiù shì “Hùnshuǐ-mōyú” de miàochù: dírén zìjǐ jiǎohún le shuǐ, nǐ zhǐ guǎn cóngróng xiàwǎng, biàn néng zuòshōu-yúlì.

Such is the genius of “fishing in troubled waters”: the enemy muddies the water himself, and you have only to cast your net at leisure to gather the catch.

Huígù zhěngge guòchéng, Cáo Cāo jīhū wèi fèi dàlì, jiù bǎ duìshǒu duōnián jīlěi de jiādǐ jùwéi-jǐyǒu.

Looking back at the whole affair, Cao Cao spent little effort and yet made the fruits of his enemy's many years of toil entirely his own.

Suǒwèi “Hùnshuǐ-mōyú”, biàn shì chèn duìshǒu nèiluàn huò shìchǎng dòngdàng zhī jì, lěngjìng chūshǒu, yǐ zuìxiǎo de dàijià huòqǔ zuìdà de lìyì.

“Fishing in troubled waters” means calmly making your move when a rival is in turmoil or a market is in upheaval, gaining the greatest benefit at the least cost.

Bǐrú mǒu hángyè yīn zhèngcè biànhuà xiànrù xǐpái, tóngháng fēnfēn zìgù-bùxiá, zhèshí ruò yǒu qǐyè qiǎorán shōugòu yōuzhì zīchǎn, biàn néng hòulái-jūshàng.

For instance, when an industry is reshuffled by new rules and rivals are too busy saving themselves, a company that quietly buys up quality assets can leap to the front of the pack.

Tā de zhìhuì zàiyú: dàluàn zhī zhōng fāng yǒu dà jī, dàn qiántí shì bǎochí lěngjìng de tóunǎo, ér bú shì gēnzhe biérén yìqǐ xiā pūteng.

Its wisdom: great chaos holds great opportunity — provided you keep a cool head, rather than thrashing about like everyone else.