"Snipes and mussels fight for the fisherman's profit" is a Chinese idiom which tells us that we should not only focus on the immediate benefits, but also weigh the gains and losses, and see the longer-term benefits.

Chinese idiom explains: snipe: long-billed waterfowl; mussel: mollusk with shell. It is a metaphor for the two sides arguing and losing, letting a third party take advantage of the situation.

Chinese idiom source: Western Han Dynasty - Liu Xiang "State of war policy - Yan policy two": "Zhao and cut down Yan, Su Dai for Yan said the king of Hui: "Today I come, over the water, mussels out of the exposure, and the sandpiper pecked at the meat, mussels and clamped its beak. The snipe said, "'If it doesn't rain today, and if it doesn't rain tomorrow, there will be a dead clam.' The clam also says to the snipe, 'If you don't come out today, if you don't come out tomorrow, you'll have a dead snipe.' The two refused to part with each other, so the fisherman got them and captured them. Now Zhao is attacking Yan, and Yan and Zhao have been attacking each other for a long time, so as to bring the masses to a halt, and I am afraid that the strong Qin will do so."

Chinese idiom story：The king of Zhao was about to attack the state of Yan, and Su Dai went to persuade the king of Zhao for the state of Yan, saying, "When I came here this time, I passed through the Yishui River, and (saw) a mussel basking in the sun with its shell open. A sandpiper reached out to peck at the mussel's flesh. The mussel hastened to close its shell and clamped down on the snipe's beak. Then the snipe said, 'If it doesn't rain today and tomorrow, you will die.' The mussel also said to the snipe, 'If I don't let go of you today, and if I don't let go of you tomorrow, you will die!' Neither of the two would let go. When the fisherman saw this, he caught them both together. Now Zhao is going to attack Yan, and Yan and Zhao are at loggerheads, and as the days go by, the strength of both sides is very much depleted. I am afraid that the mighty Qin will become a "fisherman" in the battle between the snipers and the clams. Therefore, I hope that the king will consider it carefully." Hearing this, King Hui came to a sudden realization and said, "That makes sense!" So he stopped his attack on Yan.