It's better to settle for the second best and be lenient. You stand by in the pond and watch the fish swim happily in the water, imagining the scene after the fish is hooked. It's better to go back and try to make a fishing net to catch fish and make your wish come true.
It means that instead of empty envy and only desire, it is better to start work and make real efforts, and it is better to settle for the second best and be lenient. The whole word means: face; Deep: the water is very deep; Envy: I hope to get it. It means that if you want to stand by the water and fish, you might as well go home and weave a net. Metaphor only wishes without measures are not good for things. Or, metaphorically speaking, just want to get it but don't put it into action.
Extended data:
Huai Nan Zi is a collection of essays written by Liu An, the king of Huainan, at the turn of Emperor Jing and Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty. Liu An (BC 179 BC 122) was the son of Chang Lu, the youngest son of Liu Bang, the Emperor Gaozu. Li, the king of Huainan, was convicted of "conspiracy" and died of hunger strike during his migration. After that, the fief of Li, the king of Huainan, was divided into three parts, and Liu An was made the king of Huainan. Liu An has sent a number of guests to do this, including many scholars. * * * Editor-in-Chief of Huai Nan Zi.
Among them, the inner part is 2 1 chapter, the outer part is 33 chapters, the middle part is 8 volumes, and the abstract is the preface of the whole book. Judging from the outline, the writing of the whole book has a unified plan and arrangement. But from the content point of view, it is not completely unified. It is reasonable to list it as a "saint" in History of Han Arts and Literature. In addition to Taoism, the contents of the book also include Confucianism, Legalism and Yin and Yang. Mr. Fan Wenlan said that Huainanzi is based on Taoism, but it is eclectic and "still shows a certain tendency of integration."