dredge for a needle in the sea
Looking for a needle under the water, a Chinese idiom, Pinyin Shu ǐ D ǐ L ā ozh ē n, means fishing for a needle under the water. It comes from Er Lang Shou Zhu Ba Jie by Wu Changling of Yuan Dynasty.
The origin of Idioms
In Yuan Dynasty, Wu Changling's "Er Lang Shou Zhu Ba Jie": Juner Fu looks like looking for a needle in the sea. Marriage is coming. How can he disappear without fate? Until now.
Idiom usage
It means to work in vain. I don't know when I'll get it. How can I be the daughter of a family. ——Awakening the world by Feng Menglong of Ming Dynasty Volume 9
Chinese PinYin : shuǐ dǐ lāo zhēn
dredge for a needle in the sea
take the words too literally. wàng wén shēng yì
be in situations which are very different. nán zhī běi zhī
the only way which must be passed. bì jīng zhī lù