ChinesePod

1 lit. there is heaven above, and there is 蘇杭|苏杭[Sū Háng] below (idiom)
2 fig. the beauty and affluence of Suzhou and Hangzhou is comparable with heaven

上有政策，下有对策

shàng yǒu zhèng cè , xià yǒu duì cè

1 The higher ups have policies while the lower downs have their own ways of getting around them. (idiom)

Sample Sentences

说是这么说，但开始工作以后，就没有办法像以前一样把每部入围的片子都看过一遍，像今年，只看了呼声比较高的几部，有时都不好意思说自己是影痴了。

shuō shì zhèmeshuō ，dàn kāishǐ gōngzuò yǐhòu ，jiù méiyǒu bànfǎ xiàng yǐqián yīyàng bǎ měi bù rùwéi de piānzi dōu kàn guò yī biàn ，xiàng jīnnián ，zhī kàn le hūshēng bǐjiào gāo de jǐ bù ，yǒushí dōu bùhǎoyìsi shuō zìjǐ shì yǐngchī le 。

Although you say that, after starting work, I haven't been able to watch every single nominated film like before. Like this year, I only saw the films that had the most hype around them. Sometimes I feel unworthy to call myself a film nerd.

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强调“事与愿违”，客观情况与本身主观意愿相违背，想做但是没做到，觉得自己努力过了可是受到环境限制，没有办法，但是听起来也有种推卸责任、消极被动的感觉。

qiángdiào “shì yǔ yuàn wéi ”，kèguān qíngkuàng yǔ běnshēn zhǔguān yìyuàn xiāng wéi bèi ，xiǎngzuò dànshì méi zuò dào ，juéde zìjǐ nǔlì guò le kěshì shòudào huánjìng xiànzhì ，méiyǒu bànfǎ ，dànshì tīng qǐlai yě yǒu zhǒng tuīxiè zérèn 、xiāo jí bèidòng de gǎnjué 。

Emphasising the fact that "things turn out contrary to the way one wishes them to happen", the objective situation is different to the subjective will. You want to do it, but you can't. You feel as if you have tried, but the situation has prevented you from doing it. There is nothing you can do about it. But it can sound like you are passing the buck or quite passive about the situation.

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说是这样说，难道是人民叫政府去举债乱花钱吗？你叫人民加税，那你有办法给他工作吗？

shuōshìzhèyàngshuō ，nándào shì rénmín jiào zhèngfǔ qù jǔzhài luàn huāqián ma ？nǐ jiào rénmín jiā shuì ，nà nǐ yǒubànfǎ gěi tā gōngzuò ma ？

You can say that, but it wasn't the people that told the government to borrow money and squander it away. If you raise the taxes for people, can you even manage to give them a job?

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李叔你神通广大，一定有办法的，你替我去上面疏通疏通，行吗？行吗？

Lǐshú nǐ shéntōngguǎngdà ，yídìng yǒubànfǎ de ，nǐ tì wǒ qù shàngmian shūtōng shūtōng ，xíng ma ？xíng ma ？

Li Shu, you're skills are unparalleled, you can find a way. Can't you go try work something out with the top brass for me, OK? OK?

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说实话，我真的已经没有办法了。

shuō shíhuà ，wǒ zhēn de yǐjīng méiyǒu bànfǎ le 。

To tell the truth, I really don't have any solution.

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不好意思，我们也没有办法。

bùhǎoyìsi ，wǒmen yě méiyǒu bànfǎ 。

I'm sorry, but there's no way.

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