“虾米” [xia mi, small dried shrimp]

It's like looking for that 'silver lining' in the cloud - there is none - you're wasting your life's time doing so.  There are no silver linings.  I hear such things as "Every bad situation has some good aspect to it." This proverb is usually said as an encouragement to a person who happens to overcome by some difficulty and is unable to see any positive way forward."  You don't make good cookie dough out of bad cookie dough.  You've got to throw the bad cookie dough and start again - stop trying to mentally or physically manipulate or create something good out of it - there is none - there is no god horse - it's a pun - it's a joke!  All there is is a small, dried up, stale piece of sea-carcass.