It is difficult to stop riding a tiger
Used to indicate that a situation is extremely difficult to remain in, but that because of the nature of the situation, one cannot extricate themselves from it
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骑虎难下的陆蕴轩等人为了完成军令，不得不硬着头皮向日军发动攻击 | Qíhǔnánxià de Lù Yùnxuān děng rén wéile wánchéng jūnlìng, bùdé bù yìngzhe tóupí xiàng rìjūn fādòng gōngjí
In order to complete the military orders, Lu Xuanyuan and the others had no alternative but to force themselves to attack the Japanese
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你是个聪明人，怎会把自己逼入骑虎难下的窘境中 | Nǐ shì gè cōngmíng rén, zěn huì bǎ zìjǐ bīrù qíhǔnánxià de jiǒngjìng zhōng
You're pretty smart, so how did you manage to get yourself into a situation that's so difficult?
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The chengyu originally was about riding a "beast." The beast evolved into a tiger over time.
《晋书》(Jìn Shū), a work documenting the history of the Jìn Dynasty (晋, 265 - 420). It was written by Táng Dynasty (唐, 618 - 907) historian 房玄龄 (Fáng Xuán Líng)
In the year 328, the Eastern Jìn (东晋, 317 - 420) general 苏峻 (Sū Jùn) launched a rebellion against the court. A high-ranking court minister named 温峤 (Wēn Jiào) gathered several armies to try and counter the onslaught, but unfortunately, the joint forces repeatedly suffered defeats and difficulties.
Eventually, the situation grew so dire that the general leading the joint armies, 陶侃 (Táo Kǎn), told that 温峤 that he doubted success would be possible. 温峤 quickly told him, "Under the current circumstances, retreat is not possible. It's like trying to stop riding a wild beast -- the only way to do so is to ensure it is dead." Hearing this, 陶侃 mustered his fighting strength, and in the end, they were able to successfully put down the rebellion.