This phrase describes the fluctuating nature of how people treat you—warm when you're successful, cold when you're down. It captures the reality that people's attitudes shift with your status and fortune.
This is a common idiom used to express the experience of seeing who your true friends are during hard times. It's often said with a sigh of resignation or a lesson learned.
Chinese people use this to articulate a shared social experience and to validate the feeling of disappointment. It signals a realistic acceptance of human nature and serves as a reminder to value genuine relationships over fair-weather ones.
Draw random cards from hundreds of real Chinese folk sayings and proverbs. Each flip reveals what Chinese people actually mean.
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