Mén qián shuānzhe bǒjiǎo lǘ, jiùshì zhìqīn yě bù qīn.

門前拴著跛腳驢, 就是至親也不親。

Lit [When one has a] lame donkey tied in front of [one's] door, even close relatives become like strangers.

Fig When you are poor, even your close relatives won't visit you. “Nobody knows you when you're down and out.”

Note [See also jǐnshàng-tiānhuā above and pín jū nàoshì and qián jìn, qíngyì jué and yǒuqián shǐde guǐ and yǒuqián yǒu jiǔ below.]

Topics FAIR-WEATHER POVERTY RELATIVES