韭菜
释义 DEFINITION
韭菜（jiǔ cài）原指百合科葱属的多年生草本植物，作为蔬菜广泛食用。但在互联网语境中，这个词已演变为：
- 【金融领域】指在资本市场反复被机构投资者收割的散户投资者
- 【泛商业场景】形容被商家持续榨取价值的消费者群体
- 【职场文化】隐喻被动接受压榨却不离职的打工人
目前90%以上的网络使用场景都采用其隐喻含义，特别在讨论股市、加密货币、P2P暴雷等事件时高频出现。
词源故事 ETYMOLOGY
这个黑色幽默的比喻起源于2015年中国股灾。当时A股从5178点暴跌期间，有分析师在电视节目中说："机构要吃饭，散户就是韭菜，割完一茬还会长新的"。这段露骨的发言被股民截图疯传，从此"韭菜"完成语义蜕变。
2018年P2P连环暴雷期间，这个词完成第一次语义扩展。投资者在维权群里自嘲："我们不仅是韭菜，还是有机韭菜——被不同平台轮着割"。此时"割韭菜"三字已包含金融收割、监管缺位、维权无门等多重愤怒。
2020年后，该词突破金融圈层进入日常语境。当奶茶店推行"充500送50"的会员制时，年轻人在社交媒体调侃："韭菜新形态——盆栽韭菜，养在店里随时薅"。职场中也开始出现类似表达："老板的KPI镰刀又来割我们这些老韭菜了"。
典型例句：
"比特币跌破3万了，币圈老哥又在天台排队？"
"习惯就好，加密货币本来就是跨国韭菜农场"
DEFINITION
The term "jiu cai" (literally "leek vegetable") has become China's most vivid financial metaphor:
- In stock markets, it describes retail investors who keep losing money to institutional players - like leeks that regrow after being cut, these small investors often re-enter the market after losses.
- In consumer contexts, it refers to loyal customers constantly monetized by businesses through subscription models or repetitive purchases.
- Culturally, it reflects the resignation of those who recognize exploitation but feel powerless to escape systemic traps, similar to the 'crab mentality' metaphor in Western cultures.
ETYMOLOGY
The metaphor originated during China's 2015 stock market crash, when a securities analyst bluntly stated on live TV: "Institutions need to eat, retail investors are just leeks - they'll grow back after being cut." This shocking analogy went viral, with devastated investors adopting "leek" as a badge of bitter humor.
The term gained new dimensions during China's 2018 P2P lending crisis. As platforms collapsed wiping out $150 billion, protesters coined the phrase "premium organic leeks" to describe being harvested by multiple platforms. Memes emerged comparing financial regulators to "lazy gardeners" allowing repeated harvesting.
By 2020, the metaphor transcended finance. When bubble tea shops introduced aggressive loyalty programs, Gen Z consumers joked about becoming "potted leeks - bred in stores for constant trimming". Office workers now describe impossible KPIs as "corporate sickles sharpening for the annual harvest".
Cultural insight: This persistent agricultural metaphor reflects deep-rooted Chinese collective memory of famine cycles, now repurposed to critique modern capitalism's exploitative patterns.