穷鬼套餐

Literally 'poor ghost combo meal,' this meme refers to the art of squeezing maximum enjoyment out of minimum spending — think ordering the cheapest item on the menu just to snag free Wi-Fi, or stacking every discount coupon known to humanity. Chinese young people adopted it as a badge of sardonic pride, reclaiming budget living as a lifestyle choice rather than a source of shame. It's less about being broke and more about being cleverly, defiantly frugal.

Emerging amid China's post-pandemic economic slowdown and youth unemployment pressures, the term resonated with a generation facing soaring living costs and dim job prospects. Rather than aspiring to conspicuous consumption, many young Chinese pivoted to 'consumption downgrade' (消费降级), and 穷鬼套餐 became a humorous shorthand for that collective shift — turning financial constraint into an internet-savvy identity.

指以最低消费换取最大满足感的省钱组合，年轻人自嘲消费能力有限的流行说法。