墊腳石

Simplified: 垫脚石

diànjiǎoshí ㄉㄧㄢˋ ㄐㄧㄠˇ ㄕˊ

    • stepping stone
    • fig. person used to advance one's career

Character by character

Saying俗语俗語

Idiom惯用语 · In everyday use

Literally
stepping stone
Meaning
A person or thing used to climb upward, often at someone else's expense. Compare 'stepping stone', which is often neutral in English; the Chinese is usually critical.

Sources