大夫开棺材铺，死活都要钱大夫開棺材鋪，死活都要錢大夫開棺材鋪，死活都要錢

a doctor opens a coffin shop: dead or alive, he wants money

Saying俗语俗語

Two-part saying歇后语歇後語 · Rarely used now

Meaning: Mocks someone who makes money whatever happens. Sarcastic and critical of greed.
Wordplay: 死活 (sǐhuó) means literally 'dead or alive' and also 'in any case', so the doctor profits whether the patient lives or dies.

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Simplified: 大夫开棺材铺，死活都要钱
Traditional (Taiwan): 大夫開棺材鋪，死活都要錢
Pinyin: dàifu kāi guāncai pù, sǐhuó dōu yàoqián
Pinyin (Taiwan): dàifu kāi guāncai pū, sǐhuó dōu yàoqián
Bopomofo: ㄉㄞˋ ˙ㄈㄨㄎㄞㄍㄨㄢ ˙ㄘㄞㄆㄨ，ㄙˇ ㄏㄨㄛˊ ㄉㄡㄧㄠˋ ㄑㄧㄢˊ

Written with HSK 7-9 vocabulary, at CEFR level C1.

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