Are Graduates Too Proud, or Have Employers Put On the Emperor's Robes?

For years, struggling Chinese graduates have been accused of refusing to remove “Kong Yiji’s long gown”: holding onto the status expectations of a university education instead of accepting ordinary work.

A viral RedNote sentence reversed the accusation.

“It is not that university students cannot take off the long gown. Recruitment companies have put on the emperor’s dragon robe.”

The line drew nearly 57,000 likes because users recognized a job market in which small companies imitate elite employers’ demands without offering elite pay.

Experienced talent at beginner prices

The highest-ranked comment summarized the desired candidate: companies want experience but only want to pay the no-experience rate.

Screenshots supplied examples. One role preferred overseas education and a bachelor’s degree, demanded writing and event-planning skills, limited women by age and appearance, and offered 4,000 yuan during probation and 5,000 after confirmation.

Another listing said candidates could have no experience but must possess relevant work experience.

A position advertised as “easy” promised more than 30,000 yuan a month, regular company team-building and additional weekly team-building. A user noticed the manager sent the message after 8 p.m. despite describing a 6 p.m. finish.

The robe was not subtle.

Recruitment as ceremonial power

The dragon-robe metaphor argues that some employers no longer present work as an exchange. They present access to work as an imperial favor.

One screenshot stated the attitude directly: if you refuse, someone else will do it. The accompanying commentary noted that this sentence abandons the language of mutual selection. The company has converted a labor contract into an act of grace.

Users questioned the screening system as well. A long comment argued that low-paid, undertrained human-resources staff were expected to identify talent from piles of résumés even when they lacked the professional judgment to understand the work.

The result can be two simultaneous crises: employers insist they cannot find suitable people, while applicants insist no suitable work exists.

The gown and robe can coexist

The reversal does not prove that every graduate has realistic expectations or every employer is unreasonable. It corrects a story that placed the entire adjustment burden on applicants.

Education expanded partly because society promised that credentials would lead to better work. Employers then raised credential requirements for roles whose pay did not rise with them. When graduates hesitate, they are told their dignity is costume.

The viral sentence asks readers to inspect the costume on the other side of the interview table.

A small company may have every right to seek an excellent candidate. The comments ask whether it can demand a multinational résumé, startup endurance, executive loyalty and eight years of experience while offering the salary of a beginner.

The emperor is free to post the vacancy.

The applicants are increasingly willing to say they can see his clothes.