at sb’s beck and call;be dependent on the whims of others; be slavishly dependent; be an underdog; curry to sb’s every whim ❍ 袁绍孤客穷军，仰我鼻息，譬如婴儿在股掌之上，绝其乳哺，立可饿死。(《三国演义》56) Yuan Shao is a needy man with a hungry army and as dependent on us for existence as an infant in arms on its mother.Stop the flow of milk and the infant dies.
仰人鼻息
be slavishly dependent on others;be at sb’s beck and call
仰人鼻息yǎnɡ rén bì xī
仰：依赖；鼻息：呼吸。依赖着别人的呼吸活下去。比喻依赖别人，不能自立。be slavishly dependent, rely on sb. for a living, at sb.’s beck and call, dependent on the whims of others