To get a bad name or suffer trouble without having gained any benefit, implying one is unjustly implicated or suffers a negative consequence for something they didn't fully participate in or profit from.
他只是帮忙传了个话，结果两边都来责怪他，真是没吃羊肉空惹一身膻
He only helped deliver a message, but both sides ended up blaming him. It was a classic case of not eating the mutton but still getting covered in its smell, suffering trouble without any gain.
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