Adapted with permission from Hug China.

Compared to conventional present requests for chocolates, mountain bikes, red envelops stuffed with money, or even miniature Lamborghinis, this one seems the hardest to fulfill: last Spring Holiday, a boy in Qingdao, Shandong province asked his grandfather for a model Liaoning Aircraft Carrier.

Eighty-year-old Wen Yuzhu however, was nonplussed. He spent a month building a miniature aircraft carrier that is 1/25th the size of the real Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier. Wen’s model can’t fight in a real battle of course, but it’s by far bigger than anything in the toy store.

Wen told reporters that the model, currently parked on a Qingdao beach, will be finished by the next rising tide.

World’s best grandpa builds this miniature Liaoning aircraft carrier (Hug China) (Images via Netease)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

Four female students from Wuhan University in Hubei province demonstrated on February 14 to call for respect for sex workers in China.

One student held up a pair of underpants as a metaphor for the Big Underpants building in Beijing, i.e. the headquarters of China Central Television (CCTV), which has been pejoratively called “CCAV” (AV being adult video) by Chinese netizens.

The four students held pictures of blurred female faces to their heads, which they called “mosaics.” The two placards in the above picture read:

Sex jobs are also jobs; sex workers also have dignity.

CCAV needs big underpants; sex workers need mosaics.

The performance art has won the praise of Chinese netizens. Here are the two top comments from NetEase:

Sex workers are by far cleaner and more dignified than CCAV.

What Big Underpants cover up is much dirtier.

Guangdong police arrested 67 people and shut down 12 entertainment venues in a massive raid late Sunday night after CCTV revealed several hotels in Dongguan — China’s “sex capital” — were involved in illegal sex trade.

Both the CCTV program and the nationwide crackdown on prostitution have inspired heated debate, with some human rights advocates calling for the legalization of the world’s oldest occupation in China.

This isn’t the first crackdown on prostitution in China, or the media’s first time reporting about it. But what was particularly galling was that sex workers were exposed without reservation, and some were even shown naked in footage that aired across the country.

Wuhan students perform action art to protest… (Hug China) (Image via Icpress)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

A young man from Hangzhou succeeded in winning the heart of his girlfriend by presenting her 999 roses folded from 200,000 yuan worth of 100-yuan banknotes.

This Chinese Romeo is surnamed Chen and hails from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. When he visited his girlfriend’s home over Chinese New Year, he expressed his desire to marry the woman, but his would-be mother-in-law appeared reluctant because of Chen’s plain economic status.

“Renting an apartment is acceptable before marriage, but marriage without a home isn’t quite appropriate,” the mother apparently said. She went on to intimate that Chen should buy a car since the pair works far from home.

The remark may have irritated Chen, at least to the point of acting like this: he withdrew all his money from the bank, about 200,000 yuan (roughly $33,000), which he had accumulated over five years, and made 999 roses out of the 100-yuan notes. It was to show his strong, sincere desire to marry his girlfriend, and most importantly, it was an expression of his eternal love for her.

The number 9 is a metaphor for eternity in Chinese, while the rose represents love the world over.

It took Chen about five to six minutes to fold each rose, which was made out of two banknotes. He managed to make 300 in two days, then asked friends to help so he could propose to his girlfriend on her birthday on February 12.

His efforts paid off. His girlfriend said yes.

Hangzhou man propses marriage to his girlfriend with 999 roses… (Hug China)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

The mayor of Taizhou, a small city in Jiangsu province, has rejected a netizen’s complaint that his mental health has been damaged by an eye-catching outdoor advert featuring the cleavage of Taiwanese model Lin Chi-ling.

The netizen left his message on the government website of Taizhou city on January 10, signing it “a primary school child.”

The complete message reads:

亲爱的市长大人,我是靖江的一个小学生,靖江文峰大世界的外墙上挂了一幅林志玲的广告,每天经过这里,我会忍不住的看看她的深深的乳沟,晚上回家我经常想这个画面,也会自渎,学习成绩下降的厉害,做作业不专心,请市长帮我,不要再伤害我的身心健康

Dear Mayor, I am a primary school pupil in Jingjiang city (Jiangjiang city is under jurisdiction of Taizhou). There is a Lin Chi-ling advertisement on the outer wall of Wenfeng Big World of Jingjiang. Every day when I pass by this advert, I can’t help looking into her deep cleavage. And in the evening her picture lingers in my brain and I am often filled the desire to masturbate. I have experienced a sharp decline in academic performance in school and I cannot concentrate to study. Mayor, I ask you to help me and do not let Lin Chi-ling’s advertisement continue to hurt my mental health.

This complaint could have been simply ignored, but the mayor of Jingjiang actually replied on January 14:

小学生网友您好！据了解，市工商局现场查看，该广告无明显违反《中华人民共和国广告法》第七条规定，无损害未成年人身心健康的现象，谢谢。

Ninhao, pupil netizen, as far as we know, officers of municipal administration for industry and commerce have inspected the spot. The advertisement does not contain content that breaches the seventh clause of the Advertising Law of People’s Republic of China, nor has it been deemed dangerous to the physical and mental health of minors.

Some netizens expressed doubt that a real student actually wrote the complaint, while others echoed the writer in worrying about the increasing vulgarity in China and expressed displeasure at female celebrities wearing skimpy dresses.

In an interview by Qingdao based Bandao Metropolis Daily, Lin appeared surprised to hear the story. She said she was sorry and expected the primary school child not to look at the advertisement anymore. She promised to be more prudent in her future endorsements.

Lin Chi-ling (Chinese: 林志玲,  Lín Zhìlíng), born November 29, 1974 in Taipei, is very popular on the Chinese mainland.

Jiangsu pupil’s complaint to city mayor that was rejected… (Hug China)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

Curious about how the smart, sexy Lust, Caution actress Tang Wei was swindled out of 210,000 yuan in a telecom scam on Saturday, as all netizens are? Thanks to NetEase, we now have details.

All members of Tang’s acting group filming in Songjiang, Shanghai on Saturday received similar message from a self-proclaimed Public Security Bureau officer, but only Tang believed the message and called the number. The swindler told Tang that something was wrong with her bank deposit (involved in a criminal case?) and that she must transfer all her money to another bank account to avoid criminal charges.

Our “pure goddess” Tang Wei was apparently frightened and rushed to the closest bank, got online, and wire transferred the money to the swindler’s account, as instructed.

For the last two days, netizens have continually talked about this story. While some ridiculed the acclaimed actress, others have been chastising police for the prevalence of telecom scams in China. Some examples of comments:

A NetEase user from Sichuan:  A kind-hearted and pure girl!

A NetEase user from Jilin:  She is just silly.

NetEase user 永恒依恋:  This goddess seem to be lack of intelligence.

A NetEase user from Guangzhou:  Was it because she is too pure or she had something to hide?

NetEase user  yiwangui1984 :  Tang Wei, just because you trust in others, I love you!

NetEase user  redfish007 :  Because she stayed in UK for so long time, she became pure and believes in rule of law as well as the police.

NetEase user 秀才V :  I have a friend that deposited 7,000 yuan after years of hard work, but all was swindled out in a telecom scam. He reported to the police but nothing has been done so far. The police ignored his plight, as such cases usually are in China.

A NetEase user from Chengdu, Sichuan:   I am curious about such telecom fraud. For every fraud, there must be a bank account receiving money. Can’t the bank find the receiving account? Why don’t they freeze it? Why don’t they review the surveillance video of the man withdrawing the money?

‘Lust, Caution’ actress Tang Wei swindled out of 210k… (Hug China)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

A “bath and sauna center” in Changsha, capital of Hunan province, thought it was a good idea to use 54 large posters of sexy girls hanging from the outer wall of its five-story building to attract clients. (It was a good idea; more on that in a bit.)

Mingyuechi Washing and Bathing City said it is a fitness center with public showers, bath, spa, and sauna, and provides foot massages, but no prostitution services.

As a result, it had to remove the posters.

(Note: just kidding. It had to remove the posters because it’s 54 scantily clad women on the outer face of a huge building.)

Pictures of the “bathhouse” went viral on Chinese internet on Friday as major news portals joined in to publicize the “fitness center.” For the marketing department of the fitness center: mission accomplished.

“The posters are really shocking!” commented one netizen.

“The boss must be a powerful figure. Chengguan, do you know the bathing center?” commented another.

Shortly after pictures of the bathhouse spread online, chengguan stepped in and ordered all the sexy-girl pictures be removed.

Changsha ‘bath & sauna center’ puts up 54 posters of scantily clad girls… (Hug China)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

H&N, Zare, Hugo BGSS, SFFCCCKS Coffee: these are just some of the counterfeits of famous brands — not the same as “famous counterfeits”… or is it? — you can find on a shopping street in Wuxi, Jiangsu province.

A glimpse of these shops on the ground floor of Shimao Skyscrape commercial and residential complex in the vicinity of the bustling high-speed railway station in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, might give you the impression that they’re all selling products or services from some of the world’s most famous brands.

But take a second-look at these “high-end, extravagant, first-class” (高端, 大气, 上档次) shops and you’ll notice something wrong.

Not only the products incredibly cheaper than they should be, but oh no! it’s not Starbucks, but SFFCCCKS; not Apple, but Appla; not ZARA, but ZARE; not H&M, but H&N; not Hugo BOSS, but Hugo BGSS. Even the largest Chinese bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, ICBC (中国工商银行), has a knock-off: 中国中商银行!

Maybe it’s a homage. Frankly, McDonald’s should be upset there’s no McDougal’s; Burger King should demand Booger King be installed into this building complex’s facade right this instant. And Tennessee Fried Chicken, where you be?

This shopping street in Wuxi has a cluster of counterfeit brands… (Hug China)

UPDATE, 1/14, 11:13 pm: Those brands have been removed.

Confrontations over unpaid wages are common in China, especially in the run-up to the lunar new year (it falls on January 31 this year), as this is often the only time when migrant workers can return home. Many fear they’ll never be paid if they leave the city while still owed money.

But to get paid, some have to resort to extreme measures.

Six migrant workers threatened to jump off the roof of a nine-story building in Lanzhou, capital of Gansu province, on January 3 as protest over 240,000 yuan of unpaid wages, ChinaNews.com reports.

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

Shanghai, China’s financial hub, appears determined to compete with Beijing, China’s political epicenter, in every aspect, including pollution.

Starting Thursday, smog has shrouded Shanghai and nearby provinces, with PM2.5 readings shooting from 200 micrograms per cubic meter to as high as 700 at some air quality monitoring stations.

As of 1 pm Friday, the average PM2.5 reading in Shanghai reached an off-the-charts level of 602.5; the PM10 reading reached 671, with the highest reading recorded at 726 in Putuo district.

In neighboring Jiangsu province, visibility was less than 200 meters, causing expressways to be shut down. Visibility was less than 50 meters in some areas of central and east China on Saturday.

Not surprisingly, the frequently occurring smog has sparked outrage and debate among Chinese netizens. But in a country where ordinary people have no say in the administration of their nation, they’re limited to criticizing, mocking, and sighing on the Internet.

As a result, a new buzzword has gone viral: “Feed People Smog” (喂人民服雾), or Wei renmin fuwu. It’s a homophone for “Serve the People” (为人民服务), a political slogan introduced by Mao Zedong as a requirement for all government officials and party cadres.

“Feed people smog” first appeared in the comment section of an article and was subsequently reposted on news portals and social media. The comment reads:

Currently many netizens are discussing a Chinese name for PM2.5. Some propose serious names such as “public smog source” (a homophone for civil servants), high-end names as “capital dust” or “Beijing dust,” hegemonic names as “dust-caused disease misses sweet” (a homophone for Genghis Khan), optimistic names as “dust world beautiful” (a homophone for the ancient Chinese heartbreaker Chen Shimei), and entertaining names as “keep inhaling dust” (a homophone for the Hong Kong actor Edison Chan). But all these names are just so-so in my opinion. I didn’t understand the power of the Chinese language until five characters came to me: “Feed the people smog!”

Cynical Chinese netizens have added more sarcastic comments:

A NetEase netizen from Shanghai: What the Japanese 731 army did not achieve has been all realized! Feed the people smog!

NetEase netizen 天一的天天下第一的一: A special scenery. Shanghai shall repackage and promote it and property prices will soon double.

NetEase netizen billlee2013: The atmosphere is good. Shanghai deserves its nickname Demon Capital.

A NetEase netizen from Shenzhen: Good phenomenon! Smog can enhance the immune system for Shanghai residents.

‘Feed people smog’ becomes new buzz word in China… (Hug China)

1. G-String part, 2. Condom part, 3. Vertical streaks, 4. Anti-skidding microcapsules, 5. Sacs, 6. Elastics

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

G-String? No, it is a multifunctional condom invented by Guangzhou students (Hug China)

Tourists are expected to flock to Tiananmen this week during National Day holiday. Here’s a reminder that the gate you see isn’t exactly the gate of history.

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

Every year, millions of Chinese and foreign tourists swarm the country’s national symbol, the Gate of Heavenly Peace — Tiananmen. But few know that the current gate is actually an imitation that was only built 43 years ago.

Tiananmen has actually been rebuilt several times. The original was constructed in 1420 during the Ming Dynasty. A lightning strike in July 1457 burned it down, and it was rebuilt in 1465. In 1644, the gate was burned down again, this time by rebels led by Li Zicheng. Following the establishment of the Qing Dynasty, the gate was once again rebuilt in 1651.

More than 300 years later, Tiananmen Gate was torn down, as Shanghai-based Liberation Daily reminds us. As authorities were doing this, they put tarps around the structure and said it was undergoing “renovations.”

The complete demolition and rebuilding of Tiananmen was considered a top political secret until the 21st century. Liberation Daily:

The gate had badly deteriorated due to centuries of war, fire, dilapidation, and lack of repair. The main structure had been deformed and the base of the gate showed serious sedimentation. The 7.5-magnitude Xingtai earthquake in Hebei province in 1969 caused further devastating damage to the gate.

For safety reasons, the Chinese State Council decided in 1969 to completely demolish the gate and rebuild it at the same place, the same size, but with modern materials.

The Tiananmen Gate Security Team (TGST) drafted three plans for top leaders to choose from. The TGST preferred the first plan, which was to retain much of the wooden frame while replacing other parts with first-grade wood.

The second plan was to retain the base, the front red wall, while replacing everything else with modern concrete and iron. The third plan was to completely demolish the old gate and replace it with a brand new one with concrete and steel.

Eventually, the leaders chose the third option, which included new security measures, regarded as a top priority.

As the gate was a national symbol, the State Council ordered that the rebuilding was to be kept top-secret. The gate was covered in scaffolding, and the project was officially called a “renovation.”

To keep such an important project a secret in China’s political center, where tens of thousands of tourists visit every year, was actually easy for the leadership…. Even workers in nearby Zhongshan Park’s Nationalities Cultural Palace didn’t know what was happening inside the tightly closed scaffolding.

All workers who participated in the rebuilding of Tiananmen Gate were ordered to stay silent, and couldn’t tell anyone, including family members, since it was political.

The rebuilding started on December 15, 1969. The new Tiananmen was reopened to the public on May 1, 1970. Workers were picked among the country’s top technicians.

The demolition of the gate took only seven days.

What you may not know: current Tiananmen Gate is a fake… (Hug China)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

Chinese American angel investor and Sina Weibo celebrity Charles Xue (a.k.a. Xue Manzi, with more than 12 million followers) has been detained in Beijing for “suspected involvement in prostitution,” China News reported on Sunday.

On August 23, off the tip from a local resident, Chaoyang District police captured Xue along with a 22-year-old woman from Henan province in a residential compound, according to the official weibo of Beijing Public Security Office:

After questioning, the two confessed to solicitation. The police department has placed the two under administrative detention in accordance with the law.

Charles Xue, whose Chinese name is Xue Biqun, is a prominent liberal celebrity who has actively campaigned against child trafficking. Born in Guangdong province in 1953, he is an American citizen. His father, Xue Zizheng, was a vice minister in China’s central government and died in 1980 at the age of 75.

Could Xue’s arrest be the result of retaliation for his outspokenness? Hu Xijin, the chief editor of Global Times, gives us some clues through his Weibo comment regarding this affair (now deleted, but preserved via screenshot):

We cannot exclude the possibility that authorities were using prostitution to entrap Xue Manzi. It is an unspoken rule that all governments worldwide frame political opponents through sex scandals, tax evasion charges. So here’s a reminder to those who engage in political dissent, if you wish to go down this path, keep your butts clean. If you have shortcomings yet still take on officials, you’ll be squashed sooner or later. And also, a reminder to the government, crack down on the right target and the process won’t be nitpicked, otherwise it may backfire.

Xue’s arrest comes during a continued crackdown by police in China against “online rumor mongers.”

Beijing police detained Liu Hu, a journalist at the popular newspaper News Express Daily based in Guangzhou, on suspicion of spreading rumors and stirring trouble after he alleged in late July that a senior government official was negligent with his public duties, People’s Daily reported on Sunday.

Also, Internet celebrity Zhou Lubao was arrested by Suzhou police for spreading online rumors and blackmailing people for up to several million yuan, Xinjingbao (New Beijing Daily) reported. The report said Zhou had accused the mayor of Lanzhou of wearing luxury watches that he could not afford.

And last week, Yang Xiuyu (a.k.a. Lierchaisi), founder of the Erma Company, and employee Qin Zhihui (a.k.a. Qinhuohuo) were arrested by Beijing police for “fabricating and spreading online rumors” regarding corruption, and “defaming the image of Lei Feng.”

Outspoken Chinese-American investor Charles Xue arrested in Beijing over ‘prostitution’… (Hug China)

Adapted with permission from Hug China.

It sounds like a Hollywood thriller: 33 crew members start off on an ocean voyage on the Shandong No. 2683 trawler; when the fishing boat returns eight months later, only 11 men are left, with 20 killed and two missing.

On June 20, a Weihai court in eastern China’s Shandong province convicted all 11 of the men for murder, reports Xinhua News Agency. Five of the men received death sentences, one was given a suspended death sentence (life imprisonment, basically), and the other five were given 4- to 15-year sentences.

The Shandong trawler massacre was reportedly engineered by 28-year-old Liu Guiduo, who was unhappy with his salary and perceived injustice on the boat. The men on board were to be paid 45,000 yuan ($7,200) per year, plus commission, for two years of service at sea.

Under the leadership of Liu, a gang plotted to hijack the vessel and hold it ransom as it was sailing near Chile in June 2011. Those who tried to foil the plot were stabbed to death or forced to jump into the ocean.

On December 27, 2010, the Lu Rong Yu 2682 trawler (Shandong province, Rongcheng city No. 2682 fishing boat) started off from Shidao Fishing Port, Weihai city, Shandong province, the largest fishing port in northern China, with Li Chengquan as the capitain.

Among the 33 onboard, only 10 had experience on the ocean. Eighteen were missing the relevant legal certificates.

On June 16, 2011, while refueling on the Chilean coast, Liu Guiduo reportedly teamed up with Bao De and several other men to hijack the boat. An injured captain Li was forced to steer the trawler back to China.

The next morning, kitchen chef Xia Qiyong, carrying a knife, asked to see the captain. In the ensuing tussle, one of Liu’s men stabbed Xia, and Liu’s gang threw him overboard. Chief officer Fu Yizhong was taken hostage.

By July 20, the boat had reached western Hawaii. Liu Guiduo, Bao De and their accomplices plotted to kill six crew members suspected of revolt. Those six — plus three others — were dispatched that day, and another man, a college graduate named Ma Yuchao, went missing that night.

The killings terrified the remaining crew. Captain Li, crew member Cui Yong and Duan Zhifang asked to join the gang.

On July 24, with the trawler 1,000 miles east of Japan, Liu Guiduo received secret information that Bao De and friends were conspiring against him. That night, Liu set a trap and killed Bao and five others. Most were stabbed or forced to jump into the sea.

Finally, on July 25, the trawler took on water, and captain Li was forced to telephone Shandong for help. Four men tried to escape on a rubber raft, but — horrifically — it drifted back to the boat. Liu Guiduo, Li Chengquan and other survivors stoned those on the raft and watched most of them drown.

One man, Song Guochun, was pulled aboard, only to be summarily executed. He was bound with iron and thrown into the sea.

On July 29, the agricultural department of China ordered China Fishing Administration Boat No. 118 to pull Lu Rong Yu 2683 back to China. On the morning of August 12, the trawler returned to Shidao Fishing Port, where it had started off eight months prior. On the day of arrival, the 11 men onboard were immediately detained.

Death voyage across Pacific Ocean… (Hug China)