This series is called ‘Secret Listening’, from the Chinese word 偷听Tōutīng. I know this can be — and should probably be — translated as ‘eavesdropping’, but secret listening captures it better and adds a bit of jest. These little stories or remarks stood out to me, and show a more personal side of China away from the news. I have sometimes changed names or used the anonymous moniker ‘friend’.
Read all parts in this series here.
Waiting for the traffic light and trying to make small talk with a scooter rider next to me. He grabs a smooth pebble from the glove compartment and observes it from every angle, like a gem. So I ask him: “Ah, is a good luck charm?”, and he laughs and throws it in the bushes: “Nop, kids put it there.”
13-year-old: “My classmate said she saw the grades of the language class, she said I got 38 and I cried. Then the next day the teacher said my grade is 50 out of 60, my classmate said ‘oops, I saw it wrong’.”
Taitai, when stitching the hole in my winter jacket: “When I was little, Bosideng (波司登), well, if people could buy such a jacket, their family was really well off.”
Taitai eating 酱油汤 (Soy Sauce Soup): “I love this, so simple. Makes me remember my childhood. My uncle’s family wasn’t very rich, so they usually made this. Bit of oil, add some garlic leaves, done! Super nice.”
Friend: “Every time I broke up with a boyfriend, I’d get a tattoo. (失恋了). Mostly on my back. It’s the quickest way to forget them. So yeah I have many tattoos on my back now.”
Primary school student: “During 心理学课 (sort of psychology class) there was a free moment where everyone could mention their inner-heart thoughts. “You can say anything you want” said the teacher, and then I said I don’t like it when the teacher doesn’t finish the class in time for lunch break, and had to report to the headmaster for that.”
Overheard someone tell this with absolute flair:
“OMG you wipe the table every day? You’re so worried about germs? (洁癖!) I don’t even clean that rigorously at home, I don’t own the house anyway, my kitchen shelves probably have a few kilos of dust on them.” (几斤灰尘)
Waiting for the doctor.
Friend: “How did you find this doctor? A friend recommended her to you?”
Woman sitting next to her: “No, I looked at the board and she’s the most handsome.”
An uncle says he had English in high school, a long time ago. “From a foreign teacher. He only came once a month though. From all those lessons, I only remember one sentence”, and as he searches his mind he straightens his body, and yells in English: “Long Live Chairman Mao!”
My brother: “My colleagues like to go to a fishing pond stocked with fish. The owner only allows you to fish with barbless hooks, not to damage the fish. You’ll easily catch dozens of fish in a day. But seriously. I’d rather go to a wild place and catch nothing all day.”
Taxi driver (after asking me if I’m married):
Me: “You have a girlfriend, or married?”
Him: “Girlfriend, not married yet. My business failed, otherwise I’d be married already.“
