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Beijing Scene, Volume 5, Issue 18, July 23 - 29


 
Xiang Qian Kan ÏòÇ®¿´
Money is Everything
 

The phrase ÏòÇ°¿´ xiang qian kan literally means "look forward", or "look ahead." When the Comrade was a boy, it represented reconstructing the Motherland, building socialism and looking toward a better brighter future. Now that most of China is well on the way back to the future, the phrase has taken on another meaning. ÏòÇ°¿´ xiang qian kan has become a Ë«¹ØÓï shuangguanyu (pun) because it sounds like ÏòÇ®¿´ xiangqian kan, or "look toward money."

In Chairman Mao's heyday, Chinese people were classified into one of two categories: the "haves" (politicians) and "have-nots" (everyone else). Today, thanks to the ¾­¼Ã¸Ä¸ï¿ª·Å jingji gaige kaifang (the Opening Up and Reform Policy), the proletariat are more prosperous than ever before. Mattresses from Tianjin to Tibet are bursting at the seams. As a result, stratification of Chinese people has become more complicated with the emergence of many new social categories.

Beggars Æòؤ Qigai
Thirty years ago, beggars looked like they were starving because they were! In those days, beggars had no use for ³®Æ± chaopiao (cash). They made their way from the impoverished countryside to the city to beg for food. Hence the appellation Òª·¹µÄ yaofande ("food-wanters"). Beggars today don't want food. If they wanted to eat they'd simply forage on the mountains of food thrown away by Beijing's myriad restaurants. Beggars require money so that they can choose from the flood of seductive goods and services available to them. Simply put, the term "beggar" actually refers to the lowest level of Ïû·ÑÕß xiaofeizhe (consumer). Theirs is not an act of desperation to save their lives, but rather an act to convince you of what little spending power they have in comparison to you. Chinese beggars don't expect Chinese people to give them money, but they do expect foreigners to give generously. If you don't, they will be disappointed and possibly insulted. By not giving, you also risk being thought of as СÆø xiaoqi (cheap) among the beggar community. Beggars have an uncanny ability to spot foreigners like vultures spotting rodents. They swoop down, thrusting their dirty McDonald's cup in your face. Typical beggar tactics include shaking the change cup and exhibiting a look of suffering and anguish. They cry "hello", or "give me money", or simply "money" in English, and they may call you ÀÏ°å laoban ("boss"). Beggars hang out around the »ð³µÕ¾ huochezhan (train station), µØÌúÕ¾ ditiezhan (subway stations) and outside of restaurants or wherever ÀÏÍâ laowai congregate.

The Unemployed ϸÚÈËÔ± Xiagang Renyuan
The term ÏÂ¸Ú xiagang literally means "to leave one's post". Actually it is a euphemism for "get the axe". Chinese people who have ÏÂ¸Ú xiagang are the most ¿à ku (lit. "bitter"; hard-up). They are even worse off than the beggars because their monthly early retirement dividend is less than the average beggar earns in a week!

Many unemployed Chinese people become entrepreneurs, selling ²èÒµ° chayedan (tea eggs), ÏãÑÌ xiangyan (cigarettes) or ºÐ·¹ hefan (boxed lunches). Some open a СÂô²¿ xiaomaibu (small convenience store) out of their bedroom window. Others pretend to be ²Ð·Ï canfei (handicapped) and charge passengers a fee to ride in their ²Ð·Ï³µ canfeiche (handicapped vehicle).

Delinquents »ì»ì¶ù Hunhun'r
»ì»ì¶ù Hunhun'r are people who »ì "hun" for a living. "»ì Hun" basically means to do whatever you have to do (usually illegal) to make a living. Typical ways to »ì hun range from simple ºÚ - heishi (black market) ½»"× jiaoyi (transactions) such as »»Ç® huanqian (changing money) and selling train tickets to ÇÀ½Ù qiangjie (robbery) and ··¶¾ fandu (drug dealing). Some »ì»ì¶ù hunhun'r are ¼ËÍ· jitou (pimps) or ¼ËÅ® jinu (prostitutes). Better ways to »ì hun include becoming a ¸ú°à genban (henchman) for a ´óÀÏ°å da laoban (big boss).

Moneybags and Their Strumpets ´ó¿î Dakuan and СÃÛ Xiaomi Comrade James Brown observed that you've got to "use what you got to get what you want." Many Chinese girls live by this credo. Aghast at the prospect of a life of toil, they solicit themselves a ´ó¿î dakuan (wealthy man) that can support them and afford the lifestyle they demand. You're probably wondering how these СÃÛ xiaomi (little "honeys") become career courtesans. Many get their start as ¿¨À­OK lala OK (karaoke) girls. Customers at the karaoke parlor choose a С½ã xiaojie (girl) from a lineup. The girl must then spend the rest of the night with the guy who chose her-lighting his cigarettes, pouring his booze, laughing at his jokes, etc. At the end of the night the customer is expected to tip the girl up to hundreds or even thousands of yuan! Some karaoke girls make more money in one night than someone with a ´óѧÎÄƾ daxue wenping (university degree) makes in a month!

Eventually the pretty karaoke girls are discovered and emancipated by a ´ó¿î dakuan. The less fetching ones go on to become a karaoke ÂèÂè mama or matriarch of the karaoke parlor. How a ´ó¿î dakuan becomes a ´ó¿î dakuan is anybody's guess. Some invest their Â齫 majiang winnings in ¹ÉƱ gupiao (the stock market). Others ×÷ÉúÒâ zuoshengyi (do business) or ¿ª¹«Ë¾ kaigongsi (open companies). Some ´ó¿î dakuan are crude and vulgar, but since they are wealthy, their crudeness and vulgarity can certainly be overlooked.

The People's Money ÈËÃñ±Ò
renminbi RMB is also called the 'yuan'. One yuan is about 12 US cents. Appearing on the 100 yuan bill from right to left are Chairman Mao, Zhou Enlai, Liu Shaoqi and Zhu De-the four ΰ´ó weida (exalted) founders of the New China. To make sure your bill isn't α³® weichao (counterfeit), hold the bill up to the light and look for the Chairman Mao watermark on the left side and a line from top to bottom on the right side. On the 50 yuan bill are a ¹¤ÈË gongren (worker), an Ò½Éú yisheng (doctor) and a ֪ʶ·Ö×Ó zhishi fenzi (intellectual). The 10 yuan bill displays Å©Ãñ nongmin (peasants). Smaller denominations show various ÉÙÊýÃñ×å shaoshu minzu (ethnic minorities). Up until 1994, ÈËÃñ±Ò renminbi was actually "Chinese people's money," as foreigners were required to use Íâ»ãȯ waihuijuan (Foreign Exchange Certificates), better known as FEC. FEC, also called ¶ÔÓÃȯ duiyongjuan, were of course much more expensive than RMB. Some ungrateful foreigners felt that this dual currency system was somehow "unfair." They alleged that when US$100 could get you RMB1000 on the "black market," it would only buy about 600 FEC in the bank. Imagine the gall-so rich and yet still concerned with such trifling matters!

In closing the Comrade would like to remind his readers that although it is true that ÓÐÇ®ÄÜʹ¹íÍÆÄ¥ you qian neng shi gui tuimo (when you're rich even a ghost will churn a mill for you), money is not the only thing life has to offer. Don't let the pursuit of money blind you to other, more important things like »Æ½ð huangjin (gold), ×êʯ zuanshi (diamonds) and ÀÍÁ¦Ê¿ laolishi (Rolex) watches!

 

Previous stories

The Comrade's final exam

Wining and dinning out

Pekinese in beijing

Using Your Electric Brain

Traditional Holidays

Little Emporer Syndrome

Henpecked Husbands

To Own Real Estate is Glorious

 


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