Chapter 128: Is That You, Smarty-Pants?

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After his earlier interaction with the foreigner, Bai Qingming’s livestream began attracting viewers at an astonishing rate.

Quite a few people had been drawn in by the title.

By now, the number of people watching online had surpassed fifty million.

As the stream’s popularity continued to soar, several operations managers monitoring the statistics backstage took notice.

Recently, the five major platforms had been working on international versions that would allow foreigners to watch Chinese livestreams. The project had been underway for some time, and a considerable number of overseas users had already registered.

Seeing the content in Bai Qingming’s livestream, the operations managers discussed it among themselves and decided to test-promote his stream.

Thus, through the joint efforts of the five platforms, more and more overseas users began entering Bai Qingming’s livestream.

Inside the stream, everything Bai Qingming said, along with the viewers’ comments, was translated into English in real time and displayed on the screen. Comments from foreign viewers were likewise converted into Chinese characters. No matter which country they came from, everyone’s words were translated the same way, so there was no need to worry about communication problems.

The moment these overseas users realized that Bai Qingming’s stream was related to the Chinese language, they became interested and stayed to watch.

Most of those who remained had some understanding of Chinese and could speak at least a little.

After learning what had happened, they began sending comments as well.

“To be fair, Chinese really isn’t that difficult. I only went to China on a business trip, but after spending a year there, I could speak it reasonably well.”

“I have a Chinese friend who’s a teacher. He told me that students over there are usually good at Chinese but bad at English. That proves Chinese is easier to learn than English.”

“Um, may I ask a timid question? Is Chinese really that hard?”

“Not at all. Anyone who says it took them a year to learn is pathetic. I’ve never even been to China. I just have a friend from northeastern China, and after listening to him talk every day, my Chinese became incredibly fluent. Some of my Chinese friends even say my pronunciation has a strong northeastern flavor—it’s very down-to-earth.”

The overseas users had special icons beside their names, making them easy to distinguish.

The moment these comments appeared, the domestic viewers burst out laughing.

“These foreigners who just arrived are still too young. They haven’t seen the first two questions the streamer asked.”

“Exactly. Some foreigners learn a couple of Chinese phrases and immediately think they’ve mastered the language.”

“For example, when a woman says ‘no’ during bedroom activities, does she mean yes or no?”

“I have to object to that. In situations like that, I generally don’t like hearing Chinese. I prefer hearing a woman speak Japanese.”

“Yamete?”

“Nice.”

…

The chat was filled with laughter and good-natured banter. Just as large numbers of overseas viewers poured in and the domestic users began arguing with them, Bai Qingming asked his third question.

“On Sunday, I went to Little Ming’s house. He was busy playing video games.”

“I asked Little Ming, ‘My uncle is here. Do you want to come with me to see my uncle?’”

“Little Ming said, ‘I’ve got nothing better to do than go see your uncle!’”

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“So here’s the question: did Little Ming actually go with me to see my uncle?”

The moment he finished speaking, the overseas viewers eagerly began posting comments.

“This question is way too easy. The answer is right there in the question. Little Ming himself said he would go see your uncle.”

“Exactly. Anyone who can speak Chinese should be able to answer a question like this, right?”

“What’s that phrase again? ‘That’s it? That’s all?’”

A crowd of self-proclaimed experts joined in with their answers.

However, the foreigner who was connected to Bai Qingming’s stream did not rush to respond. Instead, he fell into deep thought.

To be honest, his first reaction had been the same as that of most of the overseas viewers: Little Ming had gone to see the uncle.

But after the first two questions, he had learned his lesson. He felt certain that things could not possibly be so simple.

So he did not answer immediately. He began considering the problem carefully.

It was not only Bai Qingming’s stream that had attracted foreign viewers. The foreigner’s stream had attracted quite a few as well.

At that moment, seeing him take so long to think about such an easy question, everyone grew anxious on his behalf.

“What are you still thinking about, brother? The answer’s already been given to you. Hurry up and say it.”

“Exactly! Let the Chinese see just how simple their language really is.”

“This is a free point!”

…

As he watched the comments appear in his own livestream, the foreigner thought it over again and again. In the end, he felt that everyone else was right. The answer had to be exactly what he had initially thought.

Yet for some reason, he still felt that something was wrong.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him. He felt as though he had finally understood the trap Bai Qingming had set with the question.

Actually, there was no need for him to overthink things. Little Ming had already given the answer himself: he would go.

The only reason he had hesitated to answer was that the first two questions had made him wary. Subconsciously, he assumed that this question must contain another trap and could not possibly be as simple as it sounded.

There was an old saying in China: take the opposite approach.

The young man asking the question had surely understood his way of thinking and deliberately presented him with a question whose answer was obvious, intending to confuse him.

That way, he would fall into the trap and give the other answer.

Gasp!

At the thought, the foreigner, still connected to the call, involuntarily drew in a sharp breath.

That was devious!

Fortunately, he was clever enough not to fall for it.

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The next moment, the foreigner looked at Bai Qingming, his confidence instantly restored.

“The answer is that Little Ming went to see him.”

He answered this way, then proceeded to explain his reasoning.

When Bai Qingming heard the foreigner claim that he had deliberately set a trap, he could not help laughing.

Was this foreigner some kind of genius?

His reasoning sounded flawless at first, but in reality, it was spectacularly wrong.

“I’m sorry, but that answer is still incorrect,” Bai Qingming said matter-of-factly.

In an instant, the chat exploded.

“What?”

“How could that be wrong? That is obviously the correct answer!”

“Are the Chinese unable to take a joke? Do you think we don’t understand Chinese?”

“I refuse to accept this! Little Ming definitely went to see him!”

Many foreign viewers felt that Bai Qingming was simply refusing to admit the truth, relying on the fact that the Chinese had invented their own language and shamelessly claiming black was white.

Seeing their reactions, the domestic viewers nearly laughed themselves sick.

“Are they getting desperate? The foreigners are getting desperate?”

“I’m relieved to see that these ignorant foreigners reacted exactly like this.”

“We already told you that you don’t actually understand Chinese. At best, you can speak a little. Yet you still dared to boast so loudly. Now are you stunned?”

“I’m proud to be Chinese!”

Amid the barrage of comments, one viewer took the initiative to explain the matter to the ignorant foreigners.

“Foreigners, listen carefully.”

“When Little Ming answered, ‘Go see your uncle,’ he was not actually saying that he would go see anyone.”

“That phrase is also a kind of particle used to express tone, almost like a habitual verbal expression. There are plenty of similar examples, such as ‘Go see your sister!’ or ‘Go see your ancestors!’ All of them express negation.”

“You should understand Little Ming’s words as meaning: ‘Go see your uncle? I’m busy.’”

“Does that make sense now?”

After the explanation, all the foreigners were completely dumbfounded.

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