SHANGHAI (SCMP): Ahead of an expected ban on TikTok, so-called internet refugees from the United States are being warmly greeted by Chinese counterparts on the alternative RedNote platform posing as a famous Taiwan-born actor.
On RedNote, a leading social media app dubbed China’s Instagram, many Chinese users introduce themselves as the actor Eddie Peng Yuyan, by posting a picture of him.
“Hello, this is me. Nice to meet you,” they say as they leave comments on the accounts of new foreign users of RedNote, also known as Xiaohongshu in China, which means “little red book”.
Peng, 42, was born in Taiwan and has Canadian nationality. He is regarded as one of the most handsome actors in the Chinese-language film industry.
Besides a slew of blockbuster films like Operation Mekong released in 2016 and the 2020 film The Rescue, Peng is hugely popular in China due to his self-discipline, hard-working spirit, decent education background and the way he deals with fans.
On seeing the picture of Peng in online biographies, some foreign users fall for it, with some asking: “Oh my god, are you really Peng Yuyan?”
However, some are more shrewd and reply: “You do not have face”, a term in Chinese meaning shameless.
Many people on mainland social media have been fascinated by the response from Peng’s studio.
“You are the real Peng Yuyan. Then who am I?” quipped one online observer.
“There are so many Peng Yuyan on the internet. Everyone is Peng Yuyan. Your identity is actually given by yourself, ha,” joked another person.
While a third said: “With the influx of American internet users to Xiaohongshu, we appoint Peng Yuyan to represent us. There is no problem.”
Over the past week, many Chinese internet users lamented that they have never regretted not studying English so much.
During a live-streaming session in mid-January, host Wu Xin was surprised at the flood of English reactions in the comment section.
As a result, she switched to English, but performed clumsily because of a limited vocabulary. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
