by Annie Wang
I am the city girl who used to crawl from one party to another. Now I have time to read, write and meditate, and do yoga! Instead of window shopping for fun, I order everything from books to noodle soups online!
As for my friends, they do the same. Lulu plans to do an exhibition called Mask Fashions after the SARS epidemic is over. But at the moment, she hides at home, writing her first soap opera Love in the Time of SARS. She locks herself in the bedroom and writes eighteen hours a day. Her mother is back in Beijing to take care of her and leaves food at the door for her to pick up. Beibei is thinking of holding an outdoor concert outside a big hospital. At the moment, all the concerts her company has sponsored have been canceled, including Rolling Stone's first China trip. As for her personal life, for the first time in seven years her marriage has become monogamous. Both she and her husband, Chairman Hua, have temporarily shut down their extramarital contacts. Chairman Hua is even learning to cook. From time to time, Beibei comes home to find him in the kitchen. CC has written her first will after her parents sent their own will to her from Hong Kong. She spends most of her time talking with a doctor in England via Yahoo Messenger. He is her cyberromance.
I realize that it's not just the lives of my friends and me that have changed so dramatically, but the whole society as well.
Vegetarianism is cool now. Restaurants that used to make a lucrative business by butchering wild animals have lost money and closed down. Some see SARS as the revenge of the animal kingdom on greedy human beings.
Bar girls, karaoke girls, and travel agents are out of jobs.
I feel that SARS has made China more like the States: people flush the toilet after they use it. They wash their hands more often. They don't stand as close when they speak. They tend not to flock into places anymore. Shops and restaurants close earlier than before – around seven o'clock. Doctors have gained respect. The economy has slowed down, and the country is cleaner, less crowded, more environmentally conscious – the slow, laid-back pace seems a little unnatural here.
76 SARS Wars
Are humans born good or evil? Why does it make some people feel better about themselves when they put others down? Why is a sense of superiority needed to boost these people's egos? Regional discrimination is common in China, which has become even more evident during the SARS outbreak. SARS makes us wear masks as a protective measure. At the same time, the disease helps unmask our true nature, normally hidden behind the soft veils of personalities. Now, every raw emotion is exposed.
As usual, I log on to a popular Internet chat room to gather information for my stories and discover that a heated debate is raging.
It started with a provocative message from someone called Hong Kong Babe. Hong Kong Babe posts her message on the Web site owned by a mainland company. The message reads:
"You mainlanders make the Chinese look bad in front of the world. You mainlanders are so backward! We Hong Kong people are forced to suffer with you now. We want to go back to British rule!"
As could be expected, and probably hoped for, Hong Kong Babe's message creates a stir. Northern Love responds: "You must be a skinny flat-chested babe who is not civilized enough to speak putonghua. Don't you understand that the whole thing started because people in your region eat anything with legs except tables, anything that flies except airplanes, and anything that swims except ships? Because of your eating habits, we northerners catch the germs from you, who catch the germs from animals!"
Before Hong Kong Babe can reply, a message from Spring Ocean appears: "Hi, anybody from Taiwan? I'm from Taipei. Our situation in Taiwan is not as bad as Hong Kong because we aren't cramped; we have more space. We aren't as bad as the mainland because Taiwan is more advanced, medically and politically."
Hong Kong Babe finally posts a reply: "FYI: I live in the Mid-Levels on Hong Kong Island. Here, life is better than on the Kowloon side. Those who live in old, dirty, inexpensive places are more likely to get infected. The area where I live has many foreigners." Surprisingly, Hong Kong Babe does not draw more hostile responses. Instead, the message board evolves into a tug of war between two mainland cities.
Louis Vutton: "Hi, I'm from the mainland. To be specific, I'm from Shanghai. I feel safe living in Shanghai. Once again we've done a better job than Beijing."
Magic Dragon: " Beijing 's situation is so bad because so many sick people from out of town have come to Beijing to get treated in the hospitals. When they need help, the first place they think of is Beijing, not Shanghai. Beijing people have never been as selfish as the Shanghainese!"
Seeing the situation disintegrate, someone named American Passport posts his message: "Guys, stop fighting. It doesn't matter if you are from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Beijing, or Shanghai – you are all deemed the same here in the United States! Nobody is better than anyone else. Do you know that many U.S. Chinatown businesses have dropped severely? So has the business in the Japanese enclave near my house. Some of my American coworkers think everyone with an Asian face might have relatives who live with pigs."
Following American Passport, I post my own message. I give myself the name, China Doll.
China Doll: "A Taiwanese author once said that each Chinese individual is a dragon, but when the Chinese group together, they become a fat worm. Do you know why? The Chinese have never been united. They always try to categorize themselves and others. The city people look down on the country people; the rich look down on the poor. It is so stupid!"
Domestic Love posts a response: "Who are you? Writing slogans here? Where are you from? How dare you refer to the Chinese as 'they'? How dare you call us stupid?" I feel funny, but being attacked online doesn't upset me. Instead, it is entertaining for some reason. I understand why Hong Kong Babe has written those provocative messages. She must be bored and wants attention. Under a new identity, you can do anything you want and say anything you want.
So China Doll writes: "I'm a Chinese American. My family tree consists of a Taiwanese father, a stepmother from northeast China, and a Beijing mother who married an American. In one word, I'm Chinese."
Louis Vutton: "This 'China Doll' sounds suspicious with such a complicated background. Might be an American spy. We'd better report her to the online police."
77 The (Brief) Return of Ximu
It takes Lulu seven months to finish her first book, Lover ' s Socks. The book originally was called Love in the Time of SARS., but by the time the book is out, SARS is passe. Inspired by Sade's Lovers Rock, the publisher has given the book this current name. Lover ' s Socks is based on Lulus six-year on-and-off relationship with her former boyfriend, Ximu. The male character, Daiwu, goes to France to study fashion with his new-lywed wife after graduating from a top university in China. In France, like many Chinese emigre couples, the wife abandons the husband, marries a Frenchman, and stays in France. Somehow, the wife's decision sets Daiwu free.
He returns to China and soon emerges as a top fashion designer. He has no difficulty hooking up with beautiful young women, but his soulmate and confidante is a young fashion magazine editor named Jade, who worships him wholeheartedly. Smart and understanding, Jade never pushes Daiwu to marry her because he claims to be a free spirit who would not want the fetters of marriage. But Daiwu betrays Jade by secretly getting married to a woman who is half Chinese and half French. This is his way to get even with his ex-wife.
The publisher is keen on promoting Lulu, the young, fashionable, and talented author. They plan to list the book as semi-autobiographical, a method sure to generate more buzz and sales. But Lulu wants to change the location from France to Japan to make the characters less identifiable. Her editor persuades her not to. "Don't be afraid of reve aling your private life. You see, even Hillary Clinton has to write about Monica Lewinsky in order to sell her book. Victims like her, and Nicole Kidman, get a lot of sympathy. Your book will be a tear-jerker. You'll get a lot of supporters, especially sympathetic female readers who 'll rally behind you against those heartless womanizers. But to get this effec
t, you have to make us believe it's a real story."
Lulu says, "But I'm not concerned about my own privacy. I'm concerned about Ximu's."
The editor says, "If you worry about us getting involved in lawsuits, don't. We'd be thrilled if he sued us. It's called free publicity! If he were to sue, we'd invite all the journalists and hold press conferences – way more effective than book signings to pump the sales."
"But I just don't think it's fair for Ximu." Lulu mumbles quietly as she looks at her feet.
"Was he fair to you? He lied to you and cheated on you. Why are you still treating this shameless man kindly?"
As they are debating, the telephone rings. Lulu picks it up and gestures to her editor that it is Ximu. The editor puts the speaker on so that she can also hear what he says.
"So I heard you wrote about me," Ximu says to Lulu.
Lulu doesn't deny a thing. "Yes. Do you mind?"
"No. Not at all." Ximu sounds happy. "As a matter of fact, I'd prefer you to use my real name."
"But the character is not an honorable man, as you may know better than anybody else," Lulu mocks.
"It's flattering to be written about by a young, beautiful, and very promising writer. I'd rather be notorious than normal. If you want, I can help you find investors who might be interested in turning the book into a movie. Our story might become a legend!"
Hearing his words, the editor gives Lulu an I-told-you-so expression.
"You're treating my book like free advertising for your fashion designs," says Lulu, displeased. Despite all his flaws, Lulu still can't believe that the artist Ximu would promote himself so shamelessly.
"Why not? Nowadays the most difficult thing is to be taken seriously. Movie actors, fashion designers, and pop singers reinvent their love stories to promote themselves. We have a real one – why not go for it? Lulu, let's make some noise and sell our past together to the public!"
For a moment, Lulu says nothing. The she regains her confidence and replies, "What do you mean, 'we'? You didn't have any trouble going your own way before. You wanted to write some new chapters in your life without me. Now, I'm the one writing it, so I'll be the one selling it. Bye-bye!"
78 Marketing Trauma
Lulu's debut novel Lover ' s Socks is published with a first printing of 100,000 copies. Lulu is sent on a ten-city book tour. In every city, with every journalist and interviewer, she repeats the tales of her sad love story with Ximu who cheated on her and only wanted to take her as a lover, not a wife. She's heard on radio, seen on TV, and written about in newspapers.
Although Lulu enjoys the stardom of a rising new author, she cannot help but feel a sense of irony about the whole thing: Her relationship with Ximu almost destroyed her and made her look like a failure in front of her family and friends. But now, she is going to achieve some fame and make a fortune out of this story. She needs to smile at her readers as she signs her name on the flyleaf of the sad book they have purchased.
She calls me: "Niuniu, believe it or not, I'm selling my own pain. I guess everything is commercialized nowadays. The market is what counts."
I recently just finished reporting a story on the Chinese literature scene. I know exactly what she is talking about. I comfort her: "Nothing is wrong about making a living off one's pain. Mo Yan, the author of The Republic of Wine always writes about hungry peasants in his stories. Jung Chang, the author of Wild Swans, tells the stories of the three generations of women's suffering. Amy Tan is another successful writer who made a bundle by selling sorrowful Chinese stories to the West. Look at Hollywood – movies about the Holocaust always tend to win the awards. Selling pain is a good business model."
Lulu feels more at ease on the other end of the line. "After all, everybody else is doing it. What the heck? It's karma perhaps. I was wronged and now I'm getting paid back."
A few days later, I hook her up with a Hollywood-based Chinese film agent named Doug who is looking for cross-cultural projects.
We meet at Factory 798.
"The story line is great. A Chinese man is dumped in France by his Chinese wife and then he goes back to China and becomes a womanizer who takes revenge on Chinese women. You have done a great job exploring the psyche of Chinese women who abandon their Chinese husbands after moving to the West and the sense of defeat that Chinese men have in the West. But your story is not sad enough!" Doug tells this to Lulu as soon as we sit down, showing his American impatience.
"What do you mean?" Lulu asks.
Doug continues. "From Hollywood 's perspective, if a movie is about China and it is not about kung fu, it needs to have some cultural flavor. The sad cultural and political situations in other countries often make American audiences feel guilty about their own comfortable lifestyle. As long as you can pull on Americans' heartstrings, it will sell. So I suggest that you add in more about the low status of Chinese women. It's best to include the topics of prostitution and foot binding."
"But my story is a modern-day story. How can I write about foot binding? It's no longer practiced in China?"
Doug laughs. "What about creating an older woman whose feet were bound – the male character's grandmother or great-grandmother, for example. The whole point is to show how backward China was. "
"What about prostitution? Why is it needed?" Lulu asks.
"Nowadays, even a Nobel laureate says that prostitutes inspire him. You see, many Western men come to Asia to get cheap sex. So create an intriguing Chinese prostitute."
Lulu's anger is quite visible as she gets to her feet. "Doug, Richard Mason wrote The World of Suzie Wong fifty years ago. You Hollywood dream merchants need to update your collections."
Lulu then gives me a broad wink as she says, "Let's go, girl. We have to meet Beibei at the opium den."
The two of us giggle as we walk off arm in arm.
79 The Ups and Downs of Female Friendship
People say that making friends becomes more difficult as we grow older. Friendship between women is tricky. Women can be compassionate, sympathetic, and giving, but at the same time, we can be catty, jealous, and moody. At a certain point in our lives, we all crave friendship to some degree. When it comes to friends, there have never been too many.
Beibei, CC, Lulu, and I are four girlfriends who have been confidantes for some time. We talk, listen, and help one another. One reason that we get along so well, according to Beibei, is that we come from similar family, financial, and educational backgrounds.
But lately, I have a burning desire to make friends outside of my own clique – even among people who are opposite to me. I don't know why. Perhaps friendship also has a seven-year-itch cycle.
Twenty-something May May, one of my interviewees who works as a secretary at a foreign enterprise, wants to be my friend.
We start to hang out.
May May likes to talk about herself. Being a journalist, I enjoy being a good listener. May May thinks she is fashionable and likes to criticize me from time to time.
"Your clothes make you look fat," she comments out of nowhere.
"Your hair is wrong. Short hair doesn't go well with your facial structure."
At first, I take it as constructive criticism. After all, I'm tired of the superficial, meaningless compliments of Americans. But I soon find out that every time May May scolds me, she adds, "You should look like me." The latter part annoys me sometimes.
Nevertheless, I want to test my limit. Although I don't think of May May as gorgeous, I never object when May May becomes self-indulgent. But there was one time that I felt very awkward. As we are having dinner, she tells me, "Niuniu, can we switch seats? That weird guy has been staring at me since we walked in. I don't know why this type of thing always happens to me."
I agree. As I sit in May May's seat, I notice a man who is looking this way. But it is so obvious that he is looking at the clock on the wall. No doubt, May May is a narcissist. But, I think, who is not? Every young woman is a bit like that. If I want to make friends with her, I sh
ould look at her positive side.
But apparently, May May is not only narcissistic but also competitive. If I wear a Bebe T-shirt to dinner, next time May May wears the same T-shirt in a different color. If I carry a new cell phone, May May will make sure to bring a newer model next time. Once I take May May to the Rose Garden, where she has never been before. A few weeks later, she brings me back to the Rose Garden. "You should thank me for taking you to this in place," she says, as if doing me a favor.
"Wait a minute. I was the one who took you here," I think, but I check myself. What's the point? After a cup of English tea, I leave the bar. After I get home, I call my friend Lulu right away, recounting the story.
"May May is typical of the one-child generation," says Lulu. "Their problem is that they want to be number one. They see everyone as rivals, not friends. They've lost their ability to keep friends."
80 The New Chinese Woman
Human beings have their own rules for games. It doesn't matter what culture we are living in, there are certain rules we all observe. For example, we should not sleep with our bosses. We should not sleep with our girlfriends' boyfriends. And we should not sleep with married men, in their bedrooms or anyplace else.
China has been a conformist society for too long. Perhaps that explains why the new generations want to be different. They defy conformity by breaking the rules and testing the limits. But sometimes, they challenge the rules set not only by Chinese standards but by Western standards as well.
May May is such a rule-breaker. She doesn't believe in the existence of limits. She has many hobbies, one of which is sleeping with middle-aged M.B.A.s – men who are married but available.
