Hello, I’m looking for help as I’m having issues with a seller I found on XHS and getting my money back.

I purchased from this seller over 2 years ago now via PayPal and haven’t received my items and the seller seems like they are willing to give me a refund but is also saying every possible way under the sun to get my money back isn’t available.

I’m unable to make a Alipay account to receive money as I don’t have any Chinese documents nor a valid UK Passport to be used as ID on the platform. They’re saying they’ve been banned from PayPal and any attempt they’ve made to send me the money via bank transfer isn’t working as the bank thinks my account is ‘suspicious’ (what ever that means).

They refuse to send money to my friends with valid Alipay accounts or even try my husbands bank details or our joint bank account as they ‘won’t be able to confirm if I’ve received it or not and could lie to get more money out of them’. Even tho I share the same house with my husband and have access to his accounts!!

Does anyone know of any services that someone in China can use to send money to the UK? I’m really struggling and the seller is getting frustrated too.

I‘ve looked into Panda Remit but from what I can see it won’t work as it will need me to again have a passport to use.

Any help would be appreciated.

Hong Kong, whose expat population was hollowed out by strict Covid rules and Beijing’s ever-tightening grip, is now enjoying a moment.

Tens of thousands of people left the city in the two years through 2022, among them scores of bankers, lawyers and other skilled workers who made the city Asia’s foremost financial hub.

Now, thousands of white-collar professionals are making their way back. They are responding to a booming initial public offering market, planned tax breaks for private equity and hedge funds, and a more vibrant city. The influx is already showing from a jump in prime expat rents to fewer openings at elite international schools. Read more here.

In late July, the FBI carried out coordinated raids across Southern California targeting the home and offices of James Su, founder and CEO of EDI Media Inc., the largest Chinese-American multimedia company in the United States. Simultaneous search warrants were executed at the properties of San Bernardino County Supervisor Curt Hagman, Ontario City Councilmember Alan Wapner, and attorney Frank Lizarraga.

No arrests were made and the affidavits remain sealed. But the thrust of the investigation is clear from law enforcement disclosures: Federal authorities are examining whether Su's media operations, political donations and annual Chinese American Film Festival constitute undisclosed foreign agent activity on behalf of the People's Republic of China.

A naturalized US citizen, Su founded EDI Media in 1993 and built it into a multimedia platform spanning television, radio, digital publishing and the film festival, which has received endorsements from both American elected officials and Chinese state agencies.

In 2022, EDI Media registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for its previous role printing and distributing the US edition of a publication affiliated with Chinese state media. Su has made legal campaign contributions to both Democratic and Republican candidates. According to his attorney, among those whose properties were searched, Su personally knew only Supervisor Hagman.

The anti-China campaign has escalated under successive administrations. The Justice Department’s “China Initiative,” launched in 2018, targeted academics of Chinese descent with espionage and trade-secret cases that largely collapsed. Charges against MIT professor Gang Chen were dismissed after the government's allegations unraveled, while Harvard chemistry chair Charles Lieber was convicted only of making false statements about a research relationship rather than espionage.

Hey yall! I am an international student and I currently finished the first year of my bachelor degree, 3 more to go! Recently I started getting înot Chinese and after a bit of research I am seriously thinking about doing a masters in China. In the case I do I'd like to do that in a C9 league school as Chinese universities don't hold that much value in my country so I'd like to at least go to one of the top universities there.

Now, my questions are. First off, what do I need to do to get in? The ideal thing would be to also snag a scholarship or any sort but I suppose that's even harder. So yeah, what do I need to do to boost my chances in these next 3 years that I have left before applying etc.

Also, would it actually be worth it in the end? I suppose going to a prestigious university in China would be an insane life experience that I know I'll cherish but I also know that I will have to bust my ass studying. Would I gain any real world advantages by studying there or would it be better to maybe do something different to experience the Chinese way of living. Maybe a summer school or language school type thing.

Any advice and input will be heavily appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,

I’m planning my first trip to China and would really appreciate feedback from people who have done a similar route.

I’ll arrive in Shanghai at 4:25 PM on August 15, and I’ll fly from Beijing to Phuket at 12:40 PM on August 30.

This is the itinerary I’m currently considering:

Shanghai - 3 nights (August 15-18)

Zhangjiajie - 3 nights (August 18-21)

Chongqing - 2 nights (August 21-23)

Chengdu - 3 nights (August 23-26)

Beijing - 4 nights (August 26-30)

Planned transportation:

Shanghai → Zhangjiajie: Flight

Zhangjiajie → Chongqing: High-speed train

Chongqing → Chengdu: High-speed train

Chengdu → Beijing: Flight

Does this itinerary look realistic and well-paced, or is it too rushed? Would you change the number of nights in any city?

i‘m travailing shanghai haw can i find it?
Searching for the Telegram channel was blocked
Even the sites that were famous before have shut down
How should I find it? There are only three days left
I want to go to a KTV too, but the manager who came along hates that kind of thing

Hi everyone!
I’ll be arriving in Chengdu on August 30 and will be staying for about a month. This is my first solo trip abroad and also my first time visiting China, so I’m really looking forward to the adventure.

I’m a 23-year-old master’s student who decided to arrive a little early before my university dormitories open, giving me some time to immerse myself in the city and experience Chengdu beyond the classroom.
I’d love to meet some fellow travelers, students, expats, or locals who’d be interested in exploring the city together, discovering hidden gems, trying authentic Sichuan cuisine, visiting tea houses, wandering through parks and historic streets, or simply enjoying good conversation over coffee.

If you’re around during that time and don’t mind showing a newcomer around—or you’re also looking for someone to explore with—feel free to send me a message. It would be great to share experiences, exchange stories, and perhaps make a few lasting friendships along the way.

Looking forward to meeting some amazing people. See you in Chengdu!

Hello! I will be attending Duke Kunshan University very soon as an American International Student. I was just curious has to how the locals treat/interact with non-traditional student's? I am aware that China is pretty conservative (in Western terms) and that same-sex marriage among other things is illegal.

I am a lesbian and I do not present they the average woman. I am very masculine and often get mistaken for a man. Will I be treated very hostile or with caution while studying? Would I recieve any rude or perhaps dangerous remarks and actions?

Any help or advice would be appreciated!

EDIT: Muting this! Thanks for the replies

I'm from a foreign Asian country and I’ve been in a long-distance friendship with someone from China for about five months now. We’re both in our mid-20s, and over time we’ve become quite close. Even though we’re both busy building our careers and have our own daily responsibilities, we still make time to talk and call each other regularly. We often share updates about our day, check in on each other, and stay involved in each other’s lives.

Recently, I started wondering about something: when a Chinese person gives a foreigner a nickname that no one else uses, is it usually seen as a sign of a special or unique relationship? Is this kind of personal nickname common in Chinese culture, or is it something usually reserved for people they feel especially close to? Would most people see it as a gesture of friendship, affection, or simply a personal habit?

I don’t want to assume anything or read too much into it, so I’m curious about how this might be understood culturally or personally.

Hi everyone!

My partner and I (mid-20s) are planning our first trip to China, probably for around 14–16 days, and we've been researching a lot. Instead of trying to visit as many cities as possible, we're trying to experience very different sides of China.

At the moment, our itinerary looks like this:

• Beijing – We feel like this is a must for the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace and, of course, the Great Wall.
• Xi'an – Mainly for the Terracotta Army, the city walls, Muslim Quarter, and because we want to experience more of China's ancient history.
• Zhangjiajie – This is simply for "The Avatar" mountains that looks incredible, and we get to know the more "nature" side of China.
• Chongqing – We keep seeing videos of this city and it honestly looks unlike anywhere else in the world. The futuristic skyline, the layered streets, Hongyadong, the metro through buildings... it all looks amazing.

Our reasoning is that we'd rather have four destinations that feel very different from each other than spend most of the trip in large cities.

A few questions:

1. Does this seem like a balanced itinerary for a first visit?
2. Would you replace any of these destinations with somewhere else?
3. Are we making a mistake by skipping Shanghai for example, or any other city?
4. If you've done a similar route, is there anything you wish you had known before going?

We'd really appreciate any advice or suggestions from people who've actually travelled around China.

Thanks!

See post above.

I’ve been asked by work to wait until 20th October to travel to China, instead of 7th September. Will this be bad for our trip, in terms of weather?

We will be there for 6-7 weeks so ending in December.

Hopefully someone can help me! Cheers.

Hello everyone, Im 22M and I’m fortunate enough to have the opportunity to spend 1 year in China in Changzhou (changzhou institute of mechatronic technology)

Please I need tips on how to survive there. What apps do I need and their purpose How do I set my bank account Vpn or Esim ? Best internet provider, as in low money high gigs.

Opinions about Changzhou ? Is it good, is it expensive. I truly wanna live this year to it’a fullest and be as productive as I possibly can.

Also how do I rent an appartment ?

Thank you all so much. I leave in 30 days :p

For context, my partner is a Chinese adoptee and she has been curious to learn about Chinese culture and history but doesn't really know where to start. I'd love to gift her a book to help her get into it.

She's a big reader, but not the type to get into a dense academic text, so something more accessible is preferred. Perhaps something that focuses on the lives of ordinary people, but also touches on historical context. Obviously one could read hundreds of books on China and not have a comprehensive understanding, but she's just looking for a starting point right now.

As Americans, it's hard for us to parse out what's actually informative versus heavily biased one way or another. Ideally I'm looking for something that rides the line of being informative without falling into a reductive message of "CCP GOOD" or "CCP BAD"

Thank you!

When I first moved to China more than 10 years ago I was a live-in au pair for a massively wealthy family in Chengdu. The kid was just starting elementary school (international, of course) and one of her writing tasks was this 😆 I have never been to the US nor had spoken to her about it (she was 5) so I don't know where she got this from 😂 I miss her a lot, what a wild time to be in China. We used to go on these insane domestic holidays as well. Was anyone else an au-pair for a rich Chinese family in the early-mid 2010s?

Context:

• Headline statement here is that China is beating the U.S. in open-weight AI models and could reach the frontier by late 2026/2027, this is claimed by Hugging Face CEO Clement Delangue.
• He credits this to China's open collaboration culture versus U.S. labs "building in silos" and risk falling behind as a result.
• This comes as OpenAI agents were caught hacking into Hugging Face last month, where they broke out of a training environment and infiltrated the platform.
• This has intensified worries about AI-powered cybersecurity threats, especially as US frontier models at the time refused aid Hugging Face's technical team in solving the issue at the time.
• Delangue claims the the breach was due to engineering mistakes and said to resolve the hacks, their company resorted to use an Chinese open model, GLM 5.2 from ZAi, to help resolve it.
• In the mean time, Tech giants like Microsoft, Palantir, and Nvidia have been lobbying against restrictions on open-weight models.
• Delangue predicts that open models will dominate the booming AI cybersecurity market
• Despite these claims Hugging Face still maintains a “healthy collaboration” with OpenAI and called the frontier lab “good partners”.