Editor’s note: Recently, a netizen on huanqiu.com posted an excerpt about a dinner conversation between an overseas Chinese American and his Chinese friends who had stayed behind in China.

Background:
The "American": He went to America in 1990 and became an American citizen. A few days ago, he came back to China to see some family, so a bunch of old classmates got together.

The Classmates: They always lived in China.

After finishing dinner, the classmates who had always lived in China began discussing housing. Those that had bought a house a few years back were lucky to save a lot of money. Some lamented that they didn’t have a good understanding of the economy, and to buy a house today they would have to bite the bullet and end up paying through the nose.  

The "American": "When I first went to the US I never would have thought things would change so much in two decades."

Classmates: "What changes make you feel that way?"

The "American": " When I first came to America to work, people back home only earned 200 RMB a month, so when I came back to visit, I felt like a rich man."

Classmate A: "Yes, at that time wages were awful. I wanted to buy a leather jacket but I couldn’t even afford it"

The "American": "But after 10 years, at the beginning of 2000, when I came back to see relatives and you guys, I could already see that everyone was doing much better than in the 90’s. Some people I knew started businesses, others even owned cars."

Classmate B: "Well, what about the changes in the recent past 10 years?"

The "American": "To be honest, this time I think the most significant change is I am becoming poorer than you! Although my income is still higher than some of you, but after paying taxes it’s about the same as yours – I  mean after converting dollars to RMB – and  taking into account the higher prices of America, I’m virtually poorer than you all! Take dining for example, I don’t dine out as often as you, nor do I get to eat as exquisitely as you. The "American" laughed at himself.

Classmate C: "Yeah but your house is bigger than ours, and also much cheaper. You have a yard and a swimming pool. This kind of house in Beijing would only belong to the top 5%."

The "American" (laughingly): "Houses are really cheaper in the US."

Classmate D: "Not only houses! I am sure the milk you drink, isn’t mixed with anything fake!"

Classmate E: "And the air quality; the sky in the US is definitely bluer, isn’t it?"

The "American": "That is true."

Classmate F: "Also, I believe when you go to the hospital to see a doctor, you don’t have to give him a "red envelope"! When you send your kids to school you don’t have to bring the teacher a gift! And if you face a lawsuit, you don’t have to secretly give the judge money in your favour either!"

The "American": "This is also true."

Classmate G: "In fact what’s important is that all you who have lived over there for a long time have turned "dumb". Take my parents for example: now they’ve come back after having lived abroad for more than 10 years, and they’re always being tricked; last time they received a strange phone call telling them that their bank account was no longer safe and they needed to transfer their money to a new one. And they believed it! Luckily I came back early otherwise their savings would have been gone! In contrast, my parents-in-law (who live in China all the time) would never fall for that. Nobody would even try to trick them. 

The "American": "Well it looks like maybe I am dumber than you, hahaha"

Classmate H: "So this is an interesting point. Well, in 10 years time let’s get together and talk about what changes have happened again. We are changing ourselves so we are not as aware of the changes you are talking about."

The "American": "Not need 10 years; in recent a few years I already feel the changes have happened so fast – when I came back two years ago I heard that China’s first high-speed railway just launched…"

Classmate I: "That was the Beijing to Tianjin high-speed rail."

The "American": "That’s only about 100km per hour, right? But when I come back this time it has been thousands of kilometers!"

Classmate J: "China has entered the age of high- speed rail…who here has ridden it already?"

Classmates A & C: "I have, I have."

The "American": "I’ve also ridden it. Frankly, sitting on the 350km per hour train here in China made me feel like I was coming back from a backward country; it’s the same kind of feeling I had when I first went to New York  from Beijing in 1990!"

Source: huanqiu.com
 

Related links
What Does China Lack to Be a Real Superpower? A Chinese Perspective
Rich Man, Poor Man: China’s Widening Wealth Gap
China Dreaming and How the Country Has Changed Us

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Keywords: conversation about change China changes in China chinese American dinner conversation