How to Blag it in Chinese
Interviews with Chinese youngsters who are finding ways to get away with doing as little as possible
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Many Chinese youngsters are unhappy with the outlook of their careers, and life in general.
Their outlook is gloomier than it used to be.
Unemployment among urban Chinese aged 16 to 24 is over 20%, with 70% of them being university graduates, according to a report in The Economist this week.
This malaise felt by many young people is expressed in new phrases which have emerged in the last two years.
We have learned about them in this newsletter. Such as:
摆烂 bǎi làn - “let it rot”
躺平 tǎng píng - “lying flat”
内卷 nèi juǎn - “intense competition for ever scarcer resources”
Having had enough of the intense grind of life, China’s Gen Zers are finding ways to cope with the pressure. They find ways to entertain themselves, save time, or cut corners.
This new approach to life is called 糊弄学 hùnong xué, which translates as “slacking off”, “blagging” or “bluffing it”. It first came into use in 2020 but has become more prominent this summer.
And it’s not just about cutting corners at work. An article in the media outlet Huxiu 虎嗅 interviews a group of eight youngsters in China, who are applying it to all parts of their lives:
We spoke with several young people who are proficient in "bluffing" in their daily lives. Among them, some are bluffing through blind dates in order to cope with their parents’ demand; some bluff at work during overtime; others bluff their way through intensive travel plans, going to places briefly just to check it out; and there are even some people, in order to save high haircut costs, who bluff their way by cutting their own hair.
我们和几位在日常生活中精通“糊弄学”的年轻人聊了聊他们的“糊弄”日常。他们当中，有人为了应付父母“糊弄式”相亲；有人为了应付不合理的公司制度，开启“摸鱼式”加班；有人原本计划完成15城的随心飞计划，却不想只维持了两周，就变成了“糊弄式”打卡；也有人，为了节省高昂的理发费用，“糊弄式”剪头发……
This minimum input maximum output philosophy is not too dissimilar from the 'quiet quitting' trend seen in western countries during and post-covid.
So, that's what we explore this week!
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Favourite Five
1. 摸鱼 mō yú
feeling fish, slacking off during work hours
有人为了应付不合理的公司制度，开启“摸鱼式”加班 - Some people, in order to deal with unreasonable company policies, slack off during overtime.
Related: 划水 huá shuǐ - ‘rowing’ - idling away time during work hours
2. 糊弄学 hù nong xué
bluffing, the art of muddling through or getting by
我们和几位在日常生活中精通“糊弄学”的年轻人聊了聊他们的“糊弄”日常 - We chatted with several young people who are well-versed in the art of bluffing their way through things, discussing with them how they do it on a daily basis.
More: Read more in this week’s The China Project Phrase of the Week where we translate it as ‘quiet quitting’.
Related:
躺平 tǎng píng - Lying flat, a lifestyle of taking it easy and avoiding stress
佛系 fó xì - Buddhist style, a carefree and laid-back attitude towards life
3. 白人饭 bái rén fàn
white people's food
近日，“能冷食绝不开火，能整食绝不切开”的“白人饭”火了 - Recently, the term ‘white people's food’ has become popular, which humorously describes the preference for cold meals and as little prep as possible.
4. 见缝插针 jiàn fèng chā zhēn
stick a pin wherever there is room, seize every opportunity
开始见缝插针地劝我谈恋爱，外加半强迫式地让我去相亲 - They started to encourage me to start dating at every occasion, even going so far as to semi-forcefully set me up for blind dates.
5. 三天打鱼，两天晒网 sān tiān dǎ yú, liǎng tiān shài wǎng
To work inconsistently or irregularly, taking breaks frequently or not being fully committed to a task
健身4年的我，一直是“三天打鱼两天晒网”的状态，一边吃不了健身的“苦”，一边又不想放弃 - As someone who has been working out for 4 years, I've been very inconsistent. I find exercising hard, but I don’t want to give it up.
Consuming the Conversation
Useful words
6. 晒 shài
to share images on social media
小红书上，不少网友“晒”着自己“维持生命体征”的“白人饭” - On the social media platform RED, many users share images of their 'white people's food', which they rely on to sustain their vital signs.
Related: po (pōu) to 'post' on social media
7. 颓废 tuí fèi
listless; having a negative attitude towards life
“白人饭”火爆背后，映射出的是现在年轻人对生活积极中略带一丝“颓废”的态度 - The popularity of 'white people's food' reflects a slightly negative attitude of young people towards life, even though they remain positive overall.
8. 码字 mǎ zì
write or type content for an extended period of time
我经常需要长时间集中地‘码字’，之前为了节省时间总是点外卖 - I often need to concentrate for a long time to write content on my computer. So I used to order takeout to save time.
9. 洒脱 sǎ tuō
free and easy, carefree
既要避免与主流思想冲突又要保持自我的洒脱态度 - They need to avoid clashing with mainstream ideas while maintaining their own carefree and independent attitude.
10. 追剧 zhuī jù
binge-watch a TV series
被吃饭“糊弄学”拯救之下的我，也因此可以挤出1~2个小时的时间悠闲躺平追剧 - Thanks to the salvation of bluffing, I can also spare a couple of hours to leisurely lie down and binge-watch TV series.
11. 宅女 zhái nǚ
woman who prefers to stay at home
这对于我这个宅女来说，已经算是“长途跋涉”了 - For me, as a woman who prefers to stay at home, this is already considered a long journey.
More: 长途跋涉 cháng tú bá shè - A long journey made on foot
12. 发愁 fā chóu
worried, anxious, at loss
正在发愁的我，就随口说道，“要不给我吧，反正我还没有给我儿子买礼物” - While I still didn’t know what to give my son for Children’s Day, I casually said, "How about giving it to me? After all, I haven't bought a gift for my son yet."
13. 搪塞 táng sè
deceive, evade
并不是所有相亲都可以用这些话术搪塞过去 - Not all blind dates can be dealt with using these evasive language tactics.
14. 下饭 xià fàn
appetising, looks delicious
尤其是川渝地区的美食种类多且很下饭，那半个月体重也是直线上升 - The cuisine in Sichuan and Chongqing regions is particularly diverse and very appetizing, causing my weight to increase rapidly in just half a month.
Three-characters
15. 小聪明 xiǎo cōng ming
a little cleverness or trickery
但这点小聪明很快被领导发现，提醒我日报不能这么糊弄，要多加思考再提交 - However, this little trick was quickly noticed by the leader, who reminded me I cannot just fill the report up with superficial information, and I should give more thought to it.
Note: a shallow or superficial attempt to solve a problem
16. 特种兵 tè zhǒng bīng
special forces, intense activity that only special forces go through
这样“特种兵”式旅游对我一个996的打工人来说，实在过于“残忍” - This kind 'special forces style' of tourism is too cruel for me, even as a 996 working person.
Related:
打卡 dǎ kǎ - going to specific sites in a tourist destination to take a selfie
特种兵旅游 tè zhǒng bīng lǚ yóu - special forces tourism
Idioms
17. 短小精悍 duǎn xiǎo jīng hàn
short but to the point, concise
我还只是在工作城市的周边来个周末短小精悍的旅行 - For now, I'm just having a short weekend trip to nearby cities.
18. 舍近求远 shě jìn qiú yuǎn
abandon what is close and seek what is far; choose a distant option over a nearby one
我和办公室的很多同事，都会不约而同地舍近求远，选择走路需要半个小时才能抵达的核酸点去做核酸 - Many of my colleagues and I, without prior agreement, would opt to walk for half an hour to a nucleic acid testing center rather than go to the one nearby for COVID-19 testing.
Note: Used ironically here, as an excuse to slack off work
19. 缓兵之计 huǎn bīng zhī jì
a tactic of stalling for time or using delay as a strategy
因此，我就先采取“缓兵之计”，把眼前的盘问糊弄过去 - Therefore, I used delay tactics to bluff my way through the current interrogation.
Note: An idiom from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Phrases
20. 枯燥冗长 kū zào rǒng cháng
dull and boring
又觉得40~50分钟的理发时间枯燥冗长 - I also find the 40 to 50 minutes of haircut time to be dry and lengthy, making it dull and boring.
21. 朝九晚六 zhāo jiǔ wǎn liù
typical working schedule from 9am to 6pm
作为朝九晚六的上班族之一，每逢闲暇时候，我就想出去转转 - As one of the office workers with a 9 to 6 schedule, I want to travel whenever I have free time.
22. 走一步算一步 zǒu yí bù suàn yí bù
take it one step at a time, deal with each challenge as it comes
我想的是，走一步算一步 - My plan is to take it one step at a time.
23. 车到山前必有路 chē dào shān qián bì yǒu lù
when the car gets to the mountain pass, there will always be a road; where there is a will, there is a way
好在，车到山前必有路。有天我和大学同学聊天吐槽公司“日报文化”时，同学给我分享了一个“日报周报生成器”的小程序 - Fortunately, where there is a will, there is a way. One day, while chatting and complaining about the "daily report culture" in our company, my university friend shared a small program called the "daily and weekly report generator" with me.
24. 从一个坑跳进了另一个坑 cóng yí ge kēng tiào jìn le lìng yí ge kēng
jumping from one pit into another; get out of a bad situation just to land in another one
没想到，我只是从一个坑跳进了另一个坑罢了 - I didn't expect that I just jumped from one pit into another.
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