China Stories

ByteDance has ditched IPO plans as its flagship global product struggles to turn a profit amid tightening regulations. Click here to read the article by Guan Cong and Han Wei. Narrated by Jenny McKenzie. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Months after recovery, some former Covid-19 patients struggle with job discrimination, dating stigma, and even separate testing queues. Click here to read the article by Shihuan Chen. Narrated by Kim Dalrymple. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Considered a Chinese Robin Hood by his followers and a “common pest” by his enemies — to say nothing of bandit, murderer — Bai Lang achieved notoriety and power during the early years of Republican Era China. He may have been the country’s last famous bandit. Click here tor read the article by James Carter. Narrated by John Darwin Van Fleet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and Cali...

China’s upcoming National Party Congress will be dominated by talk of grand narratives, strategies, and slogans. But in Wubu County, locals are focused on more down-to-earth matters. Click here to read the article by Wu Peiyue. Narrated by Sarah Kutulakos. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

How a 19th-century act of “corporate espionage” changed world history. Click here to read the article by Tyler Roney. Narrated by Cliff Larsen. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Abusing over-the-counter medications to get high is easy in China due to the prevalence of online pharmacies and delivery apps. Click here to read the article by Jiang Moting, Fan Qiaojia, Chen Pengduo and Kelly Wang. Narrated by Jenny McKenzie. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Financial terms of the settlement, announced in a joint statement from attorneys for both parties on Saturday, were not revealed. Click here to read the article by Zhao Yuanyuan. Narrated by Kim Dalrymple. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

In October of 1901, General Zeng Qi asked the emperor of China for permission to open a coal mine. So began a century-long rat race to power China’s industrialization. Click here to read the article by James Carter. Narrated by John Darwin Van Fleet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Educator Minnie Vautrin stayed in the city during the infamous Japanese massacre in World War II, protecting thousands of women who took refuge at her college. Click here to read the article by Ya Shalong. Narrated by Cliff Larsen. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

In 1994, a woodcutter claimed to have a date with a 3-meter-tall female alien, and never wavered from his story since. Click here to read the article by Sam Davies. Narrated by Sarah Kutulakos. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Lü Yi built a massive business network on billions of yuan in fraudulent loans and turned rural banks into personal ATMs. Then he vanished. Click here to read the article by Sun Liangzi and Han Wei. Narrated by Kaiser Kuo. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Ironically for a form that takes a specific location as its name, Peking Opera is best understood as a blend of many different regional styles, with influences from both low and high culture on its development. Click here to read the article by James Carter. Narrated by John Darwin Van Fleet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy...

Discover China’s favorite swear words and their cultural contexts. Click here to read the article by Siyi Chu and Vickie Wang. Narrated by Kaiser Kuo. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

China’s financial industry uses the technology tens of millions of times a day for identity verification, but criminals race ahead in finding ways to exploit vulnerabilities. Click here to read the article by Wang Shiyu, Zhang Yuzhe, Liu Ran, Wang Juanjuan, Wang Liwei and Han Wei. Narrated by Jenny McKenzie. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and Californ...

According to government data, there are currently more than 33,000 Buddhist temples in China. An increasing number of them find themselves hosting urban youth who seek an escape from the rat race. Click here to read the article by Jay Zhuang. Narrated by Kim Dalrymple. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

How a German tradition from 1803 affects the massage parlors of China today. Click here to read the article by Ginger Huang. Narrated by Sarah Kutulakos. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Those born under the one-child policy face the demands of rearing their own children while providing care for their aging parents. Click here to read the article by Huang Huizhao, Chen Junke and Denise Jia. Narrated by Elyse Ribbons. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Despite many hardships, Fan Yun always had lofty ambitions. Click here to read the article by Fan Yusu. Narrated by Cliff Larsen. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Led by outspoken activist-scholars, the combative “central China school of rural studies” believes it knows the source of rural society’s problems. Not everyone in the field agrees, however. Click here to read the article by Liao Yue. Narrated by Jenny McKenzie. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

A visual ode to China's biggest metropolis. Click here to read the article by Neocha. Narrated by Cliff Larsen. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

How did Yuan Chonghuan, who achieved one of China’s greatest military victories and ascended to the highest ranks of government, fall so far from favor that he ended up executed by lingchi, death by a thousand cuts? Click here to read the article by James Carter. Narrated by John Darwin Van Fleet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/pr...

Situated in scenic towns and all but free, they’re the perfect flats for lying flat. Read the article by Jiang   Xinyi and Fan Yiying. Narrated by Ryan Cunningham. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

When Chang Linfeng’s conviction for killing his wife was overturned in 2013, the ruling was praised for exemplifying a push toward the rule of law. It has since been reinstated. Click here to read the article by Zhang Yichuan and Kelly Wang. Narrated by Nandini Venkata. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-...

Pink elephants, fish, genitalia: For young feminists in China, tattoos have become a way to express their womanhood and take back their bodies. Click here to read the article by Wanqing Chen . Narrated by Sarah Kutulakos. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Content in dialects is booming on social media, but is that enough to save them from extinction? Click here to read the article by Siyi Chu . Narrated by Elyse Ribbons. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .