On September 8th, a topic labeled “Japanese tourists stopped by influencer at the Summer Palace for taking photos” became a hotly discussed topic on Weibo.
A circulated video shows that on September 7th, a middle-aged man accompanied two Japanese tourists, a young man and woman, to visit the Summer Palace. When the man was taking photos of the two Japanese tourists, he politely asked a young man (influencer) nearby to “move a little to the side,” presumably to avoid being in the shot.
The influencer asked: “You are taking photos for Japanese people and asking me to move to the side?” and began to accuse the man.
The middle-aged man explained that he just wanted to take a photo easily and it didn’t matter which country the people were from. The influencer, in an agitated manner, insulted and stated that as a Chinese, the man should not give way to Japanese people.
Following this, the middle-aged man left with the two Japanese tourists, while the influencer followed them. One of the Japanese male tourists then picked up his phone and said in Chinese, “I’ll call the police.” The influencer asked, “Japanese people reporting to the police in China?” and continued his emotional accusations towards the middle-aged man, while the two Japanese tourists started recording a video on their phones.
The influencer disdainfully commented, “The Japanese even took a shot of me.” Meanwhile, the middle-aged man used his arm to block the Japanese male tourist, and the influencer complained, “You better protect your Japanese clients properly.”
Finally, the middle-aged man suggested, “Shall we go to the management office?” As the camera angle changed, a security guard appeared, saying, “Why are you giving a seat (or space) to the little devils (Japanese)?”. The middle-aged man explained that the two tourists were here for work for a Japanese company.
The security guard said, “Simply put, they are not allowed in because last year, the entire Japanese team was not allowed in.” The middle-aged man countered, “Everyone should buy tickets. Since they bought tickets and were allowed in by the management office, are you representing the views of the management office?” The security guard replied, “Not representing, but you must respect us here.” The middle-aged man asked, “Where did we disrespect you?” The security guard responded, “Not hating the little devils, it’s as simple as that.” Meanwhile, the influencer continued to rant beside them.
This incident subsequently sparked attention on social media.
Weibo influencer “1024 Commissioner” stated: “An influencer named ‘Subhuman’ got into an argument while translating for Japanese tourists taking photos in the Summer Palace in Beijing, feeling that the Japanese were not worthy of taking photos there. A scenic area security guard seemed to approve of the influencer’s behavior, and when asked if he represented the management office’s views, he said he did not.”
Travel blogger on Weibo, “Artravelersr”, remarked: “The trend of stirring up trouble under the guise of patriotism is becoming increasingly prevalent. These troublemakers who stop at nothing for traffic are making the image of the Chinese people worse and worse. Who is really turning a blind eye to this behavior? Moreover, this influencer’s username is from a Japanese anime and reportedly previously made headlines as a rapist upon returning to the country, pretending to be a patriot. What a joke!”
Weibo influencer “Chongqing Real Estate Talk” commented: “He probably thinks he has figured out the secret to gaining traffic, but it’s quite absurd, just give up the spot and don’t be so relentless.”
Some people identified the influencer “Subhuman” as possibly being Li Gaoyang, a Chinese student studying in the U.S. at the University of California, Irvine in 2019. He was arrested and charged with three offenses, including sexual assault, threats, and extortion against minors. He was released on bail for a million yuan. At that time, it caused a minor stir in the North American study circle, and now he has shifted back to the domestic scene.
According to the official magazine “Global People,” “Subhuman” derives his online name from a Japanese anime of the same name. “Subhuman” has 320,000 fans on a short video platform. Following the incident, “Subhuman” swiftly deleted hundreds of videos from his account amid questioning by netizens, claiming that some netizens had discovered possible criminal records from his study period in the U.S.