Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang usually projects a stern image to the public but his amusing and assured response to a tricky question on Chinese-Japanese love relationships showed a different side of him, triggering peals of laughter from his audience.
Lu was handed the rather surprising question by a Japanese student during a Sino-Japanese communication forum at Osaka University on Wednesday.
Sino-Japanese communication forum held at Osaka University on December 19, 2018. /Photo via huanqiu.com
The student from Kansai Gaidai University wanted to know how to overcome impediments to a marriage between someone of Chinese background and a Japanese partner.
The female student from Kansai Gaidai University asking the "love question." /Photo via huanqiu.com
“I have many Chinese companions who recommend me to date a Chinese boy," she said. "I know that Chinese boys are very gentle and kind to girls... But a friend of mine who is in a good relationship with a Chinese boy can't get their parents' approval. Could you please give some advice on convincing their parents?”
The unusual question didn't stump Lu. He cracked a joke at first and then gave an earnest answer. “Your friends are right about Chinese males who are really gentle, like the two handsome translators behind me. But they are married, you have no chance by the way,” he said, drawing loud laughter.
Lu Kang (Left 3rd) answers the question with a witty laugh. /Photo via huanqiu.com
He continued, “Marriage should only be decided by the relationship between the two people, not their nationality. Regarding your case, if the Japanese girl's parents have doubt about the relationship, it should be the Chinese boy's responsibility to make his promise to her parents, proving his sincerity and ability to give a happy future to the girl."
“Your question makes me think of the blessed marriage between Japanese table tennis star Ai Fukuhara and her Chinese husband Chiang Hung Chieh, which proves Chinese people look at this problem with an open mind and nationality is not an issue in marriage."
A member of the Chinese media group shares his experience as a Japanese son-in-law. /Photo via huanqiu.com
In order to provide the Japanese student with some practical knowledge, Lu brought a member of the Chinese media group who has been married to a Japanese for 25 years to talk about his experience. The smart move brought down the house and the forum to a climax.
A Japanese student wearing an “I love China” T-shirt poses a question. /Photo via huanqiu.com
In a lighthearted atmosphere, Lu answered another “tough” question asked by a tourism-major student about tourist attractions worth visiting in China but not options like the Great Wall that “everyone knows.”
Lu later asked the same question for recommended scenic spots in Japan to the student who said Itsukushima Shrine, where the spokesman had already traveled to. For a second recommendation, the boy offered Lu an invitation to his home on the island of Itsukushima.
Japanese college students at the forum. /Photo via huanqiu.com
Lu's amiable humorous responses reported by huanqiu.com on Thursday have won the hearts of both Japanese and Chinese online. Many netizens called him a sweet guy, a caring man.
“The relationship between the two countries is more about people-to-people contacts than geopolitical politics and value systems. Therefore, to close the hearts of the youth is to close the Sino-Japanese relations,” huanqiu.com wrote.
The forum was one of the activities held by the China Public Diplomacy Association during the think-tank group's visit to Japan aimed at strengthening communication with college students in the Kansai area.
Guests included Chinese consul general in Osaka, Li Tianran.