Man breaks down over 20-yuan love scam

Compiled by C.Aruno , Ho Jia Wen and R. Aravinthan

A MAN became an emotional wreck after being duped in an online love scam, but netizens were amused when they found out that he had lost just 20 yuan (RM13.14), Oriental Daily reported.

The heartbroken man in China’s Guangdong province became a subject of mirth when his older sibling shared the story online.

Apparently, the elder brother found him crying and wailing at home. Despite the best efforts of family members, he was inconsolable.

He later explained that he had fallen in love with a woman online but ended up having his “hard-earned money” scammed after she broke up with him.

When asked how much he had lost, he said he gave the woman about 20 yuan.

“I was stunned; speechless,” the older brother said when he recounted the story online.

The story soon went viral and the man became the butt of jokes on social media.

But some felt sorry for him.

“He was crying over lost love and not because of the 20 yuan,” someone posted.

> The Chinese city of Harbin, where temperatures could drop to as low as -42°C in winter, has begun covering metal poles with woollen sleeves after tourists kept getting their tongues stuck to them, Sin Chew Daily reported.

Apparently, visitors from southern China like to lick frozen lamp posts and utility poles.

The latest incident happened last month when a man got his tongue stuck to a frozen pole and required help from the police.

This led to the city council taking the step of “dressing up” poles in colourful woollen sleeves that featured knitted reindeer patterns.

Photos of these poles went viral on Chinese social media, with many Internet users praising the council for their creativity.

However, some netizens criticised the move and accused the council of restricting the freedom of tourists.

“When you see a metal pole, you must experience licking it yourself,” one Internet user wrote.

The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.