Compiled by C. ARUNO, SHYAFIQ DZULKIFLI and R. ARAVINTHAN

A HAWKER in China who looks like the ‘King of Mandopop’ Jay Chou had to shut down his two shops due to poor business, reported Sin Chew Daily.

“I could not make enough to even pay the rent,” he said online.

Dubbed the “porridge-biscuit Jay”, the man (whose real name is Bai Xianying), first went viral in 2020 after a passerby noticed his resemblance to the superstar.

A video of him selling egg-filled pancakes at his cart blew up on social media, amassing him more than three million fans.

With his fame, Bai opened two shops in Tianjin and Shijiazhuang since October last year.

While business was good initially, fans were surprised to find both shops closed when they visited the outlets in July.

Bai confirmed on social media that he made the painful decision to close both shops as there was not enough business to cover rent and other costs.

“It was just not meant to be. There is nothing to be ashamed about,” he said.

Bai is now back at his humble roadside cart selling egg-filled pancakes.

When interviewed, Bai said he just wants to make enough money so that his children do not have to go through the same hardships he has experienced.

> Despite making up to 30,000 yuan (RM17,666) a month playing video games, a man in Shanghai is still often berated by his mother to “go find a proper job”, the daily also reported.

He spends his entire day at home as a professional gamer who helps clients level up their in-game characters, making 10,000 to 30,000 yuan a month.

“I am making money using my own skills. Why is that not considered an actual job?” he said.

In an anonymous post on Weibo, the man explained that with his education, he could earn a take-home pay of around 6,000 yuan (RM3,533) per month in the corporate world.

However, he said that after paying rent and other living expenses, there was not much left for leisure.

Most netizens supported him, saying that any job is a good job as long as it pays the bills.

“It’s much better than leeching off your parents. What’s more, you are earning double the money a normal corporate worker makes,” one netizen wrote.

Some, however, pointed out that gaming is not a career and that he may not be able to compete against younger players when he is in his 40s.

Instead, they urged him to use the money he saved to start a business and gradually pivot away from gaming.

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.