Panda Governance

"Alright, first question. Let me see what the Bullet Screen is saying..."

Zhao Yu swept his gaze over the comments, filtering out the messy questions and some particularly rude, invasive ones before finally finding one or two that seemed fairly normal.

"Are there any vegetables Yuuka particularly dislikes?"

"Vegetables... probably cilantro?"

"Hm? You don't like cilantro?"

"Yeah. That smell is really strange. No matter what, I just can't accept it."

Just hearing Yuuka's voice, Zhao Yu could imagine her scrunching up her little face.

"You can't really blame yourself for not being able to stand it. People who hate cilantro are actually more sensitive to the aldehyde substances it contains. It's just a genetic thing." Zhao Yu recalled an article he had read before.

"Huh? So that's how it is! Lord Yu knows so much!" Yuuka suddenly understood.

She had originally thought she was simply a picky eater, but she had never expected her dislike of cilantro to be determined by her genes.

[So that's why. Now I understand why my friend always says cilantro stinks.]

[Another strange piece of knowledge acquired.]

"Hehe, then it's my turn to ask a question?" Yuuka said with a smile.

"What does Yuuka want to ask?" Zhao Yu asked.

"I can't think of anything else for now, so I'll ask what food Lord Yu dislikes."

"As for me, I don't really like sugar. I can't accept any kind of sweet food..."

"Huh?! You're kidding, right? Sweets are obviously so delicious." Yuuka's eyes widened.

"As for the specific reason, it's not convenient to say right now. But I really do dislike sweet foods." Zhao Yu nodded.

"I see... Then what about fruit?" Yuuka asked again.

"Fruit is fine, but only once in a while," Zhao Yu replied.

"Okay, next question. Let me see... Does Yuuka have anything that bothers her?"

"Would going out with classmates count as something bothering me?"

"How could going out become bothersome?" Zhao Yu was somewhat puzzled.

"Because when Japanese girls get together, it's troublesome. Everyone chases after trendy things, whether it's luxury goods or clothes that are popular lately. If you don't keep up with the trends, it's easy to get isolated."

Yuuka sighed. Clearly, this had troubled her for a long time.

[You get isolated just for not buying the same kind of things? Isn't that a bit exaggerated?]

[Isn't China more or less the same? If you enter a certain circle, you at least need an entry ticket.]

"No, it's actually different from China." Zhao Yu glanced at the Bullet Screen and explained softly.

He knew a little about Japan too. The whole society was very strange: people clearly hated socializing, yet still had to rack their brains to fit into all kinds of groups.

"In China, even if someone goes around alone, it isn't really a problem. But in Japan, they'd be discriminated against. Such people are often seen as unpopular or strange, so everyone has some kind of small group no matter what."

[That sounds exhausting...]

[Always watching everyone else's expressions... now I finally understand why Japan's suicide rate stays so high.]

Zhao Yu said those words not only in Chinese, but repeated them in Japanese as well, and Yuuka deeply agreed.

"That's right. Poor students have their own groups, delinquents have their own groups, and top students have their own groups too. People who go around alone mostly only exist in anime," Yuuka complained softly.

"Your social class is decided the moment you enroll. If a top student plays with poor students, they'll be categorized with the poor students and isolated by the other top students."

"And fitting into a group isn't easy either. You need to constantly have common topics, like popular makeup looks recently, trendy luxury goods, and so on."

In fact, this was part of why so many Japanese girls eventually ended up in the sex industry.

The cost of maintaining a social life alone was already considerable. On top of that, they had to occasionally check in at influencer restaurants, go drink coffee at famous cafés, and things like that.

Of course, they could refuse those invitations, but once they did, they would be labeled KY. The term came from the Japanese phrase "Kuuki ga yomenai," literally meaning unable to read the atmosphere.

"Yuuka has quite a few troubles too..." Zhao Yu sighed.

From Yuuka's rejection of those things, as well as the importance she had placed on him before, Zhao Yu roughly understood her current situation.

Maybe this girl had few friends precisely because she disliked this kind of socializing?

And because he was Chinese, she did not need to follow Japan's countless unspoken rules around him. They had never met in person either, so Yuuka could safely tell him things she normally would not dare say.

No wonder she had been so against him finding other gaming companions. This Japanese girl genuinely considered him a friend.

"Then it's my turn to ask Lord Yu?" After venting, Yuuka was clearly in a much better mood, and even her tone had become lighter.

"Has Yuuka figured out what she wants to ask this time?" Zhao Yu asked.

"I have. It's something I've always been really curious about," Yuuka said.

"Oh? What is it?" Zhao Yu asked curiously.

"It's... has Lord Yu ever seen a panda?" Yuuka asked expectantly.

"I've only ever seen pandas online before. You have to line up for a long time to visit a panda exhibit, so I've never had the chance to see one. But I heard China has lots of pandas. Is that true?"

"You asked the right person." Zhao Yu smiled.

"This is the birthplace of pandas, after all."

"Really?! I'm so jealous! Then you must be able to see pandas anytime, anywhere!" Yuuka's eyes lit up.

"Anytime, anywhere..." Zhao Yu was about to explain that he actually had to visit a panda exhibit to see them too, when he suddenly saw the Bullet Screen comments.

[Why not mess with the Japanese girl a little?]

[Of course it has to be anytime, anywhere. We can't let foreigners think we look down on pandas!]

[The streamer is from Sichuan. Shouldn't he be living in a panda nest? sarcasm]

"Ahem, it's like this. We Sichuan people actually ride pandas to school," Zhao Yu immediately changed his story.

"That's amazing! You can actually ride pandas to school!" Yuuka's eyes widened.

This was far too unbelievable. Pandas were incredibly popular in Japan, and every reservation required a long wait before people could see them.

Yet Zhao Yu could interact with pandas every day. Yuuka had never been this envious of him.

"It's actually nothing special. We're already used to seeing pandas every day." Zhao Yu was getting a little carried away by Yuuka's admiring tone and continued making things up.

"Darn it! I want to ride a panda too. I've decided! Once I become a legislator, I'll propose turning Japan into a province of China. Then maybe Japan can get assigned a few more pandas." Yuuka suddenly said something shocking.

"Uh..." Zhao Yu froze.

[???? I've seen plenty of rare breeds, but this is my first time seeing one in reverse.]

[I'm dying laughing. What kind of panda governance is this? Maybe it really could work?]

[As expected, giant pandas are the foundation of world peace. Bear Gate.]

[Bear Gate...]

Watching the Bullet Screen fill with Bear Gate, Zhao Yu could not help letting his imagination run wild.

If Yuuka became a legislator, maybe it really could work?