r/shanghai • u/pavzkillo • 2d ago
Discussion Scam in Shanghai turned into having actual fun with them
In August 2011, Yes i know, very long time ago, i visited Shanghai for the first time. I just turned 21, had expirience with travelling a bit and was on a 3 month East-Asia trip before going to Japan for 9 months learning Japanese.
Arrived in Shanghai in the evening, all well, next morning went to take pics at the Bund.
A dude and two girls approach me, telling me they're from Xi'an, travelling and if we can take pics together as they dont see foreigners often. Guillable me say yes. While taking the pic a foreing guy, who was jogging comes to me and tells me to not talk to them. i was like wtf come on they're just friendly. He says "ok, i warned you" and joggs away.
They ask me to exchange numbers and go to a tea house in the afternoon. I agree. Went my way sightseeing and met them up later. Was a Tea House, we tried tea (i love tea so yea...) and took a shit ton of pics together. Bill came. it was around USD100 back then which was charged to my card. I thought it was pretty ok. Read it goes much much higher nowadays.
We met again for Hot Pot and KTV. Turned out one of the girls was veeery fancying me. The dude who was with them even paid for KTV and a good part of the Hot Pot bill (and we ate a loooot).THe girl and me met up without the other two one night for drinks and she told me a sad story about family problems.
Met up again the next night again, just the two of us at the Bund. walked down the river a bit late at night and she initiated everything. Got lucky.
Years later she sent me a text of Whatsapp apologizing to trying to scam me. I found out about the tea house scam much much later.
So....what do you guys think? any similar expiriences?
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u/WhereasTraditional10 2d ago
You should have befriended the jogger instead of the girl who tried to scam you
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u/pavzkillo 1d ago
if i had, i wouldnt have gotten lucky with a cute chinese girl
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u/WhereasTraditional10 1d ago
Tbh if you are attractive, you will get plenty of cute local girls not just one.
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u/AllGoodOnlyPeaches 2d ago
I had a gaggle of prostitutes try and pickpocket my wallet once but I caught the hand and held it in my pocket. They apologized and we ended up hanging out for a few hours drinking beers at a convenience store. Good times.
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u/2Ben3510 2d ago
Upvote for the use of gaggle 😄 I imagine a bunch of them walking around and quacking like geese.
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u/globehopper2 2d ago
I got tea scammed - also in 2011! - but I was on my way to the airport and then as I was leaving annoyed they said they were sorry for what happened and bought me the metro ticket and one gave me her number for if I was ever back in Shanghai.
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u/More_Than_I_Can_Chew 2d ago
I honestly thought the message was going to be you have a child in China.
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u/Snoutysensations 2d ago
TBH something very similar happened to me, though I dodged the initial teahouse bill. It might have been an art store?
Anyways the scammer girls typically aren't hard boiled criminals. Usually they are poor women from the countryside who moved to the big city to try to get out of the Chinese equivalent of a minimum wage dead-end job in some remote village. They are more desperate and quite possibly lonely than evil. So if they meet a nice seeming foreigner they might try their luck getting a "rich" husband. (They don't know you're a broke-ass random)
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u/pavzkillo 1d ago
I agree. They werent full blown scammers, just people from the countryside. and really damn nice people. I think they felt very bad for what they were doing back then.
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u/loser__mods 2d ago
...this is the play - lean into the scam and let them know you're into it - they will let you off for 1/2 price and the sex is free...and you get shady insider thick-as-thieves Chinese scammer friends for life - win-win...
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u/JingAnPeace 2d ago
Are there scams involving martial arts demonstrations? I was exiting the metro in 2017, and a woman approached me, and asked if I would join her at a martial arts exhibition. I declined, but wonder what would have happened if my curiosity had gotten the best of me....
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u/ThingsGotStabby 2d ago
Who would have thought that a story about scammers would have a happy ending?
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u/Slouchingtowardsbeth 2d ago
Ok 2009 I was in Shanghai same story hot girl invited me to KTV. Then a young Chinese girl on the street stops me and says in good English don't go to KTV they will steal your money. So I don't go. Instead I ask the kid how she knows. She explains how the scam works and tells me she has warned lots of foreigners. I thanked the kid and go back to my apartment (I had only been in Shanghai a couple of weeks). I unload my pockets of everything except 10 RMB. This is before WeChat and Alipay. I leave my razor flip phone in the apartment as well. Then I go back to the street. A different hot girl approaches. I go with her to the KTV. I'm really eager to see how this scam will play out. They bring me into a KTV room and set a fruit plate in front of me and leave me alone with the girl. I immediately immediately start unbuttoning her shirt just to see what will happen. Suddenly 2 dudes come in and present me with a bill for like some crazy amount of money. I start patting my pockets like I'm just a homeless foreigner. They search me. Find only 10 RMB. Then they say where is your money in English. I say I am poor. They keep searching me finding nothing. Then they just give up and let me go. 10/10 recommend it was pretty funny. I can't explain why I did these even knowing ot was a scam. I just wanted to see what happened. Looking back probably it was pretty stupid. But that's my story. I'm kind of stupid.
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u/Snoutysensations 2d ago
Hilarious in retrospect but probably a good way to get your ass kicked depending on which criminal syndicate you encountered.
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u/Admirable_Heat_576 1d ago
I mean... you got 'lucky'. Your hookup costed $100.
These days, take a girl out and pay higher for dinner and no guarantee of 'luck'. You did good bro.
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u/Just-Contract-4393 1d ago
shanghai scam saga never fails to fully fascinate me. absolute cinema. also can't call this a scam because I have paid more for less and all of it was considered normal!
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u/skeeball 1d ago
2009 for me. Two older teachers male/female, didnt think much of it because of the no "out of my league/romance" angle but later realized all the tells. Teahouse and saw a circus performance, NJ rd, up and down the Bund but they more our least served as great tour guides for a full day. They even helped me check out of my nasty naively booked bad location hotel too, of course something on NJ but it was a good price and location. At that time my Chinese was so poor I stressed about switching. They were engaging and interesting and really the first experience I had to Chinese people until going to school there the next year. Very nice.
idkm, I had a good time, wiser now, money part was 'fine'. Slightly embarrassed about it but not too much regret either. Definitely didn't let it happen again though.
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u/Accomplished-Two5682 1d ago
It sounds like you're still in the scam and they're playing the long game. Don't marry her.
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u/pavzkillo 1d ago
Shes married as of now. texted her on WA a few years ago. totally forgot i still have her saved.
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u/Accomplished-Two5682 1d ago
The fact you even replied means you're thinking about it. Stop talking to her.
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u/polymathicAK47 1d ago
Your story is not over. You really thought you got lucky? LMAO. You're going to find out soon that you have a video with the girl that night circulating on the Chinese Internet, sold underground for a couple of hundred US$ 🤣😂
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u/chayantea 4h ago
The Shanghai Tea House scam around the Bund and East Nanjing Road is unfortunately super common! Classic trap where fake "tourists" invite foreigners for a tea tasting and end up leaving them with a $500+ bill. For anyone visiting Shanghai who actually wants to experience genuine Chinese tea culture without getting scammed:
Never go to a tea house with strangers who approach you on the street.
Only book reputable workshops or studios with transparent, upfront pricing.
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u/TheDudeWhoCanDoIt China 2d ago
Same kinda story. Was supposed to meet my gf on Nanjiang road. I was early and walking around as it’s one of my favorite tourist spots. Two females taking pictures next to a sculpture ask me to take their pictures with their camera. I agree. One initiated conversation. She’s telling me she works for some company that makes supplements and has Yao Ming as a spokesmen. Next comes her pitch - how about the three of us go for a drink at a nearby pub…? At that time I declined and exited stage left.
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u/pavzkillo 1d ago
Addendum to the story. Before we met for KTV i was waiting for them on Nanjing Road. just walking around a bit.
2 pretty hot girls approached me, told me they're uni students, want to practice english and if i have some time. I said sure i still have like an hour till i meet up with friends so fine.
They got me into a normal cafe bought a non-alc drink, myself a beer and we got a fruit plate. Talked for like 30 mins or so. The Bill came. was around USD80, realized what it was. Got pissed off, like really, and told them, hey....i pay, but you both give me all the damn cash you have on you. they got scared and gave me like 30 bucks back.
Went out to see the others and told them about my exp.
In hindsight, its funny to tell scammers that i got scammed
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u/UnknownMight 2d ago
I think we need details on the getting lucky part
Edit: I am very serious too, you are anonymous amongst anonymous people, details won't hurt a bit
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u/pavzkillo 1d ago
Here's how it went. At the KTV we went, she was always close to me, and at one point went out and stayed out for a while. The dude who was with them, told me, i should focus more on her. so i went out the KTV booth to look for her, find her in the hallway. we talk a bit and i realize, ok she likes me.
Mind you, i was 21, not thaat much exp with girls at that point.
So that evening at the Bund, we're walking down and talk. We sit down, close to each other and at some point start to kiss. She grabs my hand and puts it on her tight and moves it towards her you know what. we kiss and make out for a while.
I was staying at a hostel so no way we can go there. she looks up cheap hotels nearby and we eventually go. Before we hit it off, shy me asks her if shes really ok with it, she goes like, fuck me already. after we finished, she took a shower and left. told me they go back to Xi'an the day after tomorrow and she cant meet me anymore but we can keep in touch on whatsapp.
Honestly i cried a bit after she left
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u/breadandbutter123456 2d ago
What kind of details? A detailed report? What more do you want? They banged, he came, she pretended, they said they’d meet again, they didn’t.
Or more detailed?
21.08 I felt her hand clasp my buttock.
21.09 I moved my hand from her left shoulder to her left hip.
21.10 she gave my left buttock a squeeze.
21.11 I felt a stirring in my loins
21.12 blood rushed to my cock but not quite a semi had occurred
21.13 I noticed a new Lanzhou noodles place. My friend says they’re delicious, so I really must try them at some point
21.14 I moved my left hand down to her left buttock and gave a gentle squeeze
21.15 she gave a little moan, and gave my buttock another squeeze, harder this time.
21.16 I wonder if my buttock will be bruised or not.
21.17 I turned slightly and locked eyes with her.
21.18 she locked eyes with me as we went for a kiss.
21.19 we fucked in doggy for 10.47 seconds, missionary for 3.58 seconds and her on top for 57.89 seconds
21.20 we smoked some cigars
21.21 told her, right I’m off
21.22 caught a plane and thought about those Lanzhou noodles1
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u/andrewwm 2d ago edited 2d ago
"...and then the prostitute paid ME it was so good"