In a book I had read during my flight over, I learned that this kind of interrogation was normal in China. So I opened up, and so did my new friend.

He said he worked at a bank in China, and that his job was to approve loans to small businesses. He said he loved his job because it was mostly done over expensive dinners and karaoke outings he could charge to the company.

He told me he'd gotten married when he was in his early twenties because his mother had told him it was time to settle down.

It was around this point in the conversation that we arrived at the other end of the Tiananmen Square.

My new friend pointed at a large structure, and said it was the gate through which emperors used to enter the Forbidden City. He said that women had not been allowed into this area unless they were concubines. He said men who wanted to enter would have to "cut off their penis or maybe their balls."

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The Emperor's gate

We walked through an underground passageway leaving Tiananmen Square and came out on a crowded road that was full of tourists. This was West Changan Street.

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A touristy road off Tiananmen Square

I suddenly remembered I hadn't had lunch yet. I was enjoying my new friend and asked him if he wanted to get a couple beers and eat with me.

He said sure. First, he wanted to show me around West Changan Street, and a smaller street off of it, called Emperor's Avenue.

We walked past what he said was the world's first massage parlor. Then he pointed at a building that he said was the world's first pharmacy. He said there were some strange things inside that I should see. There were. Among them: dried deer penises and a 65-year-old wild ginseng root that cost 3.6 million RMD, or $600,000 USD.

I asked him if the store owners would mind if I took photos. He said probably they would, but that I should anyway. He said in China, people do things until someone tells them not to. So I took photos — until someone told me not to.

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A $600,000 root


We left, and walked down an alleyway called a Hu Tong. My new friend said the government keeps getting rid of them in favor of wide, car-friendly roads and that people are angry about it and keep protesting. We went into a store on the Hu Tong and he bought some cigarettes. He smoked a ton of them, he said. About two packs per day.

Finally it was time for lunch. Ever since I landed in Beijing, people kept telling me I needed to try some Peking duck. I asked my friend if he agreed.

He said he did, but that we should avoid the more touristy places because they would be unnecessarily expensive.

We walked into a shop. It appeared to be selling perfumes and jewelry and plateware. It did not seem like it was was a restaurant. But my friend walked down a hallway and opened a door into a private room. There was a table, set like a table at a restaurant. We sat down, and a waitress came in and gave us menus.

This was when I made my big mistake. I didn't look at the menu. I just asked my new friend to order for us: some duck and vegetables. He said we should order a half duck because he wasn't that hungry. But after a short conversation in Mandarin, he said the waiter told him the place only sold full ducks. I said that'd be fine, I was hungry.

The drinks came first. We ordered beers and, on the side, glasses of Chinese sake. I didn't know there was such a thing as Chinese sake. But there is, and it's strong.

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Chinese sake


Over the first drink, my new friend told me more about his job and his views of China.

"China makes me happy. I am very proud to live in China," he said. Then he leaned to the side in his chair, put a finger in the air, and squinted his eye to look at it. He said, "There is only one thing that does not make me happy. There is too much corruption."

He said that in his industry corruption was just part of the job. He said that if a client wants a loan, they have to bribe him. He said that if he doesn't accept the bribe, he'll get in trouble with his boss. That's because 10% of the bribe goes to him and 90% goes to his boss.

The duck came out on two oval, porcelain plates. It was sliced in the same way a fancy New York steakhouse will slice a porterhouse for two. My friend showed me how to eat it. You take a round "pancake" put a piece or two of duck on it, throw on some vegetables, drip on some sauce, and wrap the whole thing up. Then you hold it with your fingers (not chopsticks) and dig in. It was a lot like fajitas.

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Peking Duck

After a beer and a sake, my new friend started talking about his marriage. He said his wife was very beautiful, but that she wasn't enough for him. He said he had two girlfriends in other parts of the country.

I asked him if they knew about each other. He said his girlfriends knew about his wife, but his wife didn't know about his girlfriends.

He said he once had a Swiss girlfriend. He'd even flown there to meet her family. It hadn't worked out. He blamed her snooty parents.

He asked me if my wife got along well with my mother. I said they do now. He told me his wife and mother are always fighting. He explained that he and his wife live with his parents. That's normal in China, he said.

We finished our first glass of sake, and he ordered another of a different kind. When it came out, I saw that it was yellow, not clear like the first glass. My friend said that's because this sake had been infused with live, poisonous snake. It tasted good — crisp and lightly sweet. It didn't taste that different from the clear sake.

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Chinese sake, infused with snake poison


We sat and talked for maybe an hour or two.

Finally, the bill came.

Because I'd suggested lunch, I offered to pay. I thought maybe the bill would come to $100 or $150. We'd only had the drinks, the duck, and a side of vegetables.

The bill was 2,400 RMB, or $400 USD.

On the inside, I screamed. On the outside, I remained calm. I probably could have negotiated with the waitress. I could have asked my new friend if we could split. I didn't, feeling too embarrassed.

I just handed the waitress my credit card and swallowed hard.

My new friend told me he felt deeply indebted to me, and that he wouldn't feel right unless he could repay me with a gift.

So he left the table and left the private room where we were eating. He asked me if I liked tea. I told him I drank it sometimes. I said I liked jasmine tea. He made a face and said jasmine tea is for women. I said I didn't know that.

When the waitress came back to the table with the check, she also dropped off a wooden box.

My friend said to open it. Inside, there was a set of tea cups and a teapot. Each had a picture of Confucius printed on the side.

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My new tea set


As we got ready to go, I asked my new friend if I could take his photo.

He said, "Why not?"

And so I have a great photo of my new friend. I can't show it to you for the same reason I can't tell you his name. He was very candid with me, and I don't want him to get in trouble with his employer, his country, or his wife.

But I can tell you what the photo looks like.

He's got a cigarette dangling from his mouth and a big empty beer glass in front of him. He's wearing sunglasses. He's got a leather jacket on over a hoodie and a gray t-shirt. Like many Chinese do when posing for pictures, he's holding two fingers up in a peace gesture.

Stretched out before him is a great half-eaten feast of a lunch that cost me $400.

===

So, did I make a new friend?

Or was I scammed?

Those were the questions that went through my head when I finally made it back to my hotel.

And, after I posted this story, several readers began hollaring that obviously I'd been conned.

If I was scammed, it was an incredibly elaborate con. Lunch, and having Peking Duck in particular, was my idea. In fact, I had to remind him that I'd invited him. He told he he'd already eaten.

Also, at lunch, I offered to pay for him. He didn't ask me to. And then there was the whole box of tea cups he gave me because he felt so indebted.

On the other hand, maybe he was eventually going to invite me out for drinks that would have also cost an unfathomable amount. Maybe I only accelerated what was going to happen anyway.

I'm still not sure