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When Chinese users woke up and opened Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), they noticed many “new faces” on the platform.
Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would revisit discussions on legislation aimed at banning TikTok’s operations in the United States. In the aftermath, a large number of American users flocked to Xiaohongshu.
Upon checking the U.S. App Store, as of 9 PM Beijing time on January 14th, Xiaohongshu ranked first on the U.S. App Store’s free app chart. Google Trends also revealed that search interest for “Xiaohongshu” in the U.S. surged significantly on January 14th, reaching a peak value of 100 at one point.
TikTok refugees paying the cat tax on Xiaohongshu
When American users post on Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), they often include hashtags like #tiktok, #xiaohongshu, and #USA. As of 9 PM Beijing time on January 14th, the hashtag #tiktok had over 1.3 billion views and more than 6 million discussions.
Chinese and American users have engaged in extensive conversations on Xiaohongshu, switching between Chinese and English. So, what are they talking about?
What is cat tax？
The most popular topic is “showing off their cats.” Many American users, when introducing themselves in posts, also share photos of their adorable cats. In response, numerous Chinese users post photos of their own cats as a friendly reply.
Some Chinese users have even directly asked American users, “Do you have a cat? Show us now!” The American users being asked often respond by sharing photos of their beloved cats. This act of posting a cat picture first has become affectionately known as “paying the cat tax” (交猫税).
As of 9 PM Beijing time on January 14th, the hashtag #cattax had more than 3,000 posts, over 1.7 million views, and over 50,000 discussions.
Chinese users asked American users to help solve grammar problems
Users from both sides also shared photos of other pets, including dogs, horses, and even mice. Meanwhile, some Chinese users decided to have a bit of fun by posting a photoshopped image of a “giant panda eating hot pot” and humorously saying, “Hello, American friends, this is my pet. Let me introduce you. Let’s be friends.”
Another hot topic was “English homework.” Many Chinese users shared their English assignments and asked American users to help solve grammar problems, reading comprehension questions, and cloze tests. A number of American users provided their answers. For questions they weren’t sure about, some American users politely responded in Chinese with, “I don’t know, sorry.”
Even more impressively, some American users volunteered to help, enthusiastically saying, “I’ll help anyone with their English homework!”
However, some American users questioned the accuracy of other Americans’ answers to the English homework, saying, “I can’t believe some of you are helping Chinese users with their English homework on Xiaohongshu—and getting it wrong!”
In response, some American users offered explanations such as, “A lot of Americans speak colloquial English,” and, “Chinese students are taught British English grammar.”
At the same time, both sides also engaged in discussions about topics like fashion, music, and movies.
During these exchanges, some American users chose to use translation tools, posting in Chinese or a mix of Chinese and English. Others expressed a desire to learn Chinese. Meanwhile, many users from both China and the U.S. suggested that Xiaohongshu should include a built-in translation feature.
Notably, one recurring theme in these exchanges was the shared sentiment of wanting to make friends. Phrases like “I want a foreign friend” and “我要交朋友” were echoed by users from both countries.