Iraqi Brother Cheng China Cuisine online celebrity： I am a foreigner but I am not an outsider.

   (Video production: Xue Chen)

    Xinhua News Agency, Chengdu, June 2 (Reporter Xue Chen) "Ah Habibi, I am your good brother Lao Wang!" Dressed in an exquisite suit, a black curls and a beard, and speaking Chinese with a foreign accent, the man who took a selfie with a camera is called Ahmed Jabbar (Chinese name: Wang Lixuan), who comes from far away Iraq. This is his tenth year in China.

    On the Chinese social media platform, Wang Lixuan runs a gourmet account "Lao Wang is in China" with more than 15 million fans. The profile of the account reads: "Having experienced the pain in where will you go, I know how to cherish the hard-won stability and life after coming to China. I love the food here and the scenery here."

    "At first, I thought it was fireworks, but later I realized that it was the whistling sound of the missile falling." Wang Lixuan recalled that he was born in Iraq in 1994, and his childhood memories were full of painful experiences of being displaced by war. From Iraq to Syria, Wang Lixuan and his family have been baptized by war. Finally, in 2014, the family came to China with the help of relatives.

   Wang Lixuan (first from right) and his family. Xinhua news agency

    When he first arrived in China, Wang Lixuan worked as an Arabic intern teacher in an international school in Yinchuan, Ningxia. In order to better integrate into and start a new life in a foreign country, he taught himself Chinese while teaching Arabic. "The people around me are very patient. Although they didn’t understand what they were saying at first, they could see from their eyes that they really wanted to help me." Everything comes to him who waits. Wang Lixuan seized every opportunity in his life to learn Chinese, and finally he could communicate without barriers in less than a year.

    In the days since then, Wang Lixuan’s identity has also changed many times, such as Arabic teacher, class teacher of foreign students, model, actor, anchor with goods … After many changes, Wang Lixuan gradually adapted to the life in China, and her long-lost "sense of security" was also recovered.

   On May 28th, Wang Lixuan walked and photographed with a camera in his hand on the streets of Chengdu. Xinhua News Agency reporter Xue Chen photo

    In 2018, Wang Lixuan signed up for an online short video training competition organized by the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region government. Through the competition, he came into contact with the short video on the Internet and learned the basic editing operation and the operation skills of platforms such as bilibili and Tik Tok. On a trip, Wang Lixuan shared her feelings about food in front of the camera while eating it. After editing, this video was uploaded to the internet and got a high number of views. Later, Wang Lixuan took several short videos of food shops, all of which achieved good communication effects. This jealous, Chinese-speaking foreign blogger has gradually entered the field of vision of netizens.

    In less than half a year, the number of fans of Wang Lixuan has soared from tens of thousands to more than 15 million. Through his lens, netizens can enjoy the special food in China without leaving home, and they kindly gave him the homophonic name "To dazzle inside". The video of "Lao Wang in China" not only has unique comments from foreigners’ perspectives, but also has cordial interaction with restaurant owners and diners, which makes each video full of laughter and warmth.

    "Distressed" is a word that often appears in the video barrage of "Lao Wang in China". During the Spring Festival in 2024, when filming in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, Wang Lixuan was sitting alone at a barbecue stall for dinner. A sudden burst of firecrackers startled him in front of the camera, and his eyes were full of fear for a few seconds. "I thought it was the sound of a bomb exploding." This scene was just recorded by the camera, which made countless netizens feel distressed. On the barrage, netizens left messages "Don’t be afraid, this is China", "Looking up in amazement is responsible for yourself, and smiling and lowering your head is a trust in China".

    In March of this year, Wang Lixuan returned to his motherland after nearly 20 years’ absence and met his parents who missed him so much. During his short six days in Iraq, Wang Lixuan also felt that his motherland was gradually recovering. To his surprise, there is a Chinese restaurant in Baghdad, and the construction of schools, hospitals, bridges and railways aided by China is also stepping up. "I deeply feel that China is pulling Iraq forward with warm hands." Wang Lixuan sighed.

   On May 28th, Wang Lixuan filmed in a small shop in Chengdu. Xinhua News Agency reporter Xue Chen photo

    Today, Wang Lixuan began to "carry" his works to overseas social media platforms, hoping to let netizens from more countries know about the development and changes of Chinese food culture and economy and society through short videos.

    "I am a foreigner, but I am not an outsider. I like a peaceful life and I like peaceful people. " In the future, he also wants to expand the video content to China’s tourism, tea culture, costumes, customs, ethnic minorities and other fields, showing colorful and pyrotechnic China. (Participating in writing: Wang Jiaxuan)