The Shadows Cast by the Neon of "Happiness" — The Harsh Reality at the Bottom Depicted in the Chinese Dystopian Manga 'The Great Adventure of Zhongzhuanshu'

1 Introduction: Whose "Happiness" Is It?

In March 2025, the research firm Ipsos released the "World Happiness Index." Topping the list was mainland China, boasting a happiness rate of 91%. In an era of increasing global economic uncertainty, this major power claims "overwhelming happiness." Many found this figure unsettling. Amidst this, a monochrome manga titled "The Great Adventure of the Vocational School Mouse" suddenly went viral on social media, mercilessly depicting the "everyday life at the bottom" hidden behind the dazzling statistics through the eyes of anthropomorphized mice.ipsos.com

2 Overview of the Work: "Mouse" as a Metaphor for Vocational School Graduates

The setting of this work is the dormitories and factory lines of young people who have graduated from secondary vocational schools (China's vocational high schools). In China, the bottom 20% of students in high school entrance exams (Zhongkao) take this route and are sent to urban labor sites upon graduation. The author names them "mice," presenting them as entities identifiable only by their shabby work clothes and employee numbers. Their perspective connects to harsh labor akin to being chased by a mousetrap, poor-quality cafeteria meals, and a future of being used and discarded by seniors.note.com

3 The Abyss of Educational Disparity

In the work, it is sarcastically noted that "the educational gap between urban and rural areas is no longer a 'wall' but a 'canyon.'" People from rural areas have higher birth rates than those in urban areas, and their economic foundation is fragile. Jobs available to those with less than a university education include maid, assembly line worker, and delivery person. All are subject to constant pressure to reduce costs, and the system makes it difficult for skills to be reflected in wages. The manga visualizes this reality with thick shadows and expressionless characters.note.com

4 The "Union" That Binds Workers: A Party Branch in Name

Chinese companies are said to have labor unions called "gonghui"—at least according to textbooks. However, in reality, the Communist Party branch holds the highest power, and wage negotiations and strikes are suppressed under the name of "harmony." In the manga, the mice sarcastically refer to meals cooked with poor-quality oil (gutter oil) as "special supply," as the factory manager and their associates monopolize the cafeteria. This is the moment when systemic distortions directly affect the stomach.note.com

5 Numbers Creating "Happiness": Dissecting the Ipsos Survey

In the happiness survey conducted by Ipsos in 2023, China ranked first among 32 countries. However, from the 2024 edition, China disappeared from the list altogether. The work uses this statistical magic as a joke, inserting a black humor about the mispronunciation of "happiness (xìng fú)" and "surname Fu (xìng Fú)." The two characters for "happiness" shining on neon signs mean nothing more than the red LED of surveillance cameras to the mice.note.comipsos.com

6 Social Media Reactions

• Bilibili: The initial video garnered 387,000 views and 11,000 comments within 24 hours of release. Comments like "deeply moving" and "hope for an electronic utopia" surfaced, highlighting the "empathy fatigue" among the younger generation.bilibili.com

• Reddit /r/China_irl: The thread "A Manga 'The Great Adventure of the Vocational School Mouse' Went Viral Today" features mixed opinions, such as "captures the reality of rural areas well" and "exaggerated but undeniable."reddit.com

• X (formerly Twitter): Posts by the author Bringeall exceeded 10,000 reposts. Comments like "I can't read Chinese, but the art alone conveys the message" and "A 21st-century version of 'The Crab Cannery Ship'" with translations surged.

The keyword that runs through the reactions is "relatable"—pointing out that the exploitative structures faced by low-skilled workers are common in other countries as well.

7 "Low-Level Humor" Resonating Worldwide

The humor in this work is rooted in the self-mocking culture known as "dǐcéng" in Chinese internet slang. Self-disrespect by likening oneself to a mouse paradoxically functions as "self-affirmation for survival." This resonates with "dark humor" in the English-speaking world and "self-deprecating jokes" in Japan, allowing for cross-border acceptance.

8 Redefining "What Is Happiness?"

• Material Satisfaction or Fulfillment of Rights

• Collective Average or Individual Tangibility

• Promotional Video or the Smell of the Scene

"The Great Adventure of the Vocational School Mouse" overwrites the contours of happiness painted by statistics with the smell of sweat and oil. While there is dystopian exaggeration, it is precisely this exaggeration that reveals the essence: Is "happiness" measurable?

9 Perspective for Overseas Readers

1. Contradictions in the Global Supply Chain
   The smartphone parts you buy with a single click are built on the overtime hours of the mice.

2. The Importance of Statistical Literacy
   How to interpret the numbers released by the state. Happiness, like GDP, becomes a "national policy."

3. Universality of Dystopian Expression
   Kafka, Orwell, Moto Hagio—stories depicting absurdity transcend time and place.

Overseas readers can engage with the story not just as a "foreign tragedy," but by extending their imagination to their own labor environments and the use of statistics, making the story more personal.

10 Conclusion: The Dream of the Mouse

On the final page of the manga, the mouse turns its back on the surveillance camera and walks away. Its destination is not depicted. However, a few stars twinkle in the night sky. The author does not offer "hope" to the readers. Instead, they return the "freedom to dream." Reality does not change easily. Yet, the act of imagining the reality of others through stories is suggested as the first step toward happiness.