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Here’s why you can buy a t-shirt featuring Baidu’s CEO soaked in water

Vendors on Alibaba’s online shopping platform jump on viral Robin Li meme

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Here’s why you can buy a t-shirt featuring Baidu’s CEO soaked in water
This article originally appeared on ABACUS

It’s hard to beat the speed of China’s enterprising online sellers.

Yesterday, one of China’s most famous tech tycoons, Baidu’s Robin Li, was doused with water by an unknown man while speaking on stage in Beijing.

Within hours, the incident became a trending search term on Weibo. And almost just as quickly, it spawned a host of memes that were swiftly transformed into merchandise.

T-shirts, tote bags and lollipops, take your pick. (Picture: Taobao)
T-shirts, tote bags and lollipops, take your pick. (Picture: Taobao)

T-shirts and tote bags are printed with drawings depicting the moment the assailant poured water over the CEO’s head. Of course, no memes are complete without a good slogan, and the obvious choice this time is “what’s your problem.” The words, uttered by a drenched Robin Li moments after the attack, are now plastered on items ranging from phone cases to lollipop wrappers.

To make sure people can find their products, vendors are including some lively descriptions. The most popular of them all is “Hong Yan Huo Shui” (宏颜获水). The phrase literally means “Robin’s face received water,” but it’s also humorous wordplay on a Chinese idiom meaning femme fatale.

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