Boy in China has breakdown while doing homework: 'Won't I just be a slave to the rich?'

A boy in China broke down while doing his homework, saying that studies will not take him far in life.

In a viral video, shared to X by user Whyyoutouzhele on Thursday (Sep 3), the boy is seen bawling and sobbing.

"What use is there in living?" he questions, wiping his tears with his left hand as he continues to write with his right.

"When I grow up, won't I just be a slave to the rich?"

The video has over 145,000 likes on Douyin and more than 500,000 views on Whyyoutouzhele's repost as at Saturday morning.

In response, his mum advises: "Then you should study harder now, so you'll become rich when you grow up."

But the boy isn't convinced and begins to question his mum.

"Is that the truth?" he asks, even as his face crumples up while he cries. "Let me ask you, is that the truth?

"No matter how well you score in your exams, when you come back and can't find a job, won't you still be forced into manual labour for a living? Won't you still be a slave?"

He then concludes saying that the entire world is "a giant pit".

Faced with his breakdown, she continues telling him that he needs to work hard — even becoming the top ranked student in China — to achieve a better life.

But the boy refuses to believe her, this time saying that her perspective is a "fantasy" and not grounded in "reality".

As his mum tries again to convince him to work hard, he delivers an ultimatum: "If you keep forcing me, I'll develop mental illness."

Shocked, the mum eventually relents, telling him to stop studying as the video ends.

In comments, some users said that the boy received "enlightenment too early", joking that he might be "wiser than a 40-year-old".

"He's only experiencing this pain now because he's become too aware too early," commented another.

"If reading books were really useful, your teacher would have been driving a Maybach by now," a user also quipped.

But some users questioned why his mum kept filming.

Chided one: "At times like this, your kid needs a hug, not you holding up a phone to film a video!"

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