Chinese uncle praised for returning lost car plates

SHIJIAZHUANG－In Hebei province, a man has won the praise of netizens after a photo was shared of him displaying car plates recovered from floodwaters on the roadside to return to their owners.

In the photo, dozens of car plates were displayed on two bicycles with Wang Zengmin standing beside them like a street vendor.

Wang, who is from Liushoufen village of Lianchi district in Baoding, said the heavy rainstorm on the morning of Aug 10 had stopped the engines of many vehicles near Ruixiang Street. After the rain stopped, he and a few others helped to push multiple vehicles out of the floodwaters.

"We retrieved some plates from the floodwaters, so I collected and placed them on the roadside during the morning rush hour, hoping the drivers will see them and pick them up," the 61-year-old said.

According to the local transport authority, the rainstorm disrupted traffic in seven road sections of the city on Aug 10, including the area near Ruixiang Street.

Upon hearing about Wang's "car plate stall", villagers who had also found car plates came to pass them to him, bringing the number on display to 30.

By Aug 12, six of them had been claimed.

Wang had to close the "stall" during the day as he had to work for a construction company. "Anyone who has lost a car plate is welcome to look for me at home after 6 pm when I'm off work," he said.

Wang returned the plates free of charge, and was honored as a "good Chinese uncle" by netizens.

"That's right! This is your kind, simple and honest uncle from our Baoding city," commented one netizen. Another netizen commented that other people might demand at least 100 yuan ($14.40) per plate from the owners in return.

Wang shrugged off these online compliments.

"Anyone who found the stuff of others should return it. There is no reason to accept money," he said.

Xinhua