The myth and reality of flat-sharing

《爱情公寓》没有告诉你的秘密

Bills split, roommate fun, the kindness of friends and the potential for romance. The two-season drama iPartment (《爱情公寓》), set in Shanghai, has shown us how great it can be to live with others, especially members of the opposite sex. The drama, which tells the story of young men and women sharing two neighboring apartments, has become extremely popular, and is widely regarded as the Chinese version of Friends.http://www.24en.com爱思英语网

分摊的费用、合租的乐趣，朋友的友情，浪漫的爱情。已经播出两季的剧集《爱情公寓》以上海为背景，为我们展示了与他人一起生活是多么棒的一件事，尤其恰逢你的室友是异性时。该剧集讲述了一群租住在两间互邻公寓的年轻男女们身上发生的故事，该剧可谓人气爆棚之作，也被广泛称作为中国版的《老友记》。

But sadly, residents of real “love apartments” have seen a very different side to the story.

但很遗憾，那些生活在现实“爱情公寓”的人们经历着与剧集中不同的情节。

Low rent

低廉的房租

iPartment: The four-bedroom apartments located in central Shanghai are fully furnished and well decorated, with *spacious living rooms. What’s more, life seems easy: It appears that the apartments cost each resident less than 2,000 yuan per month. And among the residents are the jobless Ziqiao and Meijia.http://www.24en.com爱思英语网

在爱情公寓中，这间位于上海市中心的四居室公寓可谓是设施齐全，装修精良且客厅宽敞。不仅如此，那里的生活十分悠闲：似乎公寓中的每位成员每月的房租还不到2000元。公寓成员中更是有两位无业游民子乔和美嘉。

Huangfu Qijia, 24, technical engineer at Siemens China in Shanghai

而现实中，位于上海的西门子（中国）有限公司的一名技术工程师、24岁的皇甫启佳（音译）说：

I am sharing a two-bedroom, 60-square-meter apartment with a couple in Pudong District. The monthly rent for each bedroom is 2,250 yuan, which is one third of my salary. I have to work really hard and eat fast food for each meal. And I dare not even ask for any vacation time, as this would reduce my performance-related pay.

我同一对恋人一起合租一套位于浦东区的60平米两居室。每间卧室的月租为2250元，相当于我工资的三分之一。我必须要努力工作，而且每顿只能吃快餐。我甚至都不敢请假休息，因为这样会减少我的绩效工资。

Funny roomates

有趣搞笑的室友

iPartment: They have so many fun roommates in iPartment. There’s Sekiya, a Japanese animator whose awkward Chinese causes amusement; there’s Youyou, an *extra who is always *upbeat about her unsuccessful acting career; and there’s Ziqiao, a lady’s man who is only good at *flirting.http://www.24en.com爱思英语网

在剧中，“爱情公寓”中住着很多有趣的人。有日本漫画家关谷神奇，他糟糕的中文常常将观众逗乐。龙套演员悠悠，虽演艺事业不顺，却总是保持一种乐观向上的态度；子乔是一个喜欢向女人献殷勤的男人，长处只剩下善于调情了。

Wei Qiuming, 25, a tour guide in Beijing

而现实中，来自北京的导游、25岁的魏秋明（音译）说：

My roommates are all regular people, including a clothes shop owner, a computer programmer, and a supermarket manager. The shop owner is female and the other two are male.　Most of the time, we just complain to each other about tough bosses, unfriendly co-workers, and sometimes, bad clients. We don’t have much fun time together.

我的室友都是些普通人，有服装店老板，电脑程序员，超市经理。除了开服饰店的是位女士外，其余两位都是男的。大多数时候，我们只是相互抱怨各自苛刻的老板，冷漠的同事，有时也会说说那些糟糕的客户。我们并没有太多一起欢乐的时光。

Indeed friendship

两肋插刀的友情

iPartment: The roommates are always there for each other. For example, when Sekiya had money problems, but was too proud to accept help, Meijia deliberately lost money to him in a poker game. Later, the roommates tried everything to help Yumo get over a painful breakup.

《爱情公寓》中，室友们总是会适时向彼此伸出援手。例如，当关谷神奇经济窘迫时，他因为自尊心过强而不愿意接受帮助，美嘉就故意在玩牌时输钱给他。后来，室友们又一起想方设法帮助羽墨走出失恋的痛苦。

Li Fei, 23, an editor in Shenzhen Media Group

而深圳电视台的编辑、23岁的李飞（音译）说：

Currently, I have two roommates, a man and a woman. We seldom talk. Sometimes I need to work from 4 am to 12 am. When I return home, they are at work. And we keep toilet paper and washing powders in seperate bedrooms so that no one else can touch them. Also, wars often break out over dirty dishes in the kitchen, left-up toilet seats and loud music.

目前，我有一男一女两位室友。我们很少说话。有时我需要从早上4点一直工作到中午12点。当我回家时，他们都还在上班。为了不让别人乱用，我们都把卫生纸和洗衣粉放在各自的房间里。 而且，我们时常会因为厨房里的脏盘子，没有放下的马桶圈或是吵闹的音乐而爆发争吵。

Sweet romance

甜蜜浪漫的爱情

iPartment: Love happens in iPartment: Wanyu accepted Zhanbo’s proposal, and Sekiya and Youyou are now also happy together. Furthermore, the chemistry between Yifei and Xiaoxian is evident. The couples can enjoy half-price rent, free water and electricity as well as the many blessings of friendship. http://www.24en.com爱思英语网

爱情公寓中，爱情无处不在。宛瑜接受了展博的求婚，关谷神奇和悠悠现在正幸福地享受二人世界。此外，一菲和小贤之间的感情也愈加明朗化。这些情侣们可以享受半价的房租，免费的水电还有来自朋友的祝福。

Hu Xin, 25, an employee at China Merchants Bank in Guangzhou

25岁的胡鑫来自广州，是中国招商银行的一名职员。他讲述了他的经历：

I am living with two female colleagues. And I started dating one of the roommates last year. But we’ve kept it a secret from our other roommate, as we fear the relationship could create problems for the whole household. For instance, she might feel embarrassed around us. It is so inconvenient for us as a couple.

我和两位女同事一起合租，去年我和其中一位开始谈恋爱。我们一直对另一位室友保密，主要是怕影响到合住的关系，比如她也许会觉得和我们在一起有些尴尬。作为恋人，这对我们俩来说真的很不方便