In a previous post, I had mentioned that the only exception to the use of the word 不 bù ("not") to negate a verb is when the verb is 有 yǒu ("to have"). In that case, the correct negation word is 没 méi. 没有 méiyǒu is used to mean "don't have".
I watched both the Chinese war action movies "Wolf Warrior" and "Wolf Warrior II" some months ago. (The second movie was better, but one may need to see them both in order to be properly introduced to the characters.)
I was watching "Wolf Warrior" (the first movie) late one night. I was alone in my living room, my entire family having retired to bed earlier.
There's a tense scene where the hero (played by Wu Jing) is caught in a desperate situation and is under heavy enemy fire. It's not clear he will survive. He's in radio contact with the Chinese control room, and his commanding officer is a woman (played by Yu Nan) on whom he has a crush.
It was the classic melodramatic movie scene where the question had to be popped.
Above the noise of gunfire, he asks her, "Do you have a boyfriend?". The entire control room is silent, including his crush. He repeats the question.
I guess he must have asked, "你有男朋友吗? nǐ yǒu nán péngyǒu ma?".
I confess I only understood the question from the English subtitles, but I blurted out her expected answer in Chinese, "没有 méiyǒu (Don't have)".
I'm a veteran of enough movies to be able to guess at corny dialogues.
An instant later, she said, "méiyǒu".
I was ecstatic and looked around the room, seeking the admiringly astonished faces that were my due. Alas, I was alone, and my jaw-dropping linguistic accomplishment went unacknowledged and unapplauded.
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