“Singles Day”–held annually on Nov 11–is a popular day for college students to declare their love to someone they’ve had a crush on. But this year, colleges seem to be buzzing with romance a bit earlier than usual.

每年的11月11日被称为“光棍节”，大学生们流行在这一天向爱慕的对象表白。不过今年的“光棍节”韵事来得比往年早些。

An article entitled “The Protocol for Love Confessions on Singles Day” (《光棍节表白条例》) was posted online last week. The protocol is targeted at several universities, and it includes 10 items that either give advice or prohibit certain behaviors to prevent “Singles Day” activities from getting out of hand.

上周一篇名为《光棍节表白条例》的文章出现在网上。该条例冠以几所大学的名义，列出了10条“光棍节”表白活动的建议和严禁事项。

As convincing as the article was, the post was soon found to be a hoax.

这篇颇有说服力的条例事后被证明为一场恶作剧。

Those universities have issued official declarations denying their involvement. But the fact that the article was read thousands of times in one day says how popular the occasion is.

“躺枪”的大学已经发布官方声明，否认发布了该条信息。不过这篇文章在一天之内就获得了数千次的点击量，说明表白是个热门话题。

“The prevalence of campus love confessions is a sign that our culture is becoming more open and tolerant, and that, in turn, provides a platform where students can freely act out their ideas,” commented the Chongqing Economic Times.

《重庆商报》评论道：“校园表白的盛行表明我们的文化更加开放和宽容了，也为学生提供了将心动变为行动的平台。”

That said, proclamations of love should be done with certain ground rules in mind.

即便如此，表白也应该遵守一定的基本准则。

“The protocol actually makes sense in a way,” said Zhao Caixia, 21, at Yichun University, Jiangxi. “As much as I admire the courage of students who confess their love, it’s important that the activity doesn’t disturb other people’s lives.”

江西宜春学院21岁的大学生赵彩霞说：“某种程度上讲，表白条例确实有一定的道理。”“我很佩服那些有勇气表白的人，不过重要的一点是，表白不要影响到他人。”

The fake protocol overlooks the fact that declarations of love don’t have to be public at all. Creating a big scene is not the only method to show your affection.

假表白条例忽视了一个事实——那就是，表白并不一定要公开。大张旗鼓地表白并不是表达爱意的唯一方式。

A freshman at Anhui University, who prefers to be known by his pseudonym “Desolate Rain”, took a low-key approach, and it worked just as well.

安徽大学一名化名为“荒凉的雨”的大一新生就用低调的方法表白成功。

He started by becoming friends with the girl and taking care of her in a subtle but thoughtful way. After they knew each other well enough and developed a healthy friendship, he picked the right moment to let her know his feelings.

他和女友从朋友做起，细心、体贴地照顾她。当他们互相了解并发展出健康的友谊后，他选择恰当的时机向女孩表明了自己的心迹。

“Personally, I think this approach is more sincere and avoids giving the impression of being hasty,” he said. “Being friends with each other first gives relationships a solid foundation. Otherwise it can easily collapse even if the confession goes well.”

“我个人认为这种方式更真诚，避免给人轻率的印象，”他说。“成为朋友是发展恋情的坚实基础。否则，就算表白成功，感情也容易破裂。”