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This article puts into context the unusual experience of Whang at Tong, the Chinese boy who was brought by John Bradby Blake from Canton to England, against a wider background of 18th and 19th century Canton where a considerable number of Chinese made a living from foreign trade. Referencing various sources and circumstantial materials, I suggest that prior to his first departure for England, Whang at Tong had already been exposed to an English‐Chinese environment in which he was able to make a living by being an in‐between person, perhaps also picking up some English with a few English‐learning kits. He might have benefited from existing foreign knowledge circulated in Canton when he was young; he might also have contributed to the enhancement of this pool of knowledge after he returned home from England in the 1780s. The experiences of Whang at Tong thus open a window to reconsider how cultural encounters between East and West could have taken place, including especially among ordinary people on a daily basis.