Read(past tense) this funny story by the MM on why Suzhou was chosen to build a joint-venture industrial park....
China had an egalitarian society for many dynasties. Anyone could become a xiucai,ie a scholar, if he studied hard and passed his exams. Many imperial scholars, zhuang4 yuan1, came from the lower strata of society, many were sons of farmers for instance. Once a person became a zhuang yuan, he was highly valued and usually the Emperor was more than happy to marry his daughter off to him.
When these scholars retired, they usually went to enjoy their retirement years in the South where the climate was milder and cooler. One popular destination was Suzhou. As the years went by, more and more former imperial scholars settled and raised their families in Suzhou, so much so that there was a zhuang yuan jie, ie Imperial Scholar Street, in Suzhou. The offspring of these people had good backgrounds and a conducive environment to pursue their studies, hence more and more imperial scholars emerged in Suzhou.
Now, while we have the technology, these people are smart and learn fast. Hence they make good partners.
Now we know why Suzhou was chosen!
2 comments:
Any wonder why our country's partnership with them is actually a spectacular, well-hidden (or perhaps not) failure?
Well~ Yes~ You can ask me in person. For political reasons, it's not convenient to put it up here.
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