(Written by Hu Ao)

          Two years ago, my father was forced by economic pressures to move to the municipality of CX in ZJ Province.  He was somewhat familiar with that area as my grandfather had had his original home there.

          My mother and I visited him during our last vacation, and as we expected, CX is much smaller than Beijing, but the economic conditions there are pretty good.  A growing number of people have private cars and motorcycles so we saw very few bicycles on the road.

          During the first week, my father introduced us to workmates, friends, and relatives we hadn't met before, and the one who impressed me the most was his cousin Ar Shen, a businessman.  My father told me that 10 years ago he was a carpenter with little business experience, but today he heads a one hundred million yuan public traded company.  His success is shaking up the family.

          It was an amazing story for an inexperienced high school student to hear.  The man is so successful that one wonders how he did it. 

          "It must have been based on excellence", I said excitedly.  "I never thought anything like that would happen in our family."

          "You've misjudged him", my father said calmly.  "I don't think he is good at some of the things he should be concerned about."

          That afternoon, my father took me outside the city to an impoverished place in the country.

          He directed my attention to a river that looked green as it was so dirty, and he said, "Decades ago, it used to be clean and very beautiful.  We could see fish and shrimp swimming in it then, but when I got here, it gave off an unbearable stink to welcome me."

          "'Oh, that's awful", I lamented with lowered eyebrows.

          "Come on - follow me."

          We walked down a path to see some of the houses.  Gray smoke was blowing out of a small chimneyi.

          "What do they drink?" I asked.

          "I don't know; maybe they buy water from the city.  The water here is poluted. 

          My father slowed his steps and said in a low voice, "Can you see the old woman sitting in the yard?"

          "Yes."

          "Do you know what she is doing?  She is assembling lighters.  After finishing her work, she will be given a little money.  It's very poor here.  Using a washing machine to wash clothes is routine for us, but here it is only a dream.  She is 80 years old, but she has to wash clothes by hand."

          We stood there silently for a few seconds, and then father said, "When I was small, this house had lots of land around it with trees and flowers, but today most of the land has been sold.  The woman is a great mother.  She has two sons - one of them disabled.  Her husband died a yiear ago, and now she has to do all the work for her disabled son with her own hands.

          My feelings of concern for her were growing.

          "But what about the other son?"

          "He is the man you admired - the millionaire."