Throughout Chinese history, peasants have always been oppressed by landlords. If they wanted to have a better life, they always needed to find a way to earn more income by selling handcrafts or agricultural products. On the other hand, the peasants were always very creative about what they could do, always looking for new ideas. This produced a level of grass-roots creativity and pushed society forward, moving at a tremendous speed.

Shanghai, 11 July 2010