How much can a rural Chinese guy's fortune change in two years? Well, Yu Lasheng successfully face-lifted into a rich dad from a poor dad. In 2006, Yu made a rural fortune of over 100,000 yuan with his small village restaurant and 0.26 hectares of land.
In 2004, the annual income of Yu's family of four lingered around 25,000 yuan. While this amount of money could help make ends meet for them, luxurious items such as air-conditioners and computers were still castles in the air.
Not anymore.
Yu now has a two-story home fit for a rural king, with all the city-dwelling accoutrements one could desire.
His story illustrates a major insight into China's development: The gap between the rich and the poor doesn't only exist within cities or between cities and the countryside. It also exists between rural areas themselves. And while the gap between the rich and the poor is usually cast in a negative light, this one offers hope, because it suggests the government's talk about developing the countryside isn't just hype. It can happen, although there's a long way to go to spread the wealth and security.
From rags to riches
Yu, who is in his 50s, is dark-skinned, introverted, and looks like a typical Chinese farmer.
But when he started to talk, he sounded as witty as any urban dweller.
Yu is the father of two daughters, aged 25 and 16. He is a farmer in southeast China's Fujiabian Village of Jiangsu Province, which boasts strong economic performance.
Instead of making a fortune outside town, Yu found his "American dream" come true right in the small village where his ancestors lived for centuries.
Before 1998, Yu and his family lived in one room with a tile roof. They had another room to keep pigs. Their total income was from the one-quarter-hectare of land where they grew rice and vegetables. At that time, they relied heavily on the weather and the average annual income remained around 25,000 yuan. If there was a major flood or drought in one year, the whole family would have to suffer huge losses. Meanwhile, Yu's two daughters were going to school and education was another big expense.
While Yu was wondering how to earn more to live a better life, leaders of his village were thinking the same.
With support from the local government, Fujiabian Agricultural Technology Park (The Park) was established in 1994. The Park has been managing to introduce advanced science and technology and refined seeds from outside to develop local agriculture. Farmers were taught to grow economic plants such as strawberries, blackberries, and pear and apple trees. They explored deserted land and formed large-scale development projects.
In six years, the village was transformed into a brand new one. In 1998, Yu spent all his savings and built a two-story house.
The beautiful scenery of Fujiabian attracted many city residents who would drive all the way there for holiday relaxation. Yu quickly sensed the potential consumption power from those rich city travelers and turned his two-story house into a restaurant in 2004.
"They [the travelers] can have lunch at my restaurant when they are hungry and can take a nap when they are tired," said Yu, adding that many other villagers are doing the same business.
In 2005, the net income brought about by the restaurant and his original one-quarter- hectare of land reached 50,000 yuan, doubling that of any previous year. Last year, Yu and his family's income soared to 100,000 yuan. "My restaurant is growing 40-50 percent each year," Yu said confidently.
In 2005, the Central Government ordered the removal of agricultural tax upon farmers and Yu benefited.
"For my one-quarter-hectare of land, the agricultural tax was 500 yuan," Yu told Beijing Review. "Though it is not a big sum of money, it shows that our government starts to pay attention to us and we are very much encouraged."
In eastern coastal provinces, farmers are not only exempt from agricultural tax, but can also get a farming subsidy. In Fujiabian, farmers can get 750 yuan for one hectare.
The emerging prosperity of Fujiabian, bolstered by government support, has even begun to cause a chasm in fortune within the same young generation.
"My older daughter was not as lucky as my younger daughter," Yu sighed. When his family was poor, they could not afford two daughters both going to school. So Yu Juan, the older daughter, quit after finishing junior middle school studies.
"You can't always imagine what will happen in two years," said Yu. In 2005, in an effort to build a socialist countryside, the government called off incidental fees for education to ease the burden on farmers.
"That is exactly the time when we started to make more money," Yu said. "So my younger daughter enjoys everything-the family is making money, and the school no longer asks for incidental fees."
Yu continued, "At present, we have everything that a city family has-ADSL, computers, air-conditioning, refrigeration, DVD players, and so on."
Yu said in the past he was very attracted to city life.
"But now, the city is much more polluted by all kinds of toxic stuff and we can still enjoy fresh air and quietness in the countryside," he said.
Lacking proper insurance
When asked about the countryside's medical and social insurance, Yu said every year, each farmer must pay 10 yuan to the village committee and will receive reimbursement if they fall ill.
"I don't remember exactly how much reimbursement we can get, because all of my family members are healthy and we needn't be hospitalized," said Yu. "The reimbursement ratio is different from year to year as the policy becomes more and more favorable towards farmers."
This became a common practice in villages in Jiangsu Province about two years ago.
In Chengjiao Village, 16 kilometers away from Fujiabian, some farmers have already enjoyed the benefit of a rural medical insurance system.
Before villager Liu Laifa's wife died of cancer in 2004, the whole family spent over 40,000 yuan for the medical treatment. One quarter of the medical expenses was covered by the village committee the next year.
"Although the amount of money was not big, it was still better than nothing," said Liu, adding "the reimbursement would be unimaginable before 2003."
However, as Yu contended, the rural medical insurance system still falls far short of that in urban areas.
"I heard that in cities almost each medical expense can be reimbursed," Yu argued, "Why can't ours?"
Yu doesn't totally rely on the local government for medical treatment.
"When I am still capable, I will strive to make as much money as possible in case my family get ill in the future," he said. Yu still believes family support, for the time being, is the most trustworthy way for medical expenses.
Huge gap between east and west
When farmers in the eastern part of China are living in two-story houses, watching color TV, and taking showers from solar water heaters, those in the western part of the country are still struggling to make ends meet.
City born and bred, Zhang Hui, at 25, is considered to be at the right age to get married.
"I won't marry my current boyfriend because his family are poor farmers in Xuzhou," she said. Xuzhou is a northern city in Jiangsu Province, which is underdeveloped compared with southern and eastern parts of Jiangsu.
This January, Zhang was introduced to another man whose family also turned out to be farmers.
"But this man is different, because his parents are farmers from Fujiabian," she said.
Zhang was quick to spot the difference.
"There are rich farmers and poor farmers," Zhang said. "Those in west China are generally poor and less educated."
Zhang might sound harsh and judgmental. But her attitude is far from isolated in this vast country.
As Beijing Review reporters found out, there are some major reasons for the development gap between western and eastern countrysides in China. In east coastal areas where the economy is developed, farmers are well-informed about news and policies. Local governments are relatively rich thanks to industrialization and may have more disposable capital, which can be invested in agriculture. Meanwhile, the warm climate in east China enables harvesting of vegetables and crops two to three times a year, while in the less developed middle and northwestern countryside where the climate isn't as good, farmers can only reap once a year. As a result, farmers in northwest China may earn a net income of only 2,000 yuan a year from one hectare, but those in the southeastern part will likely bring in over 40,000 yuan from the same amount of land.
Additionally, farmers in west China usually grow crops like wheat, soybeans, and corn, while coastal farmers tend to grow more potentially prosperous economic crops like fruit trees, tea and flowers. They have even started up "rural tour" programs for urban dwellers to experience country life and earn a lot from these relatively well-off city slickers.
Yu's family is just an example of the 1,300 farming households in Fujiabian Village. He said he and his fellow countrymen were very grateful for the Central Government's decision to build up a new countryside.
"When I first heard the term 'socialist countryside,' I laughed and thought it might just be another slogan of the current president and premier," said Yu, without mincing words. "But only after we have actually benefited-though still not very much-from the favorable policy did I realize that the government was taking us really seriously."
Yu said he was confident that life would become better and better in the future.
"If you asked me my expectation for the future 10 years ago, the answer would have been totally different," Yu said, smiling.
Local professionals weigh in
But the government can still do more, according to some local professionals.
Li Baijian, President of Fujiabian Agricultural Technology Park, made several suggestions.
Li contended that the government should allow and encourage the rural labor force to move freely.
"Those who want to leave should be able to leave and those who prefer to stay can form large-scale development," said Li. In Western countries where the population is small, one farmer can manage a huge tract of land and use hi-tech equipment to grow plants. Li suggested Fujiabian can do the same thing.
Furthermore, Li asked for better rural infrastructure construction.
"I am glad to see the Agricultural Development Bank of China has started to make loans to us for infrastructure," said Li.
Zhang Xuan, a teacher from Lishui High School, said the tuition fee for rural kids is still very high. Students have to pay 2,000 yuan for a term, usually about four to five months.
Zhang added in her class, some students from rural areas cannot afford the high education fee, even though a small amount of money was exempt from the incidental fees.
"To fully ease farmers' burden, I think the country has a long way to go," Zhang said.
