Learning lessons about the countryside

Like most Chinese born and raised in cities, I have no direct knowledge about real life in rural China.

Cycling across China to share the gift of life

Most amateur cyclists ride for enjoyment, but Wang Zhengwei also aims to save lives.

Jiangsu fathers get extra paternity leave

Working fathers in East China's Jiangsu province can now take up to 30 days paid paternity leave to care for their newborns - double the amount of time in most other Chinese provinces.

Around China

Sichuan

Xinjiang to Beijing on foot no mean feat

Ablajan Muhtar, owner of an auto repair factory in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, could choose to fly to Beijing in three hours. Instead, he has begun a three-month journey on foot for a benevolent cause.

New measures draw Taiwan people to mainland

A growing number of the island's residents ar relocating, lured by new policies, financial incentives and a wider range of opportunities, as Zhang Yi reports.

Preferential policies make relocation a sensible option

My family has been running a leather goods business for nearly 40 years, providing materials for a number of handbag manufacturers across the world. My parents started Mingzhuan Leather Co in Kaohsiung (Taiwan) in 1978, a year before I was born.

Fertile black soil to be better protected

For Fan Yuesheng, using more fertilizer does not mean greater yields from his 10 hectares of farmland, where nutrient-rich black soil has been increasingly eroded as the 55-year-old in suburban Dandong, Liaoning province, struggles to ensure a livelihood.

Ministries respond to key public concerns

Central ministries and departments have responded to a series of public concerns, mainly including affordable housing and medical advertisement management.

Policy digest

Cabinet releases license reform rule

President Xi's speech at the meeting marking the 20th anniversary of HK's return, and the inaugural ceremony of the fifth-term HKSAR government

Editor's note: On Saturday President Xi Jinping delivered a speech at the meeting celebrating the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland and the inaugural ceremony of the fifth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The following is the full text of his speech:

HK blooms in the past two decades