Woman enjoying virtual fruits of her labor

Road construction in the countryside and improved internet access helped Niu Qinghua, a woman in a rural region of Shandong province, transform from being a housewife to an "e-commerce queen" in two years, with online sales hitting 6 million yuan ($956,300) last year.

Niu, 35, became a saleswoman in Qingdao and Weihai after she graduated from junior high school in 2000. When she got pregnant, she went back to her hometown - Beiyanzi village in Linyi - in 2007.

Niu lived on a farm raising hogs and took care of her little son by herself while her husband worked away from home.