For Xi, governance means serving the people, not showmanship

In the early 1980s, Zhengding county in Hebei province was known as a county with a high grain yield. Yet many local farmers didn't have enough food for themselves after meeting the nation's annual purchase quota.

Seeing their hardship firsthand, Xi Jinping, then deputy secretary of the Zhengding County Committee of the Communist Party of China, joined other county officials in traveling to provincial authorities and Beijing to report the issue to relevant departments.

Soon, a joint investigation team arrived in Zhengding. After reviewing the situation, they unanimously confirmed that the report was accurate.

The grain purchase quota was later lowered by 14 million kilograms, greatly easing the burden on local farmers.

"Zhengding would rather give up the fame as a national model for high grain production than compromise the well-being of our people," Xi said.

For Xi, governance should be guided by the needs of the people rather than political showmanship. An official's true pursuit, he has said, should not be high office, but living up to the people's expectations.