Inside Jianlibao - Challenging the Limits of Private Capital and Industrial Operations

Author: Zhang Zipeng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: There are many versions about the rise of Zhang Hai. A basic fact is that Zhang Hai was born in Kaifeng City, Henan Province in 1974. Although some media referred to Zhang Hai as having only a junior high school education, he achieved significant social influence. Zhang Hai's family said, "Some people say, how could a child from a small place like Zhang Hai achieve such great success? In reality, Kaifeng is a place where talented people thrive, and those who say this underestimate the people of Kaifeng." Zhang Hai's mother was originally a Chinese language teacher at Kaifeng No. 25 Middle School. Zhang Hai's father initially worked as a middle school teacher before moving to the Kaifeng Municipal Economic Commission. Zhang Hai was the only child in the family. Both his grandfather and grandmother were teachers, and his uncle was also a teacher. Zhang Hai's family said, "The family Zhang Hai was born into can be considered a small intellectual family." Zhang Hai's family said that he grew up in a teachers' compound and received a very traditional education. However, he was indeed very special. Next to their home was a "White Robe Pavilion," and when Zhang Hai was in elementary school, he often played there with his friends and met "Venerable Jingyan." The monk really liked him, and Zhang Hai had a special closeness to him. Sometimes the monk would teach him some Buddhist knowledge, and soon after, Zhang Hai actually expressed a desire to become a Buddhist monk. "Of course, I didn't agree with him leaving so young. Under my insistence, he didn't go," Zhang Hai's elder said. "Later, his connection with Buddhism didn't end, and he met a master of Tibetan Buddhism." "I can only say he is quite special—indeed he is. I don't want to elaborate further. He is very devout in his faith in Buddhism and has done many good deeds, some of which have been reported in the media. In fact, there are many. One of his hobbies is reading books about Buddhism." Zhang Hai's family said that they are actually materialists and can only explain Zhang Hai as "special." Zhang Hai's mother once told him, "'Only by staying on the right path can one achieve true auspiciousness,' P2 This is my encouragement to him, and he felt very deeply about it." Zhang Hai's family described his simple growth process to the readers. In fact, the media also conducted their own investigations and descriptions of Zhang Hai's upbringing. A neighbor of Zhang Hai in Kaifeng recalled that during his entire elementary and junior high school years, Zhang Hai did not show any difference from other children. He went to school, played, and was as innocent as everyone else. When it got cold, his nose would run, he loved jumping and playing, and he loved bananas. However, around the time of his junior high school graduation in 1988, when he was 14 years old, rumors began to circulate that he had "special abilities." An elderly person in Kaifeng, Henan, said in an interview, "I am Zhang Hai's neighbor, and he had special abilities when he was in his teens. Everyone outside knew about it. I personally saw Zhang Hai perform these abilities, and everyone was very amazed." "One day, Zhang Hai excitedly showed me a magazine and said, Aunt, look, it says I have 'special abilities' too!" Zhang Hai's neighbor said. "Later, more and more rumors about his 'special abilities' spread, such as putting a large leaf in his mouth and making it small, or moving a clock with his mind. At the time, 'special abilities' were very popular, and there were people claiming to have them everywhere. I didn't take it to heart. Who knew that later, the rumors about Zhang Hai's 'special abilities' became even stronger, and even his parents started saying he had them." So, what kind of special abilities did Zhang Hai really have? The elderly person said that Zhang Hai often performed his special abilities in public. His most impressive trick was making leaves grow larger or smaller. That is, he would put a leaf in his mouth and take it out, and the leaf would have changed! Did Zhang Hai really have special abilities? A teacher at Henan University said that he had also seen Zhang Hai perform the leaf trick. Someone found a photo of a 16-year-old Zhang Hai performing the leaf trick for foreign friends on July 31, 1990. His performance left the foreign friends speechless. As a result, people became even more convinced that Zhang Hai had special abilities. Another performance of Zhang Hai's only added to the mystery: he could move a clock with his mind. A retired employee of the Henan Academy of Social Sciences said that even now, when he thinks about the scene, he still finds it incredible. He said, "Zhang Hai could make time reverse."