I’m proudly translating Discover China by my friend Eric Nie into Spanish (Mexico) and Portuguese (Brazil). Today’s story is a short copywriting essence of Chapter 7. If you’d like to go deeper and explore the full journey, I highly recommend Eric’s book ($9.99): https://ericonchina.com/collections/all
Dear Friends,
Years ago, I joined a European investor visiting a small industrial city in eastern China.
The factory plan was solid. Numbers worked. Capital was ready.
But the local mayor asked for tea first.
Over green tea, he didn’t ask about price or contracts.
He asked whether the company would hire locals.
If it planned to build a park near the factory.
What kind of social responsibility it had in mind.
Afterward, the investor whispered to me:
“Why is the mayor involved in a private deal?”
I smiled.
“In China, business isn’t just business. It’s part of the local ecosystem.”
China is officially centralized.
In practice, it runs on decentralized execution.
Beijing sets the goals.
Local officials decide how to make them real.
They control land, permits, infrastructure, and incentives. They choose which industries to support and which projects move forward. So when you invest in China, you’re not entering a market.
You’re entering a governance network.
In the West, politicians answer to voters.
In China, officials answer to results.
Their careers rise with GDP, jobs, and visible development. Every successful project strengthens their record. That creates a symbiosis: companies bring capital and innovation; governments bring access and coordination.
Not interference.
Interdependence.
There’s history behind this.
For centuries, China relied on local magistrates to run vast territories. That DNA remains. Central vision. Local responsibility.
And here’s the structural key:
All land belongs to the state.
Companies lease it from local governments.
Who controls land controls growth.
That’s why officials act as both gatekeepers and partners.
In the West, government regulates.
In China, government collaborates.
I once told a Canadian firm:
“Don’t just hire consultants. Meet the deputy mayor.”
They thought I was joking.
After one dinner, their permits arrived in half the time.
It wasn’t corruption.
It was alignment.
Foreigners who treat officials as bureaucrats struggle.
Those who treat them as stakeholders thrive.
In the West, business and government are separate worlds.
In China, they’re two hands of the same body.
One sets direction.
The other builds the road.
Cheers,
Augusto
Founder of Expat Eyes on China
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