China Fast Forward: The Technologies, Green Industries and Innovations Driving the Mainland's Future

Chapter 10

Assembly Required

As Chen Yulian waited for her husband at the high, wrought iron gate one summer day in 2010, she noticed six large men rounding the street corner, hulking toward her. Chen Yulian was a small, bird-like creature, so thin there seemed little insulating her sagging, aging skin from her brittle bones. At 58, she was far from feeling a need to look like the plump, well-coiffed wives of other government officials. A mere 5-feet 3-inches tall and weighing in at 82 pounds, she preferred wearing baggy pants and a simple smock when she went outdoors, especially in the searing heat of one of China’s hot-pot cities, Wuhan. She noticed all but one of the men coming toward the gate at which she stood wore black clothing—ridiculous in the heat—and dark glasses. The one in the front—she guessed he was the leader—wore a black shirt and red shorts. She thought there must have been some altercation she had just missed. Perhaps there was a brawl they were joining. Their intention was clear, even to a blind man: they were going to injure someone—anyone, it seemed. She stepped closer to the gate to let them pass. She took out her mobile phone to call her husband to tell him she was waiting for him at the gate of his office at the Public Security Bureau (PSB).

The PSB was the last channel of adjudication for those with unresolved grievances. If a judge decided a case against an aggrieved party, the party could theoretically boot the case to a higher court. That seldom happened ...