Introducing: Beichuan County

The newly built Beichuan County was turned over to the local authority this morning by the construction-assisting party from Shandong, the Chengdu Evening News reported. About 1.22 million square meters of relocated houses were built, and the per capita green area reached 16 square meters, which means each resident can get to a public green area within five minutes. A large amount of money will be invested to expand the size of the county, improve its service facilities and promote the urbanization and industrialization of the county and its neighboring areas. It is said that the whole budget for the new county was about 15.37 billion yuan.

Chinese skipper back home

The Chinese trawler captain Zhan Qixiong arrived safely in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, early Saturday morning by a chartered plane, Xinhua reported. His wife and son met him at the airport. Zhan and his crew were detained by Japan on Sept. 8 after his trawler collided with two Japan Coast Guard patrol ships in waters off the Diaoyu Islands. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement after the captain's return that the Chinese government expressed "strong protest" against Japan, whose detention, investigation or any form of judiciary measures for the Chinese trawler and fishermen are unlawful and invalid. China asked Japan to apologize and provide compensation for the incident.

Car rental industry set to rise

Legend Holdings purchased China Auto Rental with 1.2 billion yuan on Sept. 15, 20 days after Goldman Sachs Group bought US$70 million in equity of eHi Car Service, which had previously obtained a credit extension and bond financing from several banks, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported. Insiders predicted that cars of both China Auto Rental and eHi Car Service will surpass 10,000 in 2011, and China's car rental industry will embark on a new age.

Rapist dad jailed for 14,400 years

A Filipino father has been sentenced to 14,400 years in prison for raping his teenage daughter almost every night for more than a year, a court said Friday after throwing out an appeal against his conviction, AFP reported. The man, a tricycle driver, began raping his then 13-year-old daughter at home after his wife left to work in Hong Kong in January 2001. The nearly nightly abuse went on for 386 days.

Men don't notice women in heels

Women sacrificing comfort to wear high heels could be wasting their time because men do not even notice, a new study claims, the Daily Telegraph reported. Experts at Northumbria University are studying the reactions of men to women walking while wearing high heels and others without heels. Experts say research has shown that men cannot even tell if a woman is wearing high heels when they walk.

KFC ads campaign on girls' backsides

The American fast food chain KFC is currently promoting its new "Double Down" sandwiches and has recruited attractive female college students to hand out coupons while wearing tracksuit bottoms with the "Double Down" logo on their backsides.

The American fast food chain KFC is currently promoting its new "Double Down" sandwiches and has recruited attractive female college students to hand out coupons while wearing tracksuit bottoms with the "Double Down" logo on their backsides, the Daily Telegraph reported. Local women's groups criticized KFC for sexism, while KFC responded that it's the best way to attract young men.

Relocation notice comes with bullet

A man in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, received a relocation notice with a rifle bullet yesterday, the Xiaoxiang Morning Post of Hunan reported. Liu, 58, said the memo was from a real estate company urging him to accept the relocation terms and move soon. The memo also said the company had prepared a "gift" for those who did not comply. The company denies sending the memo, and police are tracing the bullet.

Xiamen officials confiscate milk cans

Chinese customs officials in Xiamen intercepted 317 cans of foreign formula milk yesterday, Xinhua reported. It was the first case of personal smuggling in Xiamen since new regulations that limit individuals to the equivalent of 5,000 yuan in foreign goods, went into effect on Sept. 1. The milk was brought in by an online store owner.

Man who set fire to self sentenced

A man surnamed Xu in Shuangliu County of Chengdu, Sichuan Province, was sentenced to three years in prison for arson after attempting to light himself on fire, the Sichuan Morning News reported. Xu set fire to himself in March over relationship problems, but the fire spread and caused 5,000 yuan in damage.

Farmer catches monster fish

53-year-old Wuhan farmer Wang Xianghe caught a 16-centimeter-long monster fish yesterday from a lake near his farmland, Wuhan Evening News reported. Covered by hard, white thorns, the fish has big eyes, a small tail and a white stomach.

(China.org.cn September 27, 2010)