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Henan
Chef takes in-salt to heart
A chef in Zhengzhou threatened to leap from an electrical transmission tower after a colleague complained that his food was too salty, Dahe Daily reports. The chef – in his 30s and a father of two – was later spotted near the top of the 30-metre tower that carries 110,000-volt cables. He ignored pleas from his wife and boss, but agreed to come down only after the colleague apologised via a police megaphone. He was helped down from the tower by firefighters.
Outpouring of sympathy
Newspaper readers have opened their hearts and wallets for an eight-year-old village boy who suffers from a crippling and incurable skin disorder, Dahe Daily reports. More than 59,000 yuan (HK$74,500) in donations has come in since Sunday, two days after his story was reported. Song Liucheng, from Shuangqiu county, suffers epidermolysis bullosa, a congenital condition that makes his skin blister easily.
 
Beijing
Drink-driving blitz
Drink-driving has caused 17 fatal traffic accidents in the capital since mid-December, prompting more random roadside testing by traffic police, the Beijing Times reports. More social activities ahead of the Lunar New Year might have contributed to the higher toll, the authorities said. An anti-drink-driving campaign started on Friday and will last until after the holiday next month.
Hot and cold
Beijing has entered the 15-day period known on the traditional almanac as the Big Cold, but this year has been abnormally warm, Beijing Daily reports. Temperatures could reach 5 or 6 degrees Celsius this week, when it is usually below freezing. Meteorologists said weak polar cold fronts caused the warmer weather. But abnormally cold weather was forecast this week for northwestern and central regions from Inner Mongolia to Yunnan .
 
Hebei
After-school nursery
Twenty primary schools will experiment with “baby-sitting” pupils whose parents’ work schedules don’t allow them to collect the children straight after school, the Yanzhao Evening News reports. Education officials in Shijiazhuang said the pupils would be allowed to stay an extra two hours. If successful, the scheme would be extended to other schools.
Anti-graft crackdown
Nearly 20,000 government officials were punished in the province’s anti-graft campaign last year, 50 per cent more than in 2013, Hebei Daily reports. Thirty-nine senior officials were investigated or prosecuted, more than the total for the previous 10 years.
 
Hubei
Hotel robber booked
A man who robbed a hotel in Wuhan with a toy gun was caught the next day, news site News.cnhubei.com reports. He had threatened a receptionist and fled with about 2,000 yuan in cash. Police in Ezhou stopped a suspicious man the next day, who turned out to be the robber. He confessed and is in police custody.
Driver incurs wrath
A driver in Hankou who swerved off a road, almost hitting two elderly pedestrians whom he then berated, abandoned his car and fled when an angry crowd started telling him off, the Chutian Metropolis Daily reports. One of the passers-by called the police. The woman pedestrian, 69, said she smelled alcohol on the driver’s breath.
 
Liaoning
Special delivery
A new taxi driver in Shenyang got a big surprise on his first shift when a woman gave birth to a boy on the back seat on Friday, the Shenyang Evening News reports. The passenger did not reveal her urgent condition at first for fear she would be refused, the 51-year-old driver said. A traffic officer came to his aid and guided him to a nearby hospital. Mother and son were reported to be well.
Ski run for kids
The mainland’s first snow ski run exclusively for children will open in Shenyang tomorrow, the Commercial Times reports. Young skiers were exposed to high risks when sharing the same run with adults, who were bigger and moved faster, the operator said. The new run will accommodate 500 children.
 
Shanxi
Cadres punished
More than 40 village cadres in Luliang have been punished for election scandals that happened last year, Shanxi Daily reports. Ten people were prosecuted and 34 others were officially warned. The cadres had disrupted village elections by offering bribes for votes or threatening violence.
Don’t do that voodoo
An anti-superstition campaign is under way in rural areas after swindlers, described as a cult by officials, started taking money from naïve villagers, Shanxi Daily reports. The provincial government said the fraudsters passed themselves off as fung shui masters or witch doctors. Government officers will visit villages to promote the ideas of modern science and gather intelligence on the “cult”.
 
Sichuan
Self-serving thieves
Police in Shifang have arrested four people suspected of stealing 10 tonnes of petrol in December, Newssc.org reports. The fuel was estimated to be worth more than 110,000 yuan. Staff at the station noticed the petrol was missing when they were about to fill up a car and saw that the tank was empty, even though there were 10 tonnes in storage the day before. Surveillance footage show a truck had pulled in at 1am and left four hours later. Police seized 56 oil drums they said were used in the heist.
Gold gone in a minute
Police are investigating a major robbery in Leshan that took only a minute, the West China City Daily reports. A man with a bag and motorcycle helmet entered a gold shop on Sunday and threatened four staff with what looked like a gun. He escaped with jewellery worth about 700,000 yuan.
 
Zhejiang
Dumb and dumber
Police in Yiwu have arrested a thief who uploaded photos of himself lighting cigarettes with burning banknotes, the City Express reports. The 42-year-old man boasted: “I can’t help it. All I have is money.” He shared photos of stolen cash, iPads and gold rings with friends. He bought cigarettes with a stolen stored-value card, while security footage showed him wearing the same outfit when he robbed a man’s house earlier this month.
Be hardy if you’re tardy
A woman boss of an advertising firm in Hangzhou has a novel punishment for late workers – burpees and squats – Hznews.hangzhou.com.cn reports. She said docking their pay “wasn’t fun enough” so for every minute late past 9.30am, a male worker had to do one burpee and a female worker one squat. Last Monday, one man had to do 27 burpees and a woman did 59 squats. By Friday, no one was late.


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Around the nation: Chef threatens to jump off tower after colleague says his cooking is too salty

Rescue workers climb a 30-metre transmission tower in Zhengzhou to rescue a chef upset over a colleague's criticism of his cooking. Photo: SCMP Pictures

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Also: Dumb and Dumber thief incriminates himself online; New taxi driver on first shift picks up passenger who gives birth in back seat


Around the nation: Chef threatens to jump off tower after colleague says his cooking is too salty

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Also: Dumb and Dumber thief incriminates himself online; New taxi driver on first shift picks up passenger who gives birth in back seat

Also: Dumb and Dumber thief incriminates himself online; New taxi driver on first shift picks up passenger who gives birth in back seat