The upbeat remarks by visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese leaders in Beijing yesterday will no doubt heighten expectations of a rapid thaw in bilateral ties chilled by wartime history.
Mr Abe told Premier Wen Jiabao yesterday that he believed bilateral relations would enjoy sunny skies after the rain.
President Hu Jintao hailed Mr Abe's visit as a turning point in ties, while Premier Wen talked about the irresistible trend towards a friendly, co-operative relationship.
But optimism will be misguided if one believes Sino-Japanese ties will be plain sailing from now on.
The outstanding issue that has chilled the relationship for the past five years remains unresolved and it is very likely to come back to sour relations between the two Asian giants.
There is little doubt that the leaders of both countries are keen to turn over a new leaf, as illustrated by the haste with which this historic visit was arranged.
Mr Abe's visit came less than two weeks after he took office, making him the first Japanese postwar prime minister to choose China as the destination of his first overseas state visit and the first since 2001 to hold a summit in Beijing.