Clowning around with flowers brings out the best in Beijing migrant worker

Where are you from?

I'm from Linyi in Shandong and I came to Beijing in 1997 when I was 20. My parents wanted me to go to Shanghai because my brother has a vegetable business there, but my dream was to come to Beijing so I ignored all the suggestions and came alone with just 200 yuan in my pocket. Right now my brother is still fighting to survive there and my parents are still in my home town.

What's the toughest situation you've faced in that time?

My first job was as a waiter in a small restaurant. It paid 200 yuan a month and the boss treated me meanly. He only gave me a small bowl of noodles for dinner and humiliated me often. I was starved and humiliated for two months and left without any payment. What's worse was I was cheated of all my savings by an illegal job agency when I tried to find another job to ensure my next meal. That was the toughest moment in my life. I immediately felt the city was as vast as an ocean and I was nothing but just a speck of sand in it. Beijing was no longer a dream to me but a cold reality. That experience taught me the lesson that change is constant. I had to change my life.

So what's the key to success?

I think it is inner excitement about challenge and curiosity. When I was a kid, I was a big headache for my parents. I was famous for my curiosity and the neighbourhood called me 'Naughty King' because I was always expecting some changes in my life. So it was my nature that made me come to Beijing.

How did you start your business?