The Wise People of Hunan

Rooted in the spirit of Huxiang culture, this sweeping business-war novel follows Yongzhou natives Tang Yiyi and Jiang Xuebao as they rise from humble beginnings and build a trillion-yuan business empire in Shenzhen.

The story deeply intertwines Huxiang's practical wisdom with the entrepreneurial wave unleashed by Shenzhen's reform and opening up, presenting an epic of the new generation of Hunan merchants who dare to be the first.

The Huxiang spirit is not about clever tricks, but profound wisdom.

Rather than simply depicting speculative riches, the novel is grounded in the distinctive spirit of the people of Hunan. According to the Shenzhen Hunan Chamber of Commerce, more than four million people from Hunan live in Shenzhen, though some online estimates put the number at six million. Their spirit of caring about the wider world and daring to take risks and strive is the foundation for the characters' rise in Shenzhen.

The “more than a hundred Hunan-born entrepreneurs” mentioned in the book are not entirely fictional. In reality, Hunan merchants in Shenzhen have built a sizable network across technology and finance, represented by organizations such as the Shenzhen Huxiang Culture Promotion Association.

Through the epic story of Yongzhou youths Tang Yiyi and Jiang Xuebao, the novel shows how the Huxiang ideals of practical learning and daring to lead are passed down and renewed today: from the resilience of a town known for martial arts to the drive of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, from a jewelry counter in Shuibei to a trillion-yuan fortune, the Huxiang spirit of caring about the wider world and daring to take risks and strive runs throughout.

This is more than a business legend. It is a vivid portrayal of Huxiang wisdom in the modern era: from the pragmatism of putting learning to practical use to the courage to be first; from the grit to “swallow your teeth along with the blood” to a vision that embraces the wider world. Through the fifty-year struggle of two Yongzhou youths, the novel shows how the people of Hunan turn their cultural heritage into the power to shape an era!