Summary
Beijing now has the highest concentration of millionaires in the world and the highest rate of kidnap, too. Simon Parry was the first inside the tycoons' response: a new Forbidden City of ultrahigh-security (and ultra-bling) Pounds 2 million French-style chateaux
The multimillionaire who steps out of a discreet black Volkswagen people-carrier with his wife and bodyguard glances nervously around him before allowing himself to relax a little. A cordon of smart, red-coated security guards is shadowing his every move. Behind him, he can see a massive cast-iron gate swinging shut to block the only gap in a 15ft high perimeter wall. And before him, sparkling under the Beijing sun, is the key to his long-term protection.See the full content of this document
Extract
Great Halls of China
Mr Jiang for 'security purposes' he'll tell me only his surname and that he's 39 and I are standing before what is possibly the most bizarre and portentous sight in China. It's bizarre because what we're looking at could be in France, or maybe Palm Beach a show home on China's most exclusive housing estate, a sumptuously decorated mansion that looks more Versailles than 21st-century Beijing. The Jiangs are thrilled by their tour. They nod approvingly at the marble and chandeliers, the sweeping baroque staircases and hisandhers ornate bath tubs. But the element that fascinates them most is the panic room hidden in the basement, and they listen intently as the salesman explains how the ...
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