The Qingfeng fast-food chain is the most famous place to buy steamed buns in China. In late 2013, the country’s president Xi Jinping visited an unassuming branch in central Beijing, a well-publicised yet “surprise” appearance that portrayed him as a man of the people and echoed the ancient practice of Chinese emperors leaving the Forbidden City in disguise to mingle with their subjects.
The visit was heavy on symbolism: the name of the restaurant is a homophone for “clear wind”, which evokes the image of an honest government official who never takes bribes; the translucent fatty pork and green chives inside the dumplings are described as yi qing er bai, a Chinese idiom for a person of visible integrity.
So when I suggested to Jin Liqun, the president of the newly-launched Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), China’s answer to the World Bank, that we should follow Xi’s example and have our lunch here, he was delighted by the idea. “In the current atmosphere of austerity it is important we don’t eat somewhere very lavish,” he told me. “We can order the same dishes as President Xi!”