There is no doubt that Xi Jinping is among the most powerful persons on the planet nowadays, being the President of China, the world's second-largest economy.
Here are some interesting things to know about China's top leader.
Former Agricultural Laborer
Born June 15, 1953, Xi Jinping was the son of former deputy prime minister of China Xi Zhongxun. The younger Xi spent most of his boyhood in the comfort and luxury of China's governing elite's Beijing residential compound. With his father ousted and out of favor during the Cultural Revolution, Xi Jinping was transported to the countryside.
With his father ousted and out of favor during the Cultural Revolution, Xi Jinping was transported to the countryside. From 1969 to 1975, he worked as an agricultural worker in Shaanxi as part of the millions of urban youths transported to the rural areas, per CNN.
During the period, he established a particularly strong bond with the local farmers, which helped a lot in establishing Xi's credibility as he rose through the ranks of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
He Has an Unlimited Term
In March 2018, the Chinese parliament moved a controversial modification to the country's constitution that gave Xi the means to remain in power indefinitely. He began his second term as president of China on March 17, 2018, with an unlimited term.
Married to a Famous Singer
Xi's wife is a famous Chinese folk singer and opera singer Peng Liyuan. According to Forbes, a native of Yuncheng County, Shandong, Peng was a finalist at the First National TV Chinese Vocal Contest.
Peng is considered China's first high-profile first lady and added some glamour into a role that has evolved more conventional over the years. She also serves as a "goodwill ambassador" for World Health Organization for HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.
His Past Trip to the United States
Jinping visited Muscatine, Iowa, in 1985 as part of a Chinese mission researching farming technologies. The trip impacted his perspective of the United States, and He returned in 2012 as China's vice president.
Doyle Tubandt, president of Muscatine Foods Corporation, recalls Xi discussing globalization, which at the time was incomprehensible to most Americans. Tubandt was awestruck by the global economy at the present day.
His own business now sells food and pet supplies in China, per US News.
A Fan of Confucious
President Xi Jinping, more than any other Communist leader, has adopted the teachings of China's great philosopher Confucious. He had undertaken a pilgrimage to Qufu for the year before, where he visited Confucius' ancestors' former home.
During his keynote address at a Confucianism conference held on Confucius' birthday in Beijing's Great Hall of the People, he shared to the crowd the ancient Chinese thought, "We can really only do our present job successfully by moving forward from the past."
