In recent years, putonghua has become a feature of Hong Kong life. When I called Lai Wai Shing to arrange an interview, he insisted that he could not speak putonghua well. During the interview, however, it was clear that he was being modest; his putonghua was both clear and fluent. Wallace Yeung, a Hong Kong native whom I met at Mei Foo Sun Chuen, where I interviewed putonghua-ignorant Tsui Chee, volunteered to be his interpreter, albeit with a strong Cantonese accent. LAI Wai Shing’s work experience is straightforward. He was employed by the Ta Kung Po in 1972, and became an economic journalist in 1980. He and his family migrated to Canada in 1995. Lai Wai Shing returned to Hong Kong in 1999 and joined the Hantec Group. He began to work as financial commentator at Hong Kong NOW TV in 2006.Lai Wai Shing has witnessed Hong Kong’s huge growth and immense changes. He tells me, “I was born in 1952. At that time Hong Kong was very poor. I remember as a child living with my whole family in a small room with seven or eight people sharing one bed.” Lai Wai Shing thinks of this period as the “epoch of poverty in a small fishing port.” In the 1960s Hong Kong entered an era of processing industry, and in the 1970s its economy took off. In the 1980s Hong Kong’s financial and service trade began to burgeon. After more than 20 years’ development, Hong Kong is now a cosmopolis and an international financial center. “There are those that believe Hong Kong is at a crossroads, and that it runs the risk of being marginalized and supplanted as an international financial center by Shanghai,” says Lai Wai Shing. Quite a number of people worry volubly about the future role of Hong Kong. To Lai Wai Shing, “It’s a problem that isn’t a problem.” During the recent years, putonghua has become a feature of Hong Kong life. When I called Lai Wai Shing to arrange an interview, he insisted that he could not speak putonghua well. During the interview, however, it was clear that he was being modest; his putonghua was both clear and fluent. Wallace Yeung, a Hong Kong native to I Mei at Mei Foo Sun Chuen, where I interviewed putonghua-ignorant Tsui Chee, volunteered to be his interpreter, albeit with a strong Cantonese accent. LAI Wai Shing’s work He was employed by the Ta Kung Po in 1972, and became an economic journalist in 1980. He and his family migrated to Canada in 1995. Lai Wai Shing returned to Hong Kong in 1999 and joined the Hantec Group. He began to work as financial commentator at Hong Kong NOW TV in 2006. Lai Wai Shing has witnessed Hong Kong’s huge growth and immense changes. He tells me, “I was born in 1952. At that time Hong Kong was very poor. I remember as a child living with my whole family in a small room with seven or eight people sharing one bed. ”Lai Wai Shing thinks of this period as the “ epoch of poverty in a small fishing port. ”In the 1960s Hong Kong entered an era of processing industry, and in the 1970s its economy took off. In the 1980s Hong Kong’s financial and service trade began to burgeon. After more than 20 years’ development, Hong Kong is now a cosmopolis and an international financial center. “There are those that believe Hong Kong is at a crossroads, and that it runs the risk of being marginalized and supplanted as an international financial center by Shanghai, ”says Lai Wai Shing. Quite a number of people worry volubly about the future role of Hong Kong. To Lai Wai Shing, “It’s a problem that is not a problem. ”