Dong Dong Dong !! That's the sound of the drums outside the room every morning before sunrise.

All the boys & girls rushed out with their wash basin & face cloth. They had 10 minute to freshen up & it's off to the Food Hall for their usual breakfast. They would be lucky if they had fried noodles or steam glutinous rice, if not it would be just man tau with water.

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Today was different. Layed on the long table were both fried noodles & man tau. The children were so delighted. All of them were chattering in happiness as they finished their meal. In less than 15 minutes, off they went to the factory which was just next door. This was a cloth making factory & they have been in operations since over 200 years ago.

The owner, Grandpa Tong Xui have been making cloth for as long as he can remember. His ancestors first arrived in Xian, China but eventually moved downsouth to Yangchun. It was here that the first factory was build with only family members working to what now seemed like over 300 staff, combination of both young & old.

Many would ask as to why young children were mainly employed to work in Grandpa Tong Xui's factory. He's real secret is that as the children's hands are small & smooth like silk, they are able to handle the embroidery of the cloth much better. Plus that they work twice as hard as the older folks.

The higher grade cloths are always the most expensive of them all. Grandpa Tong Xui even named a specific cloth Smooth as Silk just so that it can be sold at RMB 5 Million a yard

Recently, we paid a visit to this factory after hearing it's news all over the internet. It seems that there has been a child labour law that was implemented in Yangchun in 2016. It prohibits any children below the age of 17 to work failing which the employer would be imprisoned. Sadly, Grandpa Tong Xui's factory suffered a tremendous loss with this new ruling.

The family closed the factory & moved up north. No one has heard or seen them ever since.