The tale of the Peacock Princess

Slim-built and of medium height, with a pair of big, intense eyes, Xu Liqiu gives the impression of being caring and protective. However, Xu, who runs her own animal husbandry business, says her appearance is deceptive; in reality, she's a very determined and insistent person.

So far, the farm has more than 100 peacocks, both blue and white, and about 300 rare birds of other varieties, including golden pheasants and reeves. After the next incubation period, there will be around 1,000 peacocks and 3,000 birds of other kinds.

Since the farm was established in 2011, Xu has won many awards for her achievements as a young woman entrepreneur and a university student who established a business after graduation. Xu, who is still single, has been dubbed the "Peacock Princess" by the locals.

"People have only heard about the glamorous side of my career, but they rarely learn of the hardships I have been through," she says.

"I weigh less than 50 kilograms, but I can carry two big barrels of water, I can chop the vegetables for the peacocks' food for four hours straight, and during the incubation period, I get up to monitor the eggs every two hours at night," she says.

"The conditions are improving now and the farm has four workers. During the first year, to save money, I did most of the work myself, including feeding the animals, cleaning the farm and cooking. And even nowadays, I have to spend all the holidays on the farm because no one wants to work at that time," she says.

Xu's talent for business first showed itself during her university days.