‘Everyone is their own hero’: goose leg vendor speaks at top China university, inspires students with street snack internet sensation story
- Woman sells tasty food to university students who propel her to fame
- Does not enjoy spotlight, shares business principles and ‘life rhythm’
A street vendor who became an online sensation last year because of her tasty roasted goose legs, was invited to give a speech at the prestigious Peking University (PKU), where she told students that “everyone is their own hero”.
Chen Xiufeng, a native of Lianyungang from northeastern Jiangsu province, has worked in Beijing for two decades. Since 2016, she has been roasting goose legs and selling them via orders on WeChat, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
Chen also sells her street snacks by the southwestern gate of PKU in the evening after preparing the food during the day.
Full of flavour and at 15 yuan (US$2) per piece, the goose legs are so popular among PKU students that many from nearby Tsinghua University also queue up to buy them.
Chen, who is in her 50s and is affectionately called “Auntie Goose Legs”, shot to fame at the end of last year as students from these two top universities competed to persuade her to sell her tasty fare in their school exclusively.
Chen said she was under great pressure at that time with hundreds of strangers adding contacts with her on WeChat and many people gathered to look at her when she was busy distributing the food.
The tremendous attention Chen received forced her to suspend her business for some weeks.
“I just want to have a barbecue business. I dare not continue to do it under such a bright spotlight and so much pressure,” a tearful Chen said in a video clip released at the time.
She resumed her business at the beginning of this year.
People who become famous by accident often grasp the opportunity to turn their transient glory into cash. Chen has never considered that possibility and only wanted to “earn a little money quietly”, she said at a female entrepreneurial forum at PKU on March 8, International Women’s Day.
She told the audience about her daily routine which includes washing the legs of the geese, cutting them to the same size, and salting them before roasting them for half an hour. She sells more than 200 roasted goose legs every day.
“My business principles are to build mutual trust with customers and to guarantee the food is safe,” said Chen.
She said a person should be persistent in doing what they are doing and should not be swept by the tide.
“I know you have a hectic schedule every day. But I do hope you can find a life rhythm that you are comfortable with. Make a long-term life plan and work hard towards that direction. That is enough,” Chen told her young audience.
“Life is a long journey. At a young age, you face plenty of opportunities. Everyone is their own hero. I hope you go smoothly in every aspect,” said Chen.
Her speech attracted admiration from internet users in China.
“Her story proves that a person from any industry deserves respect as long as he or she sticks to her work with heart,” one person said on Douyin.
“This auntie has a clear mindset. Live a simple life and do what you should do,” commented another.
