The coastal city of Qingdao in Shandong province has called on architects from across the globe to submit design proposals for the 2014 World Horticulture Expo, the information office of the city government has said.

Applicants have been asked to submit their designs and implementation plans for the 1.6-sq-km expo area and the 4.8-sq-km surrounding area by Sept 17.

More information can be found on the website http://www.qingdaoexpo2014.org.

Known as the "Olympics of gardening", the horticulture expo will be held in Qingdao from April to October 2014.

(China Daily)

Hospital cashier on trial for embezzling 6 million yuan

A man accused of embezzling 6 million yuan ($882,000) while working as a cashier at a hospital began trial in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, last Monday.

Li Chunyao admitted in court he had "spent all the money" in less than two years on stocks, gambling and online computer games. Li said he spent more than 2 million yuan to buy accounts and equipment for online games.

The court has yet to deliver a verdict.

(Today Morning Post)

Festival to celebrate noted Chinese strategist kicks off

A festival to commemorate Sunzi, or Sun Tzu, a strategist who lived during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), kicked off in Shandong province's Huimin county on Sunday.

The highlight of the month-long festival is a cross-Straits forum, which is being attended by more than 100 members from Taiwan and the mainland. The forum focuses on ways to use the spirit of Sunzi to boost cross-Straits economic cooperation.

In the past 60 years, the teachings in the Book of Sunzi, or the Art of War, have passed on from the military to the economic field and have made a significant contribution to cross-Straits economic cooperation, Wei-Ku Fuh, from the Taiwan-based China Research Society of Sun Tzu's Art of War, said.

The Book of Sunzi is internationally recognized as the earliest theoretical work on military strategy and is widely used by strategists around the world.

(China Daily)

North

Greedy robbers who returned to crime scene convicted

A Liaoning province court recently convicted two men, who probably would have not been caught had they not returned to the crime scene the next day, of robbery.

Migrant workers Sun and Li robbed a bag from a woman and later abandoned it after taking out credit cards, cash and a gold necklace from it earlier this year.

The next day, however, they returned to the spot, hoping to find some more valuables in the bag. They did not find the bag where they left it. They did bump into a few police officers though.

(Peninsula Morning Post)

South

Gambler stabs self to win ill-tempered wife's mercy

A resident of Panyu, Guangdong province, who gambled away 8,000 yuan ($1,177) he borrowed from relatives for an "emergency", stabbed himself to convince his family he was robbed.

Guo was on Sunday jailed for five days for filing a false police report.

The police, who were recording Guo's statement in the hospital, became suspicious when he couldn't exactly explain where and how he was robbed and stabbed.

On further questioning, he admitted to cooking up the story to escape his wife's temper. Guo said he thought he could double the money, but lost all of it.

Fearing his wife would thrash him, he stabbed himself in the chest and leg.

Guo's wife has promised she won't beat him once he is released from prison.

(Nanfang Daily)

West

Employer held for duping underage male prostitute

Police in Chongqing municipality recently arrested a man who allegedly duped a teenager of nearly 5,000 yuan ($740) after recruiting him as a male prostitute.

In April, the teen, who is still a minor, responded to an advertisement for a "PR (public relations) man", promising a monthly salary of 10,000 yuan.

The boy was told his job would be to sexually satisfy rich women. But before he joined, he was asked to pay 200 yuan as a registration fee and 4,900 yuan as deposit to his recruiter, surnamed Wang.

Wang took the boy to a hotel room for his first job. However, minutes into the "special massage" he was asked to provide, the woman started complaining, which is when Wang told the teen of a rule - if the customer is not satisfied, he would lose all his deposit.

The teen immediately phoned the police, who arrested Wang. The police said Wang had arranged for the woman in the hotel room to complain so he could dupe the teen.

(Chongqing Evening News)