Pleasant Surprises from the Middle Kingdom

Origins of my favorite phrase of 2009, from an email I received April 13 from the 21st Century chief sub-editor, entitled Our Combining Effort to Make It Come True
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Dear Ariel, I do hope that this solution of our problem finds well with you. I do hope that you could skip your good friend's wedding, maybe after you come to Beijing, you could offer her better gifts or pleasant surprises from the Middle Kingdom.

I wish you well with beautiful family gather togethers in the following weeks.
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There's a lot to love there, actually.

Dao le.

Here I am in China.