Through centuries of Chinese history, the emperor’s annual visits to Beijing’s Temple of Heaven were an occasion of prayer for peace, prosperity and a bountiful harvest. This week, US President Donald Trump is due to visit the famous complex as part of a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping with hopes of a fruitful outcome again on the line.
In the days running up to the visit, visitors to the temple voiced caution about Trump, who since his second term began just under 18 months ago, has launched a trade war against China, escalating tensions between the world’s two biggest economies, and a conflict in the Middle East.
Mao, a 63-year-old retiree from Lu-an in China’s eastern Anhui province, who requested to be identified only by her surname as with many others interviewed, was blunt: “I don’t welcome Trump,” she said. The “lao bai xing”, she added, referring to common Chinese people, “believe he is not reliable”.