Shangmu, a Sherpa, member of a Himalayan people and of Tibetan ethnic group, is a multimillionaire living in Zham County of Shigatse Prefecture in Tibet Autonomous Region. [Photo/huanqiu.com]

 Sangmu's import store. [Photo/huanqiu.com]

Zham County,  the biggest trade port in Tibet, boasts most of the trade volume of Tibet. Even the Shepra ethnic group, a small branch in Tibet living in Zham, also has its millionaires and even multimillionaires.

As a multimillionaire, Sangmu enjoys high prestige for her diligence and kindness in the Sherpa people and owns large amount of assets including an import store, a seven-storey building as well as a hotel. The houses in her building are mostly rented to local dealers except her home on the fourth floor.

In her home, Tibetan-style decorations are seen everywhere. On the front wall were the photos of all the Communist party leaders, while on the side walls were many photos of Sangmu and her late husband, who died a few years ago. 

During the interview, the warm hostess Sangmu shared  her way to wealth with reporters.

In the 1970s, she was a cashier in the local people's commune before she began her own undertaking. After the reform and opening up policy was carried out, she began her business by running grocery, steamed bun shop, general store, teahouse as well as selling gauze to Nepal through loan.

In 1984, the couple bought a batch of artificial leather from Lhasa at a low price of 5 yuan a meter with 0.1 million Yuan loan and 20 thousand yuan of their own money. They sold all the leather at a price of 14 yuan to Nepalese. As a result, they earned 0.8 million yuan.

"You cannot believe that our life become better and better", Sangmu said, all these were attributed to the favorable policies offered to the local Tibetans. When asked her total assets, Sangmu laughed and said that "I don't have that much money to be an billionaire".

At present, multimillionaires are not rare in Zham county, reported by the local media.

Apart from her personal undertaking, Sangmu also emphasized the education of her children, wishing that they would go to university in big cities one day.

Immersed in the cherished memories and  future expectations, Sangmu sang a folk song to us all. The lyric goes that  'new houses are built; beautiful doors and bright windows, through which the inside warmth is felt'......