China Merchants Bank Co Ltd has teamed up with ride-hailing major Didi Kuaidi to provide automobile financing and expand its reach in China's booming mobile payment industry.

    The two have inked a comprehensive partnership, which includes a strategic investment by the former in the latter. Under the partnership, CMB will become the first bricks-and-mortar bank that can offer in-app credit card payments to Didi users. At present, users of Didi can only choose third-party payment solutions like WeChat Payment and Alipay to pay cab fares.

    Zhao Ju, vice-president of CMB, said the cooperation with Didi was an important step in its mobile Internet finance strategy. “CMB's mobile payment is going to enter a new chapter by leveraging Didi Kuaidi's vast user base," he said.

    According to a report by China Internet Network Information Center earlier this month, Didi holds 87.2 percent of China's private car hailing market. The company said it has received 1.43 billion car-hailing requests on its platforms in 2015, which means 1.43 billion payments were made via smartphones.

    CMB is expected to use Didi to reach the core users of China's mobile payment market. Jean Liu, president of Didi, said many of the expats prefer payment by credit card rather than Alipay or WeChat. "The new partnership will help improve service quality and customer loyalty," she said. The investment makes CMB part of Didi's existing investors, including Tencent Holdings Ltd, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and China Investment Corporation. Both of the companies declined to reveal the actual amount of the investment.

    Liu, who showed up on Tuesday for the first time in public after her treatment for breast cancer, said the cooperation with CMB is for the long run and "the capital investment is only part of it".

    Under the partnership, CMB and Didi will cooperate on a wide range of initiatives on financial services and online-to-offline cooperation. Apart from the in-app credit card payments, the two companies are going to launch joint credit cards in late February and automobile financing services for Didi's car owners. CMB's branches across China are expected to help Didi recruit more drivers.

    "There is a lot of room for imagination in our partnership," Li said, adding in future people may use their CMB credit card reward points to pay for the ride on Didi.

    Li Chao, an analyst with iResearch Consulting Group, said the partnership may not significantly boost CMB's mobile payment business. "Didi has educated the market for three years and its customers have formed the habit of paying by WeChat or Alipay. So I think CMB can only turn a very smart proportion of Didi users into its payment customer," he said. "But the move shows that China's traditional banking industry is finally thinking out of the box and looking for outside partners in Internet finance competition," he said.

    Statistics from Big-Data Research showed that more than 90 percent of China's 9.3 trillion yuan ($1.41 trillion) worth of third party mobile payment market is donated by Alibaba and Tencent.

    When her classmates were having a good time, Molly sat at the picnic table alone. She remained awkward around her classmates. She seemed unsure of what to do or say, yet I could see her eyes longing for acceptance. Many students had already decided that her friendship would not be worth the energy required to overcome the awkwardness. Others teased her. Most ignored her except for one.

    Brianna, the class clown, was making the other students laugh, as usual. “Brianna, do you see Molly down there? Would you mind walking down there and inviting her to come up here with the rest of us?”

    Brianna sighed. I could tell she didn't want to sacrifice precious minutes of her own recess (休息) to do what I was asking of her, but I also knew her heart. She often thought of others before herself— a rare character for anyone, much less a kid.

    Knowing this choice was hard for her, I reached into my pocket and pulled out a D-buck, our class currency. Though bribery (行贿) was not the ideal way to handle this situation, I needed her cooperation.

    “Here, I'll pay you for your time.”

    She offered an insincere smile, grasped the green paper, and headed down the hill.

    As the rest of the children screamed and laughed, my eyes locked on Brianna as she neared the picnic table. Molly could be difficult, and I wouldn't have been surprised if she sent Brianna back alone, refusing her invitation. When she encouraged herself to a standing position, I sighed with relief.

    A minute later, I felt a tap on my shoulder. “Here, Mrs. D.” She handed me the D-buck.

    “Why?” I asked.

    “I shouldn't keep this,” Her eyes fell to her feet, guilt radiating from her quiet voice. “I don't want Molly to think I only went to get her so I could earn a D-buck. She's my friend.”

    A moment later, they were all laughing again, and who should I see among them, laughing for the first time that week? Molly.

    When Warren Buffett was asked about the secret to his wealth and success, he said that he read every day—500 pages. Unfortunately, if you're already working 9-5, you might not have the time to read at all, let alone an entire book a day. But what if you could get the benefits of reading without sacrificing all of your free time? You can! With the Blinkist app, you get the key learning from the best notification books in minutes, not hours or days. Our experts transform these books into quick, memorable, easy-to-understand insights. Start with the 3 most-read titles on self-improvement and see if you don't feel a little more satisfied already.

    ⒈Thirteen Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do by Amy Morin

    12min

    Read it on Blinklst

    You can't escape misfortune in life. But you can change how you respond it. Do you struggle to get over your failures? Or talk a lot about things out of your control? Getting over these obstacles can have a very great influence on your everyday life. Morin shares how her most successful therapy patients overcame these difficulties.

    ⒉How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie

    19min

    Read it on Blinklst

    How would you feel it someone told you on Sunday evening that, come Monday morning, you would be thrown into a torture chamber（刑讯室）? Would you worry? Probably. But there would be a way to deal with those worries. Ever wondered why you can't stop worrying about something? No matter how hard you try, are you always thinking and talking on the same issue? By defining the source of your stress, you can get over it once and for all. Carnegie came up with a timeless formula that helps you handle any overthinking situation.

    ⒊How Will You Measure Your Life? by Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karen Dillon

    13min

    Read it on Blinklst

    What do you think would make you happier at work? Perhaps a little more pay might be nice, or maybe some more admiration from fellow colleagues. Are you making the right trade-offs in life? While career achievements can be satisfying, neglecting your family and friends can be harmful in the long-run – in ways you can't even imagine.

    Galaxy saw a man and a woman who communicated with the sign language at the train station when she was on the way home one evening. She noticed that the woman asked the man for the direction. He told her that he did not know. Galaxy decided to help them. She had learned the sign language when she served as a volunteer in the deaf and mute （聋哑） school. Then she showed the woman the direction and left her email address to them in case they needed her help later.

    She received an email from that man the next day. Kazrim was his name. Galaxy replied his mail sincerely，They both started chatting online soon after and began seeing each other. Although they only communicated with the sign language, it never bothered her.

    Galaxy was fond of him gradually. Obviously, Kazrim was the same too. He presented Galaxy with a bunch of sunflowers and asked her sincerely, “Are you willing to be my girlfriend?”

    Galaxy was pleasantly surprised. She requested him to give her some time to persuade her parents.

    As she had expected，her parents were very angry after they had learned of their love story.

    Galaxy explained，“Kazrim is an excellent and a very optimistic person. He has a very positive attitude towards life and work. He cares for others always. He is 100％ better than the normal. Moreover, the mute is still a human. He should possess a perfect and wonderful love. ”

    Her parents asked to see him，then. The very worried Galaxy took Kazrim home a few days later. When they were on the train，Kazrim told her, “I'm going to tell your parents that I'll be looking after you well with all my life!” Galaxy was deeply moved.

    As soon as they had entered the house，Galaxy introduced him to her parents. She said, “This is Kazrim.” Just right after her speech，an unbelievable thing happened. Kazrim threw the gift away and held her in his arms tightly.

    He said. “YOU CAN TALK?” It was the same question that Galaxy wanted to ask，too.

    The four people were shocked all of a sudden. As a matter of fact, Kazrim always believed that Galaxy was a mute and he still fell in love with her deeply.

    William Butler Yeats, a most famous Irish writer, was born in Dublin on June 13, 1865. His childhood lacked the harmony that was typical of a happy family. Later, Yeats shocked his family by saying that he remembered "little of childhood but its pain". In fact, he inherited (继承) excellent taste in art from his family — both his father and his brother were painters. But he finally settled on literature, particularly drama and poetry.

    Yeats had strong faith in the coming of new artistic movements. He set himself the fresh task in founding an Irish national theatre in the late 1890s. His early theatrical experiments, however, were not received favorably at the beginning. He didn't lose heart, and finally enjoyed success in his poetical drama.

    Compared with his dramatic works, Yeats's poems attract much admiring notice. The subject matter includes love, nature, history, time and aging. Though Yeats generally relied on very traditional forms, he brought modern sensibility to them. As his literary life progressed, his poetry grew finer and richer, which led him to worldwide recognition.

    He had not enjoyed a major public life since winning the Nobel Prize in 1923. Yet, he continued writing almost to the end of his life. Had Yeats stopped writing at age 40, he would probably now be valued as a minor poet, for there is no other example in literary history of a poet who produces his greatest works between the ages of 50 and 75. After Yeats's Death in 1939, W. H. Auden wrote, among others, the following lines:

    Earth, receive an honoured guest:

    William Yeats is laid to rest.

    Let the Irish vessel (船) lie

    Emptied of its poetry.

    What is the number one favorite pet in the UK? If you think the answer is dogs, you are wrong. There are 8.6 million cats and 8.3 million dogs in Britain according to recent figures. But experts predict that there will be more dogs than cats next year as dogs become more and more popular.

    Dogs as decorations

    We like to spend time with our pets. The Queen is famous for her affection for dogs and is often photographed with them. Nowadays some dog owners are more extreme — a few TV celebrities even take their dogs shopping or to restaurants. Chihuahuas are especially popular as "handbag dogs" because they are so tiny.

    Dog holidays

    People are also giving their pets holidays. Many UK hotels and holiday parks now welcome dogs as guests. What about owners who go abroad? They can leave their pets at a dog hotel or dog spa while they are away. Some even provide their dog guests with a TV.

    Dogs are for life

    The British charity, Dogs Trust, finds homes for thousands of lost and abandoned dogs every year. Their famous slogan "A dog is for life and not just for Christmas" was created in the 1970s to teach people about the responsibility of owning a dog. Dogs Trust told British people not to give dogs as gifts or treat them like toys.

    Dogs on TV

    Victoria Sitwell is the host of the popular TV programme called "It's me or the dog". In the show Victoria helps dog owners with their pets' bad behaviour. She tries to find solutions to problems such as a Dalmatian who thinks he owns the house and won't let the family sit on the sofa, dogs that will only eat ice cream and biscuits and even a bulldog who uses the owner's bed as a toilet.

    Fashion for dogs

    You can shop online or on the high street for the latest in dog clothes and accessories. Specialist shops sell items such as dog boots, dog fancy dress costumes, dog coats, dog dresses and dog pants.