Like the boy in Hans Christian Andersen's The Emperor's New Clothes, the words of a six-year-old girl in Guangzhou last week has shocked many in the nation into deep reflection.

It all happened on the first day of the new school semester when students were asked what they aspire to be. "I want to be a government official and a corrupt official because a corrupt official owns a lot of things," said the first grader.

While words from a six-year-old usually may not be taken too seriously, it nevertheless hits a nerve of many people in this society today.