"Some love luxuries and look up to vanity, what can I say?" said Zhao, explaining that it's natural for people to buy good stuff when they get rich. "It's true that some residents in Ordos, even if they do low-paid work such as housekeeping and cleaning, drive Land Rovers."
A local resident in Ordos also told the Global Times that the reports did not reflect the true situation in the city.
Song Jiageng, an official from the publicity department of the CPC Ordos City Committee, told the Global Times that it's common for local residents to purchase new houses after they get a demolition compensation, but few of them splurge the compensation on luxury cars to showcase their wealth.
"I haven't heard of anyone around me wanting to sell their cars, nor have I seen anyone drive luxury cars," said Song, who lives in the city's new Kangbashi area, adding that he wants to clarify that Ordos is not as fragile as some claim, and most people there do not take pride in their fortunes like people assumed.
"The private capital restraint caused by the sagging property market has pushed many to sell their assets, including cars, after the country's macroeconomic measures drove up the inflation and injected excessive capital into the real estate market," said Jiang Yuezhong, deputy head of the Inner Mongolia Academy of Social Science.
"Ordos is just an example of the negative consequences of previous policy," Jiang added.
Detective-Conan-themed Lawson convenience store opens in Shanghai