With Japan facing serious domestic problems including an aging population, declining birthrate and widening economic disparity, Kyushu could lead the economic revival of the country given its history of China-Japan exchange. In fact, Kyushu regards collaboration with China and rest of Asia as the key to breaking through to a better future.

The region with a strong bond with China, however, has seen a sharp decline in the number of Chinese tourists after China-Japan relations soured over territorial and historical issues two years ago. Very few Chinese tourists have visited Kyushu this year, although the number of Chinese nationals visiting Japan in the first nine months increased 56.3 percent year-on-year to 1.17 million.

But now China-Japan ties are showing signs of a turnaround with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meeting President Xi Jinping on Monday on the sidelines of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Beijing. The two countries reached a four-point consensus on Nov 7 on how to put their ties back on track, also, after the meeting between the two countries' foreign ministers, Japan has decided to ease requirements for multiple-entry visas for Chinese nationals.

These developments have been welcomed in Japan, and Japanese people are looking forward to "a substantial improvement in the relationship", as a Yomiuri Shimbun editorial put it. There is a big stake in all this for the people in Kyushu, for whom the story of Xu is symbolic of their close contact, past and present, with China. Given such a past, the two countries have no reason to fall foul of each other.

The author is China Daily's Tokyo bureau chief. caihong@chinadaily.com.cn