It was a memorable day for all Chinese. On July 1, 1997, Hong Kong was peacefully handed over to China, ending a century-long rule by Britain.

This day of victory came with hard work.

In 1982, Deng Xiaoping and UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher started negotiations on the future of Hong Kong. But at first, Britain insisted the three treaties signed by the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) with the UK were still valid. And The Iron Lady said her reluctance to hand Hong Kong over to China centered on the differing systems of governance between that country and the UK. To keep prosperity and stability in Hong Kong, Deng made the wise decision that allowed Hong Kong to keep its capitalist system under the "One Country, Two Systems" policy.

It was that promise that finally softened the stance of the UK. So what does "One Country, Two Systems" mean? Under this principle, each of the two regions could continue to have its own governmental system, legal, economic and financial affairs. China is responsible for defense and foreign affairs, but the region itself runs its own internal security.

The same principle was proposed in talks with Portugal regarding Macao. In 1999, the Chinese national flag was raised over Macao, ending close to 450 years of Portuguese rule.

Since its handover to China, Hong Kong has seen stable economic growth. Last year, the regional GDP hit over 2.8 trillion Hong Kong dollars. Hong Kong has been ranked as the freest economy in the world for 25 consecutive years. The city is a global offshore RMB business hub and was the largest offshore RMB clearing center in 2018, sharing nearly 80 percent of the world's RMB payments.

As of the end of December 2018, Hong Kong's stock market ranked the third largest in Asia and the fifth largest in the world in terms of market capitalization. There were over 2,300 companies listed on Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEx) and the total market capitalization reached 3.82 trillion U.S. dollars, nearly equivalent to Germany's GDP in 2018.

Hong Kong is an important banking and financial center in the Asia Pacific. It is the third leading global financial center, only after New York and London.

The same kind of prosperity is seen in its neighbor. Known as China's Las Vegas, Macao is the only place in China where casinos are legal, and the business has grown at an astounding pace.

The city's booming casino industry accounts for around 80 percent of its economy. Gross revenue from gaming and gambling was over 37.6 billion U.S. dollars in 2018. The region generates more than three times the gambling revenue in Nevada, a known U.S. gambling state, whose capital is Las Vegas.

Macao's GDP per capita was more than 82,000 U.S. dollars in 2018. Its average life expectancy is in the second place among the world economies.

In 2017, China's ambitious blueprint of building the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area officially kicked off.

The Greater Bay Area aims to build a global economic and technological powerhouse in the country's south region that could be on par with bay areas in New York and San Francisco. Consisting of cities and regions along the Pearl River Delta and covering over 56,000 square kilometers, the area is witnessing the spirit of the "One Country, Two Systems" policy and has become a new highlight of China's high-quality development.

(Edited by Liu Mengshi)