Thirty-eight years later, Taiwanese businessman Huang Yijian still fondly recalls receiving the foreign-invested enterprise approval certificate numbered "No. 001".

On July 2, 2019, the approval certificate for the first foreign-invested enterprise solely invested and operated by a Taiwanese businessman in the Chinese mainland—"Wai Jing Mao Zi Shen Zi [1986] No. 001"—went on display at the "Road to Modernization: Seventy Years of the Republic" exhibition held at the Hong Kong Museum of History.

In April 1984, the Min Tai Hang Co., Ltd., organized chiefly by Huang Yijian, began "testing the waters" in Fuzhou. In April 1986, the company was awarded the Foreign-Invested Enterprise Approval Certificate of the People's Republic of China "Wai Jing Mao Zi Shen Zi [1986] No. 001", becoming the first foreign-invested enterprise established in the mainland with sole investment and operation by a Taiwanese businessman, and also the first Taiwan-funded enterprise to settle in Fuzhou.

Today, this precious certificate has been collected by the National Museum of China. It bears witness to the history of Fuzhou welcoming Taiwanese compatriots to develop on the mainland during the early days of reform and opening up, at the initial stage of cross-strait economic and trade exchanges.

At the 26th Cross-Strait Economic and Trade Fair (abbreviated as "Haijiaohui"), currently being held in Fuzhou, Huang Yijian was invited to attend the opening ceremony and the Cross-Strait Exchange and Interaction Sharing Session, where he took the stage to tell the story of his own "landing" on the mainland for development.

On May 16, Taiwanese businessman Huang Yijian was invited to attend the opening ceremony of the Haijiaohui and the Cross-Strait Exchange and Interaction Sharing Session, where he took the stage to tell the story of his own "landing" on the mainland for development.

"The 1980s were a critical period for the transformation and upgrading of Taiwan's manufacturing industry. As production costs began to rise and the business environment for operators deteriorated day by day, many Taiwanese businessmen went to the mainland in search of business opportunities," Huang Yijian recounted.

Huang Yijian said that at the time, Fujian Province, being closest to Taiwan, had a common language and the same customs, plus low land and labor costs, and thus became the best investment destination in the minds of Taiwanese businessmen.

In 1984, Huang Yijian invested 1 million US dollars in Fuzhou to build a garment factory, and also invested in establishing the first "Min Tai Hang" in Fuzhou's commercial district, Bayiqi Road, mainly engaged in clothing. In 1985, "Min Tai Hang" opened for business.

"The goods were fashionable and novel, and the clothes on the mannequins in the display windows led the trends—all of this changed the traditional business model of Fuzhou people at the time," Huang Yijian said.

In 1986, Huang Yijian applied to the local authorities for a business license. He said that the staff at the time told him his certificate was "No. 001", meaning that "Min Tai Hang" had become the first wholly Taiwanese-owned enterprise in the mainland.

"When I received the first business license, I was extremely excited." Recalling the past, Huang Yijian said that this license represented not only his efforts and sweat, but also Fuzhou's recognition of and support for Taiwanese businessmen.

"Investing in Fuzhou was the most correct choice of my life. This is a very warm and charming place that has enabled me and other Taiwanese businessmen to realize our dreams and made me feel the warmth of home." Reviewing his journey of growing together with Fuzhou, Huang Yijian said with emotion that, without realizing it, he had become a pathfinder and witness of cross-strait economic and trade exchanges.

Fuzhou has now become a "new homeland" for Taiwanese compatriots and Taiwanese enterprises "landing" on the mainland. As of the end of March 2024, Fuzhou had approved a total of 5,019 Taiwanese investment projects, with contracted Taiwanese investment of 13.327 billion US dollars.

"I have always been full of confidence in the development prospects of the mainland," Huang Yijian said. Forty years ago, he was also a young man who came to the mainland and realized his dream. "Young people in Taiwan should come to the mainland more often to take a look."

In Huang Yijian's view, as preferential policies for Taiwan are implemented in greater detail, cross-strait economic and trade exchanges and cooperation will see even greater expansion. "I hope compatriots on both sides of the strait will walk hand in hand and jointly create a better tomorrow."