Shanghai: a global city in the midst of a renaissance, where dreamers arrive each day to partake in a mad torrent of capital, ideas and opportunity. Rob Schmitz is one of them. He immerses himself in his neighbourhood, forging relationships with ordinary people who see a brighter future in the city's sleek skyline. There's Zhao, whose path from factory floor to shopkeeper is sidetracked by her desperate measures to ensure a better future for her sons. Down the street lives Auntie Fu, a fervent capitalist forever trying to improve herself while keeping her sceptical husband at bay. Up a flight of stairs, CK sets up shop to attract young dreamers like himself, but learns he's searching for something more. As Schmitz becomes increasingly involved in their lives, he makes surprising discoveries which untangle the complexities of modern China: a mysterious box of letters that serve as a portal to a family's - and country's - dark past, and an abandoned neighbourhood where fates have been violently altered by unchecked power and greed.

A tale of twenty-first-century China, Street of Eternal Happiness profiles China's distinct generations through multifaceted characters who illuminate an enlightening, humorous and, at times, heartrending journey along the winding road to the Chinese dream. Each story adds another layer of humanity to modern China, a tapestry also woven with Schmitz's insight as a foreign correspondent. The result is an intimate and surprising portrait that dispenses with the tired stereotypes of a country we think we know, immersing us instead in the vivid stories of the people who make up one of the world's most captivating cities.

上海：一个处于复兴中的全球城市，每天都有梦想家来到这里，参与到资本、思想和机会的疯狂洪流中。罗布-施密茨就是其中之一。他沉浸在自己的社区中，与那些在城市光滑的天际线中看到更美好未来的普通人建立了关系。赵女士从工厂车间到店主的道路被她为确保儿子们有一个更好的未来而采取的不顾一切的措施所打断。街上住着傅阿姨，她是一个狂热的资本家，一直在努力改善自己，同时让她怀疑的丈夫保持沉默。在楼梯上，CK开了一家店，吸引像他一样的年轻梦想家，但他发现自己在寻找更多东西。随着施密茨越来越多地参与到他们的生活中，他有了令人惊讶的发现，这些发现解开了现代中国的复杂性：一个神秘的信件箱，作为一个家庭--和国家--黑暗的过去的门户，以及一个被遗弃的街区，那里的命运被不受约束的权力和贪婪猛烈地改变了。

作为21世纪中国的一个故事，《长乐街》通过多面性的人物介绍了中国不同年代的情况，这些人物在通往中国梦的曲折道路上照亮了一个启蒙的、幽默的，有时甚至是令人心痛的旅程。每一个故事都为现代中国增添了另一层人性，这也是施密茨作为一名外国记者的洞察力所编织的织锦。其结果是一幅亲切而令人惊讶的画卷，它摒弃了我们认为自己了解的这个国家的陈旧观念，而是让我们沉浸在构成世界上最迷人的城市之一的人们的生动故事中。