This, and powerful friends (she counts WuJinglian, China's top economist, among her mentors), have honed Ms Hu's instincts when it comes to assessing whether Caijing's latest scoop will push the authorities too far.
In a book to be published in November, WuJinglian, China's most respected economist, notes that until a decade ago provincial branches of commercial banks borrowed funds directly from provincial offices of the central bank and lent them to local customers.