China's dynamic duo: Hu Jintao and Wen jiabao
They are both brilliant and have strong dedication for the country.
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Profile: Hu Jintao
Mr Hu (left) was Deng Xiaoping's protégé, not Jiang's
Even close followers of Chinese politics can say little for sure about Hu Jintao, the man who has taken over as China's Communist Party leader and is its new president.
It is 10 years since Deng Xiaoping promoted Mr Hu to the party's ruling Politburo, thereby earmarking him to succeed Jiang Zemin as the "core" of the Communist Party's fourth generation of leaders.
But in all that time he has given little clue as to what sort of leader he will be.
"He has played the role of heir apparent brilliantly," says one analyst.
"He hasn't mistimed a single move - largely because he hasn't made one."
Hu Jintao, aged 60, is the first leader whose party career began after the Communist takeover in 1949.
Official biographies say he was born in eastern Anhui province, and joined the party at the height of the Cultural Revolution in 1964 when he was studying hydroelectric engineering at Beijing's prestigious Qinghua University.
Hu Jintao has towed the Communist Party line
One entry - excised after he took over as Party chief - mentioned his liking for table tennis and ballroom dancing.
He is also said to have a photographic memory.
After graduating, he worked his way up through the ranks in the Ministry of Water Conservancy and Power.
This background - which he shares with outgoing hardline premier Li Peng - suggests he is likely to be a champion of such major projects as the Three Gorges Dam, despite opposition from environmentalists and others.
Mr Hu's party career began to take off after Deng's rise to power in the late 1970s. He was one of several young administrators promoted rapidly because of their performance or patrons.
Secret reformer?
Hu Jintao has served in key posts in some of China's poorest and most remote provinces. He headed the Communist Youth League in Gansu and became party chief in Tibet and Guizhou.
In Tibet, he demonstrated his toughness when he responded to separatist protests by declaring martial law.
It paved the way for similarly harsh measures to be used to end the Tiananmen Square demonstrations in Beijing.
Many Tibetans even believe Mr Hu had a hand in the unexpected death of the Panchen Lama, their second highest spiritual leader.
They also criticised him for spending little time in Tibet - the apparent reason being that he suffered from altitude sickness.
When Mr Hu returned to Beijing as a member of the Politburo's seven-man Standing Committee in 1992, he took over key tasks such as handling personnel matters and supervising the ideological training of top officials.
The courses he introduced on market economics and good governance have led some to speculate that he is at heart a reformer.
But he has always been a faithful follower of the party line.
One of his few ventures into international affairs was in 1999 when, as vice-president, he authorised anti-US demonstrations after the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was mistakenly hit in a US bombing raid.
One of Mr Hu's few recorded sayings is that success in life "requires resolve, attention to concrete matters and courage in making decisions".
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Profile: Wen Jiabao
The former geologist is said to have good communication skills
Wen Jiabao, who as China's Premier is charged with overseeing the country's economic reforms, has a reputation as a strong administrator and technocrat.
Once seen as self-effacing and even uncharismatic, Mr Wen's fortunes have since risen quickly.
During a political career stretching back to 1965, Mr Wen has built a network of patrons.
He has served three Party leaders - from Hu Yaobang to Zhao Ziyang to Jiang Zemin.
During that time he has earned a reputation for meticulousness and a focus on tangible results.
The former Swiss ambassador to China once said that my brain is like a computer. Indeed, many statistics are stored in my brain.
Wen Jiabao, March 18 2003
Former Premier Zhu Rongji showed his esteem by entrusting Mr Wen, from 1998, with the task of overseeing agriculture, finance and environment policies.
These were considered crucial as China prepared to enter the World Trade Organisation.
This experience should prove important as Beijing pushes to revitalise the rural economy.
Mr Wen began his career in the Gansu geology bureau, having studied geomechanics in Beijing.
The Party was at that time conducting a talent search, and Mr Wen was duly promoted to serve as deputy in the Party's Central Office, where he remained for eight years.
Political 'survivor'
Things have not always been easy for Wen Jiabao, however, but he has always managed to bounce back.
Perhaps his most significant recovery was after 1989, when Mr Wen accompanied then-Party Secretary Zhao Ziyang to Tiananmen Square to visit the students on hunger strike.
Mr Zhao was purged from the party days later and has lived under house arrest in Beijing ever since.
Mr Wen, on the other hand, weathered the storm.
Although he can appear a quiet and unassuming man, he is said to be a good communicator and a "man of the people".
At the end of the NPC in March 2003, he was keen to emphasise that he was a man of conviction.
"It is generally believed that I am mild-tempered," he said.
"But at the same time, I have deep convictions and my own judgement of things, and I am not afraid of shouldering responsibility."
Mr Wen also promised that he was well-equipped to preside over China's vast bureaucracy.
"The former Swiss ambassador to China once said that my brain is like a computer," he said. "Indeed, many statistics are stored in my brain."
His more subtle style may prove less attractive to the international community than the straight talking of outgoing Premier Zhu Rongji, but his consensual management skills should prevent him from making too many enemies in Beijing.
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