The study looked at how income and spending of rural Chinese households changed between 2000 and 2004. They found that income and spending were closely linked, with wages playing a big role. In 2004, rural households started spending more on non-essential items compared to 2000. However, they spent less on healthcare. This suggests that even though rural households wanted to spend more on higher-quality items, their low income limited their ability to do so. To improve rural consumption and spending habits, the study suggests increasing wages for rural households.