Residents at the community on Yinhang Road in Yangpu District started finding windfalls - coins and notes up to 100 yuan (US$15.8) - last month and earlier this week.

Some associate it with the auspicious God of Fortune, said to come to earth early in the Chinese New Year, while others fear the unexpected cash will bring back luck.

Two female residents have handed over the money to the neighborhood community, while other householders kept the cash, neighbors said.

A resident in a neighboring community who has mental health problems is believed to be responsible for the first handouts.

Her daughter will be able to reclaim the money after a police investigation, neighborhood officials said. However, she is not thought to be responsible for the second windfall.

Community officials said they will keep money handed in for a time, and donate it to charity if no one claims it.

A resident, surnamed Yang, who received money twice and handed it over deemed it a test of her integrity.

"I receive 2,000 yuan pension every month, we don't live in poverty. I will donate the money, no matter how much I receive," said Yang.

Masked men armed with knives broke into the security room of a hardware company in Jiading District early on January 22.

They were trying to steal hundreds of thousand yuan of worth raw materials but fled with 1,200 yuan (US$190) taken from two security guards after being disturbed, police said.

"I was just about to check outside, when masked burst in," one of the guard surnamed Wang told police. "At knifepoint we had to give them all the cash we had on."

Officers said the gang was trying to steal 500,000 yuan worth of raw materials and that it was familiar with the company, knowing to target expensive raw materials.

The 18-month-old child from Shandong Province was left at the station by his mother on January 8. His mother, surnamed Shao, returned to Shandong.

Since then, the baby - who was nicknamed "Kai Xin," which means "happy" - has been staying at Changning District Central Hospital. Doctors said he was in good health.

Shao said she abandoned the child because she believed he wouldn't have a good life with her, after she left home following a row with her in-laws.

But Shao regretted her actions and late last month returned to Shanghai to reclaim her child.

However, she was unable to find the boy, and in any case she had no proof of identity.

The father, Ji Rongqiang, next came to Shanghai, bringing documents and certificates proving Kai Xin is his child.

"Now that everything is prepared, I feel at ease as I finally can see my baby," Ji said.

The hospital said staff have come to regard Kai Xin as their own child.

"He calls me grandma," said a care worker surnamed Hu. "I'm sad that he's leaving."

Almost daily over the break at the No.2 Taolin Neighborhood in Pudong, cleaners and residents discovered cats that had been disembowelled or had their throats cut.

"One day, I saw a dead pregnant cat whose belly had been ripped opened and a fetus taken out and left beside it," said a resident named Lu.

He said incidents of cats being killed began last July, and had become increasingly brutal.

In another recent case, a cat's head was smashed open and its brains scattered around.

The neighborhood had more than 40 stray cats, and residents often looked after them, said Lu. But now numbers were down to around 10.

Two boys and a girl have been seen chasing cats and shooting them with toy guns that fire plastic bullets, said another resident surnamed Wu.

"The taller boy was abusing a cat while another boy and a girl were cheering," Wu said.

When confronted and asked why they were tormenting the animals, they told Wu that it was "interesting to hurt cats."

Now police and residents are patrolling the neighborhood to prevent any more killings and the residents' committee has begun visiting homes with teenagers.

Angry residents have also begun distributing notices across the neighborhood in a bid to identify the teenagers.

"We must find them and their irresponsible parents and educate them, otherwise it will be too late when they grow up," the residents said on the notice.

Existing animal protection law does not cover cats.

The court said Han's lawyer presented the lawsuit materials, which will be reviewed by the court to decide whether to proceed with the case.

Han did not appear in court.

Han said in his blog yesterday that he "will quit writing about the issue anymore."

But he reiterated that all the works were written by him and thanked people for their support.

Han added that he wanted to "leave this farce behind as soon as possible."

Tao Xinliang, one of Han's representatives, told Shanghai Daily that they have filed for defamation and violation of authorship.

Tao is renowned for representing clients in intellectual property rights cases.

Filing a case normally takes a week, but could be longer if the court requires more materials from the plaintiff, said Sun Chao, a court official.

The drama began last month when Fang published articles analyzing Han's writing and claimed he used ghostwriters.

Blogger Fang has earned his "science cop" nickname through exposing scientific fraud.

On January 15, blogger Mai Tian published an article raising questions over whether Han owed his success to ghostwriters.

Han responded by offering 20 million yuan (US$3.17 million) to anyone who could provide evidence he hired ghostwriters.

Mai then deleted his article and apologized.

But later Fang opened fire and the online battle spilled over to television interviews, with each questioning the other's credibility.

Han demanded a public apology from Fang and 100,000 yuan for damage to his reputation.

Fang had not responded to the suit by late yesterday, but has continued to make online attacks on Han.

"Writers are those who are most familiar with their works and should easily answer any questions about their works," wrote Fang on his blog.

Shanghai lawyer Fu Minrong forecast that the court will soon accept the case.

Han needs to provide proof that Fang has used words stating that he hired ghostwriters, said Fu.

Fang's job is to prove that all the accusations are real, added Fu. "One can criticise someone," said Fu, "but defamation is quite another thing."

The man surnamed Liu was driving his car to Zhuqiao Town in Pudong and when he was stopped by red light at the crossroad of Zhuhui Road and Zhujing Road. A man riding a tricycle asked Liu to make way for him to cross.

Liu climbed out of his car, overturned the man's tricycle and chased him with a knife. The man had to run into the woods for his life. Just then, another car went by and Liu smashed the car window with his knife. Two people in the car also had to run into the woods.

Then Liu assaulted a woman riding a scooter, causing her to fall from the scooter and suffer bruises.

He was eventually apprehended by police and confessed that he drank half a bottle of liquor before driving and had lost control.

Guo Liansheng, one of the city's ten longevity stars, says she is happy with the surgery and she can see her 8-month-old great great granddaughter clearly.

She is also longing for seeing her grandson who will come from Taiwan to see her on Sunday.

Her family said Guo suffered cataract about ten years ago and her vision deteriorated gradually. Her eyes could only feel some light before the surgery.

Guo had a surgery in Shanghai Xinshijie Eye Hospital two months ago to remove a cataract from her left eye, and today's surgery was to treat the right eye.

Doctors said cataract surgery is usually conducted on one eye at a time. There should be at least two months for another operation.

The hospital launched a charity program to offer discounted cataract surgery to elderly people and free cataract surgery for people over 100 years old.

Guo enjoyed free treatment due to the program.

The court said Han entrusted his lawyer to hand in the lawsuit materials, which will be reviewed by the court to decide whether to investigate the case or not.

Han did not appear in the court himself.

The standard procedure of filing a case normally takes one week but it will be a little longer if the court demands more materials from the plaintiff, said Sun Chao, a court official.

Sun said the court will not reveal Han's claim to the public until the case is accepted and goes to a public hearing.

It is reported that Fang will be charged with defamation for publishing articles analyzing Han's novels and accusing him of hiring ghostwriters last month.

Han, one of China's most watched bloggers, responded in writing posted online that he would pay 20 million yuan to anyone who had evidence to prove his hiring of ghostwriters.

Han has demanded a public apology from Fang and 100,000 yuan (US$15,790) for reputation damages.

Han, 29, was placed 48th in The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010 by the British magazine New Statesman.

The court said Han entrusted his lawyer to hand in the lawsuit materials, which will be reviewed by the court to decide whether to investigate the case or not.

Han did not appear in the court himself.

The standard procedure of filing a case normally takes one week but it will be a little longer if the court demands more materials from the plaintiff, said Sun Chao, a court official.

Sun said the court will not reveal Han's claim to the public until the case is accepted and goes to a public hearing.

It is reported that Fang will be charged with defamation for publishing articles analyzing Han's novels and accusing him of hiring ghostwriters last month.

Han, one of China's most watched bloggers, responded in writing posted online that he would pay 20 million yuan to anyone who had evidence to prove his hiring of ghostwriters.

Han has demanded a public apology from Fang and 100,000 yuan (US$15,790) for reputation damages.

Han, 29, was placed 48th in The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010 by the British magazine New Statesman.