When I flew from Beijing to the Southeast Asian country of Cambodia to spend my holiday last month, I felt most relieved that I had escaped two rounds of red alerts for toxic smog in the capital. I breathed the clean air and enjoyed the beautiful scenery, but I dared not post any pictures on my social networks in case irritating my friends who lived in the smog-shrouded city.

However, Cambodia may be a heaven for tourists but not for local residents. The traffic in the capital of Phnom Penh is as bad as, if worse than, that in Beijing, and public transportation is barely used. The highways linking two provinces, which barely deserve the name by Chinese standards, are bumpy and rough.

It reminded me of the well-known slogan - if you want to be rich, construct the roads first. This saying used to be stressed during the initial era of China's path toward modernity and is being emphasized by the current leadership. Backward transportation is the main barrier for local resources to turn into economic advantages, which obstructs local economic development.

China used to suffer from poor basic infrastructure, and now is promoting the linkage of basic infrastructure across Asia that could inject impetus into the overall development of the region.

China has become a leading power in Asia and Chinese have been enjoying the benefits of the country's economic achievements overseas.

Traveling in the neighboring Southeast Asian countries whose development lags far behind China's is something many ordinary Chinese can now afford.

Compared with Chinese standards, accommodation in these countries is cheap. Young people would scream at the price of Levi jeans, which costs about 800 yuan ($122.9) at home but only 200 yuan in Cambodia. It's still expensive for Cambodian people, and no wonder many Chinese are seen as "nouveau riche" in their eyes.

But the Chinese have paid heavy costs for such a halo. After several decades of rapid development, China is facing a growing imbalance between economic development and the quality of environment.

The high material consumption, energy consumption and pollution contributed to the industrialization process, but also did enormous damage to the environment.

Chinese living in big cities no longer worry about if they have enough to eat and wear, but are anxious about the quality of life, which is affected greatly by environmental pollution. Are they happier than Cambodians? It is hard to tell.

But still, all countries want to continue economic progress that could give millions of their citizens better lives. What must be insisted on is sustainable development that combines environmental care, social justice and economic growth. Humans need to live in affluence, not only materially, but also spiritually. It is the case in China, Cambodia, and everywhere else in the world.

Yu Wen, a white collar based in Beijing