According to Xue, over 2,500 students were evacuated to soccer field and playgrounds within 90 seconds under the teachers' instruction and no casualties were reported from the school, thanks to the emergency evacuation drills. The school just finished such drill on April 18, two days before the quake struck. It was part of regular teaching activity held each semester ever since the 8.0-magnitude quake occurred within the province on May 12, 2008. Unfortunately, the teaching buildings could not be used due to cracks in the walls.

Staff took out 46 tents from the warehouse which the school received after the May 12, 2008 quake, and set them up on campus for temporary shelters. Obviously, it was far from enough to accommodate all the students.

Li contacted Xue via his former student on April 23 to confirm the situation. "I was surprised that Li and her friends got my phone numbers. At first, they said they would donate relief goods anonymously," Xue told Beijing Review. "But I insisted on getting their names because the local civil affairs department needs the donor's information when delivering goods."

The second round of fund-raising was on the way soon after Li's facts check. They collected another 8,250 yuan ($1,299), making the total to 11,653.3 yuan ($2,744).

Unlike the first round, Li purchased relief goods - 100 folded beds, five 22-square-meter tents for Tianquan Middle School and 30 quilts for individual victims - from online shops to reduce costs. She also required every seller send goods and delivery receipts to her via e-mail.

"At the very beginning, we just want to collect money among friends and send relief goods directly to quake zone to offer some help. We never thought of the charity," Gu said. "I didn't expect feedback like this."

"To be honest, I was stressed before receiving Xue's call, because this is our first time to make donations in this way. I was afraid of any potential risks to make the delivery a failure. If that were the case, I would feel deeply sorry for the donors' trust," Li stated.

In addition to donations from Li and her friends, the school received point-to-point donations from other cities across China. "I really appreciate their helps!" Xue said.

Making charity transparent

In fact, besides individual donation, organizations also use social media as a tool to promote transparent charity for Ya'an quake relief.

There are over 600,000 posts under the topic of transparent charity at Sina Weibo, one of the biggest microblogging platforms in China, after the quake struck. On April 23, the China Foundation Center (CFC), a legally registered public charity described in the regulation of the country's Ministry of Civil Affairs, jointly launched a self-regulation alliance for Ya'an quake relief with several domestic foundations.

The CFC, which aimed to make philanthropy transparent, posted news related to quake relief via its verified Sina Weibo account, and also gradually revealed how donations worth 1.049 billion yuan ($165.2 million) were utilized.

Xue Manzi, a famous angel investor who has over 11 million followers of his Sina Weibo, posted on April 30:

"For the public, the quake on May 12, 2008, enlightened their awareness of charity, but there were little access to a transparent charity at the time. With the emergence of microblogs, micro-charity entitles every citizen to contribute in the course by using his or her own power. The non-governmental charity organizations could make a transparent charity, accept public supervision, and put every penny to use. Any organization which could not meet this basic standard would be eliminated. The era of everyone for charity has truly arrived with the rise of micro-charity."

"All our moves came from trust among people, be it an acquaintance or stranger," Gu said.

"I totally agree with the concept of One Foundation, 'It starts with one,' because charity is a step-by-step thing, you can't push or rush," Li said. "More people might be mobilized if we could accumulate our power little by little within the scope of our capabilities."