(The following clauses are selected from The Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China translated by Steve Li and Robert Zhang, international arbitration lawyers registered in Shanghai, China, and published by Kindle Unlimited.)
Article 447 In case of the obligor's failure to pay its debt when due, the obligee may retain the obligor's personal property which is legally possessed by the obligee and shall be entitled to be paid in priority out of such personal property.
For the purpose of the preceding paragraph, the obligee shall be the lien holder, and the personal property in its possession shall be the property retained under the lien.
Article 448 The personal property retained under the lien by the obligee shall arise from the same legal relationship as its claim, except for liens between enterprises.
Article 449 Any personal property that may not be retained under lien according to law or as agreed by the parties shall not be retained under lien.
Article 450 Where the property retained under the lien is severable, the value of the part retained shall be equivalent to the amount of the debt.
Article 451 The lien holder shall safekeep the property retained under the lien with due care and shall be held liable for damage to or loss of the property due to improper safekeeping.
Robert Zhang 
Steve Li 