The stories that moved us most during 2017

A new generation prepares to combat age-old problems

When I returned to Guhe village, Anhui province, recently, I discovered that a lot of changes had taken place to Li Zongyin, the village Party chief, and the village itself.

I tried to enter the village along a familiar road, but was unable to get through because a bridge was being repaired, so I had to find another path with the guidance of some villagers.

Last summer, I spent a month living in the village's office building. At the time, the streets had no electric lights, but by the time I returned dozens of streetlights had been installed.

A 400,000-square-meter electricity generator, powered by solar panels, was put into operation in June, and a square, designed as a place of entertainment for the villagers was about to be finished.

Most of the young villagers have migrated to cities for work, so a lot of new houses have been built with the money they have earned and sent back. However, public facilities had not improved much until about five years ago when many poverty-relief policies were enacted to aid the villagers.

When I stayed in the village, Li was also living in the old, abandoned brick-and-tile office building because his family's new three-story house was still under construction.

While the 57-year-old was busy handling village affairs, his wife, Wu Yunlan, was in the hospital being treated for leukemia.

I only met Wu once, on May 30 when she was back from a hospital in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, and before she was transferred to Hefei, the capital of Anhui, for further treatment.

Wu said she didn't want to continue the treatment, but Li didn't want to give up their last hope. Wu dreamed of moving into the family's new home, which she did on Aug 3, when she returned from Hefei. Sadly, she died that night.

Li has been a village cadre at various levels for nearly 40 years. "Over the decades, my wife took on too much responsibility for the family," he said when we met recently. He looked tired.

Last year, 24 households, or 118 villagers, were lifted out of poverty thanks to the assistance they were offered, while 19 other households were recently listed as requiring poverty relief for the first time as a result of new challenges they have encountered.

The election for Party chief of the village will be held in spring. The event happens every three years, but this time Li won't be standing as a candidate.

"I have won the election eight consecutive times, but this time, I won't stand. I hope the Party members in the village will elect a suitable person from among the young cadres," he said.