In times of change, what it means to be Chinese

Ties to country and family

As a child, Li Yong remembers his father taking him into the mountains nearby to cut firewood. Surrounded by remnants of the Great Wall, Li Fengming would delight his son with stories about the defensive ramparts making up one of humankind's most monumental achievements.

When the elder Li, a former Party chief of Tangzigou village in Baoding, Hebei province, later heard that parts of the wall were being chipped away for building material, he decided to make it his life's work to patrol and guard the wall from any further "injury", according to local media.

In 2015, Li Yong also returned to his hometown, giving up lucrative job opportunities to help his father's two-decade-long quest to help protect the wall.

Li, 42, and his father, 63, now run a "protection station" that helps coordinate measures to preserve the ramparts. Their campaign to guard one of their country's historic symbols continues to draw widespread admiration and interest from media and other groups nationwide, with the village hosting a Great Wall of China Association meeting last year.

The story of the Lis is one of the latest examples of Chinese citizens' efforts to take a personal stake in what they believe to be important aspects of their country and its heritage; actions affirmed by many of their compatriots who consider those necessary for a nation on the rise.

Yan from Tianjin University said that being "patriotic" as such may not be unique to any one country and foreigners will not think that the trait is solely Chinese, but for many Chinese citizens patriotism will rank first among the attributes used to describe themselves, Yan said.

The recent resurgence of patriotism among Chinese has been reflected across diverse sectors. In 2017, the success of homegrown action movie Wolf Warrior 2, which became the top-grossing Chinese film by raking in nearly $900 million that year alone, was attributed to a "spirit of patriotism" that resonated with domestic moviegoers as it was based on the evacuation of Chinese citizens from conflict areas overseas in 2015.

Fang, the photographer from Jiangsu, said the idea of "Chineseness" comprised many aspects but patriotism is certainly one of the major traits.

The millennia of Chinese history are made up of countless stories of dedication and devotion to one's homeland, including that of the poet-patriot Qu Yuan (340-278 BC), whose sacrifice for his country is still commemorated during the Dragon Boat Festival on the fifth day of the fifth month of the traditional Chinese calendar, he said.

For Aaron Cedillo, who has lived in China for more than two years and teaches at an elementary school in Beijing, traditional Chinese values that also focus on family ties are "definitive" of his hosts, compared to his life back in the US.

"My Chinese friends get married and have babies when they turn a certain age and Chinese friends think about their family first when they choose a job or quit one," the 28-year-said.

Beyond the traditional ties to country and family, examples of personal achievement are also inspiring more Chinese to pursue their individual aspirations in an increasingly interconnected world as people continue to reap the benefits of reform and opening-up.

Septuagenarian Xia Boyu recently made the headlines when he scaled Qomolangma, known as Mount Everest in the West, on his fifth attempt.

Xia became China's first lower-limb amputee to conquer the world's highest peak. In 1975, his group of climbers encountered a snowstorm just 200 meters below the summit and was forced to descend.

Nine climbers eventually reached the top, but Xia suffered severe frostbite and lost both his legs below the knee.

He did not give up on his dream of scaling Qomolangma. With artificial limbs, Xia continued training and exercising in the following decades.

"Although I stayed on the summit for less than 10 minutes, it took me more than 40 years to achieve my ambition," Xia said of his successful climb last year.

"I wasn't expecting anything, with all that attention. I did it for myself."

With the Qomolangma accomplishment under his belt, Xia said he has the peaks of other continents in his sights.

"I want to achieve more life. I still have lots of energy."

Zhang Yu in Shijiazhuang, Du Juan and Zheng Jinran in Beijing, Chen Weihua in Brussels, Zhao Huanxin in Washington, Zhu Lixin in Hefei, Ma Zhenhuan in Hangzhou, Cang Wei in Nanjing, Tan Yingzi in Chongqing, Xing Yi in Shanghai, Li Wenfang and Xie Jiamin in Guangzhou contributed to this story.