Tough living conditions

The tough living conditions forced the family to move to a farm more than 100 km away, where corn was grown on wasteland for 10 years that was sufficient to feed them for the whole year.

In 1996, Li learned that Lengdong had electricity and the villagers were using electrical appliances. He moved his family back to Lengdong.

"Thanks to a subsidy of 1,400 yuan from the local authorities, we built a cellar that is the source of our drinking water," Li added.

His family joined the village's campaign to improve the barren land. Now, the family has enough grain to eat besides a surplus for raising pigs.

In 2004, Li started to grow honeysuckle, which has become another source of income for the family.

"Now our life is getting much better," Li said with a smile.

Wang Jin contributed to this story.