Situated in Xiadang Township, Ningde City, northeastern Fujian Province, it was once one of the concentrated and contiguous poverty-stricken areas in the country, with the poverty rate in the whole township being above 70%. In the 1990s, highways were opened in Xiadang Township and hydropower stations were built. Villagers gradually got out of poverty by growing mushrooms and working outside.

More significant changes occurred after the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. In the national poverty alleviation battle, Xiadang Township relied on green waters and green mountains and red resources to develop the tea industry and tourism industry, and the villagers' lives were getting better and better. Today's "Going to the Grassroots of the New Year", a reporter from the General Office entered Xiadang Township. Let's take a look at what new changes have taken place in the mountainous towns there?

During the Spring Festival, Xiadang Township became lively again. Liu Minghua, 67, was busy leading tourists to various attractions and explaining the tour. Liu Minghua is an old man from Xiadang Township. In 1987, he entered here as a member of the Xiadang Township preparatory group and began to participate in the construction of Xiadang Township. He was transferred in 1992. After retiring in 2018, he was rehired by the township government and served as a tour guide.

Xiadang Township was once a poor area in poverty. Because there was no road, the specialties in the mountains could not be sold.

Wang Guangchao, 77 years old this year, has been growing tea since he was young. The difficulty of selling tea on a shoulder pole has long disappeared. In 2016, he opened a teahouse on the tourist street in the village. He not only received tourists in the teahouse, but also sold tea online, and his business was amazing.

When we were chatting with Wang Guangchao, he received more than ten orders from Xinjiang, Sichuan, Hubei and other places, and soon he earned more than 3,000 yuan. Wang Guangchao, who is almost 80 years old, is still full of energy.

Wang Guangchao said that the opportunity to do business was first due to the huge changes in transportation in mountain villages. In the late 1980s, the extremely poor Xiadang villagers began to "fly the weak birds first", and the road ahead was the first. In 1991, the first highway in Xiadang Township was opened to traffic. The greater change occurred after 2014. Xiadang Township began to renovate roads, replacing gravel roads with asphalt roads. In 2020, asphalt roads were upgraded again and became secondary highways. Today, the entire Xiadang Township has built 5 highways into the township and 10 highways to the village. The road is getting wider and wider, and more tourists are coming.

Only by having a way out of the mountain can one get rid of poverty. As the problems of transportation and other infrastructure that restrict the development of Xiadang Township were resolved, Xiadang Township began a historic transformation. First, the villagers moved away from the ancient Xiadang Village built along the mountain and built on the steep terrain, and lived in the new village with a more open terrain.

In terms of industrial development, Xiadang Township has also embarked on the road of counterattack with the spirit of "dropping water wears away the stone". Led by the government, Xiadang Township first registered the public brand "The Taste of Going to the Countryside", and then developed multiple industries such as tea, food processing, and modern edible fungi.

The local area also uses unique red tourism resources to develop the tourism industry. In 2024, Xiadang Township, with a permanent population of less than 1,500, received more than 560,000 tourists, the total agricultural output value of the township exceeded 180 million yuan, and the per capita net income of farmers reached 29,243 yuan.

The existing industries are not enough, and the village cadres are focusing on developing new tourism formats. Since 2018, the village has carried out unified land transfer and repairs to create a different rural tour.

The painter Wu Xiangfang and her husband came to Xiadang Township in 2020. She rented two courtyards, building a homestay and a studio. Under the leadership of the village committee, her house was quickly repaired, and the homestay and studio were built one after another.

In the past four years since starting a business in Xiadang Township, Wu Xiangfang has witnessed the great changes in the mountain village. Nowadays, most of her painting orders are created around the scenery of Xiadang Township according to the customer's requirements. In such creations, Wu Xiangfang also discovered new opportunities. She began to try mural creation in the village to attract more tourists. This mural, called "Fertile Land", has recently become a popular check-in point.

During the Spring Festival, Xiadang Village was particularly lively. The village invited the elderly over 60 years old in the village to have a reunion dinner. As the renovation of Xiadang Ancient Village has been fully completed, the village also invited former builders of Xiadang Township to come back to their hometown to take a look.

The old comrades and old acquaintances who have been away for many years have gathered together. What makes everyone most moved is the great changes in the mountains and villages that have taken place in Xiadang Township over the past 30 years.