In the Du’an Yao autonomous county, Hechi, Guangxi, a 18-year-old boy named Lan Hongmeng – locally known as the “crawling boy” – whose legs were severely burnt in an accident, was admitted to a special school, and has since tried to achieve his own “Chinese Dream” by helping others in need.

In the eyes of the people of Hechi, the boy is representative of a steady and unyielding spirit, which is a synonymous part of the “Chinese Dream” for many. Since 2014, the people of Hechi have gone to great lengths to chase their “Chinese Dream”, as they strive to modernize the area.

The concept of “Chinese Dream” was first proposed by Xi Jinping, the president of People’s Republic of China. It aims to realize the great rejuvenation of Chinese nation, embodied in national prosperity and people’s happiness. To practice the “Chinese Dream”, Hechi has vigorously developed its economy, natural protection, infrastructure construction, poverty alleviation, corruption reduction and so on.

The natural scenery of Hechi [Photo/Xinhua]

Despite facing several challenges, Hechi’s economy developed steadily last year. One such challenge, an environmental accident in Longjiang River, badly damaged the economy and raised the issue of how people can strike a balance between economic development and ecological protection.

To engage with the issue, the local government of Hechi supported a group of big enterprises to help improve the environment and upgraded their production equipment. Meanwhile, it has optimized the heavy industry under the plan of preventing heavy-metal-pollution.

In 2014, Hechi’s GDP amounted to 60.1 billion yuan ($9.62 billion), up 8.1 percent compared to 2013; its fiscal revenue was 5.47 billion yuan, an increase of 8.84 percent; and fixed asset investment reached 40.16 billion yuan, 15 percent more compared to the year before.

The revitalization of Hechi’s non-ferrous metal industry [Photo/Xinhua]

Last year, both the economic development and natural protection of the city, drew major concerns from the Hechi government. With support from local authority, the Bama Longevity International Tourist Area, one of the three Guangxi international tourist destinations, together with the ecotourism of six counties including Bama, Donglan, Fengshan, Dahua, Tian’e and Du’an, have been attracting a great number of tourists from all over the country.

Hechi Airport was officially put into operation on Aug 28 last year. With an elevation of 677 meters, Hechi Airport is the uppermost airport in Guangxi, earning the titles of “airport in the cliff edge” and “aircraft carrier”. To build the airport, a total of 65 mountainous bumps were blasted away, clearing an entire mountain top. As an epitome of Hechi’s infrastructure, Hechi Airport attracted great attentions both from domestic and foreign people. In the same year, the city made a breakthrough in its transportation infrastructure construction, with two highways – the Hechi-Du’an Highway and Southwestern Overseas Highway – put into use and the commencement of construction work on the Hechi-Baise Highway. The trial operation in work areas of Hechi Port and Donglan Port proved that they could work effectively.

Hechi airport in the wind [Photo/Xinhua]

Poverty alleviation work has been one of the top priorities of Hechi’s local government in 2014. The government has been trying to find innovative ways to apply poverty alleviation methods, as well as implement four demonstration projects to reduce poverty through industrial development, build water conservation facilities, and help relocate 26,498 people to protect key environmental areas. Hechi government also tried to help the poor financially by building a series of test areas in Guizhou province and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. It is hoped that by doing so, it will take the lead in developing 684 poor villages and registering about 1.25 million people online who were previously not included in the national data base.

Last year, the government has taken effective actions reducing corruption levels. Some leaders, such as the former Vice-mayor, Huang Deyi, and the Vice-secretary of Hechi’s Municipal Political Consultative Conference, Luo Guangqin, were under investigation for alleged corruption. The government has urged officials to work for the public and assume power for common people. Anti-corruption efforts have gained wide support from the masses online.

The Hechi government has taken many measures in the last year to make the “Chinese Dream” come true, but there is still a long road ahead.

Yet for the more than 4 million people living in Hechi, their individual “Chinese Dreams” are slowly but surely being realized.

The “crawling boy” continues to live his “Chinese Dream” by helping people who have befallen a similar fate as his own.

Edited by Jake Hooson