The restored good environment and beautiful image of Huangqiao Village in Taicang have lured more and more people to return home, including young men, according to Su Dandi, deputy director of the village.

Zhu Fengzhen lives together with her son in the city and after the renovation of their village, she returns to her old home more often than before.

"The environment in rural areas is much better than in the city and the infrastructure is also not that bad," Zhu said. "Now it's more comfortable to live in the countryside than in a city."

The Huangqiao villagers can spend their leisure time in a newly-built gym or wandering among many small gardens. Straw men, waterwheels and wooden boats are scattered around the village to spice up daily life and houses' external walls are painted with beautiful views or decorated with flowers and green plants.

The clearer rivers, blue sky and more graceful surroundings also help improve villagers' standards and restrain them from damaging such a great living environment; they even volunteer to protect it, Su said.

More than 3 million yuan ($453,000) has been invested in the renovation project, which took about four months to finish starting from August 2017.

A straw man with a rake standing on the farmland invites people to touch him. [Photo/WeChat account: taicangdaily]