Hou Yuanjun, resident Party secretary of Hongxing village. YAO XU/CHINA DAILY

When asked about their impressions of Hou, several local cadres and residents from the village expressed gratitude.

Tian Xiaobing, Party secretary of Hongxing village, says Hou is a very dedicated, pragmatic and hardworking person whose deeds are more shown in action than words. "His own family is actually quite poor. He is still living in low-rent apartments with his wife and daughter. Still, he often spends money and energy on doing something for the impoverished families," Tian says.

He gave an example. A villager suffered from a shattered bone in a work accident and could not afford the treatment costs. Hou applied for a personal loan of 40,000 yuan ($5,982) so that the villager could be treated.

"He often comes to help us with farmwork and housework. We all feel greatly thankful to him. He is serving the villagers with all his heart, unafraid of any hardship," Tian Hongcheng, a resident at the village, says.

When he first arrived at Hongxing village, Hou worked hard to apply for governmental support so that the village could start to develop industries and landed three agricultural projects. However, the projects had to be launched in order to receive financial aid.

He then put up his salary as a collateral for a loan of 200,000 yuan and lent the money to the village cooperative. The village started to develop its industries including cattle, chicken and chilies.

All impoverished households in the village became members of the cooperative and received dividends. The cooperative has helped 132 households, including 425 people, to shake off poverty.

Hongxing village has made major improvements in terms of infrastructure, industries and living conditions. Roads and footpaths have been built to facilitate transport, and nine drinking water projects have been established to provide clean water for residents and livestock.

By the end of 2018, the poverty incidence in the village dropped from 13.66 percent to 2.36 percent, and the village was removed from the impoverished list.

In the past two years, Hou continued to work on the development of industries and infrastructure at the village. He says that now every household has access to tap water and electricity.

When asked about his next goal, he says he will continue to work in Hongxing village and possibly other villages in the future.

"I just want to do something for the countryside."

Contact the writers at chengyuezhu@chinadaily.com.cn