THEN VS NOW: Meet the witnesses to a rural metamorphosis in SW China

The change began with the construction of a road leading to the village. Village Party Branch Secretary Jilie Ziri still remembers that two years ago, when the road was about to be built, he led the village's officials to mobilize from house to house to encourage poor households to work in the road construction team.

"Is it possible to build a way out on a cliff? It's a waste of effort!" "It's better to grow potatoes and keep the harvest." Many villagers had reservations about the new road.