The Chinese idiom tongzhou gongji literally means "aboard the same boat and working through difficulties together". The saying depicts the reality for archaeologists, museum researchers, members of the salvage business and television crews who have worked together for years on a major archaeological project still ongoing in Shanghai.
In 2022, they collaborated to successfully raise the Yangtze River Estuary No 2 — a shipwreck dating from 150 years ago — from thick silt and transfer it to a former dock in Shanghai where it is being cleaned, analyzed and studied.
That process was documented by China Media Group's Documentary Channel, leading to the four-episode production The Yangtze River Estuary No 2 Shipwreck, which premiered on the channel from Dec 29 to Jan 1.