Words from hearts of the impoverished

Residing in Jidong Village, Daxing Town, Suyu District, in the city of Suqian, of east China’s Jiangsu Province, Zhu Teng was once a low-income farmer. In September 2015, the local government helped Zhu’s family open an online candy store on Taobao—China’s largest e-commerce platform. Zhu’s parents made candy boxes at home while Zhu and his wife took care of sales, packaging, and delivery. The family-run candy store generated 100,000 yuan (U.S. $14,813) in net profit in 2016. He holds up a sign that reads, “My ‘sweet’ job has given me a ‘sweet’ life.” [Photo by Wen Wei]