What Life Is Really Like in Small-Town China | I Never Liked It Before

I came back to my hometown, Wenzhou, because my dad needed a minor surgery. After years in Shanghai, I found myself seeing small-town China differently. This isn’t a travel guide. It’s a few ordinary days with family, old friends, and strangers—showing everyday life in a small Chinese city. Along the way, we talked about work, young people looking for jobs, small businesses, and growing older. Some stories are uniquely Chinese, but many are shared everywhere. If you’re curious about the China beyond Beijing and Shanghai, I hope you’ll enjoy this journey.