BEIJING -- In Fenghuang township, nestled in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, vast expanses of sugarcane fields stretch to the horizon, infusing the air with the sweet fragrance and rhythmic hum of harvesters at work.

This sugarcane base in the National Modern Agricultural Industrial Park in Guangxi received a special visitor in mid-December: President Xi Jinping, who was on an inspection tour to Guangxi following his state visit to Vietnam.

Xi walked into the sugarcane field and inquired in detail about the key techniques for breeding high-quality sugarcane varieties.

Huo Jiali, a local farmer, told him that her family planted 10 mu (0.67 hectares) of sugarcane this year, which is expected to generate nearly 40,000 yuan ($5,596) in revenue.

"Besides sugarcane, do you have other sources of income?" Xi asked.

"My husband and I work in a nearby factory for 10 months each year during the slack season, and can earn over 7,000 yuan per month," Huo replied.

"That adds up to over 100,000 yuan a year," said Xi, wishing the farmers a happy life "as sweet as sugarcane."

Xi developed a strong bond with rural areas at an early age. In 1969, Xi went to the rugged village of Liangjiahe in Northwest China's Shaanxi province, and spent seven years there, working and living with peasants on the Loess Plateau. He referred to himself as a farmer when reminiscing about his time in Liangjiahe.

"The most challenging and arduous tasks we face in building a modern socialist China in all respects remain in rural areas," he once said.

On Feb 25, 2021, Xi announced that absolute poverty had been eliminated in China. Now, the country's strategy for rural work has been shifted to the next target: rural revitalization, which Xi deems "a major task in realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation."

The annual central rural work conference was held in Beijing from Tuesday to Wednesday, mapping out the priorities of rural work in 2024. To advance Chinese modernization, the country must make unremitting efforts to strengthen the foundation of the agricultural sector and advance rural revitalization across the board, Xi noted.

The rural revitalization strategy was first put forward during the 19th CPC National Congress in 2017. Under Xi's helm, China is moving faster to steadily promote the revitalization of businesses, talent, culture, ecosystems, and organizations in the countryside.

LYCHEES AND SACHETS

In April, Xi visited Baiqiao Village in South China's Guangdong province. He stopped by a lychee orchard and talked with people on the spot.

"What challenges need to be addressed in the next phase of development?" asked the president.

"The main issue is keeping them fresh," one replied. "We started with traditional methods, then brought in cold chain tech, but it can only preserve the lychees for 10 days. If we can stretch that to 15 to 20 days, people around the world could enjoy our lychees."

"If we want the lychee business to boom, we must figure out how to keep them fresh," Xi told local officials. "Developing local characteristic industries is an important way to achieve rural revitalization. We should do a good job to boost the local specialty industry and promote rural revitalization across the board by invigorating industries."

Xi has attached importance to developing rural industries with distinctive local features. When working in Zhengding county in North China's Hebei province in the 1980s, he worked as a "salesman," helping sell Zhengding's farm and sideline products to Beijing, Shijiazhuang and other big cities.

Even after becoming the country's top leader, Xi has always expressed high expectations for the production and promotion of local signature products during inspection tours, such as peonies, tea oil, strawberries and apples.

On many occasions, while visiting the countryside, he would carefully assess the output of local specialties and farmers' incomes, talking with local people in greenhouses, on field ridges and in front of farmhouses.

Regarding rural revitalization, Xi places particular attention on the invigoration of culture. During an inspection tour in East China's Jiangsu province in 2017, Xi visited a sachet-making workshop in Mazhuang Village. The local intangible cultural heritage skill has generated job opportunities and boosted the incomes of rural residents.

Xi praised the craftsmanship demonstrated by a skillful inheritor and bought one sachet. "I also want to give you my support," he said.

Impressed by the villagers' clapper talk performance, Xi said promoting material well-being and raising cultural-ethical standards are both essential to implementing the rural revitalization strategy.