Siheyuan: I am protecting Shazhu, who dares to object?

The growing prosperity of the "Cuishan Folk Culture Tourism Zone" has enabled the villagers of Cuigu Village and surrounding villages to live a prosperous life.

The children in the village can now wear new clothes and go to school with peace of mind. The elderly no longer have to worry about their livelihoods. They can sit happily at the entrance of the village every day to bask in the sun and watch the bustling scene of people coming and going in the village.

But Village Chief Petrov and Technician Zhang were not satisfied with this. They knew that if the village wanted to develop continuously, they had to constantly explore new paths and could not stagnate with existing achievements.

That day, the two men sat in the office of the village committee, looking at the account books and the village development plan on the table, and fell into deep thought.

Village chief Petrov was the first to speak: "Technician Zhang, our tourism is booming, but we can't just rely on this. If tourists stop coming one day, our village won't be without a source of income. We need to think about developing other industries."

Technician Zhang nodded and said, "Village head, you are right. I have been thinking about this recently. There are many young people in our village who are clever and skillful. I heard that there is a great demand for creative hand-woven products and wood carvings in the city. We can guide young people to develop in this direction, make our village's handicrafts distinctive, and sell them in the market in the city."

Village Chief Petrov's eyes lit up and he said, "That's a good idea. Although our handicrafts are well made, if we want to sell them in the city, they have to suit the tastes of the city people. The styles have to be more novel."

Technician Zhang smiled and said, "Village head, I've thought about this as well. We can send a few young people with ideas to the handicraft shops in the city to learn about their styles and design ideas, and then come back and combine them with our village's traditional crafts to come up with something new."

As the two were talking, several young people from the village came in, led by Daqiang, who was the best handicraft maker in the village.

Daqiang said, "Village head, Technician Zhang, we heard that you are discussing selling handicrafts to the city. We are all very interested and would like to get involved, but we don't know how to do it specifically."

Village chief Petrov looked at them and said happily, "Oh, you've come at the right time! We were just discussing this matter. We wanted to find young people like you who are good at handicrafts to take the lead. First, go to the handicraft shops in the city to check out what styles are popular now, learn their packaging and design, and then come back and we can study together how to make our village's handicrafts distinctive."

Daqiang patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, village chief, we will definitely study hard and strive to make our village's handicrafts famous."

A few days later, Daqiang and several other young people came back from the city, bringing back many samples of the city's handicrafts and some design albums.

They gathered together all the people in the village who liked to make handicrafts and began to share what they had learned in the city.

Daqiang held up an exquisite wood carving and said, "Look, everyone, the wood carvings in the city are not only traditional flowers, birds, fish, insects, etc., but also have many modern elements, such as cars and airplanes, which look very novel. And the packaging is also exquisite, using a paper box with patterns, which looks high-end. We should also learn from them, add something new on the basis of tradition, and make the packaging more beautiful."

An old artist in the village stroked his beard and said, "Yes, that's right. We can't always stick to the old ways. We have to keep up with the times. But we have to be careful about how to add new things. We can't lose the craftsmanship of our ancestors."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and then began to discuss how to incorporate new elements into handicrafts.

Some said that you can add some colorful beads into the weaving to make different patterns; some said that wood carvings can be made into some village scenery, which is both distinctive and novel.

Technician Zhang listened and made some suggestions from time to time. He said: "We can also design some themed handicrafts according to different festivals and seasons. For example, during the Chinese New Year, we can make some with the word "Fu" and zodiac elements, which will definitely be popular."

Thanks to everyone's joint efforts, the handicrafts of Cui Gu Village have taken on a new look, with novel styles while retaining traditional charm.

Village chief Petrov contacted some handicraft shops in the city and brought samples to discuss cooperation.

At the beginning, many shop owners were still hesitant, wondering about the quality of these rural handicrafts and whether they could be sold.

Village chief Petrov said sincerely, "Boss, please take a look at our craftsmanship first. They are all carefully made by the old craftsmen in the village and the young people. The quality is absolutely guaranteed. Moreover, our handicrafts have the characteristics of our rural area. Nowadays, people in the city like this kind of authentic and creative things. Please give it a chance. If it doesn't sell well, we won't force it."

Finally, several stores were moved by the sincerity of Village Chief Petrov and agreed to put out some samples for trial.

Unexpectedly, it didn’t take long before these handicrafts became popular with customers in the city and orders came in one after another.

As handicrafts found sales in the city, the young people in Cuigu Village became more motivated. They set up a handicraft cooperative, expanded the scale of production, and registered their own brands.

On the other hand, Village Chief Petrov and Technician Zhang turned their attention to the deep processing of the village's agricultural products.

They wondered whether they could process the fruits in the village into jams and dried fruits, and the vegetables into pickles and dehydrated vegetables, etc., to further increase the added value of agricultural products.

Village chief Petrov found several aunties in the village who were good at making pickled vegetables. He said, "Aunties, the vegetables in our village are so good. It's a pity to only sell fresh ones. I was thinking whether we can make these vegetables into pickles and sell them outside. What do you think?"

An old lady smiled and said, "Village head, we have been making pickled vegetables for many years, so the taste must be good. I just don't know if people in the city like our taste."

Technician Zhang said, "Aunt, we can make some samples with different flavors first, take them to the city for people to taste, and then adjust them based on everyone's feedback."

So, the aunts got busy and used the fresh vegetables in the village to make pickles of various flavors, including sour and spicy, sauce-flavored, sweet and spicy, etc.

Village chief Petrov took the pickled vegetable samples and went to the city to find a market for them.

After some efforts, the pickled vegetables from Cuigu Village were also put on the shelves of some supermarkets in the city and were loved by many consumers.

While Cui Gu Village continues to adhere to its original aspirations, it has time and again opened up new paths of development. The lives of the villagers are getting better and better. Everyone is full of infinite longing for the future. I believe that with everyone's joint efforts, the village will usher in a brighter tomorrow.