Umbrella-maker couple relies on no one but themselves, using their hard-working hands to escape poverty

????On September 27, Bao Bingsong (right) and his wife Wang Yueqing dry umbrellas at the umbrella factory.

????On September 27, Bao Bingsong dries umbrellas at the umbrella factory.

????On September 27, Bao Bingsong (left) and his wife Wang Yueqing process umbrella ribs at the umbrella factory.

????On September 27, Bao Bingsong inspects umbrella frames at the umbrella factory.

????Bao Bingsong (left) has lunch at home with his wife and children.

Bao Bingsong, 46, is a farmer in Gufeng Village, Changqiao Township, Jing County, Xuancheng City, Anhui Province. His two-story house stands out conspicuously in the village. It is hard to imagine that as recently as early 2015, Bao Bingsong and his family were still crowded into two earthen rooms built more than 40 years ago.

Because there were many siblings in the family, Bao Bingsong and his wife Wang Yueqing, after marrying in 1995, received only two earthen rooms and 1 mu and 3 fen of land from the family. In the following years, Bao Bingsong's daughter and son were born one after another. Supporting themselves on crops from just over 1 mu of land and moso bamboo from the mountain, they lived a very poor life. The village once intended to list Bao Bingsong's family as a "poor household" to give them assistance, but he refused out of concern for his pride and decided to go out to work. Because he had no specialized skill, Bao Bingsong's income from working away was limited, and as the children started school one after another, his family's financial situation did not improve.

Gufeng Village is located in the mountainous area of southern Anhui, which is rich in moso bamboo, and the village has a factory producing oilcloth umbrellas. Recommended by the local poverty alleviation department, Bao Bingsong and his wife entered the umbrella factory in 2005 and 2011 respectively to learn the traditional craft of making oilcloth umbrellas. Today, Bao Bingsong and his wife have become core workers in the factory, earning a combined monthly salary of 6,000 yuan.

In early 2015, Bao Bingsong tore down the earthen rooms, took out his savings from the past few years, and built the most beautiful house in the village on the original site. He said: "Poverty is not frightening. As long as you are willing to work, do not wait and do not rely on others, you can escape poverty with your own two hands."

Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Junxi