Episode Details

With the approach of Spring Festival, the most important Chinese celebration, Du Honggang, a 58-year-old farmer in Tianjin, has begun to stock up on goods for the Chinese New Year and make plans to celebrate festival with his family of seven, wishing for good health and more income in the Year of the Snake.

随着中国最重要的节日——春节的临近，天津58岁的农民杜洪刚已经开始为中国新年囤货，并计划与家中七口人一起庆祝节日，祈愿在蛇年身体健康、收入更多。

Standing in front of his house, Du couldn't help but recall this time last year, when President Xi Jinping walked into the yard and chatted with the family while holding the hands of Du's 85-year-old mother.

站在自家门前，杜洪刚不禁回想起去年这个时候，习近平主席走进院子，拉着他85岁老母亲的手，与他的家人亲切交谈的情景。

Months before Xi's visit, the family had faced challenges when their cornfields and vegetable patches, totaling more than half a hectare, were inundated by a huge flood in the Haihe River Basin that severely affected the village's primary industry, agriculture, in late July 2023.

2023年7月底，在习近平到访前几个月，海河流域发生特大洪水，导致该村主要产业——农业受灾严重，杜洪刚一家总面积超过半公顷的玉米地和蔬菜田遭受水淹，家庭面临困境。

Despite the hardships, Du was able to quickly restore production with the help of reconstruction funds. When Xi visited the family, the celery that Du had planted in September with government-provided seedling funds was about a month away from harvest.

尽管困难重重，但在重建资金的帮助下，杜洪刚得以迅速恢复生产。2023年9月，他在政府提供的种苗资金支持下种植了芹菜。当习近平到访时，这些芹菜还有一个月左右就能收获了。

"When I saw President Xi walking toward our house, my heart was beating so fast because it was the first time that we saw him in person," Du said.

“当我看到习近平主席朝我们家走来时，我的心跳得很快，因为这是我们第一次亲眼见到他，”杜洪刚说道。

"The president told us that a country is prosperous only when its people live in peace," Du recalled, adding that Xi also said in the village square that the affairs of ordinary people are very important.

“主席告诉我们，只有人民安居乐业，国家才能繁荣昌盛，”杜洪刚回忆道，并补充说，习近平还在村广场上表示，普通百姓的事都非常重要。

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