"In those years in Liangjiahe, I benefited so much from the villagers, learning from them about life. In my mid-teens, I knew so little. Later on, I got it all under my belt: how to turn dough into noodles, how to steam cornmeal rolls, and how to make pickles. I really began to crave for pickles after not eating them for a while."

Xi Jinping (2nd left) works in Yanchuan County, Shaanxi Province in 1973. (Photo: Xinhua)

President Xi Jinping would never forget those Liangjiahe pickles. How tasty were Liangjiahe's pickles?

"In April and May 1970, after not eating fresh vegetables for ages, our throats would feel smoky and parched. We had nothing but bran," said Lei Pingsheng, another urban youth also assigned to Liangjiahe with Xi Jinping at that time.

"Luckily, villager Zhang wanted to empty his jars of the previous year’s pickles to get them ready for next year’s pickling. Zhang’s wife brought us a big basin of pickles. After thanking her, Jinping and I gulped down the pickles. Wow, it was a feast!” Lei recalled.

On March 7, 2014, during the Two Sessions when Xi joined the Guizhou delegation for the review of the government report, he said, “I have a ‘rural complex.’ When I was placed in a rural village in January 1969, the villagers helped me and brought me all kinds of food. Whenever I received a bowl of pickles, I’d congratulate myself that I got lucky that day. ”

“Whenever I look at our people in impoverished areas, my heart is truly with them. We must take people into our hearts, and do good for them.” Xi said.