'I will work harder to change my life'

Yanjiao in Hebei province, 30 kilometers east of Beijing, is home to more than 700,000 people, most of whom work in the capital.

Zhang Yong, born in 1973 in Xi'an in the central province of Shaanxi, used to spend several hours a day commuting by bus and subway.

Since arriving in Beijing in 2008, the high cost of property has forced him to move further and further from the center.