Young island generation carries the 'reclamation spirit' forward

"We didn't expect him to write back, and we were exhilarated when he did," said Chen Yuling, a special delegate to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Youth League of China.

The eighth-grade student from Taizhou, Zhejiang province, was speaking about a letter sent to President Xi Jinping in 2016. She wrote the letter, together with another 11 descendants of Dachen Island volunteers.

"We told the president that we want to inherit the 'reclamation spirit' of our grandparents, and make greater contributions to our motherland," she said.