美麗家園

“MEILI JIAYUAN" is a three-year action plan proposed by the Shanghai government, aimed at improving the living conditions of old residential communities.

I lived in a small attic room in an old alley on Chongqing South Road in 2020. At that time, I was puzzled as to why scaffolding was being put up in all the nearby neighborhoods.

By the end of 2023, as I was about to leave Shanghai, I noticed that more and more scaffolding had appeared. It wasn’t until a conversation with Xie Wang that I learned this was part of the "Beautiful Homeland" initiative.

The first time I heard this term, I thought it sounded so beautiful—nothing like a political slogan, but rather a genuine expression of hope for a better life.