The upside of downsizing: Chinese youth head for more affordable small towns

For five years, Alice Zheng, a former bank loan reviewer, followed the path expected of many young Chinese: securing a stable job and striving for middle-class comfort in the

But after years of long hours, rigid corporate hierarchies and mounting stress left her physically and emotionally exhausted, she quit in 2021.

Since then, the 36-year-old has lived in Yunnan province and the city of Jiujiang, taking advantage of low costs in smaller cities and sluggish nationwide inflation to embrace a slower lifestyle. She relies on savings and occasional freelance work such as teaching English to rural children.

In Mengzi county of southwestern Yunnan province, known for its sunny weather and rural flea markets, young city-escapees such as Zheng live cheaply and quietly.

An entire apartment building floor rents for 3,000 to 5,000 yuan per year (US$443 to US$740), astronomically lower than in Shenzhen, she said. And then there is the food.…Read more by He Huifeng