Moreover, Yang also had to cover an extra 20,000 yuan in costs on top of the government funding, due to the complexity of the project.

"But it was all worth it," he says. "I completed a significant job, which was very close to my heart."

Yang's contribution and the feat of his team was brought to wider attention, especially when Yanmen Pass was named a major national cultural unit under protection by the State Council in 2001.

In October 1998, the Shanxi provincial cultural relic bureau arranged for Yang to take charge of repairing Bianjing Drum Tower, also known as the Bianjing Pavilion. It was constructed during the Ming Dynasty for military observation and signaling by means of drums.

Although the building underwent repairs during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), by the late 1990s, it was in a dire need of restoration. "Grass and even small trees were growing underfoot," Yang recalls.

It took three years for more than 50 workers to finish the project, he adds. They used their bodies and hands, as well as pulleys and ropes to yank huge pillars up to the building site.

Ji Liangsheng, a senior official from Daixian culture and tourism bureau, says that there were cranes available, but due to a tight budget, they had to resort to old-fashioned manual force.

When Yang found previous repairs had involved construction waste being used to fill and shore up the sinking foundations, he immediately decided to replace it with the standard mixture of lime, sand and clay.

"The costs were not in the budget and Yang had to dig into his own pocket," Ji recalls.

It was this spirit of craftsmanship that has fortified the Bianjing Drum Tower, Ji adds.

To best preserve certain parts of the ancient building, Yang insisted on mending a major structural beam that stabilized the whole construction, which had warped and cracked. "The ancient parts are all priceless, and won't be replaced as long as they can be used to some degree," he explains.