Zhang Jun vividly recalls moving from Xiji county to Minning town with his family in 1996 when he was 10.

There wasn't much development back then. Water pipes and buildings were still under construction. There wasn't even a primary school.

And whenever it rained or was windy in Minning, which is surrounded by the vast Gobi Desert, everything would get covered in dust.

"We moved to Minning earlier than everyone else. It was just like in Shanhai Qing (the famous 2021 TV series about the town). The drinking water was brought from the neighboring village, and we didn't have running water until I was in the fourth grade," Zhang said.

"Crop yields were low because sometimes, we didn't have water for irrigation. But lives were still better here than in Xiji because of the better land."

Located in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, Minning was a new town created for the inhabitants from the region's barren Xihaigu area to offer them the hope of better lives. Xiji county is part of the area.

As one of the first generation of migrants, Zhang has seen the town's development and has always hoped that future generations would live better lives.

In 2010, he graduated from the School of Physical Education at Ningxia University and took a job with a construction company in Yinchuan city, attracted by the relatively high salary. He didn't stay long.

"One day, I happened to see a basketball game between students from Minning and Yinchuan and felt bad when I saw that the students from Minning were poorly equipped," said the lifelong basketball fan.

It was then that he decided to go home to Minning and become a basketball teacher.

"I've lived a good life, and I want the kids from home to live happier lives, too," he said.

In 2014, the then 29-year-old became a PE teacher at the Minning Central Primary School.

"My idea was simply to teach them to play basketball and give them some happiness," he said.

By 2016, the team was performing well enough to take first place in the regional competitions in Yinchuan. As Ningxia's representatives, they competed in the national tournament and placed second.

"That match was important as I took children from this school to the tournament, and we did really well," Zhang said. "It really inspired everyone. The kids became more confident and had a great change of spirit, including toward learning and life."

With the prize money from the tournament, they traveled to Beijing and visited the capital's landmarks, including Tian'anmen Square and the Great Hall of the People.

For the first time, the children took the subway, rode on a bullet train and saw the prosperity and power of their country with their own eyes.

"I think they are happier for having seen so many new things for the first time. They've seen the outside world and know that life can be more exciting. Their horizons have been broadened, and the goals they set for themselves may become more ambitious."

In 2018, Zhang was promoted to vice-principal, and the school was listed by the Ministry of Education as a national basketball program school.

In 2020, the Minning Central Primary School began to employ soccer coaches, and by the end of last year, it was listed by the ministry as a school with a national soccer program.

"My own thinking has also developed since I became vice-principal," Zhang said. "I used to focus on improving basketball skills, but now, building a strong faculty team, improving teaching quality and achieving overall development are the core issues I wrestle with."

Qiao Jiaxin, Xue Rui and Feng Xiaoyun contributed to this story.