In 1989, 35-year-old Mr. Lai Ruihe started his train travel in mainland China. From then until 1993, he solitarily embarked on nine journeys deep into the Chinese mainland, reaching all provinces, regions, and municipalities except the three provinces in northeast China, Tibet, and Hainan, covering a total distance of 49,000 kilometers. He visited the “Five Districts,” entered the “Jianmen Pass,” and explored Western Hunan... He visited bustling cities like Xi’an and Beijing, as well as desolate towns like Golmud in Qinghai and Sancha in Shanxi. He explored famous attractions like the Dayan Pagoda and the Yungang Grottoes, as well as lesser-known sites like Wuliang Shrine in Jiaxiang, Shandong, and the “Nanzhao Dehua Inscription” in Dali, Yunnan. The author encountered various people, the contented old worker in Shahe Town, the female train conductor pocketing the difference ticket fare without feeling guilty, Professor Zhu who had been studying Wuliang Shrine for thirty years, and the old woman sleeping under a hard seat on the train...

From the perspective of an overseas Chinese and Tang historian, the author records the magnificent natural sceneries, historical sites, and everyday customs of the Chinese mainland in the 1980s and 1990s with a calm tone and concise language, along with abundant old photos. The book showcases the daily lives and changing thoughts of people amidst the titanic changes at the beginning of the reform and opening up era. Reflecting on these familiar scenes helps us better understand the history and the present.