On the surface, peace seems to have returned to the sleepy fishing village of Dongzhou, where police killed at least three protesters and injured scores more late last year.
A banner strung across the front of the village committee building proclaims: 'Let us unite to maintain a stable society.' Workers busily repair a nearby bridge and villagers go about their daily business - all painting a picture of orderly, contented country life.
But appearances can be deceiving. Beneath the surface, the village in Shanwei city , Guangdong, is seething, the tension palpable.
Villagers have not forgotten the events of December 6, or forgiven the police who fired on protesters voicing their opposition to a government land grab to clear the way for a coal-fired power station in Red Bay, near Baisha Lake.
They are wary of strangers because they know that newcomers on the streets are likely to be government agents, there to watch their every move in the wake of the civil unrest and shootings.
'We are very scared,' one villager said. 'No one dares speak to strangers because there are so many spies and people pretending to be journalists here, appointed by the Shanwei government.'