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Zoey Zhang

A flight attendant in China who quit her job and moved back to her hometown to become a pig farmer earned 200,000 yuan (US$28,000) in just two months.
Yang Yanxi, 27, was born into a rural family in Heilongjiang province in Northeastern China.
After graduating from university, Yang worked as a flight attendant for five years with a Shanghai airline.
She said that during the company’s tough times, her monthly salary was only 2,800 yuan (US$380).

Yang told the mainland media outlet Jiupai News that while living in Shanghai, she frequently asked her parents for money to buy luxury bags.
She later realised that to improve her life, her parents had cut back on their own spending and racked up significant debt.
In October 2022, after discovering that her mother had secretly undergone multiple surgeries to remove lipomas, Yang decided to quit her flight attendant job and return home.
She expressed deep guilt, saying: “My parents always told me good news but hid the bad. Now I wanted to be with them and did not want to be so far from home.”
In April 2023, Yang took over a relative’s pig farm and began raising the animals.

She shared her rural farming life on a popular mainland short video platform, attracting nearly 1.2 million followers.
In her videos, Yang expertly prepares pig food, feeds the pigs, and cleans up after them, even donning beautiful dresses to interact with sleeping pigs.
Despite the challenges of rural life, she remains determined.
Yang said on social media: “I work so hard at the pig farm that my back and waist ache every day. After a full day, I smell stinky.”
On January 6, Yang accidentally injured her left foot with an ice pick while fishing on a frozen lake.
But she stayed positive, comforting her online fans, and even made a wooden cane to help get around.
Driven by the desire to give her family a better life, Yang pours her energy into her work every day.
“Now, I can stay with my parents. I am very happy and fulfilled,” she said.
Yang claims to have made more than 200,000 yuan (US$27,000) over the past two months through pig farming, selling pigs and other livestock, as well as managing her social media account.
She hopes to expand her farm in the future, open a specialty store and start a hotel.
The former flight attendant’s story has attracted much attention on mainland social media.
One netizen said: “Your filial piety is admirable. A brave and smart girl can live well no matter what profession she chooses.”

Reports about young people prioritising the quality of their lives and personal interests over traditional ideas of career success have surfaced across China.
In January, a master’s graduate from Tsinghua University, one of China’s top universities, shocked the internet by enrolling in a vocational school to study culinary arts.
The student, Tong Jieqiong, a civil engineering major, explained that she wanted to explore something new during her career break.
Last July, a group of philosophy students in Guangdong province turned heads by selling grilled sausages at a street food stall while discussing highbrow theories with customers.


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