Xi: A friend of the youth

May 4 marks the Youth Day of China. President Xi Jinping once said: "Young people are the future of our nation and the world."

From his years as a grassroots official to the country's top leader, Xi has always kept a part of his heart devoted to young people. Here are several stories of Xi demonstrating his devotion and belief in the younger generations.

Xi Jinping, then the Party chief of Zhengding county of Hebei province, talks with local villagers in 1983. [Photo/CCTV] 

Attracting talent for hometown

One day near the end of 1983, Cao Binghai and his fellow students at the Hebei Agricultural University received a letter from their hometown.

"Rural areas are in dire need for students from the agricultural university... The over 400,000 folks of your hometown are eagerly looking forward to your graduation and your contribution of strength and wisdom to the nation's construction," the letter read.

The letter was from Xi Jinping, who was then the Party chief of Zhengding county.

"When I saw the signature 'your comrade', it immediately brought our hearts closer, and the letter let us feel the warmth of our hometown," said Cao.

After writing the letter, Xi invited the students to see the reality of their hometown with their own eyes by conducting a field study in rural areas of Zhengding during the summer vacation.

At the call of Xi, over half of the students from Zhengding who studied at the Hebei Agricultural University from 1984 to 1987 returned to their hometown after graduation.