Two Yunxi bookshops in Shen'ao and Daijiashan villages, both in Zhejiang's Tonglu county [Photo by by Yao Li/Provided to China Daily]

In both Daijiashan and Chenjiapu villages, Zhang used local construction styles and materials to renovate the homes.

"Many local people in Daijiashan village borrowed our methods to build hostels. They might not necessarily think it beautiful, but they saw a better village through the bookstore," Zhang says.

"Villages need new ideas from the city, including aesthetic space, which, for villagers, is a new experience and offers enlightenment to a new lifestyle and different civilization.

"Such projects let people from both the city and the countryside see a better world and a better life, which is why these projects in the countryside matter so much."