A young college graduate trades city life for pig farming, using digital skills to share authentic rural stories, boost local sales, and inspire new forms of entrepreneurship.
When 26-year-old Sun Shuangshuang carries a 40-kilogram bag of cornmeal to the pigsty in her small village in Yingshan county, Hubei, it's hard to believe she once worked in a sleek office in Wuhan, the provincial capital.
Today, she's a "pig-farming influencer" and a rural entrepreneur, blending business with a bit of farmyard charm.
Sun runs her own pig farm while managing the Douyin account "Black Pig Run Run", where her 626,000 followers get a glimpse into her unconventional life.
From the hustle of city offices to the mud-filled reality of pigsties, Sun represents a new idealism among young people today — grounding herself in the land and using innovation to empower local villagers.
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In 2021, Sun graduated from Hubei University of Economics with a degree in internet and new media. When asked if returning to rural farming was a waste of her education, she laughed and said, "There are so many choices in life. It's time to shed the long robe of Kong Yiji", a reference to breaking free from the outdated scholar's mantle.
For Sun, using her professional knowledge to open markets and promote rural values is the true purpose of her education.
Her social media presence plays a significant role in selling products. Her first viral video — showing her sweeping the roof of a pigsty with a broom while a group of black pigs gathered around — garnered 2 million likes on Douyin and earned her 200,000 followers in a single day.
The hashtag "college student pig farmer" draws attention for its unusual contrast, but what truly captivates the audience is the authentic, down-to-earth rural life depicted in her videos.
"People love watching us share snippets of daily life, like gardening, cooking, and carrying feed," Sun said, noting that many of her followers — especially young people — long for this "leisurely and free" lifestyle.
"Some people leave comments saying they admire my courage for doing what they wouldn't dare try themselves," she said.
The impact is more than just online. In her weekly half-hour livestreams, Sun can sell two pigs weighing 300 kilograms each. Before the 2023 Spring Festival, 30 black pigs were sold to customers across the country.
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The path of entrepreneurship hasn't always been smooth. In July 2023, an outbreak of swine fever devastated Sun's pig farm. "At that time, I really felt like giving up and returning to the city to get a job," she recalled.
But just when things seemed most difficult, help arrived. Yingshan's technology and agriculture bureaus sent experts to provide on-site guidance for disease control and recovery. The head of the local e-commerce association helped improve logistics, and the county government pledged 1 million yuan to support the construction of a new farm.
"They told me it's not easy for a young person to return to the countryside," Sun said.
It was this hands-on support that convinced her to fully commit to rural life.
The new pig farm is currently under development, featuring three modern pigsties with a capacity for 1,200 pigs, along with mechanized feeding equipment.
"We used to be small-scale, scattered farmers," Sun said. "Now it's time for a scientific upgrade."
She's also pleased that the county's e-commerce industrial park has reduced logistics costs, making nationwide shipping 30 percent cheaper than before.
Sun uses her growing influence to help others as well. Every two weeks, she hosts a livestream to promote and sell local products — dried beans, rapeseed oil, wild chrysanthemums, and more.
One chicken farmer, nicknamed Little Ming from a neighboring county, saw his egg orders multiply after Sun featured him in her videos. So far, she has helped more than 50 households sell over 50,000 yuan worth of homemade goods.
"At first, they didn't believe I could sell dried vegetables to people outside the village," Sun recalled. "But when I handed them the money, their happiness was infectious."
Sun's desire to help others is deeply rooted in her childhood. Raised by her grandparents as a left-behind child, she remembers how they "always thought of others, yet lived frugally themselves." Later, she was able to attend university thanks to scholarships, which gave her a deeper appreciation for the power of support.
So when she saw elderly villagers with high-quality agricultural products but struggling to sell them, she felt she had to step in.
"The countryside doesn't lack people who can grow crops or raise livestock," she said. "What it lacks are people who know how to sell those products."
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When asked what it means to return to the countryside to start a business, Sun's answer is refreshingly simple: "Just to stay and live in the countryside."
She recalls her days in the city — living on takeout, constantly busy, sometimes not even having time for a bathroom break, until the stress eventually made her seriously ill. Since moving back to the rural area, she grows her own vegetables, cooks her meals, gets regular exercise through farm work, and has learned many hands-on life skills.
"I don't like the fast-paced, highly competitive lifestyle of big cities. I prefer life in the countryside. There's more physical work, yes — but it's mentally calming and brings me peace of mind," she explained. "Everything I do now is essentially so I can continue living here."
Contact the writers at guiqian@i21st.cn
