Buds of hope

At Guo's feet, seedlings planted on different days vary in height. Those with an extra round of irrigation are beginning to sprout leaves.

"We have taken precautions to prevent the villagers from electric shocks and heatstroke," said Han Chao, mayor of Yangqiao township, adding that the electrical wires were all lifted off the ground.

Guo said when he feels too hot, he cools down by splashing his face and arms with cold water from an underground well.

As it began to rain in Linquan on Sunday, the villagers' irrigation efforts were seemingly not in vain.

"The earlier we irrigate the crops, the more yields we will get from the land," said Guo.

Liu said: "The weather report says the rain will stop in the afternoon, but it will rain again for a few days after Wednesday. If so, the drought will have really eased by then."

Online videos show that in Henan some farmers were so excited to see it rain on Sunday that they even went down on their knees.

However, in Linyi, Shandong, the damage had already been done. Lack of rainfall has harmed the yield from fruit trees, including peaches. Fruit farmers estimated that their yields will be down 30 percent compared with last year, Beijing News reported.

Multiple videos posted online show villagers, mostly elderly, busily irrigating their crops as many of Linyi's young people had migrated to cities for work.