The first International Forum of Taihang Castles will be held in Jincheng, a city in southeast Shanxi province renowned for its cultural heritage on Dec 14.
Once barren with over 70 percent of its land an arid desert, Youyu county of Shanxi province has been turned into a thriving oasis and the subject of oil paintings, thanks to seven decades of strenuous human effort.
When businessman Zhang Junping planted the first tree on Taiyuan's barren Yuquan Mountain seven years ago, he had no idea it would eventually grow into a large, sprawling forest.
