Light snow flutters down on a village 4,080 meters above sea level.

Clad in Tibetan attire, Xia Yu is conducting an outdoor livestream with a local Tibetan woman and an assistant. On camera, he holds a glass in his left hand and pinches a handful of Nyingchi-grown Tibetan black fungus into it with his right. "Check this out, everyone!" He pours 85°C water into the glass. "This fungus thrives above 2,800 meters—hot water reveals its true quality..." Before he finishes, the fungus begins expanding, soon filling the cup. He lifts the rehydrated fungus toward the lens: "See? Ultra-high rehydration rate—thick, tender, and crisp!"

This routine for Xia Yu’s team epitomizes rural revitalization on the plateau. Honored as "Finest Tibetan Product Ambassador" by Xizang’s Commerce Department and a top livestreamer for Nyingchi Xinghe Zanghai Cultural Co., Xia Yuspent two years assembling a 35-member team, building a digital bridge linking Xizang’s specialties with national markets.

Once a travel blogger, Xia Yu’s turning point came three years ago in Metok County, Nyingchi, where he met an elderly herb collector. The hunched man traded precious Gastrodia elata for a meager sum. "Such treasures deserve wider recognition," Xia Yu recalls—a seed that took root in his mind.

In 2023, he founded Xinghe Zanghai. His team traversed Nyingchi’s seven counties, filming yaks grazing snowy meadows, ganodermas in primeval forests, and Tibetan pigs frolicking in barley fields. Their viral short videos amassed millions of views.

"Customers buy not just products, but the plateau’s vitality," Xia Yu often says. His team pioneered immersive livestreams: foraging matsutake in Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, cooking Tibetan pork hotpot beneath Mount Namcha Barwa, and telling ancient walnut trees’ stories. This approach boosted premiums and repeat purchases forganodermas, saffron, and astragalus.

At 3 a.m., their 1,700-square-meter smart warehouse hums: lasers sort walnuts at three per second, kiwifruits chill at 0°C, and Tibetan workers seal "Tashi Delek"-printed gift boxes. This two-year-built logistics chain is their "Xizang Harvest Network."

The team’s self-sustaining model shines. They train farmers in videography, with over 90% local hires. A "post-90s" Xigaze man, Qudra, now co-hosts streams, while "post-05s" college student Sonam Chodron from Bomi plans to return as an "agri-preneur." "We ignite sparks, don’t just carry torches," Xia Yu says.

His streams fuse commerce and culture: pairing Tibetan bacon with barley wine while recounting Princess Wencheng’s tea legacy, demonstrating incense-making (intangible cultural heritage), or penning "sales poetry"—"Yak jerky: Nyenchen Tanglha’s wind-dried resilience; Highland fungus: snowmelt’s black pearl."

"Cultural value transcends physical traits," Xia Yu notes. Their 2024 Zayu kiwifruit campaign, bundled with thangka bookmarks and yak-bone combs, grossed 1.2 million yuan(RMB) with cross-provincial partnerships. Later, they organized Nangxian County’s walnut and chili festivals.

2024 saw their annual sales surpass 30 million yuan(RMB).

At dusk, Xia Yu gazes from his rooftop: Namcha Barwa gleams like a silver sword under moonlight, while warehouse LEDs mimic a starry river.

"We’re not selling goods—we’re building cultural bridges," he reflects. On Xizang’s plateau, an endless "harvest festival" unfolds: a symphony of ancestral wisdom and modern commerce, where cultural DNA dances with digital waves, penned by ordinary strivers uplifting their homeland.

(Photos provided by interviewee)

Xia Yu (M) and team purchasing fritillaria.

Xia Yu (R) harvesting chilies with farmers during Nangxian County Chili Festival.

Reporters: Wen Feng, Gawa Pema

Translator: Liu Fang

Review: Purbu Tsering, Drakpa Wangchen