The sinuous road Hu Changkang drives every day. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]

Qingyuan county – administered by Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province – is one of the most remote mountainous areas in the province, known locally as the "ridge of Zhejiang".

For its part, Zuoxi town is one of the most remote towns in Qingyuan, being separated from the county seat by mountains. This is the special place where Hu Changkang works.

Hu is the only postman in the Zuoxi post office reporting to the Qingyuan branch of China Post. Hu has held the job for 19 years and has traveled over half a million kilometers, to faithfully deliver letters and parcels. He is not only as a postman, but also as a buyer, clerk and a first responder trusted by the locals.

Over the past 10 years, the job content of postmen has changed a lot. Hu rarely delivers letters now. Instead, he delivers parcels bought online or daily necessities to villagers.

Zuoxi town has scattered villages, with few residents and almost no shops. When villagers need something or have shopped online, they will ask Hu to help bring the stuff from the county seat to them.

He says that the trunk of his mail van is the village's grocery store.

Hu Changkang delivers a parcel to an appreciative villager. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]

"In 2002 when I was 24, I had only been at the post office for a few months but I already wanted to run away," Hu recalled in an interview. "At the time, I had to leave home at 5 am and the delivery work completely depended on a bicycle and a pair of legs. I had to walk 50 kilometers of mountain roads a day."

He said it was the wise words of an old colleague that kept him at the post office. Remember to engage with the people, to really know if this job is meaningful, the colleague said.

Hu then began to notice the villagers' eagerness and joy at receiving the letters and parcels. That's when he realized that everything he did had meaning.

"Hu is our brother. We may not remember our family members' phone numbers, but we all remember his," said a villager.

The villagers' trust for Hu is a responsibility. His cell phone is on 24 hours a day and he answers calls  no matter how late it is. He said that only in this way can he be worthy of this trust.

The warm feelings run both ways and the villagers also take care of Hu. Many give him a share of their fruits, or invite him to lunch or dinner.

As he's always telling his son: "You have to respect and help others with your heart, to really get the joy out of life."