Gesang Metok (2nd L) and her family watch TV at home in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. Gesang Metok, an 81-year-old resident living in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, bears witness to the 1959 democratic reform and the emancipation of about 1 million serfs in Xizang. (Xinhua/Tenzin Nyida)

"In old Xizang, I wore tattered clothes, had no shoes, and my socks were full of patches," she recalled. Under the feudal serfdom, serfs bore the heavy tax and served various duties. "Often I couldn't sleep at night as I had to serve the serf owner. When no work at hand, my parents begged to feed the family."

After Xizang's democratic reform, many liberated serfs, including Gesang Metok, were granted land to start a new life. "We now live in a spacious new house and enjoy abundant food. Life today is truly idyllic!"

Gesang Metok feeds a head of cattle at home in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Tenzin Nyida)

Gesang Metok (front) poses for a photo with her family in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Gesang Metok fuels the oven at home in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Tenzin Nyida)

Gesang Metok feeds a head of cattle at home in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)

Gesang Metok poses for a portrait in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Tenzin Nyida)

Gesang Metok takes dried beef at home in Samyai Town of Zhanang County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, March 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)