Li Ze'ai is dressed in Laos' traditional clothing. [Photo/Li Ze'ai]

For 19-year-old Li Ze'ai, a student from Laos, the Chinese character "通" (tong), meaning connection or passage, has come to symbolize her journey from struggling to communicate in a new city to embracing its culture and sharing its stories with the world.

A third-year tourism management student at Nantong Vocational University in Jiangsu province, Li recently won a bronze medal in the international division of the textile and apparel category at the 48th WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai. The award recognized the blue calico fabric cultural products she created with classmates, inspired by a traditional craft closely associated with Nantong.

Last month, she also won third prize in the 2026 Jiangsu Chinese Speech Contest for Foreign Nationals, where she presented Nantong through the character "通", tracing the city's transformation from a place that was once difficult to reach into a well-connected destination.

When Li first arrived in Nantong in 2024, her limited Chinese made everyday tasks daunting. Ordering food at the canteen meant pointing at dishes, while conversations often ended in awkward smiles. She sometimes felt so homesick that she cried alone in her dormitory.

Li Ze'ai is dressed in hanfu, the traditional attire of ancient China. [Photo/Li Ze'ai]

A tourism management class helped change her perspective. Learning about Nantong's history, she discovered how generations of local people had worked to overcome the Yangtze River as a transportation barrier. The opening of the Shanghai-Suzhou-Nantong Yangtze River Bridge in 2008 and the Shanghai-Suzhou-Nantong Yangtze River Railway Bridge in 2020 dramatically improved connections with Shanghai.

Li realized that finding her place in the city also required building bridges — through language and human connections.

She began practicing Mandarin every day, using AI-generated audio stories to improve her listening skills. After two years of study, she scored 270 on the HSK Chinese proficiency level 4 test. She also volunteered at local cultural events, performed traditional Lao dances and took part in a Chinese poetry recitation competition.

These experiences have made her more confident and given her opportunities to introduce Lao culture to local residents. Her interest in Nantong's blue calico making techniques has also grown into award-winning creative work.

Now serving as a Nantong city ambassador, Li shares photos and videos of local life on TikTok, hoping to help people in Laos discover the city's culture, cuisine and scenery.

After graduating next June, she plans to pursue a bachelor's degree in tourism management in China and hopes to become a tour guide, introducing Nantong and other Chinese destinations to international visitors.

"I'm happy living here, and Nantong has already become my second home," Li said.