I often see videos on Bilibili about so-called "lying-down areas": content creators buying houses in Hegang for tens of thousands of yuan, or renting small courtyards in mountain villages to farm. Young people are lying down, and as a result, the birth rate has collapsed. Birth data for 25 years has just been released, showing a drop to 7.92 million, a negative population growth of 3.39 million. In Japan, this "lying-down" phenomenon started more than a decade earlier. If Hegang's housing prices are dirt cheap, in the scenic Japanese seaside town of Onomichi, prices have plummeted to new heights. This is a small town built on a steep slope. Because the roads are too narrow, modern bulldozers can't get in, and capital has abandoned it. As a result, many areas have so many empty houses that they're practically given away for free. So a group of young people who didn't want to be "corporate slaves" in Tokyo flocked in. Since they didn't have to bear decades of mortgage debt, they suddenly possessed immense freedom. They transformed ruins into bakeries, not to grow big, but simply to make the flavors they loved. They opened late-night bookstores, not for profit, but simply to have a place to chat with neighbors. In Tokyo's Toshima Ward, a group of young people also turned their attention to abandoned, unfinished buildings and old shops. They transformed them themselves into community living rooms, mini-libraries, and even shared "homes for everyone." These young people gently embraced themselves in a world that was "no longer growing." I quite enjoy watching videos from the "lying-down-the-wall" areas. The extremely low information density and slow pace of life give me a kind of "cyber respite." On the other hand, I see the life in these "lying-down-the-wall" areas as a preview of the future society. They show me that under the dual waves of demographic shifts and technological advancements, life isn't just about passively enduring. As AI takes over more work, and as UBI (Usage-Based Insurance) may become a reality, we will eventually face that fundamental question: If you didn't have to struggle for survival, how would you spend your day? The content creators in the "lying flat" section are already providing initial sample answers through their own lives.

I also enjoy reading, albeit on Xiaohongshu. After reading a lot, I feel that, assuming housing prices are low enough, the three things I value most in China are: whether there are top-tier hospitals near flat land, whether the cost of living is low enough, and whether there is an abundance of local produce. What factors does Brother Chao value?

Climate, cost of living, and convenience of living (these are often unrelated to the city itself, but mainly related to the community). I'm not that concerned about healthcare; unless I move to a small town, there will definitely be top-tier hospitals available, which should be sufficient for emergencies. For serious illnesses, I'll likely have to return to Beijing or Shanghai. However, I haven't seriously considered it, because considering the continuity of my children's education and their social lives, I expect to be stuck in Beijing for the next 8-10 years, so it's just something I think about.

Oh, now that you mention climate, I remember there's another veto factor: pollution. My allergic rhinitis only got better after I came to Japan.

Cyber is truly envious