China's annual Spring Festival travel rush concluded on March 13, with the country's railways carrying 538 million passenger journeys over the 40-day period, a 4.8% increase from last year. While high-speed trains transport millions of passengers across the country each day, some much slower services remain a vital lifeline for rural communities. On one such train running through southwest China, a veteran railway police officer has become a familiar and reassuring presence for passengers along the route.