What a difference four decades make.

Zhang Weiji, the former chief of Shenzhen's Nanling Village, will never forget May 6, 1979.

It was the day he learned many of his fellow villagers had fled their impoverished, underprivileged lives for a fresh start in Hong Kong. Zhang's own wife was gone too. He was heartbroken.

But he took it upon himself to convince those who had left to come back.

"I told them, 'the mainland is opening up now, and life will get better,'" he reminisced.

And 40 years into the nation's opening-up, it has indeed transformed. Nanling is not at all what it used to be. It's part of one of China's most affluent cities, Shenzhen. Today, the city is widely regarded as a tech hub that rivals Silicon Valley.

Yu Yinan is co-founder of the highly successful Huayun Data group. Originally from Beijing, she has set up her business and settled with her family in Shenzhen.

She says the place not only offers policy perks, but also emits a hopeful vibe that encourages inventions, new ideas and thinking outside the box.

It was attractive to her and like-minded others.

Yu also works on education now.  She hopes her education club can pass the healthy vibes on to the next generation.

“I hope my kids will not be afraid of making mistakes, and that they'll be innovative.”

Her dream is for her sons, both of whom are under 10, to create the next generation of change. 

(Camera crew: Liu Bo, Liang Qipeng, Chang Yuanyang)