Octogenarian becomes online celebrity after sharing her life stories

Photo shows Zhu Jinqin, a famous vlogger in her eighties. (Photo/The Paper)

85-year-old Zhu Jinqin has recently become an internet celebrity after she posted videos about her life, in a bid to inspire and motivate young people with her experience.

With her daughter’s encouragement, Zhu started to upload videos about her life in 2022. In the process of recording videos to share her stories with her descendants, she unexpectedly became popular among the younger generation too.

Photo shows Zhu Jinqin in her youth. (The Paper/courtesy of the interviewee)

Born in Shanghai in 1938, she moved to northwest China’s Qinghai Province at the age of 17 due to her father’s job transfer. After finishing her public health studies in Beijing Medical College (now Peking University Health Science Center), she went back to Qinghai and became a plague expert.

Photo taken in the 1980s shows Zhu Qinjin in northwest China's Qinghai Province. (The Paper/courtesy of the interviewee)

Starting her career at 24, she spent most of her life in Qinghai and devoted herself to health work. Facing a harsh working environment, she was very resolute. Without any vehicles, she learned to ride horses to carry out her work in the countryside.

In her 34-year career, Zhu progressed from a freshman to the head of a research institute, and became involved in formulating three national criteria for diagnosis of plague.

Photo shows Zhu Jinqin at work. (The Paper/courtesy of the interviewee)

After retirement, Zhu became interested in the internet. She set up accounts on several famous social media platforms, and often interacts with people who post comments. Her daughter helps by adding subtitles on long videos, but apart from that, Zhu does most of the video editing work. Her philosophy is “One is never too old to learn”.

After telling all her stories, she now records videos on the topics in which her viewers are interested. By doing so, she hopes to alleviate anxiety and boost optimism among young people.

“I will live happily for every single day of my remaining time,” said Zhu. “In this society, youngsters have different ways of thinking. I think we should have a target. Don’t waste your days, otherwise your life will be wasted.”