The Three Gorges has a long history of growing tangerines and oranges dating all the way back to Confucius' time and the Warring States Period in BC. It's been a big cash crop for peasants in the region. The dam has flooded the most fertile groves along the riverbanks. For the migrants, what constantly haunts their memory is the fragrance of the tangerine blossom and fruit.
Younger generations seek other opportunities to make a living: selling trinkets and fake antiques to tourists, selling labor as porters on demand at ports, streets, hotels, or selling flesh at ports, hotels, bars, barbershops...
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