Man travels 3,000km to find pen pal from 24 years ago

Li Zhitong, a 40-year-old man living in Shenzhen, traveled over 3,000 kilometers to Inner Mongolia to find a pen pal from his youth. The two originally connected via an online chat application in 2002 when Li was in the 9th grade.

During their correspondence, Li sent a letter describing the scenery of Guilin, while the girl, known by the pseudonym “Ice Rain” (Ding Kun), replied with a letter describing the vast grasslands of Arun Banner. The two lost contact after Li moved to high school, which likely caused a change in her mailing address, and his online account was subsequently lost.

After visiting the region during a self-driving trip in 2023 and returning with his parents in 2026, Li decided to search for her specifically in Arun Banner using details from her original letter, including her real name, birth date, and school information.