Lei Haiwei won the champion of the 2018 TV competition Chinese Poetry Conference (Screenshot/China Central Television)

Lei Haiwei, winner of the 2018 TV competition Chinese Poetry Conference, now teaches Chinese in a Chengdu-based educational institute, News.huaxi100.com reported on Feb. 25.

Lei was a food delivery driver in central China’s Hunan province. Last April, he made headlines after being crowned the champion of a televised Chinese poetry contest, and won national recognition for his love of ancient Chinese poems.

On the evening of Feb. 22, Lei was invited to speak on the power of poetry at Xingrong community in Chengdu, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan province. He started his speech with Xia Ke Xing, a poem by his favorite poet Li Bai, who lived during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

Lei explained that he inherited his father’s love of poetry. Every time he felt confused or puzzled, he could always gain courage and wisdom from a poem.

Lei received many job offers after the TV show, some boasting an annual salary of nearly one million yuan. In July 2018, he accepted an offer to teach Chinese in an educational training school in Chengdu.

Lei said that reciting poetry has been a lifelong hobby. He used to recite poems while waiting for food at restaurants and while stuck in traffic, but he never imagined that reciting poetry could change his life and future.

In his speech, Lei also shared three lessons learned from winning the poetry contest. First of all, he said, attitude decides whether one can succeed or not. Secondly, one loses by pride and gains by modesty. Finally, never give up.