Moving a mouse with his impaired limbs and typing with a chopstick in his mouth, 26-year-old Sun Yahui started a live stream show in his bedroom, selling agricultural products grown in his village in central China’s Henan province.

(Photo/CCTV.com)

In a depression after losing both arms and becoming paralyzed due to an electrical injury four years ago, becoming an online anchor was beyond his imagination. “I thought I was useless.” The accident left injuries on his body and emotional scars in his mind.

Before the accident, his family could earn more than 100,000 yuan ($15,290) a year, but in order to treat his wounds Sun’s parents spent all of their savings, and still needed to borrow money. At that time, the family registered as an impoverished household.

Sun did not want to be a burden and forced himself to cheer up and receive recuperation training. Later, he stumbled upon live streaming and decided to give it a try.

It was impossible for the armless man to use the mouse and type at first, but he taught himself to move the mouse with the residual limb of his left arm and type with his mouth. His tongue bled after repeated practicing, but he didn’t give up. One week later, he typed a line of words with his mouth.

(Photo/CCTV.com)

After learning necessary skills, Sun registered himself as a live streamer and named his channel “Be a Useful Person.”

At the beginning, only a few people watched his shows. One day, someone placed the first order for peanuts grown by Sun’s family. Though the profit from the order was only 0.5 yuan, it gave the man a lot of confidence.

Gradually, Sun felt at ease sitting in front of the camera. Talking with different people during the show about his hometown and products he sells, Sun became cheerful, finding hope for life.

With Sun’s platform, peanuts, corn, eggs, vegetables and fruits grown by his fellow villagers now enjoy strong sales. When the business is good, more than 500 orders could be placed during a live stream show. He now has a stable income and has paid off 30,000 yuan in debt from the business started over a year ago.