75-year-old Lin Ma-teng, an expert of Jinmen's history and culture, introduces a local farm tool. [Photo by Chen Bin/Xinhua]

75-year-old Lin Ma-teng has been dedicated to preserving the culture and history of Jinmen, an offshore island of Taiwan, for decades.

He is now staff member at the local Lieyu Village Cultural Museum, where old stuffs, photos and memories of the turbulent times have been well preserved. 

"Many tourists from the main island of Taiwan were former soldiers in Jinmen, while visitors from the Chinese mainland were more attracted by the leaflets, bombs and bottles used during the wartime," Lin said. 

He regarded the museum a tie between mainland and Taiwan, and the closer bond between the two sides is what he loves to see and hear. 

"Jinmen was the first to benefit from cross-Straits exchanges and cooperation. For example, many Jinmen residents have bought houses in Xiamen and Zhangzhou; the water supply from Fujian province to Jinmen last year has also alleviated our burden on fresh water shortage," Lin said. 

"The great changes that have taken place in Jinmen reminded us that Peace is the most valuable thing, and Taiwan young people should their history," he said. 

"I missed the rivers and mountains of the mainland, which are like a hundred-mile picture scroll and are quite to my artistic taste," Lin said, adding that he loved Guilin city most and enjoyed the moment of leisure there taking a cup of coffee.