A shabby white van pulls up in the courtyard and Wu Jun, 56, jumps out. He and his chef, Xiao Zhu, unload the vegetables and fruit just bought from the downtown food market, while talking about what to cook tonight for his “old buddies” living in the sanatorium that Wu runs.

Opened more than 20 years ago by Wu’s father, Wu Rui’an, a famous Shanghai doctor, Shenxing Sanatorium sits quietly in the bamboo forest of a mountainous region in Changxing County of Zhejiang Province. The idyllic county — located at the junction of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui provinces — is the core of the Yangtze River Delta region, about a 2.5-hour drive away from Shanghai.

The senior Wu established the institution two decades ago, aimed at offering Shanghai’s low-income old people a place for rehabilitation, recuperation and tourism with fresh air and clean water.

“Those old people who are abandoned, I want them.” It was the only motive and wish for Dr Wu, who died in 2007. Two years later, the young Wu officially took over the sanatorium.

“It is my responsibility to carry forward my father’s last wish,” Wu tells Shanghai Daily at his Changxing office, also the sanatorium’s guard room, where he oversaw the entrance and kept an eye whether the old people who went out for a walk in the mountain came back punctually.

Shanghai is going gray rapidly, and caring for seniors is a major challenge. The Civil Affairs Bureau predicts that the number of people over 60 will increase by 200,000 every year until 2020. By 2030, Shanghai will have 5 to 6 million elderly people, making it the “oldest” city in China.

The compassionate and kind-hearted Dr Wu made a far-sighted decision 20 years ago, but he could not have foreseen how his decision would bring farming tourism to the village, turning the unknown Changxing into a prosperous tourism destination today that actually threatens the very existence of his sanatorium.

A winding cobblestone path past several clean farmhouses renovated into small family hotels lead to the sanatorium at the foot of Guzhu Mountain. Three low houses are built around a little clearing, where several old people are doing some stretches while Allen, Wu’s 13-year-old husky, lies on the ground soaking up the autumn sun.

A few steps away, another group of old people are having a pleasant chat over a cup of green tea in the lush bamboo forest, which is traversed by a crisp and clean creek flowing down from the woody valley nearby.

Covering an area of about 5,300 square meters, the sanatorium has about 100 beds for the old, who are almost all from Shanghai. Even Allen understands the Shanghai dialect.

A typical day at the sanatorium starts about 6am, when the elders get up and do some exercises in the garden. Wu and his chef get up about 4am to drive to the food market to prepare the meals.

At about 7am, they have breakfast. Steamed buns, eggs and congee are the usual food. “Occasionally we have youtiao (deep-fried dough sticks),” Wu says.

Life flows slowly at the sanatorium. After breakfast, people sit around and chat, have tea and play mahjong.

“Life here is very simple. We don’t need to worry much,” says Zhu Weihai, 87, who moved to Changxing from Shanghai five years ago. He used to fish in Shanghai but after his fishing buddies passed away one by one, Zhu felt lonely. He now makes new friends in Changxing.

“As a matter of fact, old people don’t require much for their retirement life. They only want to be happy and healthy with several good companions; they don’t want to be a burden of their children,” Wu says.

Wang Siming, 90, and his wife Zhu Lianming, 84, from Shanghai, are the rest home’s patrons. Since they found the place during a trip in 2008, the couple’s annual stay at Shenxing has stretched from one month to three months to half a year.

“We were first attracted by the beautiful landscapes here. Every morning, when I open my room’s window, the mountain, the lake, the bamboo forest, the fresh air and the sunshine all pop in,” says Wang. “These are what made us stay.”

His wife, Zhu, has undergone two surgeries for breast cancer and suffered tracheitis. But she said she recovered very well after moving to Changxing and the fresh mountain air cured her tracheitis.

Behind the bamboo forest lies a small garden where Wu has planted pomegranate trees, hawthorns, osmanthus flowers, medical herbs, grapes and figs. He also raises ducks and chickens.

Shanghai couple Xia Enpei, 86, and his wife, Sun Honglan, 82, have stayed in the sanatorium every summer since 2007. Before moving to Changxing, Sun was unable to walk after a severe stroke, but now she can walk by herself without difficulty. “The fresh air and clean water are priceless,” her husband says.

Changxing is surrounded by mountains and borders Taihu Lake to the east. Almost 95 percent of Guzhu Village is covered by lush trees and bamboo. The soil contains rich selenium, an element known to fight cancer cells.

Painter Liu Dayou, 68, from Gansu Province, is a newcomer to the sanatorium. He arrived here about two months ago and decided to settle down.

“This place blessed with great nature inspires me a lot,” he says. Liu renovated his room into an art studio and most of the day was spent on painting. In the early morning, he would go out for a brisk walk in the mountain and catch some insects to take home for sketching.

“I plan to stay here and focus on painting, cutting myself off from the busy outside world,” he adds.

Each person is charged 50 yuan (US$8.33) a day, including accommodation and three meals — a quite reasonable price. Total cost for a month’s stay is about 1,500 yuan, affordable for the elderly on pension.

Every day, a shuttle bus runs back and forth between downtown Shanghai and Changxing to pick up old people and other tourists.

As it is only a sanatorium and not a nursing home, elders who want to stay must be able to look after themselves. The sanatorium has the responsibility to send them to the hospital in case of emergencies. “There is a medical center just around the corner and a hospital 30-minute drive away,” director Wu says.

From spring to summer during the peak season, retired doctors from Shanghai are invited to give lectures and free consultation for the residents.

“Each time we stay here, we bring along our medicines that we take everyday,” 84-year-old resident Zhu says.

In winter the elders go back to Shanghai to see doctors for prescriptions.

The sanatorium is also equipped with a few entertainment facilities, such as a table tennis room and a karaoke room.

The sanatorium’s establishment two decades ago put Changxing on the map. Today the farming tourism industry is booming. More than 400 village bistros and family hotels have come in.

Last year, the county received more than 1.8 million visitors and hit sales revenue of 350 million yuan. The local government sees the opportunity, and tourism development has been added to the agenda. Relocation is inevitable and the sanatorium is on the list to be relocated.

“I’ve heard the news but we haven’t talked with the government,” Wu said. “But one thing I’m sure about is that I won’t give up those old people and my father’s wish.”