Elhomosany Hesham Ramzy, a 29-year-old Egyptian, has traveled across continents along the Silk Road and found himself in Shanxi — one of the cradles of Chinese civilization. Drawn by the region's deep-rooted reading culture, he has embarked on a journey to understand why Chinese people love reading, choose good books and read thoughtfully.

In Taiyuan, Ramzy had the serendipitous opportunity to meet writer Jiang Jianbo. The two had a thought-provoking exchange that transcended national borders, discussing how the rise of artificial intelligence is reshaping the way people read. Both believe that tools like DeepSeek, while powerful, cannot replace the value of deep reading. Instead, they argue that AI may help elevate how people read, making it more focused, more refined and perhaps more meaningful than ever.

With the upcoming 4th National Conference on Reading in Taiyuan, Ramzy expressed confidence that the nationwide enthusiasm for books would soon be reignited on an even grander scale.