Photo provided to China Daily

To become an expert of unmanned aircraft, Men, who majored in law in college, had to study aerodynamics, material mechanics and some other subjects from scratch by himself. He believed that his painstaking work would finally get repaid in the future.

"I've been nuts about invention since my childhood and especially crazy about airplanes," Men says.

"Life in Beijing was not easy, and it could be extremely hard for those who want to start their own businesses," says Yao, who thought Men's budding industry had promise.

Nowadays more Chinese college graduates choose to leave large cities for smaller ones due to the skyrocketing real estate prices and tough household registration regulations.

"Some people around us feel confused about our returning from Beijing to Huaibei, an economically lagging fourth-tier city in their eyes. But we had no other choice," Men says. "The capital city has its unsurpassable strengths in talents of science and technology, but we didn't have the money to make the company survive and thrive there."

The three decided to make the dream come true in their hometown.

"We received a warmhearted welcome and firm support from the local government," says Zhao Yi, who is now the company's deputy general manager in charge of finance affairs.

The local government offered the new company a 2,800-square-meter factory free for its R&D center, manufacturing workshop and office use - plus simplified registration procedures and help to get crucial bank loans.