A lady carefully lays out sliced radish in a spiral. [Photo by Rosemary Bolger/chinadaily.com.cn]

Residents have paid a high price. They have been moved to an apartment complex at the base of the mountain, and their homes turned into boutique accommodation, fetching up to 5,000 yuan a night (although many rooms are available for much less). But in return they have gained jobs and their village has a future. Their smiles as tourists snap photos and observe their daily routines, suggests they believe the tradeoff has been worth it.

"They used to be farmers, but now they are company staff," Wu says.

Even chickens are strung up as the village prepares for the colder months ahead. [Photo by Rosemary Bolger/chinadaily.com.cn]

In Jiangxi province, which has high levels of poverty, Huangling's turnaround is a beacon of hope. Wu says employees earn about 30,000 yuan a year, more if they are tour guides or hotel staff. Almost two thirds of the 300 staff are local and he expects to grow his workforce to 1,000.

Wu has been wise to recognize the "rare and precious resource" of cooperation from the former residents. After all, it is their practice of laying out chillies, flowers, sliced radishes and pumpkins on large trays on rooftops that make Huangling so picturesque. While there are surely other charming villages carved into terraced mountainsides, the rich colors of the drying vegetables contrasted against the greenery beyond, could convince even the most skeptical of its lofty advertising claims.