At 19, after taking China's national college entrance examination twice, he entered vocational college.
He moved into geological engineering, then postgraduate work in mining engineering, and eventually doctoral research.
Along the way, he worked in factories, on highways, on construction sites, in restaurants and in coal mines.
His path was not defined by one spectacular breakthrough.
It was built through dozens of decisions that looked far less dramatic at the time:
Take the examination again.
Accept another temporary job.
Finish another semester.
Apply again.
Ask for help.
Continue studying.
Return to the field.
Complete the research.
Finish the dissertation.
The Myth of the Overnight Transformation
When stories such as this become popular online, there is a temptation to package them as miracles.
But the timeline tells the opposite story.
Nothing happened overnight.
The transformation from a boy working in coal mines to a doctor of engineering took more than 20 years.
There were no obvious shortcuts.
Instead, there was a long accumulation of education and labor, repeatedly complicated by financial pressure and unsuccessful attempts to reach the next stage.
Beijing University of Technology made a similar point when the graduate's story went viral.
The university said his journey should not be viewed as some distant or impossible legend, but as an example of the marks left on a life by years of perseverance and effort.
That distinction matters.
If the story is treated only as an extraordinary exception, it may be emotionally inspiring but practically distant.
If it is understood as a sequence of smaller steps—though undeniably difficult ones—it becomes more meaningful.
His life does not prove that effort automatically guarantees success.
Many hardworking people encounter obstacles that persistence alone cannot remove. Poverty, geography, educational inequality, family responsibilities, health, opportunity and access to mentors all influence what a person can achieve.
Romanticizing hardship would miss one of the most important lessons of the story.
A 12-year-old should not need to work underground in order to deserve a future.
What his experience demonstrates instead is that a difficult start does not automatically determine the rest of a person's life.
It also illustrates the importance of educational systems that provide more than one path forward.
He did not obtain the result he wanted on his first gaokao attempt.
He tried again.
He did not begin university through the most prestigious route.
He continued progressing academically.
He did not secure a doctoral opportunity at his first attempt.
He applied again.
The pattern repeatedly looked the same: