A new type of "crop" is being harvested in the fields of the Longdong Loess Plateau, alongside the traditional grains. At the Digital Employment Base in Huan County, Qingyang, data annotator Zhao Yanrong uses a mouse and scroll wheel to outline a 3D cube on a point cloud map, transforming the visuals into coordinate data sent to servers. "Our parents grew food on the yellow earth, but now we 'feed' data to machines, becoming processors of 'digital grain,'" she describes her role.

Qingyang, known as the "Granary of Longdong" and a key part of the old Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia revolutionary base, long relied on the oil industry, leading to a single-industry economy and limited job opportunities. The "East Data, West Computing" project brought a state computing hub to Qingyang, turning the region's computing power into employment. By attracting data annotation companies and cultivating local teams, Qingyang transformed raw computing capacity into high-end services, creating a "reservoir" of local jobs.

Zhao Yanrong, a former migrant worker, found a job at the digital base after learning about autonomous driving perception systems. "I used to measure corn spacing in the fields with precision; now I've swapped the hoe for a mouse, but the pursuit of accuracy remains the same," she notes, adding that her annotations now support projects in over a dozen cities like Beijing and Shenzhen.

Another source of data comes from the sky. At the Qingyang Drone Training Base, Guo Panpan, a former seafarer, now operates a four-rotor drone. "The hills look close but are far apart on foot; a drone gives a complete view," he says. "This new job at home pays well."

To meet digital industry needs, Qingyang has listed 51 professions, including data annotators and drone operators, as urgently needed. Deputy Director of the Qingyang Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, Zhou Jie, reports that over 16,000 people have received subsidized training in digital economy and low-altitude economy fields. "During the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, we will cultivate mid-to-high-end roles in computing operations and cloud architecture, offering more opportunities for young people," he adds.

An employment chain covering data collection, annotation, and application is growing on the Loess Plateau, writing a new chapter for the "Granary of Longdong" in the digital age.