Lily Lee, a New Zealand Chinese author, came back to her home village Gum Kei (Jinxi) in Zhongshan in October 2023 with her grandchildren to seek roots. She has spent decades documenting the history and stories of early Chinese migrants to New Zealand, including their own families. 

Lee's books, such as Sons of the Soil, Farewell Guangdong and The Ho Legacy, capture the stories of early Chinese migrants to New Zealand who then became market gardeners, as well as the women and families from Guangdong who migrated to New Zealand to join their husbands during the gold rush.