As the knife encounters paper, within just a few inches, the heroic figure of Mu Guiying—a legendary female general from Chinese folklore—bursts vividly to life. This is the work of Liang Shaohua, a paper-cutting artist born after 2000, and a unique fusion of the traditional Qin Opera and Chinese paper-cutting.

Born in Baoji, known as the "Hometown of Folk Culture and Art," Liang Shaohua grew up surrounded by intangible cultural heritage—shadow puppetry, Qin Opera, embroidery, and decorative window paper-cutting. An elementary school activity of making paper-cuts for windows gave him his first taste of "bringing life to paper," and he has been captivated by this ancient craft ever since.

In 2018, Liang Shaohua joined the Xi'an Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Association, becoming its youngest member at the time. Upon entering university, he began systematically sharing the art of paper-cutting—hosting exhibitions, giving lectures, running workshops, and introducing international students to intangible cultural heritage classes. He soon realized that young people's enthusiasm for traditional crafts was far greater than he had imagined.

Liang Shaohua embraces the challenge of engaging young learners by refreshing ancient crafts. He integrates paper-cutting into everyday items like keychains, postcards, and backpacks, often featuring popular anime characters and current social topics. Notably, his paper-cut version of the film character from Ne Zha was especially lifelike. The intricately designed stage of the Yisu Theatre brings a piece of Qin Opera tradition to life.

Liang Shaohua offers his insights on the recent surge of interest in intangible cultural heritage: "I used to believe that traditional culture was only of interest to a specific group, but now I see it as a 'mutual attraction' between the public and heritage." He suggests that "what people lack isn't interest, but access." This growing enthusiasm reveals to him the significant potential for preserving and transmitting intangible cultural heritage.

With the sharp instincts and passion of the Z generation, Liang Shaohua demonstrates through every encounter of blade and paper how an ancient craft can take root firmly in young hands and quietly sprout new branches.