"Those old soldiers impressed me a lot with their positive energy," said Zhou Dejin, 29, a salesman in Beijing who also promotes public awareness of the history and contribution of the Nationalist veterans.

"Even in their 90s, they never stop learning or traveling around the country to give lectures. Their positive energy is being injected into the younger generation, who are promoting a more tolerant society," he said.

Zhou has attended lectures given by some of the old soldiers and says: "I felt so surprised when these men in their 90s took out their smartphones and showed me their micro blog accounts at the end of the lecture. I never knew they were so passionate about learning new things."