So...
Migrant workers make up more than 40% of the general Shanghai population, and COSH is particularly interested in telling the stories of these people.
上海有40%都是外來人口，COSH特別想講述他們的故事。
This is the story of Mr. Chi (池). I met him as a mover hired to help me move my apartment.
今天的主人公是池師傅。我找搬家公司的時候，他恰好被派來幫我搬家。
Photo taken at 209 Changshu Road on January 29th, 2016
The time is 3 minutes past 8 AM. There was a heavy knock on my door followed by someone yelling 「搬家的! (moving company)!」. Mr. Chi appeared at my door - he was short, semi-bald and dark skinned. In the West, movers usually had strong physique and wore rugged clothing and proper moving equipment. Mr. Chi was almost exactly the opposite. The 50 year old man came in an oversized fleece jacket, a pair of navy pants (which was also too long for his legs), and some traditional Chinese green sneakers which resembled those worn by the Chinese army back in the 30s…and this guy was going to be my mover.
時針指向清晨8:03。我的門被重重敲開，門外有人大聲喊「搬家的！」，原來就是池師傅——他個子不高，皮膚黝黑，有點半禿。一般在西方國家，我印象中的搬家工人往往都是體格魁梧、穿著粗獷、配備齊全的大漢，遲師傅卻恰恰相反。他50多歲的樣子，穿一件大外套，工裝褲（有點太長），還有30年代的中國老式綠軍鞋。他，就是我的搬家工人。
After a few minutes to digest the situation, we began moving boxes and the conversation started to flow.
我先花了幾分鐘告訴他大體情況，之後我們一起搬箱子，也閒聊起來。
「I’m from Guangde County (廣德縣), Anhui province and have been in Shanghai for over 13 years. You may not know this place but it has some historical significance during the Japan-Sino war. Guangde had a very large airfield and was responsible for some key airstrike interceptions against the Japanese. Like everyone else, I came here to make money of course.」 Mr. Chi explained excitedly while busily loading boxes on to a moving cart. Despite his age, he was agile and quick.
「我老家是安徽廣德縣的，來上海13年了。你可能沒聽過這地方，但抗日戰爭的時候這裡很重要的。廣德有一個大機場，承擔了幾次關鍵的空襲任務。我到上海，和其他人一樣，也是為了賺錢。」池師傅把箱子挪到手推車上，有點興奮地說著。雖然他年紀不小，但仍然非常敏捷活絡。
Bingo. Another tale of the village-to-city urbanization.
果然，也是城市化浪潮下，一個農民工的故事。
「I go back to my hometown sometimes to see my mom, however it’s becoming more infrequent. My wife and son all live in Shanghai now. We still have a house back home and I go back sometimes to check up on it. Before we moved to Shanghai, we were all farmers growing grains and vegetables. That business became increasingly hard as supply and demand saturated. My wife and I decided to move here in the early 2000s.」 Mr. Chi was well versed in his story telling.
「有時候我回老家去看看我媽，但是現在也越來越少了。我老婆和兒子現在都在上海，老家還有一間房，回去也會順便看看老房子。我們來上海之前，都是種地種菜的農民。因為供需不平衡，產量過剩，種地也難了，所以我和老婆2000年初決定來上海。」池師傅很會講故事。
We got in the elevator. Before I could ask any additional questions, Chi asked what I did for my job and where I was from. I quickly explained that I am an engineer and grew up in the West.
我提問之前，池師傅先開口問我是做什麼的，是哪裡人。我告訴他我是個工程師，在西方長大。
「Unlike you, I am a blue collar and I work as a manual labour at the very bottom echelon (我們吃勞動苦錢）. Every Kuai I make is based on how much labor I output. Yesterday I worked till 3 AM moving a supermarket. I work seven days a week. I have made some business mistakes and missed some opportunities in the past. These days, the rich gets richer and the poor falls poorer.」
「和你不一樣，我是藍領，吃勞動苦錢。我賺的每一塊錢都是我付出的血汗錢。昨天我幫一個超市搬家，一直搬到凌晨3點。一周幹七天。過去我經商沒做好，也錯過了很多機會。現在啊，富人越來越富，窮人越來越窮。」
A bit surprised at the physical and work hour demand to Chi’s job, I asked how capable he was doing such a job, and why he could not take days off.
我對池師傅這份工作所需要的高強度和耐久性感到驚訝。我問他怎麼能堅持下來的，而且為什麼做七天不休息。
「There is always work to do and my manager won't let us take days off. People from villages aren’t so weak (嬌氣) like the city folks. We are already used to the labor intensity. Even though I am 50 today, I am in good health.」 Mr. Chi replied with confidence.
「總是有活兒，而且老闆不讓我們放假。農村來的人沒城裡人這麼嬌氣。我們對體力活兒都習慣了。雖然現在我50歲了，但是我身體很好。」他滿是自信。
As we moved, Mr. Chi discovered a box of discarded clothes I was planning to throw away. His eyes opened wide and asked if he could take some. I of course agreed. He then fanatically scavenged and grabbed a few t-shirts, jeans, and a pair of worn out Nike running shoes. 「In the future I』ll wear these shoes to work. They look comfortable.」 Mr. Chi added happily. As the saying goes, one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure.
我們搬東西的時候，有一個箱子裝著我不要的舊衣服。他睜大了雙眼，問我能否拿幾件。我當然同意了。然後他掘地三尺，掏出了幾件T恤、牛仔褲還有一雙舊耐克跑鞋。「以後我可以穿套去給人搬家，看上去蠻舒服的。」池師傅看上去特別高興。一個人的垃圾卻變成了另一個人的寶藏，可能說的就是這個理。
「And what about your family? Do they live with you?」 I asked Mr. Chi abruptly.
「那你家人呢？你們住一起嗎？」我忽然這樣問他。
「I live by myself, inside the company provided dormitory near Shanghai Station （上海火車站）. My son is also in Shanghai. He is married and just had a baby. He is 28 this year and owns a small IT company. My wife lives with him to take care of the baby.」 Mr. Chi said.
「我一個人住在公司提供的宿舍裡，在上海火車站邊上。我兒子也在上海，結婚了有個小孩。他今年28歲，自己開了家小IT公司。我老婆和他住一起，幫著看小孩。」池師傅這樣說。
It was interesting to learn about Chi’s living situation. I asked further as to why he did not live with his son.
這樣聊聊池師傅的生活挺有意思。我繼續問他，為什麼不和兒子住在一起。
「Because we have complete different lifestyles. My wife and I brought him to Shanghai when he was 16. He has a college education. My son makes a lot of money and also spends a lot. He parties a lot, goes out to bars, and sometimes comes home really late. Our values don’t mix well and we don’t speak too often. I don’t ask him for his money. Additionally, my job hours are very irregular - I don’t wan to disturb my grandson.」 Mr. Chi held a heavy box and looked at me in the eyes while explaining.
「因為我們的生活方式完全不同。我老婆和我在他16歲的時候把他帶來了上海，他念了大學。他賺的多，也花的多。老是出去玩，去酒吧，有時候回家很晚。我們價值觀不太合得來，也不怎麼講話。我又不需要他的錢。而且我工作的時間不固定－我不想打擾小孫子睡覺。」池師傅抱著一個很重的箱子，看著我解釋道。
Our move was coming to an end. While I sat next to him in his truck, he openly said the following to me. 「Even though you were raised in the West, you should come back to China. Our country’s future depends on generations like you. Don’t forget that you carry our Chinese blood.」
搬家結束了，我坐在他的車上，他大聲跟我說：「雖然你在西方長大，但你應該回到中國來，國家的未來取決於你們這一代人。不要忘記你身上流淌著的中國人的血脈。」