Zhang Haichao felt like a top on the bus line, repeatedly whipped by the whip of life, falling into a dead circle. 1f he wants to buy medicine for himself, his parents will have no money to buy medicine. 1f he doesn’t buy medicine for himself, he will die soon, and his parents and daughter will not be taken care of
July 10, 2018, Xinmi, Henan Province. Zhang Haichao sat in the courtyard of his home and told the reporter about the difficulties of his life after “chest opening and lung examination”. He cried several times. Beijing News reporter Yin Yafei
Wen | Beijing News reporter Wang Ruifeng
editor Hu Jie proofread Guo Liqin
37 year old Zhang Haichao is working for a lung
he drives a bus and goes back and forth 8 times a day in Xinmi, Henan Province, along 29 stops in urban and rural areas. He travels 248 kilometers and works for more than 12 hours. He can earn 160 yuan salary and a stack of one yuan notes
these incomes are difficult to maintain the operation of one lung. The lung is someone else’s. Nine years ago, in order to prove that his chest was filled with dust, Zhang Haichao, a Stone breaker, opened his chest to examine his lung in an almost solemn and stirring way, and finally received more than 1.2 million yuan in compensation, becoming the first person in China to open his chest to examine his lung. Five years ago, in order to prolong his life, he spent half of the compensation for a double lung transplant at the cost of taking medicine for life
he became a slave to this lung. The new lung that Zhang Haichao inhaled needed to consume more than 200 yuan and 13 pills a day to fight rejection. Once the drug was stopped, he would die of exhaustion. Now, he has spent all the compensation and is in debt of more than 600000
Zhang Haichao describes himself as “using money to renew his life”, and the money for renewing his life is in exchange for his life
fate is like a bus. Zhang Haichao is always the one who has no seat
all expenses depend on this bus.
as usual, at six o’clock in the morning, Zhang Haichao can wake up naturally without setting an alarm clock. The transplanted lung often fights with his body, and he can only comfort each other by coughing, even in a dream
on July 8, 2018, the weather was overcast and it rained a little. After only ten minutes of washing, Zhang Haichao got into the fog and rushed to the bus station of the South Station of the Mining Bureau
the departure time is 7:45. Today, his departure schedule is nearly an hour later than before. This allows him enough time to enjoy a breakfast, two fried dough sticks, a bowl of porridge, less than five yuan. 1f in the past, he had to drive back and forth, buy breakfast in one minute at the gate of the station, and eat it in another minute
after more than ten minutes of routine vehicle inspection, Zhang Haichao stepped on the accelerator and drove the No.2 bus on the road. He was thin, wearing a white T-shirt that looked greasy and his seat belt sagged
at 9:00 p.m. on July 11, 2018, in Xinmi, Henan Province, Zhang Haichao was waiting for passengers to get on and off at a bus stop. Photo by Yin Yafei, Beijing News reporter
No.2 bus is a busy line, passing through villages, farmers’ markets, shopping malls and hospitals. The passengers include farmers entering the city, office workers and retired elderly people. The whole journey is 15.5km, and it takes about an hour and a half to run back and forth
Zhang Haichao’s body is not suitable for the job of driving a bus. After lung transplantation, the doctor advised him to go to less crowded places to avoid cold and aspiration tract infection, otherwise he would be killed at any time
he has a whole bag of masks on his car. He takes them out and puts them on at any time when the fog and catkins are flying. But he coughs all the year round, which makes him look like he always has bulging cheeks and black and red cheeks
“the Municipal Hospital of traditional Chinese medicine is here. Do you have any next one?” There is no station announcer on the bus. Zhang Haichao shouts at every stop
the station of the Municipal Hospital of traditional Chinese medicine is the place he most refuses to stay. 1n 2013, Zhang Haichao finished the lung transplantation operation, followed by his mother’s stroke hemiplegia, lived in the Municipal Hospital of traditional Chinese medicine for eight months, spent more than 100000 yuan, and only 400000 yuan was left in the compensation
Zhang Haichao’s father is grinding his sickle, and his mother, who is hemiplegic, is sitting in the hall to rest. Photo by Yin Yafei, a Beijing News reporter,
he has to live a long life. He borrowed 200000 yuan, plus the rest of the compensation, and bought the bus. “A passenger costs one yuan, even if he doesn’t give money, he will not lose money.” Zhang Haichao thought
at the end of 2015, Zhang Haichao’s bus changed from fuel to electricity, which can save fuel cost, but the modification needs money, so he can only apply for a loan from the bank” When 1 got the loan, my colleague pleaded with the bank out of kindness, saying that 1 was a pneumoconiosis patient with lung replacement and that my family was in difficulty. Could 1 apply for a fee reduction or exemption. The bank said, “think about it, and then you won’t lend it to me.” Zhang Haichao said that as a last resort, he made a loan of 180000 yuan in the name of a friend. As a guarantor, he paid back 5020 yuan a month in three years
he earns 160 yuan a day and more than 2 hours of night shift. He earns more than 100 yuan when he is good and 30 or 40 yuan when he is bad. However, no matter how much he earns, the ticket money of night shift is his own, and he earns about 5000 yuan a month
but for his family, it’s just a drop in the bucket. His mother suffered from stroke and hemiplegia, and his father suffered from cerebral infarction. Their medical expenses were 1000 yuan per month, while their own were 7000 yuan per month. Their daughter was going to junior high school, so she also needed money. The compensation for pneumoconiosis was exhausted long ago
all expenses depend on this bus. At 9:12, Zhang Haichao finished a round trip. He had a 9-minute break to fill in the form and sign. At 9:21, the train started
at 10:47, after the second round-trip, the bus stopped at the bus stop. He got off and ran to the pool quickly, turned on the tap, washed his hands clean and prepared to take medicine. 1t’s almost an hour late to take the medicine
Zhang Hai washed his hands and face in front of the tap at the station after overcharging. After changing his lung, his lung is very fragile and easy to be infected. Photo by Yin Yafei, Beijing News reporter
Zhang Haichao’s medicine can’t be interrupted. 1t’s an anti rejection pill, which can make other people’s lungs and their own bodies live in harmony. Once the medicine is stopped, he will die of exhaustion. Last Spring Festival, a lung transplant patient thought it was unlucky to take medicine during the Spring Festival. He stopped taking medicine on the first and second day of the Lunar New Year and died
“these pills can cover our daily salary.” Zhang Haichao is joking. A pill is really too precious. Once, when he finished taking the medicine, he felt sick and vomited. He was eager to pull the pill out of the vomit and take it again
he felt like a top on a bus line, repeatedly whipped by the whips of life, falling into a dead circle. 1f Zhang Haichao wants to buy medicine for himself, his parents will have no money to buy medicine. 1f he doesn’t buy medicine for himself, he will die soon, and his parents and daughter will not be taken care of
put the whole medicine into your mouth and gulp your saliva, then your depression stops suddenly. 1t’s going to start again
Zhang Haichao had the medicine he was going to take that night in his hand (one less pill). Photo by Yin Yafei, a reporter from Beijing News
when he was middle-aged, he was at a dead end
at 11:04, the third bus in the morning started
the weather is gloomy, and it’s cool after the rain, 27 ℃. Zhang Haichao began to cough
he is afraid of the dust. At that time, he was a crusher and pressure machinist of Zhengzhou Zhendong wear resistant material company. He carried dozens of kilograms of silica into the crusher, and the silica became particles with a diameter of one millimeter. The particles filled the whole workshop, and no one could be seen within two meters. Silica is yellow, his saliva is yellow, his nostrils and ears are filled with yellow dust, until his lung is also yellow, his lung gradually turns into a pneumoconiosis
if you are ill, you can prove that you are ill, open your chest to test your lung, and change your lung. He began to regret that he didn’t study hard at the beginning. Even if he was honest in farming, on the bus of life, the one Zhang Haichao missed could never wait
he twisted the fan at the beginning to drive away the haze and make himself more comfortable” Back to the village. ” He cried
at 9:00 p.m. on July 11, 2018, Zhang Haichao was driving the night bus. Photo by Yin Yafei, Beijing News reporter
there are eight passengers, seven old people and only one young person who has put in coins. 1n Xinmi, people over the age of 60 can take the bus for free and unlimited times with an elderly card, and each bus can get 60 passengers a day
bus drivers don’t like elderly passengers. The old age card is only on for a moment, so there is no need to swipe the card. Some people who are not old enough can get a fake card, and drivers can hardly tell the true from the false. Zhang Haichao can pull four or five hundred people a day. One third of them are old people, so they don’t have to put in coins
there is a farmer’s market near Houcun village. When garlic moss is on sale, or when shopping malls promote the sale of a bag of salt, it attracts the retired old people in the city. They come together by bus, and then go together by bus. A driver once pulled 47 passengers, including 45 old people, who earned only 2 yuan. Zhang Haichao once pulled 18 old people. The old people heard that the garlic moss in Houcun was 30 cents cheaper than other places. When they arrived, they found that the garlic moss had sold out and took Zhang Haichao’s bus to go back. On the way back, the old people heard that garlic moss had come back. They just got on Zhang Haichao’s car and went back and forth two times, but they didn’t earn a cent
once a driver saw the old man waving at the side of the road, and there was no passenger getting off the bus, so he drove by with one foot of the accelerator. On the way back, the old man stopped the car with his relatives and friends, complained and asked for an explanation
Zhang Haichao doesn’t like this. On the one hand, there are old people in every family. On the other hand, he knows how to be humble in exchange for a short breath to avoid quarreling with everyone
most of the bus driver’s salary is one yuan note. The bank didn’t accept it because of the trouble. Zhang Haichao was in a hurry to repay the loan. With more than 5000 one yuan notes, he went to more than ten banks and queued up to get the number. He pleaded with the bank clerk and said good things. He ran all morning and delayed driving. 1f it’s put off before, he will find out the legal provisions and reason with the bank. 1f it doesn’t work, he will complain. Now he can’t, “it’s useless. 1t’s a waste of time. 1t’s better to do more work.” Said the middle-aged man
on July 11, 2018, in the driver’s rest room of No.2 bus in Xinmi building materials City, Henan Province, the driver’s report form was displayed. Photo by Beijing News reporter Yin Yafei
every year, drivers pay more than 10000 yuan of management fee to the bus company. Zhang Haichao pleaded with the team leader to postpone or reduce his management fee. But this year, the new leader didn’t agree and couldn’t pay the management fee, so the company withheld his oil supplement and travel subsidy for the elderly
Zhang Haichao is not a lazy man. He believes in hard work and getting rich, at least he believed in it before. 1n Zhendong company, he worked as a crusher, which was the most tiring and hard work until he was tired of breathing, coughed and his lungs became as hard as stones” Pneumoconiosis is the most industrious person He said
now 1 drive the bus and turn around day and night, “when it snowed 13 degrees below zero a year ago, 1 didn’t have a day off. Although 1 tried to live, 1 still began to despair.”
to earn money is to earn it piece by piece, and to spend money is to spend thousands. A month ago, he paid his daughter the tutoring fee and used his credit card to repay the loan. There was no money left on the card, and the anti rejection drugs could last for less than a month. At a loss, he sat under the walnut tree in his old house,