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arts | cai jiaxin

edit | wang yiran

video editing | zhang xinyue

three whistle blasts

it was parked at the xinzhou service area in wuhan. the front of the car was a jiefang brand j6p, red, and looked brand new, with the body and glass polished to a shine. the cargo compartment was a 13-meter-long high and low board, tightly covered with thick tarpaulin, and it was filled with cigarette glue worth more than 100,000 yuan.

around august 11, the truck set out from shanxi. according to the plan, it will reach its destination within three days - a tire factory in sanming, fujian, 1,900 kilometers away. after unloading the goods, it will most likely "work" in the local area, and after filling the cargo compartment, it will return to its hometown of taiyuan, shanxi via the national highway.

but an accident happened. about 20 hours after the departure, in the early morning of august 13, when passing through the wuhan xinzhou service area, the owner of the truck, 54-year-old driver niu, suffered a heart attack and collapsed in the cab. after being taken away by the ambulance, the jiefang truck, along with the cargo on board, was stuck in the wuhan xinzhou service area.

in the transportation industry, before each truck departs, the driver and the cargo owner will draw up an agreement regarding the cargo on the truck and the delivery time. overtime and cargo damage may result in additional compensation, especially for fresh produce such as fruit.

according to the usual practice, when such an accident occurs, the family members usually entrust a new driver to deliver the goods to the destination, and then drive the truck back to the local area to sell it. for the family members, such entrustment fees are not cheap, and the freight for one trip is basically not enough to cover it.

master niu has only one daughter who is in high school. his sister, who is nearly 60 years old, took care of the funeral affairs. he could not find a driver to help. "many people would feel taboo. they are not their relatives. even if they are paid, they are not willing to drive back." xiao yu, 37, said. he runs a second-hand truck business in yuanshi county, shijiazhuang, hebei. on august 13, master niu's sister asked for help online. xiao yu and three other companions decided to deliver the goods and drive the truck back to taiyuan, shanxi.

●with the help of xiao yu and others, master niu's jiefang j6p trailer returned to the destination. photo provided by the narrator

xiao yu and his companions knew very little about master niu, and they didn't even know what he looked like. as for the reason for helping, xiao yu honestly said it was because of traffic. he and his companions both have their own social media accounts and have more time. "this kind of thing will attract a lot of attention, especially from people in the trucking industry. when they help him, they also bring traffic and fame to themselves."

of course, the owner of this car, master niu, also represents another side of xiaoyu and his friends: as a former truck driver, he was the breadwinner of his family and spent almost all his time on the road. xiaoyu was born and raised in yuanshi. with the support of the coal industry in shanxi and inner mongolia, yuanshi county has become the largest second-hand truck trading market in north china. more than a decade ago, xiaoyu followed his father to drive a sports car. later, in order to take care of the family and consider the worst possible accident, the father and son decided to drive the sports car separately.

on the night he received the call for help, he packed some clothes and took a power bank - just like every time he went out, xiao yu and his companions drove off with their bags and arrived in wuhan xinzhou at noon the next day.

a washbasin, a toothbrush, a towel, and a few pieces of clothes were lying in front of the jiefang j6p. xiao yu watched the family members count out master niu's belongings - with their cars as their homes, the lives of these drivers couldn't be simpler.

at 12:00 noon on august 14, xiao yu formally received the car keys from his family members in the presence of police officers from the police station. before departure, a banner with white characters on a black background was posted on the front of the car, "a thousand miles to escort the soul of the truck driver back to his hometown."

two hours later, three orderly whistles were heard from the xinzhou service area in wuhan. the jiefang brand j6p finally drove out of the xinzhou service area slowly. "honk means farewell. we use whistles to pay respect to the dead."

national highways, the gobi desert, and unanswered phone calls

in fact, at 1 a.m. that night, a call for help was made from the cab of the red j6p, first to 120, and an hour later, the same phone called 110. in the cab of only about three square meters, no one knew how he called for help and spent the final waiting time.

according to public data from the ministry of transport, in 2020, 17.28 million truck drivers nationwide completed 74% of the total freight volume and 31% of the turnover volume. in the beidou system, which is mainly based on positioning and navigation, they become flashing dots one after another, scattered on the veins of the transportation network, moving or stationary. but that is the real-time status of the vehicle. as for the life status in the cab, it is difficult to perceive and discover. traffic accidents, sudden emergencies, and even robberies, all kinds of tragedies often occur.

like xiao yu, 38-year-old yideng is a self-media blogger and a truck driver for nearly 20 years. he started participating in similar rescue efforts last year. most of the time, the family members sent private messages online, and yideng called to confirm. the family members always cried, "my husband passed away, there is really no way to solve the problem, can you help us once?"

yideng said he couldn't refuse. during the years as a truck driver, he was at home for no more than one month each year. every time he returned home, he would find that his child had suddenly grown taller. his wife, children, and parents were all very careful with him, but they didn't understand him very well. the only thing that accompanied him the most was a radio. "put yourself in their shoes. if one day i died in a foreign land, without anyone to rely on, and my wife and children didn't know anything about driving, you can imagine how helpless i would be."

yideng has participated in five or six rescue operations. after verifying the information, he will inform his colleagues and sign up for rescue on a voluntary basis. after arriving at the scene of the incident, he will complete the handover of the vehicle and goods with the family members under the witness of the police from the police station.

● during the rescue in tibet, xiaoyu drove while breathing oxygen. photo provided by the narrator

most of the drivers who passed away were over 40 years old, and two were over 50. the youngest was only 31 years old, a jiangxi native and the father of two little girls. after noticing something was wrong in liuzhou, he called 120, just like master niu in taiyuan. unfortunately, he could not be saved after being sent to the hospital.

sometimes, death comes very suddenly. in shenzhen, a truck driver from henan finally unloaded the goods. while reversing, he fell headfirst onto the steering wheel and never stood up again. a driver in anyang, henan, called home every night while driving. one night in august 2023, no one answered his phone until it was turned off.

six days later, the truck was found on a national highway. yideng still remembers the moment the door opened and the driver, who was in his 50s, was lying on the steering wheel with his hands on his head, lifeless and his body slightly decomposed.

there are always various accidents during the escort process. for example, once yideng found out that the goods were dangerous goods after arriving at the local place, and had to temporarily find and hire a driver with relevant transportation qualifications. at the beginning of this year, a driver lost contact with his family on a national highway at an altitude of 5,400 meters in tibet. a few days later, the driver and the truck were found to have rushed to the distant gobi desert. due to altitude sickness and the car accident, the driver had already lost his vital signs, and the steering wheel of the truck was covered with blood. before leaving, yideng could only take out a tissue and wipe the blood off bit by bit.

the escort was full of twists and turns. there were 10 people in total, including yi deng and xiao yu. after driving into the high-altitude area, six of them were stuck halfway due to altitude sickness. on the way back, four tires were flat. after they were repaired, the truck hit the side of the road again, breaking three tires.

people who drive for many years have seen all kinds of strange moments of life and death, and they are always superstitious. in the cab, the four drivers decided to light three cigarettes, but the three cigarettes could not be lit. in the end, they had no choice but to call the family members and let them "call the soul" through video. in the end, the three cigarettes were successfully lit, and the car drove to the destination smoothly.

falling freight rates and drivers who dare not sleep deeply

it took xiao yu, yi deng and four others 13 hours to travel 700 kilometers from wuhan to sanming, fujian. at 3 a.m. on august 15, master niu's red jiefang j6p truck arrived at its destination.

this order was placed on the platform. according to the process, the freight collection required master niu's facial recognition authentication. after unloading the goods during the day, at the entrance of the tire factory, xiaoyu and his team negotiated with the owner for two hours and finally got the freight that belonged to master niu: 14,280 yuan.

according to xiaoyu's estimate, if there were no accidents, the round trip would take five days, with a profit of less than 1,000 yuan per day. before leaving, master niu mentioned to his sister that he would have to run two more similar orders to cover the car loan for that month. at the beginning of his 54th year, master niu bought the jiefang brand j6p truck, which cost about 400,000 yuan.

in the eyes of veteran drivers like xiao yu and yi deng, buying a car at the age of 54 is more of a helpless act. "he probably has no better choice. he bought a car to earn more money and cover the expenses for his family," xiao yu said.

in the past two years, he has seen many people come and go in the buying and selling of used cars. some people sold their cars to start catering businesses, thinking they could get away from this business, but after failing, they could only return home in disgrace. "many people have not even graduated from elementary school. as long as (other industries) can make a living, no one wants to do this business."

a few years ago, although the risks on the road were higher, the efforts of truck drivers were proportional to their income. when the situation was good, three or four people shared a truck and could not only earn tens of thousands of yuan a month, but also have 10 days off. in the past two or three years, life has become difficult. basically, one truck can only support one driver. a driver who has been driving a truck in xinjiang for more than ten years could earn more than 1,000 yuan a day when he first started, but now he only earns 5,000 yuan a month. "the most he earns every day is waiting in line for goods."

according to the china federation of logistics and purchasing, the highway logistics freight rate index continued to fall from january to august 2023. at the same time, costs are rising, such as oil prices. the market is sluggish, and car prices are also shrinking significantly. a new car that has only been bought for only half a year, after depreciation, cannot even cover the loan when it is listed on the second-hand market.

● before setting off, xiaoyu and his group would light cigarettes and pour wine on the ground to pay tribute to the dead. photo provided by the narrator

drivers can only bite the bullet and continue to drive, shortening the single-trip transportation cycle and increasing the number of trips. car loans and family pressures behind them have turned these truck drivers into conveyor belts on machines, turning non-stop, driving at least 25 days a month, and driving 12 hours a day or even longer.

after more than four years in the industry, 40-year-old liu fangyuan has witnessed the industry's sharp decline. she drives a 4.2-meter van through rizhao, lianyungang and taihu lake. in the past, it took about two and a half days to deliver goods from shandong to the south bank of the yangtze river and then back, with a seven-hour break in between.

after the freight rates dropped, in order to earn the same amount of money as before, the number of cargoes in the carriage increased from three to five or even seven. the cycle was still two and a half days, but the distance was longer and the unloading time increased - all of which was in exchange for sleeping, eating, and even going to the toilet.

liu fangyuan didn't like this job. it was inconvenient for women to drive a sports car, such as going to the toilet and taking a shower. but she had three children at home and needed money. her husband worked as an electrician on a construction site, and his workload had been reduced by half in the past two years. during the most difficult times, liu fangyuan took her little daughter to drive the car everywhere. once, the car couldn't stop on a mountain road and slid backwards, and finally half of the tire was stuck in the air - it was her little daughter who had just learned to speak who asked passers-by to help lift the car.

the high-intensity sports car also left her with headaches, so she always has to keep ibuprofen in the car. in the past year, liu fangyuan has often watched videos of yideng and xiaoyu rescuing people, and seen many cases of sudden death of drivers. she is also afraid. after driving tired, she will adjust the seat back, put the quilt and pillow on the steering wheel, and sleep on it. the alarm clock rings every half an hour. "this is my way of self-help. i dare not sleep lying down, for fear that i will be too tired and unable to wake up after a deep sleep."

liu fangyuan and other drivers have a small group, and they stick together when they go out. every night they report their routes and times in the group. to ensure each other's safety, they also call each other on wechat after waking up, asking, "are you up?" in her opinion, the current market is difficult and everyone is overly tired. "not only do we need to save ourselves, but we also need to rely on others and take care of each other."

the last "scenery"

at noon on august 16, the red jiefang brand j6p truck returned to its hometown of taiyuan, shanxi. that morning, its owner, 54-year-old master niu, had been buried. when the truck slowly drove out of the taigu expressway exit, a few "truck friends" stood by the road to see him off, and the j6p honked three times again.

for truck drivers, this is a luxurious return trip, not only do they return with an empty truck, but they also take the highway the entire way. generally, on the return trip, truck drivers will choose to take the national highway and pick up a truckload of goods along the way. in the jargon, this is also called "return cargo". most of the time, the price of "return cargo" is desperately lowered, which can only reduce the cost of the return trip and basically does not make money.

in the eyes of xiao yu, yi deng and the other four, truck drivers who are always on the road seem to always beg for help in order to save time, including ordinary villagers, security guards and unloaders in the logistics park. for the last trip, they hope that the driver can have a "glorious" time, "a thousand miles of empty driving, not counting the fuel and road expenses, and sending him off in the way of truck drivers."

even so, j6p still couldn’t escape being rejected on the last leg of its journey home. xiao yu said that the family had originally made an appointment at a parking lot, but the person in charge saw the short video of j6p and refused to let it in. “this is a car that has killed someone. no matter how much money you pay, they won’t allow you to park.”

finally, j6p could not find a place to park, so it had to park on the side of the road. it was returned to the family along with the car keys and 14,280 yuan in shipping fees. the highway tolls, gas, and food and drinks for this rescue trip cost a total of 28,000 yuan, which xiaoyu and the other four decided to share equally.

recounting these situations, yideng and xiaoyu looked very calm. every time they rescued someone, with the family's consent, they would shoot a video or even broadcast it live. some netizens accused them of doing it for traffic, but yideng and xiaoyu did not deny it. sometimes, family members can also get attention and even help from the outside world in this way.

● xiao yu and yi deng have participated in many rescue operations, but the one with the most twists and turns was the trip to tibet. photo provided by the narrator

at the beginning of the year, a driver from harbin died on his way to tibet to deliver goods. he had two children in elementary school. after publicity and live broadcast, in addition to donations from netizens, the owner of the goods gave an additional 10,000 yuan in aid and promised to cover the tuition fees for the driver's two children until they graduated from junior high school.

the traffic brought by live broadcasts and short videos also allowed more people in the trucking circle to see xiao yu and yi deng. for example, when j6p was queuing to refuel on the way back from fujian to shanxi, most other drivers knew the situation and silently made way for it. on the way back from tibet, the same truck drove towards it. when it saw the black-and-white banner on the rescue truck, it would slow down and honk the horn to see off the strange driver.

however, during the live broadcast, drivers sometimes couldn't help chatting and joking on the road. netizens scolded them, "others have passed away, how can you still laugh?" yideng was very puzzled. he just came to help and had never met the deceased. "i can't lie here crying for 24 hours."

many truck driver netizens also forwarded small donations of tens of yuan each, hoping that xiao yu and yi deng could pass them on to their families. but not long ago, because of the donation, yi deng was reported by netizens for "illegal fundraising" and faced a fine of 20,000 to 200,000 yuan.

not long ago, xiao yu heard that the red j6p truck had also returned to the second-hand truck market in yuanshi county. after depreciation and the accident, "the assets are not enough to cover the debts, and it is difficult to offset the loan after the car is sold." xiao yu guessed that it would be difficult to sell the j6p at a good price.

(yideng in the article is the narrator's online name)