Ran Guanghui waits for customers near a shopping mall at Chaotianmen in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, Jan. 5, 2020. Ran Guanghui, 50, has earned his living as a "bang bang", literally "stick men", in Chongqing for ten years. In a mountainous city as Chongqing with an abundance of hilly roads and ladder pathways, stick men have assisted people by carrying luggage and heavy things. Hauling goods on bamboo poles balanced on their shoulders, the stick men earned bread by the sweat of their brows. Ran became one of them in 2009 when he left his home town Dianjiang, a village under Chongqing. Over the decade, Ran has worked really hard as a bang bang, keen to make a good living for his family. Not afraid of hardship, he went out to work early and came back late everyday. Sometimes he worked deep into the night, and once even worked for 24 hours on end. He has shouldered goods as heavy as 235 kg, despite his light body weight of 65 kg. With his great strength, honesty and diligence, Ran has been favored by more and more customers and gained some success. In 2016, Ran was able to buy an apartment on mortgage in Chongqing, located close to the Chaotianmen area where he worked. When they moved into the new home, his wife Qu Guangfang smiled with happiness and then cried for the hardship her husband had suffered. However, Ran said he did not feel much suffering, as he had achieved his goal by his own "shoulders". (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao)
