In a residential quarter of Shanghai close to the city's terminal station - Jiangwan Town of the Light Rail Train - a fruit stall may catch your eye with its abundant and neatly arranged produce.
The stall goes back over four years, and it is very popular with residents of the area.
The 34-year-old vendor, Teng Xiaochun, has all the characteristics of an immigrant laborer - strong, plain and straightforward.
Teng and his younger brother came to Shanghai eight years ago from a small village in Shangrao County in East China's Jiangxi Province.
At first, he and his brother worked as street peddlers. They were often driven away by the police and by neighborhood committees. They were charged more than they could afford in fines for setting up a stall.
Worst of all, they had no regular place to live. Sometimes they slept in a shabby room with several other laborers, sometimes in a construction site or even in the streets. They used plastic bags they got from hospitals to store tap water for drinking and washing.
After four years of struggle, Teng saved some money and rented a 20-square-metre stall in Fengzhen residential quarter to sell fruit. Later, members of his family, including his wife, a 10-year-old daughter and a seven-year-old son, joined him in Shanghai.
As early as 5:00am, Teng heads for the suburbs about 20 kilometers away to replenish his stock. He hires a freight truck to convey the fruit to his stall. Then his wife gets busy putting the produce in order and polishing the fruit to make it look as attractive as possible. They do not stop courting customers until 10:00pm.
Teng used a thick wooden board to divide his stall into two parts. The front is for doing business and the back, and smaller part, is for sleeping.
When asked about his wishes and plans, Teng was at a loss for words.
"I haven't thought about that. My wife and I are striving to bring up our two children and to give them opportunities to be educated," he said.
Day by day, the couple eke out enough to support their children.
In Teng's hometown, his daughter's school is 5 kilometers from where she lives and the only way to reach it is to take mountain paths on foot, which is tough on a little girl. Through twists and turns, Teng's daughter was finally transferred to an elementary school in Shanghai near his stall.
Teng's son has also reached school age. It's not easy for a school to enroll a pupil from another province. So Teng and his wife are having to face the schooling problem again.
(Shanghai Star September 27, 2002)
