- Liu yun community
The World's Most Leisurely Delivery Rider
Jan 2023 - Aug 2023
At the beginning of 2023, due to the pandemic and business failures, I went completely bankrupt. I rented an electric motorcycle for half a year and signed up for delivery platforms like Ele.me and Meituan. To ensure I had a job to maintain the household income, I delivered food while squeezing out time to take photos. This life lasted for a full six months. Thinking back, it wasn't so bad. I could earn money while doing what I loved. Being a delivery rider was the most ideal job I've had in recent years—a wonderful job that didn't require daily clock-ins and allowed me to take photos anytime, anywhere. The only drawback was that this job required me to fight against time and weather. I needed to pick up and deliver meals within a stipulated time. If I encountered a scene I couldn't resist on the road, I would stop without hesitation, take out my phone, and capture it first. Most of the time, I probably didn't have enough time to react. During my deliveries, I took countless photos like this.
世界上最悠闲的外卖员
2023年初，因为疫情和做生意亏本，我彻底破产了。我租了一辆电动摩托车半年，跑遍了饿了么、美团等外卖平台。为了不让自己有一份工作能维持家里的收入，我开着电动车一边送外卖一边挤时间拍照，这样的生活持续了整整半年。想想其实也不差，赚钱的同时也可以做自己的喜欢的事情，外卖员是我这些年做过的最理想的工作，不需要每天打卡，随时随地都可以拍照的美好工作。美中不足的是，这份工作需要我与时间和天气作斗争。我需要在规定的时间内取餐和送餐。如果我在路上遇到我无法拒绝的场景，我会毫不犹豫地停下来，拿出我的手机先拍下来。大多数时候我可能没有足够的时间做出反应。在送货过程中，我拍下了无数这样的照片。
In January 2023, I moved to the suburbs of Lugu in Changsha to live with my mother. It had been ten years since we last lived together. During that time, we argued every day over trivial matters, such as my failure to turn off the bathroom light when leaving for work or not coming home on time for meals. My mother didn't know that I was in debt at the time; she only complained that I went out to deliver food every day but couldn't even cover the rent. To reduce conflicts with her, I made sure to leave home early in the morning and wouldn't return until after she had gone to bed at night. The rest of the time, I was out delivering orders. When I had a moment, I would take out my phone to take a few pictures.
2023年1月开始，我搬到了长沙麓谷郊区和妈妈一起居住，距离上次和妈妈一起生活已经过去10年了。那段时间我们每天都在争吵，诸如我出门上班没有关厕所灯，不按时回来吃饭等等鸡毛蒜皮的小事。我的妈妈并不知道此时我已经负债，她只是抱怨我每天都出门跑外卖但是连房租费用都给不起。为了减少和她的争吵，我尽量早上早早出门，晚上等到她睡觉了我才回家。其余的时候我都在外面跑外卖，有时间的时候会拿出手机拍几张照。
The greatest daily challenge for a delivery rider is often the security personnel, with whom we engage in a constant tactical game. The complex pictured here, Xiaoxiang Olympic Garden, exemplifies this. Comprised of three phases, each has a distinct and counterintuitive entry protocol: Phase One requires access via the underground B1 garage; Phase Two, through a ground-level garage; and only Phase Three offers direct external access. Initially, navigating this landscape was a central part of the struggle—a single order could lead me on a frantic circuit through all three phases before I located the correct entrance.
跑外卖第一大需要对抗的敌人是保安，我们几乎每天在和安保人员打游击战。右边图片的小区是麓谷地区的一个小商业中心，小区的名字叫潇湘奥林匹克花园，有一期，二期和三期，每一期的门都不一样。一期只能从地下负一层车库进入。二期必须要走地上一层的车库进入，三期更方便一点，在外部就可以直接进入。记得刚刚开始在这一片区域送单的时候完全分不清楚一二三期的入口，经常一个喂了一个外卖跑了三个小区，最后才找到。
This row of small kitchens operates without storefronts, catering exclusively to the digital marketplace. Their primary customer base is drawn from the adjacent Luguxin Cheng Science and Technology Park (Phase One), which houses over a hundred companies and a massive workforce. With the recent completion and occupancy of Phase Two directly opposite, the economic stimulus to the local food service industry is immense. For delivery riders, however, this concentration translates into daily peak-hour gridlock, making the area a site of both opportunity and immense pressure.
左边的图片是麓谷林语小区背面的一排小型外卖商家，他们不做线下的餐厅，只负责在线上销售外卖。小区后面是麓谷芯城科技园一期，里面大大小小的公司有不下100家，总劳工的数量更是不计其数。斜对面还有刚刚开发完成的二期，诸多企业都已经完成入驻。这两个科技园很大程度的带动了周围的行业，尤其是餐饮行业，几乎每天高峰期送外卖都是一场巨大的灾难。
In the left picture, I delivered food to a very remote logistics park. The sign at the entrance displayed the speed limit and a strict prohibition against smoking. On the right, I delivered to a very tall apartment building. After completing the delivery, I looked down from the window and saw another Ele.me rider speeding down the middle of the road. Perhaps the distance created an illusion for me, making it appear as though he was delivering food in a very leisurely manner.
左边图片中我送餐送到了一个很偏远的物流园，入口的牌子上面写着限速表示和严禁抽烟。右边是我送到一家很高的公寓，送完餐之后我从窗口往下看，看到了另外一位饿了吗骑士正在马路中间飞驰，也许是距离让我产生了错觉，看起来他正在非常悠闲地地送餐。
An elevator can be said to be a cage for every delivery rider. Every time I enter one, it's filled with riders—Meituan riders in yellow uniforms, Ele.me riders in blue, and others without specific work attire. The more floors the elevator serves, the longer we spend in that building, as a rider needs to get off to deliver at almost every floor. We spend a significant portion of our time inside elevators. Sometimes, during the morning, noon, or evening rush hours, a full hour can be wasted just riding the elevator. By the time we get out, the peak period is often over, and only then can we request to go offline in the app to go home or get our own meal.
电梯可以说是每个外卖员的牢笼，每次进电梯的时候都是满满的外卖员，身着黄色服装的美团骑手，身着蓝色服装的饿了吗骑手，还有为穿戴工作的的其他骑手。电梯的楼层越多，我们在这一栋的时间就越长，几乎每一层都会有一个骑手需要出门送餐，我们有大部分时间都是在电梯里面度过的。有时候遇到早中晚的高峰期，基本上1个小时都会浪费在这坐电梯里面。出来的时候高峰期已经结束了，我们才能在软件上申请下线，回家或者出去自己吃饭。
The newly built mid-to-high-end residential complex has a very pleasant environment, but we are not allowed to ride electric scooters inside. The security guards only permit us to enter on foot to deliver food. The environment in the complex is so good that birds fly overhead and bird droppings land on my clothes. Butterflies also flutter gently past at ground level.
新修中高档小区环境很好，但是我们不能骑电动车进小区，保安只允许我们步行进入小区送餐。小区的环境好到，有鸟儿在天上飞过，把鸟屎落在我的衣服上。地面上还有蝴蝶轻轻地飞过。
In the left picture, a Meituan rider in a yellow uniform is so exhausted that he has parked his bike directly by the roadside and fallen asleep on the grass. It seems he is sleeping very soundly. The right picture is taken from the elevator near the top floor of Phase 3 of Xiaoxiang Olympic Garden. It's around tea time, and the children and adults in the community are leisurely playing football. The ball is passed from the shadows to the center of the lawn, then to under the trees, until the crowd disappears from view.
左边图片，是一个身着黄色服装的美团骑士，他已经累到把车子直接停在路边，自己躺到旁边的草地上入睡了，这一觉应该睡的很踏实。右边图片是潇湘奥林匹克匹克花园三期在接近楼顶的电梯往下观看，正好是下午茶时间，小区的孩子们和大人们正在惬意的踢着足球，球从阴影里传到草坪正中间，再到树下，直到人群消失。
Most of the time, we don't get to hand orders directly to customers. Instead, we leave them at designated pickup shelves, on a table at the company reception, or in dedicated food lockers operated by Meituan and Ele.me. These lockers, however, come with a fee for us riders—each use costs between 0.3 and 0.6 RMB. Considering that the average pay per delivery is only about 5 RMB, this means we end up paying 6% to 12% of our earnings just to store the order.
我们大部分时间都没有办法把外卖送到客户手里，很多时候是把外卖放到固定的外卖置物架，或者是公司的前台会有专门放外卖的桌子，美团和饿了吗会有自己专属的外卖柜。当然他们是要从外卖员这里收费的，每存一次收取0.3-0.6元，大部分时候我们平均一单的价格也只有5元每单，其中还要分出去6%-12%的存储费用。
That summer in Changsha was exceptionally hot. To prevent sunburn on my face, I had to wear a face mask, which made me look like I was part of a secret ritual for some mysterious organization. While delivering food, I dug out the glasses that my cousin had bought for me during my freshman year of university; I hadn't worn them for six years. To ensure I could deliver the orders on time while maintaining traffic safety, I put those glasses on again. My vision became extremely clear. Before that, my way of observing photography and film had always been in a semi-blurred state. Thanks to this job, I was able to see and understand the world more clearly.
那年长沙的夏天格外的热，为了防止面部被晒伤我不得不带上面罩，看起来像是某个神秘组织的秘密仪式。跑外卖期间我翻出了大一时候我表姐给我买的眼睛，在此之前我已经6年没有再戴过那副眼镜了。为了保证自己在交通安全的前提下把外卖准时送到，我再次戴上了那双眼镜，我的视野变得无比清晰的，在那之前我对摄影对胶片的观察方式一直是在半模糊下进行，托了这份工作的福，我得以更清楚地观察和了解这个世界。
My mom always left a light on for me when I came home. However late I was, there was always that warm lamp waiting. I still remember how wet and long the rainy season was that year—it went on for so long that these little white mushrooms with black tops started growing right out of the kitchen door frame.
回家的时候妈妈帮我留的灯，再晚也有一盏暖光灯在等着我。始终还记得那年雨季特别潮湿特别的漫长，漫长到厨房的门缝里面长出了黑头白身的菌子。