Highs and lows of people on China’s graveyard shift

World
Europe

06:08

In the darkness, when most of us have already sunk into the depths of the night, some are just starting their day.

They are doctors and nurses, cleaning men and women, construction workers… They are the city's night owls and dream chasers.

At around one o' clock in the morning, the staff at Shijiazhuang Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital are beginning their busiest time.

In the newborn department, every time the monitor makes a slight sound, the nurses' quick steps can be heard.

There are 166 beds in the neonatal department, which ranks the first in China's Hebei Province.

CGTN Photo

Downstairs in the obstetrics department, chief nurse Li Xia and her staff are preparing to help deliver another baby.

Li has been working in the department for 25 years. Over the years, she has spent thousands of nights in the hospital instead of at home.

“Working in obstetrics is particularly high-risk. We are in an intense working mode, even at midnight,” she said.

The longest labor Li has witnessed was 36 hours.

She still recalls one night when she left for her night shift and heard her daughter crying. “Children need their mother more at night,” she said, fighting back her emotion.

However, she gets joy and a sense of pride from her work.

“I still remember the reaction and the expression in the woman's eyes after she gave birth. The feeling of happiness I have when I see a baby coming into the world makes me feel proud of my work,” she said.

Li Xia is working in the hospital at night./CGTN Photo

Just like Li Xia, Li Anhua and his wife have to work through the night.

The couple came to Beijing 10 years ago and opened a breakfast store in one of the city's most crowded areas. They normally open their store at 4:30 in the morning.

“We prepare wontons, steamed buns; cook rice porridge and soybean milk,” Li explained.

The couple came to the city to make money, but that meant leaving their three children at home, thousands of miles away from Beijing. Like many migrant workers, they visit their children once in a year during the spring festival.

“We would really like to go back to the kids. However, it's never a problem to work hard to give your family a better life,” Li said with a grin on his face.

Li Anhua opens his breakfast store at 4:30 in the morning./CGTN Photo

In the deep night, dreams unfold.

Wu Yue is a 23-year-old woman who is passionate about cocktails.

After receiving her Master's degree in the UK, she came back to Beijing in hopes of realizing her dream.

By working as a bartender in a cocktail bar, she has to work during the night and sleep through the day.

After gets off work at two in the morning, Wu spends the rest of her night in a 24-hour bookstore nearby as she waits for the first subway.

Wu Yue came to the city to pursue her dreams./CGTN Photo

“Working in a cocktail bar helps me learn new things about cocktails. My dream is to make more people in China understand and appreciate cocktails,” she said.

She dreams to launch her own cocktail brand in the future.

“I believe I'll see the rainbows after the hardship,” said Wu poetically.

Director: Jiang Yuting

Film Editor: Jiang Yuting

Filmed by: Geng Zhibin, Jiang Yuting

Article Written by: Jiang Yuting

Chief Editor: Pei Jian

Producer: Wen Yaru

Supervisor: Mei Yan