Some memories just refuse to fade.
I first arrived in Shenzhen on July 8, 2020, and the trip immediately went sideways.
The junior schoolmate who had said he would be in Shenzhen suddenly told me, just as I was about to arrive, that they had gone to Huizhou instead. I ended up making the trip for nothing. After that, I contacted Zou Bin and asked if I could stop by to see him. He closed his shop early, helped me book a room, and in the evening we went out for food and wandered around for hours. Later that night, the schoolmate who had gone to Huizhou messaged me again: the job there had fallen through, the accommodation was bad, and there were bugs. They were coming back to Shenzhen the next day. Another friend, Zhanwen, was also planning to come down from Changsha.
The next morning, Zou Bin came to have breakfast with me before I checked out. Then I headed toward the meeting point near Nanlian metro station. The bus and subway ride took nearly two hours—it really was far. My schoolmates came back from Huizhou with a heavyset labor broker type who, according to them, had some connections and could get decent-paying work. Zhanwen arrived around midnight, and we found a cheap hotel and stayed up talking until after three in the morning.
Back to Foxconn, unexpectedly
On July 10, after waking up and going out for food and milk tea, I searched on Boss and found an opening near Longhua Foxconn. It was through a company called Hengbo, and the position was security inspection, though it came with the nicer-sounding title of "guard." I went for the interview, and before long I was back inside Foxconn for a medical exam.
That part felt strangely familiar. From the outside gates to the inside of the complex, everything brought back memories. After the medical check, I returned to sign the contract and was taken by bus to a training base.
The training base: military style for some, easy duty for others
The training base operated under a kind of semi-militarized management. If you wanted to go out, you needed the instructor's permission. Meals were handled collectively too. Since my contract officially started on the 13th, I did not need to join training for the first two days—there was no pay for that period anyway. I got permission to go out and spent an afternoon at an internet café, then came back with instant noodles and other supplies.
One night I woke after 2 a.m. and had trouble sleeping again. I even had a strange dream. I still remember that restless feeling, though not much else from the night itself.
When training formally began on July 13, everyone had to gather before seven, eat breakfast, return to the dorm, and then assemble again as soon as the whistle blew at eight. Some people were assigned to cleaning, taking out trash, organizing the warehouse, and moving things around. The rest stayed put.
Then I got reassigned to gate-post duty.
There were seven of us in total. Three were from Room 409, including me, and four were from Room 408. I became more familiar with the people in 408 over those few days. The room had a former soldier, a university graduate, and others mostly between 20 and 23 years old, plus one born in 2002. My shift was the middle shift, from 4 p.m. to midnight, and the actual work was simple: sit in the office at the gate post and open the door when needed. It was comfortable.
The best part was that gate-post duty meant no military drills, no strict assembly routine, no standing in formation under the sun, and no cleaning assignments. We were moved to Room 503, right next to the instructor's room, but in practice we were barely managed at all.
The next day was even lazier. While the trainees were outside in the sun doing drills, the few of us assigned to the gate post went out for lunch at our own pace and then spent time at Bangbangtang Internet Café before coming back around three to change into camouflage and start work.
On July 15, we were told we would be rotated to another post, but I still had to cover my regular shift until six in the evening. The replacement arrived before six. That night, after dinner, Zhanwen and I went walking with Gaole, Guangyi, and Kaipeng around the nearby streets. We stayed out late, then bought a beer and some cold dishes on the way back. It was my first time trying that kind of cold dish.
Leaving the base, entering the factory
The last day at the training base came on July 16. I went downstairs to collect my uniform and got scolded for wearing slippers. In the afternoon there was what was called a "farewell event," though in reality it was just everyone being gathered into a multimedia classroom to receive work ID cards. After waiting a very long time with packed bags, we finally got on the bus into the Foxconn campus. As we left, people stood on both sides and clapped us off. The whole thing was awkward.
The Foxconn dormitory was awful.
The room smelled terrible and looked filthy. I reported it to the squad leader, and he told me to just find another empty bed in a different room. I ended up staying in Kaipeng's dorm on an unused bed. I had not bought a quilt yet, only a sleeping mat, and the air conditioner was too cold. That night was miserable.
First day on the job, first attempt to rent outside
On July 17, the first official workday inside Foxconn started early. We had to gather downstairs in the dorm area after six in the morning and wait around for quite a while before someone came to lead us. I did not even know exactly who that person was. We were shown the logistics office, the captain's office, and the toilets, then brought to the squad leader's office and left sitting there for most of the morning.
At noon, food was ordered for us. Other groups were gradually taken away by their own leaders, while we waited and waited before finally being led to our post in the afternoon. There I met an experienced older guard who explained a lot about how things worked. We chatted for a long time. At one point the conversation turned to betel nut, and he actually went out to buy betel nut and cola for us. That was the first time I had ever tried betel nut.
After work, the squad leader told Zhanwen and me to rest the next day.
That night, Zhanwen, Guangyi, and I decided to try renting a place outside instead of staying in the dorms. We searched on different apps and started viewing rooms. The first one looked acceptable, but the rent was over 1,300 yuan, and with the deposit added in, it was too much. We dropped it.
Then Zhanwen took us to Gonghe Xincun, above a Meiyijia convenience store. We did not even ask the price before going up. The room was better than the first one, but the rent was also shockingly high, so that was another no.
While walking around afterward, all three of us kept contacting listings. One place nearby turned out to be the same one both I and Guangyi had separately reached through different messages. That room was 950 yuan, with 400 yuan more for deposit and utility deposit. After discussing it, we agreed it was manageable. The agent said we could stay there for one night first and sign the contract with the landlord the next day. Before leaving, he said he would not give us the air-conditioner remote that night and would bring it the next day.
But I found the remote hidden on top of the wardrobe.
Then Guangyi hid it again above the air conditioner, and we used a phone's infrared function to turn the AC on.
The rental fell apart in one day
The next day was supposed to be a rest day, so we slept at the rented place and rode shared bikes back to the factory area in the morning to move our luggage over. We had lunch, bought daily necessities, and later Zhanwen brought another friend over.
When the landlord arrived and saw four people, he immediately asked how many of us would be living there. We said three. He replied that only two could stay. If three people were found living there, both rent and deposit would be forfeited. He also said the minimum lease was six months.
We had no intention of renting that long. At most, we wanted a month and a half. The agent had not mentioned that at all the night before.
After whispering with the landlord, the agent came back and said three people could stay, but only if we rented for six months. We refused and asked for the 800 yuan deposit we had paid the night before. The agent pretended to call the landlord, then claimed 200 yuan would be deducted because we had stayed there one night.
That set everyone off, and Guangyi was the fiercest among us.
Our point was simple: the minimum lease term had never been explained, and if the place could not be rented short term, both the landlord and agent had an obligation to say so clearly before taking money and letting us stay. We would not accept the 200-yuan deduction. We argued back and forth for a long time, and once the word "police" came up, the agent became noticeably less tough.
In the end, he changed his tune and said the actual charge would be 30 yuan for one night's stay by three people and 40 yuan for water and electricity. What happened in practice was that only 30 yuan was deducted and 770 yuan was returned to us.
As we were about to leave, the landlord ran out and asked where we had hidden the air-conditioner remote. He also asked whether money had been deducted from us. We did not tell him where the remote was. We just said the agent had never given it to us, and we had not seen it.
Then we had to drag all our luggage back into Foxconn.
On the way, I called the squad leader and asked him to help arrange another dorm because our original beds had already been occupied. That room had been disgusting anyway. He got us moved to Dorm 374, but it was not much better. Water kept dripping inside. There was not much to do except endure it for a while before school started again.
Around that same time, Zhanwen heard some vague message, put on his work uniform, and rushed to the gathering point, only to find out later that there had been no need to gather at all. While we were moving luggage around, some people thought we were trying to run away and joked, "Leaving already?"
Switching shifts and settling into routine
On July 19, I switched from day shift to night shift. Sundays were rotation days, and the change in sleep schedule felt rough. The hours became 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., then later 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.. After getting off at three in the afternoon, I went out to meet Songwei for milk tea. On the way back I bought 20 yuan worth of cold dishes and a slice of watermelon. I noticed that both times I had bought cold dishes, the shop owners were from Chaoshan.
I slept only a little and then woke up again. That night I went to the assembly point after 10:30 and was late. Night shift was hard in its own way. In the middle of the night I bought fried noodles with soybean paste and a marinated egg. After eating, I got sleepy, but my stomach started feeling bloated. Whenever I lay down, it got worse. I ended up making repeated trips to the toilet until my heels hurt from squatting. My feet went numb. I did not get even a short nap until after five in the morning.
By July 20, the routine had already become repetitive enough that I found myself using quiet hours at the post to fill in diary entries I had missed from earlier days. That night I was assigned to A10, 4th floor, and the work was relatively idle.
On July 21, a package arrived for me, but it had been placed at the guard station and the guard there questioned whether I actually belonged inside the area. Tuesday was also cleaning day. We gathered without realizing that ordinary assembly did not require the work uniform, so we showed up in uniform half-awake and confused. That night Zhanwen and I were assigned together to B3 east side, south gate 2, first floor on the night shift. We spent most of the night talking. At one point he was playing games with a female coworker, and I got so bored that I started chatting with dorm mates in the dorm group. Between 5 and 7 a.m., I was both sleepy and uncomfortable.
A day off came on July 22. After getting off in the morning and eating breakfast, I lay down and slept. A courier call woke me around noon because the guard post at the recruitment center refused to hold the package, saying they did not know me. So I had to go pick it up myself. After that I slept again until around four or five in the afternoon. Then Zhanwen and I took the metro from Qinghu toward Shenzhen North. Originally we had wanted to go to Hongshuwan in Bao'an, but it felt too far, so we changed plans, went to Shenzhen North instead, watched some drones, and returned to the dorm. That night I kept sleeping.
The strange comfort of easy posts
On July 23, I finally got moved after repeatedly mentioning that I had been on the B3 post for several days. That night I was assigned to B13, which felt like the most comfortable post so far.
The only problem was a frog.
In the middle of the night, it hopped into the guard booth. I tried to sweep it away with a file folder, but it jumped onto my hand twice. Then near dawn, when I picked the folder up again, I discovered the frog somehow stuck inside it and got startled all over again.
The next day, July 24, there was a collective training session. I could not clock in at first and had to wait groggily until after nine. At five in the afternoon we gathered for a meeting about discipline, took a group photo, introduced ourselves, and were dismissed. After six, we assembled at C1 and I was assigned to B3 north gate 2, first floor. It was supposed to be Zhanwen and me there, but later they swapped him with an older employee. I ended up talking for a long time with that veteran coworker, Li Qi.
On July 25, another day off, I went with Guangyi and Gaole to Shenzhen Bay Park and the OCT Harbor area. Guangyi flew a drone there. We ate in the evening, and I also had a bottle of something to drink. On the ride back to the dorm, I got motion sick and felt like vomiting. I guessed the food had not agreed with me.
The following night, July 26, I was sent to support another team. The assigned post became D10 south gate 2, second floor, night shift. I had originally been somewhere on the east side with Li Qi, but because Zhu Xiaodong's area was short-handed, I was transferred there. That was a one-person post inside a workshop. Apart from the cleaners, there was only one person actually working in the workshop that night. Almost nobody came through. It was quiet enough that someone else might have slept, but I did not dare.
A day off spent revisiting old places
On July 27, I slept until the afternoon, then went out alone for chicken leg rice and rode a bike back toward an older part of my own past: Wuwu Village.
Walking there felt strange because a lot had changed. I took a different small path in, and the old Foxconn entrance I knew was still there, but the original path had been blocked off. As I walked, I noticed that the old Dongli Internet Café was still operating. From the front it looked closed, but the back entrance was open, so I went in. I played a bit, then spent a long time working on promotional writing. After that I went to Longhua Culture Square. The horse statue was still there, but the crowds were much bigger than before. There were more square-dancing groups and many more people doing livestreams. While talking with Peimin and others on WeChat voice calls, I slowly walked back toward Youfu Mall, bought fried rice noodles and a slice of watermelon, and picked up snacks at the supermarket before returning to the dorm.
Small incidents on the job
On July 28, I worked at the recruitment center A3 gate guard post for the first time, together with a loud and careless older woman. That same day, Zhanwen got caught using his phone while on duty at B3 east side. The squad leader did not criticize him in front of everyone, but he did speak to him privately.
On July 29, I was back at B3 east side, south gate 2, first floor, night shift again, once more with Li Qi. Like before, we talked through the entire night and did not really sleep.
The next day was a rest day. I slept during the day, then went out after nine at night and bought fruit for 20.5 yuan, fried rice noodles for 10 yuan, and a pack of masks for 15 yuan.
By July 31, the notes had become almost plain bookkeeping. Nothing dramatic happened. It was another night shift. Li Qi was on patrol duty and had me assigned to B13 again. That post was still one of the better ones. Maybe I had slept too much during the rest day, because I stayed awake all night without much drowsiness.
Why the diary stopped
I did not keep writing the security guard diary after that.
Part of the reason was simple: once the novelty wore off, the work became repetitive to the point of dullness. Day after day it was just going on shift, getting off shift, resting, and then doing it again. Even on days off, I mostly met up with friends in Shenzhen, went out to eat, or checked out places around the city. At one point I even had seafood hotpot with the same junior schoolmate mentioned at the beginning.
That whole stretch of security work was mainly a summer break experience for me and Zhanwen.
In general, the job felt too idle, yet also mentally draining. Another thing that stood out was the atmosphere around many of the people doing that kind of work—rough language was common. I started writing these notes in July 2020, after spending half a year at home taking online classes during the pandemic, and then heading to Shenzhen not long after.
When I reorganized the diary in 2022, I noticed how much irritation and foul language had crept into the original entries. Part of that was probably youth and immaturity, and part of it was the environment and the people around me at the time.
What still moves me when I think back on it is not the job itself, but small acts of kindness. Zou Bin closed his shop early to receive me, booked me a hotel room, and even came to have breakfast with me the next morning.
Work schedule I remembered afterward
July
- 13 Mon — Training base 1
- 14 Tue — Training base 2
- 15 Wed — Training base 3 (4–6)
- 16 Thu — Training base to Foxconn ("farewell event")
- 17 Fri — Morning in squad leader's office / afternoon on post (B3 east side, 1st floor, day shift)
- 18 Sat — Day off
- 19 Sun — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (shift change, 7:00–15:00, 23:00–7:00)
- 20 Mon — A10, 4th floor (night shift)
- 21 Tue — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 22 Wed — Day off
- 23 Thu — B13 (night shift)
- 24 Fri — B3 north gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 25 Sat — Day off
- 26 Sun — D10 south gate 2, 2F (night shift)
- 27 Mon — Day off
- 28 Tue — Recruitment center A3 gate guard post (night shift)
- 29 Wed — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 30 Thu — Day off
- 31 Fri — B13 (night shift)
August
- 1 Sat — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 2 Sun — Day off (system error turned it into leave??? Owed me one rest day)
- 3 Mon — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (day shift, got caught looking at phone)
- 4 Tue — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (day shift)
- 5 Wed — Day off
- 6 Thu — B13 (day shift)
- 7 Fri — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (day shift), went to support D7 elevator
- 8 Sat — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (day shift)
- 9 Sun — Day off
- 10 Mon — Day off (the one that was owed)
- 11 Tue — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (day shift)
- 12 Wed — Day off
- 13 Thu — B3 1st floor north gate 2 (day shift)
- 14 Fri — B13 (day shift)
- 15 Sat — B3 1st floor north gate 2 (day shift)
- 16 Sun — Day off
- 17 Mon — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 18 Tue — C11 south gate 2, 2F (night shift)
- 19 Wed — Day off
- 20 Thu — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 21 Fri — B13 (night shift)
- 22 Sat — D10 south gate 1, 2F pedestrian post (night shift)
- 23 Sun — Day off
- 24 Mon — C16 north gate 1, 1.5F pedestrian post (night shift)
- 25 Tue — B3 east side, south gate 2, 1st floor (night shift)
- 26 Wed — Day off
- 27 Thu — D10 south gate 1, 2F pedestrian post (night shift)
- 28 Fri — B2, 1st floor (night shift)