Tough life of China's high maintenance team

Fang Yongsheng, 48, in his dorm, Oct 15. Fang has worked on the fifth road maintenance team on Que'er Mountain for five years. In 2009 he asked road management to transfer him from a road maintenance station at a lower altitude to the current 4889-kilometer spot, so as to earn 800 yuan more than his current 3800 yuan per month. He said his daughter is about to graduate from college and may need money if the job market is tough. [Photo by Feng Zhonghao/Provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"I began working on this team in 2003. In 2007, a road maintenance worker of my acquaintance introduced my now-wife to me. We began dating soon after that and got married in 2008. I was then allowed a 15-day vacation to hold a wedding and spend time with my new bride,"Liu said.

"Since the beginning of our relationship until now, the time I and my wife spent together is shorter than 18 months.

"Before we tied the knot, she had lots of concerns about me being unable to live with her if we were married. Even now, six years after we got married, she sometimes complains about me being unable to solve her problems in daily living, like other husbands do. She has been living with my parents since we got married. "

Liu's daughter is now aged 5, but she can hardly recognize her father each Spring Festival when he comes back home.

"I can feel that after about 50 days of living and having fun together, she establishes a sense of intimacy and reliance on me. She always follows me in whatever I do. At the end of my Spring Festival vacation, when it is time for me to leave, she stays behind her mother or grandmother, and comes to me to kiss me goodbye only after other adults tell her to.

"Every time I make phone calls to my family and ask them to put her on the phone, she just says ‘dad' and then runs away."

Liu Xiaogang earns over 3000 yuan ($489.43) per month, the average pay of workers on the fifth road maintenance team. He can save and send more than 20,000 yuan home.

"During the Spring Festival vacation, I like to take my wife and son out for dinner. I also like to take strolls in parks and along the streets, to see what has happened in the city, whether there have been any new things or entertainment,"Liu said.