Wang Jibing, a 56-year-old food delivery rider, has received the Lu Xun Literary Prize for his poetry collection Low Flight, which draws on the experiences of delivery workers navigating China’s gig economy. The collection was inspired by interviews and surveys conducted with approximately 200 delivery riders and touches on the everyday pressures and challenges they encounter in their work. Wang began his career as a delivery rider around 2019 and has since gained significant social media attention for his poetry and essays.
Wang’s literary journey began after leaving school as a teenager due to financial difficulties at home. He worked various jobs including construction, waste collection, and street vending before becoming a delivery rider. Despite his career transitions, he maintained a passion for reading and began sharing his own poems and essays on social media over the past decade. One of his poems, titled Man in a Hurry, went viral in 2022 after it was inspired by a frustrating delivery incident in 2019. He published his first poetry collection, also titled Man in a Hurry: Poems of a Food Delivery Rider, in 2023.
Upon learning of his award win on 15 July, Wang expressed nervousness about the recognition and acknowledged the mental pressure created by increased media attention. He indicated his intention to continue working as a delivery rider until age 60, stating that the award would not change his commitment to maintaining a down-to-earth lifestyle. The specific monetary award amount has not been publicly disclosed, though previous recipients received 100,000 Chinese yuan as of 2014.
Wang’s recognition reflects a broader trend of blue-collar workers in China gaining literary prominence and offering insights into working conditions in the country’s gig economy. Other notable examples include Hu Anyan’s 2023 memoir I Deliver Parcels in Beijing, which became a bestseller and was translated into English, and Fan Yusu’s autobiographical essay I am Fan Yusu, which went viral in 2017. The Lu Xun Literary Prize, named after an influential 20th-century Chinese writer, represents one of the country’s most distinguished literary honors.