On August 25, despite the persistent high temperatures in Shanghai with a midday heat reaching 38.8°C, a wave of warmth flowed through the lines outside more than 130 stores in the city. That day, the “Warm City Week — Tribute to Urban Guardians” charity event officially launched, aiming to distribute 100,000 handmade steamed buns and chilled plum juice over the course of a week, offering care to outdoor workers.
Dedication at 4 AM: From Kneading to Steaming, Every Meal Pack Holds the “Warmth of Time”
At the Dong’an Road store in Xuhui District, staff were seen busy inside the shop, with steam rising from the buns in the steamers and plum juice neatly arranged in the refrigerators. The store manager explained that employees arrive at 4 AM daily, strictly following the process of “kneading — pressing — proofing — wrapping — steaming” to ensure that the food received by outdoor workers is served hot. “Kneading must be vigorous to give the dough its chewiness; pressing ensures evenness; proofing time must be sufficient to avoid hard buns; wrapping requires ample filling, and finally steaming for 15 minutes guarantees ‘freshly made’ quality.” The store manager picked up a freshly steamed bun, filling the air with the aroma of wheat.
At 11:30 AM, half an hour before the distribution time, several sanitation workers were already waiting outside the store. One sanitation worker said, “I am responsible for cleaning the nearby streets. I leave home a little after 4 AM. On hot days, it gets especially scorching, and after 10 AM, temperatures can reach 38°C. After sweeping one street, my clothes are completely drenched. I heard that buns and plum juice are being distributed here, so I came to check it out.”
At exactly 12 PM, the distribution activity officially began. The staff had clear divisions of labor, each attending to their duties. Delivery riders stopped by from time to time to pick up meal packs, placing them in their delivery boxes before quickly heading to their next destination. At that moment, an uncle without a uniform or work ID came to ask if he could receive a meal. The staff gently responded, “What filling would you like, sir? We are prioritizing sanitation workers and delivery riders, but if you are in need, you can also have one.” The uncle repeatedly expressed his thanks after receiving the meal pack.
At the Zhangwu Road store in Yangpu District, a delivery rider, Xiao Wang (pseudonym), approached the window without even removing his helmet: “Can you make it quick? I still have two orders to deliver.” The staff quickly handed over the meal pack. Xiao Wang opened it under the shade of a tree near the store and took a bite, saying, “From noon to 2 PM is the busiest time for orders. There’s no time to eat. Getting a meal pack helps fill my stomach and allows me to deliver a couple more orders.”
At 1 PM in the afternoon, a sudden heavy rain began, but at the Jianian Road store in Jiading District, many sanitation workers and delivery riders still came to collect meal packs. Everyone arrived with umbrellas or raincoats, expressing their thanks to the staff when receiving the meals.
As the rain lightened, the operations team arrived at the Dong’an Road store for an inspection. An operations staff member mentioned that during preparation, the plan underwent three rounds of refinement, mainly addressing the issues of “time-consuming handmade bun preparation” and “scheduling conflicts.” “During the morning rush, stores need to serve office workers, while outdoor workers are also on duty. Therefore, the distribution time was set from 12:00 to 18:00 to avoid conflicts and make it convenient for their afternoon breaks. In terms of inventory
