在滨濂村租住的进城务工人员大多都是像张彩凤夫妇这样的零工，年龄多在40岁至70岁之间。相比住在蒸笼一般的出租房里的难受，让张彩凤更忧心的是城中村越来越少。
“像住在蒸笼里一样，衣服湿了干，干了湿。” 连日来，好多高温四级预警，室外温度直逼40摄氏度，路面滚烫，隔着鞋底也能感受到炙热。7月7日上午10时40分，张彩凤提前结束了上午的摆摊，回到自己的出租屋里。尽管有一台电风扇对着吹，但汗水仍然止不住地从她的额头上冒出来。“一个月才能挣2000多元，哪里有钱租带空调的房子。” 张彩凤说着从腰包里掏出一把皱巴巴的零钱整理着。
张彩凤住的地方是一个城中村，低矮的房屋与四周的高楼鳞次栉比地排列着，密不透风，电线拉扯得密密麻麻。尽管环境恶劣，但这里的租金很有优势，交通也十分便利。有近千名像张彩凤这样的务工人员，选择这里当自己的栖身之地。
之后，便依靠打零工度日。去年张彩凤置办了一套赖以为生的家什，每天外出摆摊过活。由于每天需要在户外站立10多个小时，刚满40岁的她显得比同龄人苍老许多。
从滨濂村入口走进去，右拐，走过一段逼仄的小巷，两栋6层高“握手楼”就是张彩凤夫妇租住的地方。这是一间大约20平方米的一室一厅，屋里铺着两张床，仅靠一台吊扇降温。当天中午，记者随身携带的温度计显示出租屋内温度约为33摄氏度，而室外温度已超39摄氏度。
“每天晚上睡觉前，我们都要将席子用冷毛巾擦两遍，不然席子摸起来都烫人。”张彩凤说，这几乎是她和丈夫睡前必做的事情。“房间西侧有一扇窗户。下午2点多，太阳透过窗户晒到了床上，到了晚上，席子就变得‘摸不得’。到了七八月份海南最闷热的时候，我们几乎都只能睡在地上。”
“城中村越来越少，租金还在不断上涨”
“这么热的天，谁不想用上空调呢，可孩子和老人还等着我们寄生活费呢。”张彩凤告诉记者，自己两个孩子在老家上学，丈夫在工地打临工，好的时候夫妻俩每月能赚6000多元，除去每月550元的房租和日常开销，他们会把剩余的钱寄回老家给双方父母。
“我丈夫在工地上干活，风吹日晒的，比我辛苦多了。他打临工，干完今天没明天。有时候一闲下来就要耽搁四五天，一个月下来能挣4000元已经算不错了。”张彩凤说，自己摆摊虽然挣得不多，可是稳定。
English Translated Version:
Most of the migrant workers renting in Binlian Village are like Zhang Caifeng and her husband, doing odd jobs, with ages mostly ranging from 40 to 70. What worries Zhang more than the discomfort of living in a cramped rental house is the fact that there are fewer and fewer urban villages.
"It feels like living in a steam room; the clothes get wet and then dry, then get wet again." For days, there have been multiple high-temperature warnings, with outdoor temperatures soaring close to 40°C, the road surfaces so hot that you can feel the heat even through your shoes. On the morning of July 7th at 10:40 AM, Zhang Caifeng ended her stall work early and returned to her rental home. Even though there was an electric fan blowing in her direction, sweat kept pouring down her forehead. "I can only earn about 2,000 yuan a month; how could I afford to rent a place with air conditioning?" Zhang said as she pulled out a handful of crumpled change from her waist pouch and began to organize it.
This is an urban village, where low-rise houses are nestled between the towering high-rises, making the area dense and suffocating. Electric wires crisscross everywhere. Despite the poor conditions, the rent here is affordable, and transportation is convenient. Nearly a thousand migrant workers like Zhang Caifeng choose to make this place their home.
She survives by doing odd jobs. Last year, Zhang purchased the basic household items she needed to make a living and began selling goods at a stall every day. Because she spends more than ten hours a day standing outside, Zhang, who is just over 40, looks much older than others her age.
Entering Binlian Village, you take a right turn, walk down a narrow alley, and two six-story "Handshake Buildings" (narrow buildings built in close proximity to each other) stand as Zhang and her husband’s home. Their apartment is a one-bedroom unit of about 20 square meters, with two beds and just one ceiling fan for cooling. On that day, the thermometer carried by the reporter showed the temperature inside the apartment was around 33°C, while the temperature outside had already exceeded 39°C.
"Every night before we go to sleep, we have to wipe the mats with a cold towel twice, or else the mats will be too hot to touch," Zhang Caifeng said. "This is something my husband and I have to do every night before bed." She added, "There’s a window on the west side of the room. After 2 p.m., the sun shines through the window onto the bed, and by evening, the mats are unbearable to touch. During the hottest months of July and August in Hainan, we can barely sleep on the bed and end up sleeping on the floor."
"Urban villages are disappearing, and rent keeps rising."
"On such hot days, who wouldn’t want to use air conditioning? But our kids and elderly parents are waiting for us to send them living expenses," Zhang Caifeng told the reporter. Her two children are studying back home, and her husband works on construction sites as a day laborer. When business is good, the couple can earn over 6,000 yuan a month. After paying the 550 yuan rent and covering daily expenses, they send the rest of the money back home to support both sets of parents.
"My husband works on the construction site under the sun and wind, much harder than I do. He’s a day laborer, and sometimes there’s no work for days. If he’s lucky, he can earn 4,000 yuan a month," Zhang Caifeng said. "I don’t make much selling goods at the stall, but at least it's stable."
