Zhu didn't know where the city's job market was and had to stand along the road with a board stating: "Seeking short-term jobs".
There were not as many employers as he expected — he earned less than an average of 1,000 yuan ($161) each month, which is not enough to cover the rent of a one-bedroom apartment in the city.
Unable to rent a house, he has to sleep beneath an overpass near the road where he seeks jobs every day, covered with the quilts he brought from his hometown.
There is no tap water and Zhu has not washed his clothes or taken a shower since he stepped into the city.
It has become more difficult for him to get by at night — the weather is colder than before and the wind "penetrates the bones".
He does not want to join construction teams like many other migrant workers do, because he was cheated by a construction team leader who refused to pay his salary of half a year.