In recent years, the Chinese economy has been declining, and the unemployment rate continues to rise. Recently, in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, a middle-aged man stayed curled up in his car for 7 days “pretending to go to work” after losing his job. Eventually, due to the car running out of power and his phone running out of battery, he found himself in a desperate situation and broke down emotionally: “I really can’t hold on anymore…”
According to the report in the Ningbo Evening News on April 30, the man was suddenly laid off by the company some time ago. To avoid worrying his family, he lied that he was “on a business trip” and stayed in his car, searching for jobs during the day but facing setbacks repeatedly. At night, he curled up in his car to spend the night. On the seventh day (April 23), his phone ran out of battery, and he had spent all the money he had.
To make matters worse, due to frequent charging of his phone using the car battery, the car couldn’t start due to the lack of power. He was trapped in the parking lot and, with no way out, he sought help from the traffic police. However, before he could speak, tears were already streaming down his face, hands covering his face, and he emotionally broke down, saying, “I really can’t hold on anymore…”
On May 1, the topic of “Man experiences a major incident, sleeps consecutively in the car for 7 days” surged to the top of Weibo hot searches. Netizens expressed their sympathy, saying, “Sigh… the national economy is in a slump, 2026 is already a tough year, next year will be even more challenging.” “It’s so hard for ordinary people to live.” “The pressure on adults is really overwhelming, making them prone to collapse.”
The man’s experience is not an isolated case.
In late April, a middle-aged man in Dongguan, Guangdong, went through a major life event and slept continuously in his car for 7 days, eliciting widespread sympathy and attention from society.
According to community workers and insiders, the man, surnamed Chen, 47 years old, was a middle-level manager at a manufacturing company in Dongguan. Within a month, he was first put on the list for optimization due to company layoffs, followed by his wife filing for divorce, and then his elderly mother being diagnosed with a serious illness and hospitalized. Under multiple blows, Mr. Chen drove his car to the community parking lot, closed the windows, and stayed inside the car for a week without eating or drinking until the patrolling security guards found him and took him to the hospital.
After an examination, it was found that Mr. Chen suffered from severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalance due to not eating or drinking for a long time. Fortunately, he was discovered in time and there were no major issues. Some netizens also shared their experiences on social media, with one saying, “I have also gone through days like these, staying in a car for several days.”