The Square

Assembly Line

At four in the morning,
the darkest hour of the night,
the assembly workshop is bright as day.

​

Soldering, driving screws, inserting components, testing,
labeling, scanning, packing—
every movement flows seamless as running water,
not a second to pause.

​

The pace is too fast—
so fast there’s no time to think of tomorrow or the future.
Heads bow and rise, and dawn has broken.
Yet the night feels endless.

​

Under the stark fluorescent lights,
those tender, young faces
gradually grow weary, age.

​

Changes in personnel, the passage of years—
on the assembly line,
they don’t stir even half a ripple.

​

Xiao Hai (real name Zhou Luobo)

《流水线》

凌晨四点

一晚上最黑暗的时侯

组装车间里亮如白昼

焊锡,打螺丝,插件,测试贴标签,扫描,打包装

每一个动作都行云流水手

一秒都不能停

速度太快；快得没有时间思考明天和将来

头一低一抬就天亮了

夜晚永远没有尽头

惨白的日光灯下那一张张稚嫩,年轻的面孔

逐渐憔悴,老去

人事,岁月的变更

在流水线上激不起半朵浪花

小海:（真名周罗波）