Since the start of summer, high temperatures and heavy rainfall have occurred in many places. Facing the "roasting" test of high temperatures and frequent rain, many workers have persisted on the front lines. They are the delivery riders shuttling through streets and alleys, the sanitation workers silently safeguarding urban cleanliness, the construction personnel rooted at project sites... Each ordinary yet dedicated figure upholds the operation of urban and rural construction and outlines a distinctive scenery of this summer.

Entering July, Shanghai issued successive high-temperature warnings. With heatwaves rolling outdoors, Zhu Yanjun, a rider at the Meituan Zhangjiang station in Pudong, still rushes through streets and alleys every day.

"The weather is hot and orders are up—this is a good time for me to improve my work performance," Zhu Yanjun said. "When it's too hot, I can take a break at the rider station; it has air conditioning, a water dispenser, a microwave, and all the facilities are complete."

To cope with the heat, Meituan has adopted heatstroke prevention and cooling measures, providing heat-relief supply packages to riders in more than 100 cities, working with offline merchants to expand the rider station network across cities, launching a free shared power bank activity exclusively for riders, and activating emergency mechanisms for extreme weather.

Though the posts are ordinary, the responsibilities are extraordinary. Worker after worker uses sweat and dedication to ensure that the lives of countless households remain stable and orderly.

As temperatures climb, it is precisely the peak period for electricity use. Since the start of summer, the power grid in the Juxian area of Rizhao, Shandong, has continued to operate under high load. How to do a good job in meeting peak summer demand is a test for power workers.

"When replacing the contact boxes and bushings in the switchgear, be sure to tighten the screws." At the site of partial discharge defect elimination for the 10 kV switchgear at the 110 kV Lingyang Substation, Lu Mingxiao, deputy director of the Substation Operation and Maintenance Center of State Grid Rizhao Juxian Power Supply Company, reminded the staff to pay attention to maintenance details. For consecutive days, facing multiple challenges such as high temperatures and heavy rain, he has led his team to remain at their posts and fight on the front line of emergency repairs.

Lu Mingxiao, 46 this year, has been rooted in the front line of substation maintenance for 28 years. "As a power worker, doing my job solidly and ensuring reliable electricity for users is my duty," he said.

Hundreds of kilometers away, the rain in Hangzhou had just stopped after days, and the temperature returned to broiling mode. On Desheng East Road in Shangcheng District, sanitation worker Wang Guoan began early in the morning clearing scattered litter on the road, the sweat on his back soaking his work uniform. In recent days, his average daily walking steps have reached more than 30,000.

In Hangzhou, more than 20,000 sanitation workers stick to the front line through rotating shifts. "Working outdoors in this season is indeed hard, but being able to use our labor to safeguard the city's cleanliness and beauty means that no matter how hot the weather is, we will keep going," Wang Guoan said.

In summer, across the length and breadth of the country, the pace of builders does not stop. They race against time, stepping up efforts to ensure key projects and livelihood projects.

In Wuxi, Jiangsu, more than 10 meters underground, construction is underway in the shield tunneling section from Yongfeng Road Station to Jiankang Road Station on Wuxi Metro Line 5. In the hot, humid, and stuffy environment, Gao Hui, project manager of the Wuxi Metro Line 5 project of China Railway 19th Bureau Group, carefully inspects the procedures and briefs workers on safety precautions. Sweat drips continuously down his cheeks, and layer upon layer of salt stains seep through his blue work uniform.

"No matter how hot or tired it gets, being able to contribute to urban construction—that is the value of my life," Gao Hui said. Every morning before 7 o'clock, he holds the project morning meeting to summarize the previous day's construction progress, identify problems, and deploy the day's safety production work. Not long ago, under his leadership, the left-line shield tunneling section from Yongfeng Road Station to Jiankang Road Station on Wuxi Metro Line 5 was successfully completed.

In July in Xiamen, the outdoor heat is scorching. Entering the construction site of the airport section of the Xiamen-Zhangzhou-Quanzhou Intercity Railway R1 Line project of China Railway 22nd Bureau Group, more than 150 construction personnel are working in an orderly manner despite the severe heat.

Positioning, looping, tightening... In an underground foundation pit about 20 meters deep in the west section of the project, rebar worker Zhou Lianmei is skillfully tying rebar. The tying hook and binding wire pass through his hands, constantly shuttling among the rebars. Every day, he and more than 20 fellow workers face tons of rebar-tying tasks, completing tens of thousands of rebar ties. "No matter what the weather is like, working seriously and ensuring quality and quantity—these are our requirements for ourselves," Zhou Lianmei said.

Using struggle to interpret the spirit of labor, using responsibility to write a life of labor.

A thousand miles away, in Baoding, Hebei. At the construction site of the Yanzhi River Grand Bridge on the Xiong'an-Xinzhou High-Speed Railway, with a total length of 3,748.9 meters, tower cranes stand in clusters and machinery roars. The continuous rigid-frame arches on both banks of the Yanzhi River have begun to take shape, and more than 90 workers from China Railway 18th Bureau Group remain on the front line, stepping up efforts to advance the project.

On bridge piers more than 30 meters high, workers are pouring roof concrete. Liu Han, head of the work area, carefully inspects construction materials while guiding workers in concrete vibration operations. From May last year to now, Liu Han has kept a close eye on the construction site, and his face has long been tanned dark.

"This bridge is a controlling project for the entire Xiong'an-Xinzhou High-Speed Railway line. The pier foundations extend 23 meters underwater, making construction highly difficult. We have reasonably arranged construction to avoid workers operating during high-temperature periods, while firmly grasping construction progress to ensure the bridge is successfully closed as early as possible," Liu Han said.

In summer, worker after worker carries responsibility in their hearts, etching perseverance with sweat and writing the dedicated and work-loving sentiments of strivers in the new era.