A Shanghai deliveryman who lost his leg after an accident has defied expectations to become an outstanding logistics professional

A courier in Shanghai typically delivers about 100 parcels a day. It is a backbreaking job that leaves one constantly exposed to the elements and with little time to take a breather.

Shen Guangyu, who has been a courier for nearly six years in Shanghai's Fengxian Bay, delivers on average 300 parcels a day.

In the days following the annual Double 11 online shopping carnival－the most hectic period of the year for couriers－Shen can deliver in excess of 750 orders a day.

What is more astounding is that he does so with only one leg.

To get around, he relies on his motorized tricycle and a trusty, specially designed crutch made using heavy-duty iron water pipes.

Born in Yancheng, Jiangsu province, Shen moved to Shanghai with his parents when he was in the sixth grade, about six years after his leg was amputated following an accident while swimming.

At 15, Shen started working as a cobbler in one corner of a food market, citing the sedentary nature of the job as an ideal fit for someone with his disability. But after persevering for 11 years in that line of work, he decided it was time for a change of scenery.

Despite his condition, Shen wanted to be on the move. Fortuitously, a friend, who worked as a courier at ZTO Express, referred him to the logistics company.

The boss of the company was initially skeptical about hiring a man on crutches, but eventually took a leap of faith.

Given his disability, Shen was given a lighter workload of about 70 packages to deliver on his first day of work.

The boss quickly realized that Shen did not need any special treatment. "I finished delivering those packages within two hours. My boss was very surprised!" he said.

"I have now been in this job for five years. Getting to do deliveries makes me happy, and I've even set a goal of delivering 500,000 orders in five years."

Shen appears to be nearing his goal, having already delivered more than 400,000 orders.

But amassing such an impressive volume of deliveries has come with its pitfalls. Shen acknowledged that his eagerness to excel in his job eventually led to a severe medical condition.

A few years ago, while braving the stifling summer weather to make deliveries, Shen realized that a sore had developed in his left armpit due to the constant use of his crutches.

Thinking that it was just a minor problem, he left the wound unattended. It was only when the wound started to fester and bleed that he made his way to the hospital. By then, medication was not enough to fix the problem－Shen had to undergo surgery and was forced to rest for half a month.

When asked about what keeps him going in this grueling line of work, Shen said that it is the warmth shown by his customers, many of whom offer him a drink when seeing him at their doorsteps.

Once, while making deliveries in the aftermath of the Double 11 shopping carnival, Shen sat on the floor in front of the delivery cabinets to take a breather.

Upon seeing this, a customer brought a chair from his home and presented it to the exhausted courier.

"He didn't just offer me a chair to sit on. He actually gave it to me. I still have this chair in my home today," Shen said.

Shen's boss, too, has always been on the lookout for him. Shen said that he is usually assigned the smaller items and never has to be involved in the sorting of packages as that is difficult for him to perform.

Because of Shen's relentless efforts, ZTO Express has, with the support of the local government and Cainiao, a company that operates parcel depots, embarked on a project to set up a special station located near colleges in Fengxian.

Following the establishment of this station, Shen will exclusively deliver parcels to the station. He will also divide his time between making deliveries and helping manage the operations of the facility.

While grateful for the company's good intentions, Shen said that he is still looking forward to racing around in his tricycle to achieve his goal of completing 500,000 deliveries.

"I'm really moved by the concern that people have shown for me. But I sincerely hope they don't give me special treatment because of my condition. I still hope to be the same as everyone else," he said.