"I came here since September 2008 to stop myself from gambling," said Zhang Yongqiang, 39.
The story of the owner of two supermarkets and a few properties is no news to the locals and other miners at Fengchun coal mine in Shihao town of Chongqing, China.
Before that, Zhang was hooked to gambling and some nights, he lost up to 80,000 yuan (RM38,856).
"I decided to quit the habit after losing a lot of money," he said.
Thus, Zhang became a miner – a job he initially wanted to keep him away from the outside world but soon he fell in love with his job.
His supportive wife and parents help him operate the supermarkets while he is at work.
Zhang gets up at 4am daily. He then goes to a hawker stall to have breakfast with his colleagues before reporting for work an hour later.
He keeps the cellphone in his locker and goes into a tunnel where he would travel on a 7,500m rail system to the mining spot in a 12-man cart.
Zhang takes a nap during the 40-minute journey before reaching an inter-section where he and his colleagues descent to 640m underground in a single cable elevator.
He returns to ground level at 4pm.
"I have not gambled for three years and this is the best period of my life," he said. (Chongqing Morning Post)
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