Volume Four: Mountain Streams Chapter Thirty-Four: The Balance of Giving and Gaining

The grass grows long year after year; the prosperity of the human world flourishes with each passing age. High towers rise ever higher, and while worldly affairs are ever-changing, there is a constancy in the cycle of things. Chen Chen learns his craft and studies in this human realm, where eagles circle daily in the high sky, white clouds drift and unfurl over the blue expanse, and the azure sea reflects the vastness of the heavens for ten thousand miles.

Chen Chen remains unhurried. In this human world, wonderful things happen every single day. Beauty cycles through the world of men. Grudges and affections continue as a long-flowing reincarnation through time. Chen Chen has shed some of the entanglements of his past life, gaining in their place the mundane struggles of his current mortal existence.

"Chen Chen, tomorrow is Sunday. Have you made any plans?" A crisp, childish voice echoes through the empty school corridor. It belongs to one of the few friends Chen Chen has made over these many years—a little girl.

"I haven't decided yet. Perhaps something interesting will turn up," Chen Chen replies.

"Why not come over to my place? My mom is cooking in person; her food is delicious," the little girl says, carrying her schoolbag and wearing her uniform. It seems as though a similar scene played out many years ago.

"I can't. My grandfather wants me to study hard and learn the art of carving from him. Perhaps one day I, too, can become a renowned master sculptor," Chen Chen answers, a trace of melancholy in his heart, as if some fated connection were slowly fading away.

"Are you... really not planning to come play with me?" the little girl asks, as warm and inviting as ever.

"It is truly inconvenient; my studies are very busy. Please give my regards to your parents for me!" With these words, Chen Chen shoulders his small bag and, feeling a lingering reluctance toward his childhood days, waves goodbye to the girl.

The two go their separate ways, each returning home accompanied by their elders. By the time he returns to the carving workshop, it is already dusk. The sun is setting, and a wisp of smoke catches Chen Chen’s eye as the twilight deepens with the fading light.

"Chen Chen, how were your studies today?" his grandfather asks with concern, knowing that Chen Chen’s parents are working far away and have little time to look after him. Relying on his modest skills, Old Chen works in the carving shop, earning a living throughout the year.

"They were fine. At school, the teacher taught us many things—Chinese, mathematics, and so on," Chen Chen answers truthfully.

"What else?" Old Chen asks, drawing on his own past experiences.

"What else could there be?" Chen Chen counters, feeling somewhat confused.

"Are there no other lessons?" Old Chen adds.

"Oh, right... the teacher said since I’ve just started primary school, those are the main subjects. There is also art, physical education, and things like that, but I didn't mention them in detail," Chen Chen explains.

"That's good, that's good..." Old Chen murmurs to himself, reflecting on the present. Fortunately, Chen Chen’s parents have a conscience; though they have been working away for many years, they occasionally send money for his living expenses. Through steady accumulation, Chen Chen has managed to save a little to help him through the occasional hardship of life.

At dinner time, Old Chen takes Chen Chen to the dining room, where a few of the old man's friends have arrived. They prepare wine and dishes, making do with a simple meal. After eating and drinking their fill, they burp in satisfaction, tipsy and huddled together, recounting their experiences over the years.

Minutes later, the table is nearly cleared. Amidst the scattered cups and plates, a gathering of fate leaves behind a lingering warmth. The sentiments of the past are rarely revisited, but today they have come together. Many old grievances are washed away in a cup of bitter wine, leaving only memories of affection.

"Chen Chen, clear the dishes!" Old Chen instructs, setting the boy to work.

"Yes, Grandfather!" Chen Chen responds. In this life, he is Chen Chen, the grandson of Old Chen. In many of his past lives, he lacked family, companions, and enemies. But in this life, enemies are found within the very fabric of daily existence.

He does not know when he might clash with those around him, but the precious connections of the present are right here. For the sake of a rare, beautiful life and the visions of the present, he must continue to survive with tenacity.

After finishing the chores and washing the laundry, Chen Chen goes to bed and falls asleep early. Tomorrow is Saturday and Sunday, so there is no school, no need to wake up early for class. Chen Chen decides to give his body a well-deserved break, allowing it to develop and grow properly. Sometimes, physical growth requires leisure; without pressure and with few demands, he can provide his body with enough nourishment.

On Saturday morning, Chen Chen sleeps until past nine. Unlike the workweek, when he usually has to get up at five or six, sleeping until nine feels like a major holiday for his body. After getting up, he eats breakfast and studies carving as usual. Chen Chen firmly believes that he will one day become a useful talent; for now, he simply needs to study well and strive to grow.

He no longer seeks to show off in the human world, nor does he crave to seize or plunder. Living in this world, Chen Chen has learned to accumulate human resources, material goods, and wealth. He ponders: his human resources are himself and his grandfather, and at school, he has many classmates and teachers. His material resources include the carving knife in his hand, his study tools, and the necessities of daily life he can access. His wealth comes sometimes from the pocket money his grandfather gives him, and sometimes from the living expenses his parents send.

Chen Chen patiently studies the carving techniques of the day, perhaps a craft that has existed for a very long time. With every cut and stroke upon the wood, he works on a medium-sized block of timber today. It has traveled a long distance, representing the labor of many hands. Money has been spent, and much material effort has been invested. Surviving in the human world often requires one to be tenacious, to work hard, to contribute, to accumulate wealth, and to build networks in order to live better.

Life is not just about money, nor is it only about like-minded friends and relatives; it is about far more than just what lies before one's eyes. Chen Chen spends the better part of the day carving a single object. It is not tall—a semi-finished carving about the height of a wooden stool. It has not yet been painted or oiled; it looks like a stump left behind after a great tree was felled. Once finished and sprayed with lacquer, it will become a small wooden stool—something to sit on to rest and take a load off.

This piece of carving did not come easily. After Chen Chen finishes the carving, Old Chen helps him with the lacquering and oiling, turning the stump into a qualified stool. After finishing, Chen Chen finally feels a sense of ease. It is a wonderful feeling, realizing that through his own labor, he has served a purpose and achieved value. He is no longer a poor man with nothing, no longer a pauper who possesses only a physical shell.

Chen Chen does not become arrogant; he does not preen himself with self-satisfaction after turning a piece of wood into a finished product. Instead, he gains insight into the path toward prosperity. It is true that the block of wood realized its value in his hands as a useful stool. It is also true that the wood grew for years in the soil, toughened by wind and rain, was harvested by workers, transported over long distances, and passed through several transactions. When it reached Old Chen’s workshop, he procured it and passed it on to Chen Chen to work with. It is a long, arduous process of effort.

Chen Chen realizes the weight of this object in his hands, how much he contributed to the finished piece, and how he may now enjoy the rewards of his labor in this world—this is the critical point.

Most of the day has passed. To survive in the human world, one must adapt to this way of gaining sustenance through effort. Throughout the entire process of contribution, people must work and accumulate every day to keep up with the speed of consumption, or to match the speed at which others contribute to us.

The extent of one's human resources depends on the quality of one's character. The amount of wealth depends on one's diligence, one's contributions, and the platforms and opportunities available. The material resources come from the labor and effort exerted along the way. One accumulates wealth and gains the help of others through connections. The degree to which material resources can be utilized depends on how much one can make of them. Chen Chen cannot say how much labor he has put in or how much he has gained. He knows that the Chen Chen of the past had once been poor in a strange land, working diligently only to find it insufficient to build a fortune.

Only today does he understand that in this human world, it is not just wealth that plays a role; it is also connections and material resources that allow one to realize one's desires and value.

Busy until dusk, Chen Chen accompanies Old Chen in the workshop. As Old Chen applies lacquer to the finished work, sweating profusely, he does not forget to teach Chen Chen the knowledge of coating. Old Chen is growing old, and in a few decades, he might not even be able to cut wood or apply lacquer, let alone sit without the need for a wheelchair. Considering the passage of time, it is time for Chen Chen to learn these skills, so that one day he can shoulder the burden and share the load for his grandfather.

On this day, Chen Chen learns how arduous and long the labor in the carving workshop has been. The hardships of life are evident; one might even say they rival those of the great and powerful.

Three meals a day, year after year, gathered together in human connection. After the sweat and the toil, one finds that the world is full of high platforms. Another day of hardship passes, and it is meal time again. Chen Chen joins Old Chen for a hearty meal, regardless of the cost. Everyone’s hard work is for the sake of being able to pay the bill when the time comes, to be able to take responsibility when consuming. This is the meaning of labor while living in the human world.

Work hard, live hard. Accumulate much, accumulate much to survive. Consumption exists, and some of the past accumulation is just to ensure one can afford a full meal. What follows is the constant effort that must be maintained. Because consumption never stops, and labor must continue, so that the contributions of others toward us do not cease.

Perhaps many of those busy toilers have grown weary of such a life. Yet, life is a cycle of equivalent exchange and equivalent contribution. Those who contribute to us may change, or they may temporarily stop to rest or adjust. But only labor produces results. Do not grow weary of this life; work is the foundation of existence in the human world. By standing firm, whether it is Chen Chen or anyone else, one will eventually lead an increasingly prosperous life.