No Effort Goes Unrewarded

I met Wu the year I moved to Beijing.

An Unconventional Existence

As I walked out of the subway exit every night after work,I would pass a vibrant night market buzzing with hustle and bustle.I enjoyed watching the street vendors—there was an elderly woman selling special delicacies by the roadside,a man named Zhang drumming up business for designer discount clothes,a boy with cropped hair sitting behind a small blackboard peddling cellphone screen protectors,and my favorite girl who sold different flowers with the change of seasons.

You can only see those people outside the Fifth Ring Road in Beijing.

A man named Wu,who left an indelible impression in my mind always read books while waiting for customers.From his beige van overflowing with CDs on a mounted rack,the music he played to attract customers was far different from what the middle-aged women use for square dancing that emanates throughout the streets and alleys every evening,which is why it drilled itself so deep in my memory.

Wu’s CD player meted out medleys of mellifluous music,lively American country music on sunny days and soft music on cloudy days.I can’t recall the names exactly,but those beautiful strains could really brighten up an otherwise dreary day of gray skies whose melancholy hues could penetrate a person right down to the soul.

One day,a sudden gust of wind sent the dust on the ground billowing in the air causing the pedestrians to scurry away.Knowing the drill,the majority of the vendors gathered their wares lickety-split,ready to head back home.Surprisingly,a potent tune drifted along with the dust-filled wind,coming from Wu’s stand.The song was “Ten Thousand Hippies” by renowned Chinese rock band,Omnipotent Youth Society (OYS).As an expression of cynicism and bewilderment that modern young people harbored about their dreams,the song was favored by many rock fans.I was drawn to it like moths to a flame,only to find Wu leaning casually against his van,reading a book as always.He looked so dug in that even the high wind didn’t seem to disturb him.

遇见阿五那年，我刚到北京。

另类的存在

每晚下班从地铁口出来后，会经过一条人声鼎沸、洋溢着烟火气息的夜市。我喜欢观察这条路上的摊贩：卖特色食品的大妈，卖品牌折扣衣服的张哥，立着一块小黑板贴手机膜的男生梳着圆寸头，还有我最喜欢的应着时节轮换的鲜花小妹。

这些人，是在北京五环之外才能打着交道的存在。

给我印象最特别的摊贩是夜市末尾处的阿五，他总是一边看书一边卖碟。他那辆香槟色面包车上装满了车载CD，播放的却不是国内大街小巷常听到的那些广场舞旋律。

阿五的CD 在不同风格的音乐间灵活切换，晴天时会放轻快的美国乡村音乐，阴天时是轻音乐，我叫不上名字，只觉得应着灰蒙蒙铅色的天景，叫人心头格外透亮。

一天傍晚，狂风突至，地面上的灰尘被翻卷起来，行人纷纷快速掩面而去。附近的摊贩都麻溜儿地收拾好手边物件，打算回家。阿五那边却突然传来摇滚乐队“万能青年旅店”的《十万嬉皮》，这首歌唱出了现代青年对于理想近乎极致的幽困，是很多喜欢摇滚的青年的最爱。我忍不住走过去，看见阿五一如既往倚靠在车旁看书，神色淡然，完全没有受到大风催促的迹象。

听到我要买万青的CD，阿五开始主动和我搭讪。这一聊我才知道，原来我们差不多大。他平时不苟言笑的模样，总让我觉得他应该年长我很多。

Wu struck up conversations with me when I showed my interest in OYS’s albums.After some small talk,I realized that he was about my age.However,his pervasive solemnity had left me an impression that he was much older than me.

An Ambitious Goal

Born in a village in southwestern China,the fifth child among the siblings in the family was always dismissed as a cipher.Since childhood,he had known that his family remained in such dire poverty that it was financially difficult for all of them to finish their college education.Despite his outstanding performances in high school,he decided to leave his hometown for Beijing looking for jobs,in the hope of applying for his dream university through hard work as well as earning more money.

“Any choices?” I asked.

“The University of Illinois,”he said,his eyes flickering with bright light.After he came to Beijing,he visited some education consulting agencies who told him that he needed to pass the TOEFL test and some other various and sundry tests,as well as a hefty sum of money to live abroad.With three part-time jobs,he shuttled between workplaces every day.However,he earned money by the sweat of his brow due to his poor educational background.Thanks to his diligence and kindness,he soon demonstrated his competence in each job.Through his CD business at night,he discovered that those living in the neighborhood were young people just like himself,who weren’t particularly fond of the mouldy oldies that accompanied the nightly square dancing ritual.

Truly,the essential art of doing business was to read people’s minds and satisfy their needs.Every evening after 6 pm,when people flooded out of the subway exit they were most likely to listen to music with a whole day’s pentup emotions seething underneath the surface as they made their way to their stuffy,florescent-tinged offices.Wu always saw customers arriving in an unbroken stream.

From then on,whenever I passed by his place I would stop over and make small talk with him.

难及的目标

阿五出生在西南某地的农村，家里兄弟姊妹众多，他是老五，很容易被大家忽略。打小阿五就知道，自己家的情况实在糟糕，怕是很难供所有孩子顺利读完大学。所以尽管在学校里成绩优异，高考之后，他还是决定离开家乡，一路北上，来到京城，既为了多赚点钱贴补家用，也是想通过自己的努力考上心仪的学校。

“那你想考哪个大学呢？”我问。

“美国的伊利诺伊大学。”阿五眼睛亮晶晶的。阿五来到北京之后，去留学机构咨询了情况，得知出国留学除了要学英语考托福、专业考试，还要有一笔不菲的生活费。他一天打三份工，辗转在不同的场所，因为受着学历的限制，所以工作起来算不得很轻松。好在阿五做事勤快，与人为善，在几个打工的地方都很快干得得心应手。夜里就来夜市卖碟，他发现这片区域生活着的大都是和他差不多的年轻人，这些人喜欢的音乐多半不是广场舞神曲之类的。

懂得观察和对症下药，是做生意的基本道法。每晚6 点钟之后，地铁口会涌出大量人流，在办公室里压榨了一天的干渴之心，最易被音乐点燃。阿五的摊子前总不缺生意。

从那之后，走过路过，我总会上前和阿五聊那么几句。

不觉得自己穷

他每晚都是最后一个收摊儿的，收摊之后就回到自己租的小隔断间。隔断间没有窗户，一个月800 块钱。他去宜家买了盏性能好、耗电量低的台灯，夜里就在那盏灯下学习。为了不打扰合租室友，他背单词从来不出声，仅仅是嘴巴在张张合合。

北京的冬天不好过，阿五的房子是自采暖，为了省钱，他舍不得开暖气，就往被子上加盖衣服。他窝在被窝里，数着当天卖碟所得的现金，把每张钞票的边角处都扯平整，然后在睡觉前给家人发个短信，报个平安，告诉他的爸爸妈妈：“我在北京很好，吃得好，穿得暖，合租的室友非常友好，要是缺钱就和我说。”

阿五把这些转述给我，语言之间尽显平淡，我却听得心头发热，忍不住反问道：“那你觉得，在北京这样的生活好吗？”

他点点头：“我喜欢卖碟，也喜欢赚钱。喜欢看书，也喜欢和人交流。可能在大家眼里我很穷，但我从来不觉得自己穷。我有童年时下河捉虾的快乐，有阿弟阿妹纯真的笑容，有这满满一车拥有奇形怪状灵魂的音乐。我所享受到的世界，早已超过我为这世界所做的一切，我还有什么不满足呢？”

和尖毛草一样

2015年的一天，阿五的摊子突然不见了，之后再没有出现。后来，我搬了家，那条夜市上所发生过的故事也离我越来越远。

直到上周，因为实在想念夜市上的那碗烤冷面，我重回夜市，不经意间看到旁边那辆熟悉的香槟色面包车，却发现卖碟的小哥操着一口流利的东北腔。不是阿五，车上放的CD 也不再是《十万嬉皮》。卖碟的小哥告诉我，一年前，阿五就转手把这辆二手车卖给了他，还送了他很多碟，不过那些碟他不是很喜欢，就压在了箱底。

“那他人呢？你知道他去哪儿了吗？”

“我不知道他具体要去哪儿，貌似出国了吧。卖车的那天，听到他说去办美国签证什么的。”

每一种平凡，都有答案。

阿五让我想到非洲草原上的一种奇异植物，尖毛草。其他植物迎着春天的脚步日渐恢宏的时候，尖毛草的高度始终保持在一寸左右，就像一条被上帝抛弃的可怜虫。然而，让人意想不到的是，半年后的一场滂沱大雨，让尖毛草奇迹般地拔地而起，每天以一尺半的生长速度向上蹿，很快就能长到一米七八。一排排的尖毛草宛若高墙，成为草原上当之无愧的“王”。

事实上，尖毛草在早期不是没有生长，只是它生长的不是地面上的茎，而是地下的根。长达半年的时间里，尖毛草的根会不断向周围和深处扩张，扎得最深处竟然可以达到20 多米。人和尖毛草一样，想要实现自己心中所想，你要学会埋伏笔，要有足够的诚意。

杰拉尔·乔德里说：“在人生的终点，人类留下的不是我们得到的东西，而是我们付出的东西。”没有无缘无故的幸运，亦没有异想天开的奇迹，那些看起来遥不可及的东西，只属于愿意为了它不顾一切努力行动的人。

（摘自《以喜欢的方式去生活》中国友谊出版公司）

Poor But Not a Pauper

He was the last one to close up his stall every night.After that,he returned to his rented space,a small compartment subdivided in a larger apartment.It has no windows,and cost RMB 800 yuan per month.He bought an energy-saving lamp from IKEA so that he could study at night.To avoid disturbing his roommate,he recited English vocabulary to himself silently.

The harsh Beijing winters posed a challenge to him.Although his room was equipped with a heating system,he never used it so that he could save money.When he went to bed he just spread out an extra quilt to keep himself warm.Tucked in his cozy cocoon,he counted the cash he earned from selling CDs as he smoothed out any bent edges.Before going to sleep,he would send a text message to his parents to reassure them that he was fine,“I am doing great in Beijing.I eat well,and wear cotton-padded clothes.The roommate is friendly as well.Let me know if you need money.”

Wu told everything to me with a calm tone and an easy-going attitude.As I listened,something inside me stirred.“Do you really like your way of life in Beijing?”I was stabbed in the belly by a burning curiosity,like a hot coal poker.

“Yeah,” He nodded.“I like my CD business,and I’d also love to make money.I like reading,and always want to communicate with other people.Maybe I’m a poor guy in people’s minds,but I never see myself as being poor.I have sweet memories of catching shrimps in the river when I was a kid.The innocent smiles of brothers and sisters.I even have a full van of special-interest music.What I have enjoyed has far exceeded what I have contributed to the world.Why shouldn’t I feel happy?”

Like a Blade of Giant King Grass

One day in 2015,Wu disappeared from the night market and never reappeared.I moved home,away from the street and its events.

But last week I made a return visit to the night market because I had a terrible craving for the grilled cold noodles there.When I accidentally noticed the familiar beige van,I found that behind the stand was a young man who spoke fluent northeastern dialect.It was not Wu,nor was the music “Ten Thousand Hippies.”

He told me Wu had sold his van to him the previous year,and threw in the CDs as a loss leader to close the deal.He wasn’t too fond of them,so they instantly wound up all the way at bottom of the case.

“Where is he? Do you know where he went?”

“I don’t know exactly,but maybe he went abroad.On the day we met for the van,he mentioned he was going to apply for an American Visa.”

No effort goes unrewarded.

Wu reminded me of giant king grass,which is an extraordinary plant that grows on the grasslands of Africa.When other plants thrive in spring,the young grass remains only about one inch long,like a poor,pathetic creature forsaken by God.However,it grows at breakneck speeds after the rains six months later,growing one foot and a half longer each day.It soon rises to the towering height of six feet.Like high walls,the rolling giant king grass emerges on the grassland as the king of the local turf.

In fact,the grass never stops growing when it’s young.It is the root rather than the stalk which experiences significant growth.Over the span of half a year,the root sprawls into all directions,sometimes even making its way to a depth of over 20 meters underground.Like the grass,people must be well-prepared and dedicated to realizing their dreams.

Gérard Chaudry once said,“It’s not what we have gathered that is left after this life,but it is what we have given.” Fantasized fortunes and magical miracles are only for those who shrink back from the hard work and challenge of building a strong foundation for success.These misguided souls childishly cling to wishes that can never come true,and then lament their lot in life when they don’t.What is unattainable on the surface becomes attainable for those who are willing to take whatever action is necessary despite any perceived challenges or difficulties.And it is by overcoming adversity that we can achieve greatness.

(FromLive the Way as You Like,China Friendship Publishing Company.Translation:Wang Wen)