9. The More Adversity He Met, the More Determined He Grew

When Good Man Wang was twenty-six years old (in 1889, the fifteenth year of Emperor Gwan Xu of the Qing Dynasty), he decided to bring his grandfather home so he could take care of him. At at that time, the family was destitute and three hundred dollars in debt. However, Good Man Wang did what others couldn't do, and carried out his filial duty without complaint.

After he had taken his grandfather home, his fourth aunt (the fourth daughter-in-law of his grandfather), whose maiden name was Wei, told him, "When I married into this family, Father took some bolts of cloth from me and also sold some of my quilts. They were worth over ten dollars then, and by now, the value with interest added should be over eighty dollars." She continued,"Since you want to take care of him, this money should be charged to you. You must pay it off." Because Good Man Wang ignored what she said, she went to the local court to sue him that winter. Unexpectedly, the judge ruled that Good Man Wang was"a conspirator in swindling," and had to pay the debt.

Good Man Wang's father fretted and said, "How are we going to survive? Shu Tong, you only make seventy dollars a year, and this lawsuit cost us a hundred and forty dollars. What shall we do?" Good Man Wang quickly interrupted him by saying, "Dad, please don't talk like that. Even if I have to die for the sake of Grandpa, I would have no regrets. As I often say, 'People cheat one another, but heaven doesn't cheat people. Heaven’s blessings come indirectly. This is a test of my sincerity. Dad, please don’t ever talk like that. If Grandpa heard it, he would feel very bad. If Therefore, since Good Man Wang’s father did not say a word about it, Grandpa only knew a little bit about the matter, not the details.

To be continued