Yugong Yishan (愚公移山) is a fable essay created by the
Chinese philosopher
Liezi (列子, 450 AD-375 AD) during the
Warring States Period (战国时期). The
Warring States period was an era of great social change, as well as a period of controversy among academic scholars. As an important part of Zhuzi's prose (诸子散文), the fable was a powerful weapon for the Warring States to clarify their political views and academic thoughts. The fable narrates the story of an old man named
Yugong, who is almost 90 years old, and lives directly opposite the mountain. Suffering from the obstruction in the northern part of the mountainous area, he tried to dig up the steep mountain to make a road leading to the southern part. When the mountain god (山神) learnt about Yugong's resolve, he was afraid that Yugong would dig the mountain endlessly. Therefore, the
mountain god reported his concerns to the Emperor of Heaven (天帝). However, the
Emperor was moved by Yugong's sincerity,
hardship, and
perseverance. Subsequently, the Emperor ordered the obstructive mountains to be removed. From this time, there was no high mountain barrier for Yugong.
The Book Has 9 Chapters In The Following Order:
Chapter 1: Day After Day, Year After Year (第一章：日复一日 年复一年)Chapter 2: In the Dream (第二章：梦中的梦中 有个少年)Chapter 3: Wish to Go to the Mountain (第三章：我想让更多人 去山的那边看看)Chapter 4: Never Felt So Young (第四章：我从来都没有这么年轻过)Chapter 5: Someone Will Laugh at You (第五章：不管你做什么 都会有人嘲笑你)Chapter 6: Means vs. Ends (第六章：过程比结果重要)Chapter 7: A Better Future (第七章：一年会比一年好)Chapter 8: Perseverance (第九章：坚持就会有收获)Chapter 9: There Used to Be a Mountain (第十章：这里从前有座山)
The current book volume, Chinese Short Stories 12, is a Level 1 Chinese reading practice book. It would introduce you to the famous Chinese fable essay, Yugong Yishan (愚公移山). The 12th volume in the Selected Chinese Short Story Series (中国短篇小说精选) includes both the Chinese text (simplified characters) and pinyin Romanization. With over 500 unique Chinese characters, the volume would be suitable for the beginners, lower intermediate and advanced level Chinese language learners (HSK 1-6). Overall, the reading series offers you a variety of elementary level books (Level 1/2/3/4/5/6) to understand China as well as practice Chinese reading fast.
