Dear Mr. Lian ShihSheng,

      Greetings!

      “Without enduring bitter cold, how can the plum blossom with such fragrance?” This is my greatest takeaway from reading Looking Back on Forty Years. Your life's pivotal turns moved me deeply. Most striking are your three major migrations:

• 1937: The Marco Polo Bridge Incident; you left Beijing for Hong Kong.

• 1941: The fall of Hong Kong; you moved to Vietnam.

• 1947: You left China for Singapore.

      Yanjing University was once your intellectual home. The violence following the Marco Polo Bridge Incident shattered the peace, prompting your move south. Reflecting on the harsh realities, you wrote:  “I know that a person's success, besides being limited by talent and experience, depends heavily on favorable circumstances—time, place, and harmony.” Despite the scattering of friends and family, the disruption of social connections, and the destruction of your professional foundation, you quickly settled, becoming an editor for the International News Agency, and translating Glas's Industrial History from Harvard University.

      Your second migration was to Vietnam. Why Vietnam? You wrote:  “I'm not a political person, and I have no connections to those in power. Going to Chongqing would be suffering needlessly. It's better to spend a few years in the Vietnamese countryside, solidifying my knowledge. When peace comes, the nation will need builders, and I hope to contribute then.” 

      I sensed you were emulating Tao Qian, seeking a simpler life. While in seclusion, you weren't idle. Besides teaching, you translated Clapham's Modern French and German Economic History and Modern British Economic History from Oxford and Cambridge. This made me smile. I wondered if Tao Qian, besides drinking, enjoying nature, and picking chrysanthemums, spent much time translating!

       Your third migration, a necessary escape, you wrote:  “Among thirty-six strategies, retreat is the best. In a life-or-death situation, 'leaving' is indeed a solution.”  “Economic pressure forced me to flee again.” Yet, in Singapore, a then-less-developed cultural center, you fulfilled your mission, publishing over twenty books, enriching the cultural landscape, and excelling in your work.

   The relationship between individuals and their times is complex. Some embrace hedonism, fearing obsolescence; others retreat into nature; some become lost in debauchery, while others maintain their integrity. Reading your words, I'm not reminded of the tragedy of a great era, the futile struggle of a Greek hero against fate, or the cheap tears of modern melodramas. One can't choose their birth time or family circumstances. What we can do is make the most of the environment, expressing ourselves fully. Positioning oneself in the tide of time requires philosophy, wisdom, reason, knowledge, skill, and artistry.

      Your time and mine are vastly different, yet your judgment, choices, strategies, and resilience in turbulent times offer profound inspiration.

      As I write, a video of the song Lotus Heart plays:  

      “Unmoved by wind, 

      unhidden by rain…… 

      let others come and go, 

      I will maintain my clear sky……

      the roots and dust are severed in the lotus song, 

      nowhere in the world is there no kindred spirit.” 

  The singer, Jing Shanyuan, sings gently, calmly, freely, expansively, elegantly…… The turmoil of life subsides, revealing a clear heart. The rain falls softly. As I reflect on the night, have I misinterpreted anything?

      Mr Lian ShiSheng, I appreciate your advice.

Thierry Wong

March 6, 2013