Chiseling a wall to get light for reading
故事全文
Kuang Heng said, “Mr. Wang, if I help you to chop firewood and bring water from the well, will you lend me your books?” Mr. Wang looked at him and said, “Of course! But are you sure? Those are difficult tasks!”
“Mr. Wang, books are very expensive, I cannot afford to buy them. Very few people are willing to lend me their books, so, if you promise to lend me your books, I will be more than grateful to work for you!”
Though Kuang Heng borrowed the books, he still had a problem. He scratched his head and sighed. “I have to work in the day and can only study at night. But the oil for the oil lamp is so expensive, I cannot afford to buy it.”
In the end, Kuang Heng could only study during his lunch break. At night, he would try to remember what he read in the day. So, it usually took him half a month to finish reading a book. However, it was not polite to borrow a book for so long. Kuang Heng wanted to read faster but he did not know what to do.
One night, as Kuang Heng tried to recall what he learned, he saw a ray of light on the wall. He went closer and discovered that the light came from next door through a slit in the wall. This gave Kuang Heng an idea. He took a small knife, and widened the slit to make the light brighter. And so, he “borrowed” the light from next door to continue reading.Every night he would read until his neighbor snuffed out the light, and then he would go to bed.
Kuang Heng continued to study in this way for many years until he became a famous and successful man.
