After listening to Cui Wanzhi’s “Don’t Complain, Rely on Yourself,” I fell silent.

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I was born into a farming family in Feidong County. When I was born, my feet came out first while my head got stuck; it took several hours before I could be freed. I wasn’t breathing at birth, and so the local doctor grabbed my legs and shook me vigorously with my head pointing downward. It took ten hours before I let out my first faint cry, and that’s how I survived. When I was nine years old, I started going to elementary school. I remember there was a ditch between my home and the school, and while others could cross it easily, I couldn’t. I didn’t want my parents to carry me to school every day, so I tried squatting down, lying on the ground, crawling down, and then climbing back up. Once I managed to get across, it seems as though fate wanted to tell me from a young age that there are no obstacles that cannot be overcome in life. But in the year I entered high school, my score on the entrance exam was among the highest in our county, and I was admitted to a prestigious high school. I paid the tuition fees and had my bed sheets prepared, but suddenly the principal noticed me. He was very surprised to see a person with a disability at our school. Within a few minutes, he kicked me, my father, and our luggage outside the school gates. Then he said that even if I managed to get into university, no school would want me there, as I would be taking up a spot that could have been used by someone else. My father knelt down right away and stayed there for two hours. I hated it so much—I hated fate for being so unfair to me. Why? Why? Why? My father held my face in his hands and said, “Wan Zhi, listen to me: there’s no point in complaining. Do you still want to study?” I said yes. My father then said, “Then let’s go home.” Everything depends on oneself. When I was in college, I was really afraid that no university would accept me. I chose a university that was located in a remote area, very far from my home. Fortunately, I was admitted. After graduating from college, like all other graduates, I had to face the challenge of finding a job. I went to job fairs every day and submitted hundreds of resumes, but no company wanted to hire me. I remember that on the last attempt, I arrived there very early and ended up at the front of the line. The recruiter who was conducting the interviews looked at me and said, “Go away, please! Stop blocking the people behind you.” Since then, I never looked for a job again. That day, as I walked on the street with such strong winds, I couldn’t hold back my tears any longer; I was extremely desperate. I had to support myself, I had to take care of myself. That voice kept echoing in my mind, urging me on. I remembered my father’s words: complaining is useless; everything depends on oneself. If I can’t change reality, then I’ll change myself. I no longer cared what others thought of me, I stopped complaining and even stopped feeling sad. I started selling books and cards from a street stall; I would make do with one meal per two days, and I persisted like that for half a year. I opened my own small bookstore, then a music store, a supermarket, and an internet cafe. My bookstore was set on fire, my supermarket was robbed, and my internet cafe was shut down time and again. Later, I started an online store, and I lost all the savings I had accumulated over the years—more than 200,000 yuan. Still, I kept trying, I established my own e-commerce company, and ended up owing four million in debts. But I kept all those frustrations, setbacks, and pains buried deep inside me. I couldn’t speak about them, nor did I want to, because I knew that complaining was useless; everything depended on oneself. And that’s how I kept going, persisting, until our brand became number one in its category. Looking back on all the experiences and setbacks I’ve gone through to this day, I realize that they were all actually the best arrangements that fate had in store for me. The world is a mirror that reflects our inner selves. Just as our inner world is, so too is the world around us. If we choose to complain, our inner world will be filled with pain, darkness, and despair; but if we choose to be grateful, our world will be filled with sunshine, hope, and love. After watching the video, I remained silent. Why, being in good health, am I not as resilient as him?