It is said that Chinese think long term. This allegory captures this mentality well.
Once upon a time, there was an old man called Yu Gong (愚公 Foolish Old Man), who was nearly ninety years old. In front of his house stood two huge mountains, the Taihang Mountain and the Wangwu Mountain, spanning three hundred and fifty kilometres in circumference and towering into the clouds. The whole family had to take a very long detour to travel, which was very inconvenient.
One day, Yu Gong gathered his family together and said: “Shall we work together to level these two mountains and open a direct road to southern Henan?” Everyone agreed. So, Yu Gong led three of his sons and grandsons to begin chiseling rocks and digging earth, using baskets to transport the soil and stones to the Bohai Sea. A widow from next door had a young son aged seven or eight, who, hopping and jumping, also came over to help them. It took them from winter to summer to make just one round trip.
An old man named Zhi Sou (智叟 Wise Old Man) from a bend of the river laughed at Yu Gong and said, “How foolish you are! At your advanced age with the little strength left to you, you can’t even remove the grass and trees on the mountains. What can you possibly do with all these rocks and earth?”
Yu Gong sighed deeply and replied, “You are so stubborn that you are worse than a widow or a child. Even if I die, there are still my sons; my sons will have grandsons; my grandsons will have their sons, and so on to infinity. My descendants will have no end, but the mountains will never grow any taller. Why should I worry that I cannot level them?” Zhi Sou was speechless.
The mountain god, hearing this, feared that Yu Gong would really keep digging, so he reported it to the Heavenly Emperor. The Heavenly Emperor was moved by Yu Gong’s sincerity and perseverance. He ordered the two sons of the mighty god Kua’e to carry the two mountains away on their backs.
Origin: Lie Zi – The Questions of Tang
#17 愚公移山
人们常说中国人做事有长远眼光。这个寓言故事很好地体现了这种思维。
从前，有一位名叫愚公的老人，快九十岁了。他家门前有两座大山，太行山和王屋山，方圆七百里，高耸入云。全家出门都要绕很远的路，非常不方便。
一天，愚公召集全家人商量：“我们一起努力把这两座山铲平，开辟一条直通豫南的大路，好吗？”大家纷纷表示赞同。于是，愚公带领三个子孙，开始凿石挖土，用箕畚把土石运到渤海边。邻居寡妇有个七八岁的孩子，也蹦蹦跳跳地来帮忙。从冬天到夏天，他们只能往返一次。
河曲有个叫智叟的老人，笑话愚公说：“你太不聪明了！你年老体衰，连山上的草木都动不了，又能把这些土石怎么样呢？”愚公长叹一声回答：“你思想顽固，连寡妇和小孩都不如。即使我死了，还有儿子；儿子生孙子，孙子又生儿子；子子孙孙无穷无尽，可山不会增高，还怕挖不平吗？” 智叟无话可说。
山神听说了，害怕愚公真的不停挖下去，便报告了天帝。天帝被愚公的诚心和毅力感动，命令大力神夸娥氏的两个儿子背走了两座山。
出自 《列子 汤问》