Mountains and rivers remain unchanged, but people's hearts can change.
I studied the law, respected it, trusted it, and obeyed it, always striving to do good.
Yet I became trapped in oppression and hardship, with no way to seek redress. In the darkest moment of my life, I watched my lifelong faith shatter before my eyes.
A helping hand born of youthful friendship, and a desperate standoff that lasted nine years.
Years of calm, ordinary interactions became the foreshadowing of our growing distance.
One choice, entangled in self-interest, brought everything to a final and complete rupture.
When old friends become blades turned against me, when fair judicial procedure loses to a closed circle of worldly connections,
An ordinary grassroots worker who follows the rules and believes in justice sheds his naivete and shoulders the burden of standing alone.
A long, dark night, every step strewn with thorns.
Even if thousands withdraw and no one stands beside me, I will carry my lamp onward, true to my heart and faithful to the nine years I have held on.
This road is not over, not at rest, and not surrendered. Thus it is named "Burning Lamp: The Unfinished Road."
