Let it be, without forcing it;
English
01
ENGLISH EDITION

Let it be,without forcing it;

Memoirs of a Chinese restaurateur in Portugal, read through life’s changes and the I Ching.

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If you can make ‘creation’ as natural as breathing, it is not because intention is absent; it is because all intention has already dissolved into the breath.
Sam Wang
02 · SERIAL READING

Two parts, twelve moments.

A life told through choices, losses and changes rather than a résumé.

CHAPTER I

Necessity brings change.

From arriving in Lisbon to the Madrid expansion, family, and the pandemic.

CHAPTER II

Change opens the way.

A new digital beginning with XIAOXIONG®.

03 · LIFE NOTES

The city passes.
Memory remains.

Photographs and short texts about Lisbon, restaurants, architecture, and the moments that do not fit inside the chapters.

90 translated notes · English edition
27 / 90
Symmetrical yellow facade of Santarém’s citizen service centre, with pale stone surrounds, a dark red central door and two people with a small dog beside the right window
Symmetrical yellow facade of Santarém’s citizen service centre, with pale stone surrounds, a dark red central door and two people with a small dog beside the right window
18 · 09 · 2026 · Santarém · Citizen Service Centre · Sam Wang
LIFE NOTE

Replacing My Driving Licence

Loja do Cidadão de Santarém; built between 1886 and 1889, it once served as the municipal slaughterhouse.

Today it is a citizen service centre, bringing together public and private services, including the tax office, local utilities and municipal departments.

After more than twenty years in Portugal, this is my first time in Santarém. Not for sightseeing, not for business, but because I lost my driving licence.

“The plump woman who dealt with me at the IMT wasn’t very friendly;”

I CHING READINGOpen another reading
I CHING READING · Author’s interpretation
Hexagram 39

Jian · Obstruction

Classic text · interpretive translation
Water upon the mountain: Obstruction. The noble person turns inward and cultivates virtue.

Jian turns attention inward when an obstacle arises. Losing a licence and encountering unpleasant service are distinct issues; separating them helps identify the available steps.

Reflection allows scrutiny of our preparation and of the service. It does not require accepting all blame; the employee’s physical appearance likewise establishes nothing about service quality.

Reading in briefReflect on oneself while distinguishing responsibilities.
MUSIC VIDEO CHOSEN FOR THIS STORY

Journey · 旅行

Xu Wei · 1080p HD

After more than twenty years, there is still a city to visit for the first time. Xu Wei’s “旅行” accompanies this unplanned outing: irritation at the service remains alongside the discovery of an old building.

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READER ECHOES

What stays with you here?

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Author 04
RESTAURANTS · ARCHITECTURE · HISTORY · I CHING

Half a lifetime
of notes

Hello, I’m Wang Sanxiong — Sam 🤝

The book’s epigraph is my motto, and the starting point for how I understand life, restaurants, and entrepreneurship.

I am a Chinese immigrant living in Portugal, originally from Qingtian, Zhejiang, and a restaurant owner. I love architecture and the history behind it; I love the I Ching, and use Eastern wisdom to interpret the stories hidden behind history.

A battle for small and medium-sized restaurants to reclaim their own customer channels;
The second half of life should be more exciting than the first — that is only reasonable;

【XIAOXIONG®】

XIAOXIONG®; it is not an advertisement in this book. It is proof that, in the second half of life, I am still willing to change.

FOUNDER OF XIAOXIONGWang Sanxiong · Sam Wang
Read this ongoing practice →Chinese original →