xiān​nán​hòu​huò

toil first and then enjoy the fruits

  1. xiān adverb
    first
    earlier in time or sequence; beforehand; in advance
  2. nán adjective
    difficult
    difficult; hard to do; troublesome; not easy; problematic; the opposite of 容易 róng​yì
  3. hòu locativepreposition
    after
    (bound form) later in time; afterwards; future; subsequent in a sequence
  4. to obtain
    to obtain; to win; to get