Reciprocal altruism differs from other patterns of cooperation in that it is fraught with risk, depends on trust, and requires that individuals whose contributions fall short be shunned or punished, lest the whole system collapse. The chief purpose of friendship as anthropologists have discovered is mutual support and only naturally this develops primarily between individuals with common interests - who need to work for the mutual benefit of each other. Monkeys and apes make sharp distinctions between kin and nonkin as well as between enemies and friends. What seems to make human societies so durable and successful is out ability to magnify the Golden Rule that chimpanzees follow. As an anthropologists, I found the Reciprocal Altruism of the people to be a mainstay of society as strong as kinship bonds that China is known for.
People give without real tangible return.
They take gambles in their giving but if forms the basis of friendships, which is the real benefit. Giving is done without an expectation of return but there is a general expectation that if one gives then something good will occur at some point in the future. It does not have to be from the one who received but is defined as a general return of some sort. Chinese philosophy is rich in this sense of Reciprocal Altruism and is rooted in the writings of Confucius . Chinese philosophy is not directed toward at what may lie beyond the known world.