English Original
Edward and Sam became my friends after a quiz about ten birds and ten fish.
Edward is 14 years old, and Sam is 12. They visited our garden centre one day. After some conversation, we learned each other's names, ages, nationalities, and hometowns. We became friends.
"Boys, may I give you a quiz?" I asked.
"No problem, we'd like to try," they both agreed.
"Alright, listen! Ten birds were resting on a tree branch. A boy threw a stone and hit one bird down. How many birds are left in the tree?"
"Nine!" Sam winked at me.
Edward looked at the fish and thought. I waited quietly.
A few minutes later, Edward said, "I know! Eight."
"Why?" I asked.
"Because one stone can kill two birds. I read it in a book," he said confidently.
"No, all the birds are gone. Zero left," I revealed the answer.
"Why?" both boys asked in astonishment.
"You can figure it out and tell me next time. Now, I'd like to give you a second quiz. Ready? Listen!"
Both boys waited attentively.
"There are ten fish in a pond. One dies. How many fish are left?"
"Nine!" Sam answered first, as usual.
"Nine!" Edward echoed.
"No! Still ten," I clarified.
"No! Nine. Otherwise, you are not a good staff," Edward persisted.
"Why?" I asked.
"Because, as a staff member, you should know that if a fish dies, you must remove it immediately. So only nine are left. If you show a dead fish to customers, you are not a good staff."
"A child's words often hold truth. I am not a good staff."
I was rendered speechless.
中文翻译
爱德华和萨姆因为一个关于十只鸟和十条鱼的谜题而成了我的朋友。
爱德华14岁，萨姆12岁。一天，他们来到我们的园艺中心。一番交谈后，我们知道了彼此的名字、年龄、国籍和家乡。我们成了朋友。
“孩子们，我能给你们出个谜题吗？”我问。
“没问题，我们愿意试试，”他们俩都同意了。
“好的，听着！有十只鸟停在树枝上，一个男孩用石头打下来一只。问题是，树上还剩几只鸟？”
“九只！”萨姆对我眨了眨眼。
爱德华看着鱼在思考。我安静地等着。
几分钟后，爱德华说：“我知道了！八只。”
“为什么？”我问。
“因为一石二鸟，我从书上学到的，”他自信地说。
“不对，所有的鸟都飞走了。一只不剩，”我揭晓了答案。
“为什么？”两个男孩惊讶地看着我。
“你们可以自己想想，下次告诉我。现在，我想给你们出第二个谜题。准备好了吗？听着！”
两个男孩认真地等待着。
“一个池塘里有十条鱼，死了一条。池塘里还剩几条鱼？”
“九条！”萨姆像往常一样第一个回答。
“九条！”爱德华附和道。
“不对！还是十条，”我澄清道。
“不对！九条。否则，你就不是个好员工，”爱德华坚持道。
“为什么？”我问。
“因为，作为一名员工，你应该知道如果鱼死了，必须立刻捞出来。所以只剩九条。如果你把死鱼展示给顾客看，你就不是个好员工。”
“童言无忌，说得对。我不是个好员工。”
我一时语塞。