English Original
A king had three sons whom he loved equally. Unable to decide who should succeed him, he called them to his deathbed and declared, "Whichever of you is the laziest shall inherit the kingdom."
The eldest said, "Father, the kingdom is mine. I am so idle that if a drop fell into my eye while I rested, I would not open it to continue sleeping."
The second said, "Father, the kingdom belongs to me. I am so idle that while warming myself by the fire, I would rather let my heel burn than draw back my leg."
The third said, "Father, the kingdom is mine. I am so idle that if I were about to be hanged with the rope around my neck, and someone put a sharp knife in my hand to cut it, I would rather be hanged than lift my hand to the rope."
Hearing this, the king said, "You have carried idleness the farthest. You shall be king."
中文翻译
一位国王有三个儿子，他同样疼爱他们。临终前，他无法决定由谁来继承王位，便将他们召到床边宣布："你们之中最懒惰的人将继承王国。"
大儿子说："父亲，王国是我的。我懒惰至极，即便休息时有水滴进眼睛，我也懒得睁眼，好继续睡觉。"
二儿子说："父亲，王国属于我。我懒惰至极，在炉边取暖时，我宁愿让脚跟烧着，也懒得把腿缩回来。"
三儿子说："父亲，王国是我的。我懒惰至极，就算我被套上绞索即将处死，有人把利刃塞进我手里让我割断绳子，我也宁愿被吊死，也懒得抬手去割绳子。"
国王听后说道："你把懒惰发挥到了极致。你将成为国王。"