English Original
In the final years of the Warring States period, the powerful State of Qin repeatedly attacked and seized large territories from the weaker State of Wei. In 273 BC, the Qin army launched another vigorous assault.
The King of Wei, deeply worried, summoned his officials for a strategy to defeat Qin. Years of war had left the court in chaos; officials trembled at the mention of battle, and none dared suggest resistance. With enemy forces at the border, most ministers urged the king to sue for peace by ceding the vast lands north of the Yellow River and south of the Taihang Mountains to Qin.
However, a counselor named Su Dai disagreed. He hurried to the king and said, "Your Majesty, these officials do not consider the state's interests. Their cowardice and fear of death drive them to betray our land for peace. While this may temporarily satisfy the King of Qin, his greed is insatiable. He will not stop attacking until all our land is gone.
"Once, a man's house caught fire. People told him to use water, but he refused. Instead, he carried a faggot to smother the flames, only making the fire blaze more fiercely. He did not realize that faggots fuel a fire; they cannot extinguish it. Is agreeing to peace by ceding Wei's land not equivalent to carrying faggots to put out a fire?"
Despite Su Dai's compelling argument, the cowardly king, seeking immediate peace, accepted his officials' advice and ceded the territory. As expected, in 225 BC, the Qin army mounted a massive assault, besieging the Wei capital Daliang and flooding it by breaching the Yellow River dykes. The State of Wei was ultimately destroyed by Qin. This story is recorded in Sima Qian's Historical Records.
The idiom "carrying faggots to put out a fire" means using a wrong method to solve a problem, thereby making it worse.
中文翻译
战国末期，强大的秦国屡次攻打弱小的魏国，侵占了大片土地。公元前273年，秦军再次发动了猛烈的进攻。
魏王忧心忡忡，召集群臣商议退敌之策。连年战乱使朝廷一片混乱；官员们一提到打仗就发抖，无人敢主张抵抗。敌军兵临城下之际，大多数大臣劝谏魏王通过割让黄河以北、太行山以南的大片土地来向秦国求和。
然而，一位名叫苏代（注：原文为Su Dai，对应历史人物为苏代）的谋士不同意。他急忙面见魏王，说道：“大王，这些官员根本不考虑国家利益。正是他们的怯懦和贪生怕死，才驱使您割地求和。这或许能暂时满足秦王的野心，但他的贪欲是永无止境的。不把我们所有的土地夺走，他是不会停止进攻的。
“从前，有个人房子着火了。人们叫他用水灭火，但他不听。反而抱来一捆柴薪想去压灭火，结果火势更猛了。他不知道柴薪只会助长火势，根本无法灭火。您同意割让魏国的土地来求和，这难道不是和‘抱薪救火’一样吗？”
尽管苏代的论点很有说服力，但怯懦的魏王只顾眼前太平，还是采纳了众臣的建议，割让了土地。果不其然，公元前225年，秦军大举进攻，包围了魏国都城大梁，并掘开黄河堤坝淹城。魏国最终被秦国所灭。这个故事记载在司马迁的《史记》中。
成语 “抱薪救火” 比喻用错误的方法去解决问题，结果反而使问题变得更加严重。