English Original
A clam swam to the bank and opened its shell to bask in the sun. A snipe flew by, spotted the clam's exposed flesh, and swooped down to peck at it. Before the snipe could withdraw its beak, the clam, feeling a sharp pain, snapped its shell shut, trapping the bird's beak tightly.
The snipe struggled violently to free itself but to no avail. It then said angrily, "Listen, clam! If it doesn't rain today or tomorrow, you'll die of thirst here on the bank. Now, let me go!"
The clam retorted with equal anger, "You listen! If I don't let you go today or tomorrow, you'll die of hunger. Do you still dare to eat me?"
Locked in a stalemate, neither was willing to yield. Just then, an old fisherman happened by. He easily picked up both the snipe and the clam and took them home for his dinner.
中文翻译
一只河蚌游到岸边，张开蚌壳晒太阳。一只鹬鸟飞过，看见了蚌壳里鲜美的肉，便俯冲下来啄食。鹬鸟还没来得及把嘴抽回，河蚌突然感到一阵剧痛，迅速合上了壳，紧紧夹住了鹬鸟的嘴。
鹬鸟猛烈地摇头想甩开河蚌，但无论怎么努力都无济于事。鹬鸟生气地说：“听着，河蚌！今天不下雨，明天也不下雨，你就会干死在这里。快放开我！”
河蚌也很生气，回敬道：“你听着！我今天不放开你，明天也不放开你，你就会饿死。你还敢吃我吗？”
鹬和蚌僵持不下，争吵不休，谁也不肯先让步。就在这时，一位老渔夫走了过来。他轻而易举地捡起了鹬和蚌，把它们带回家当晚餐了。