English Original
Once upon a time, there lived an old and poor fisherman who struggled to support his wife and three children. He went fishing every day at dawn, with a rule never to cast his net more than four times.
One morning, he set out by moonlight. His first cast felt heavy, raising his hopes for a big fish, but he only pulled up the carcass of a donkey, which tore his net. Disappointed, he mended it and cast again. The second haul felt just as heavy, but yielded only a basket of rubbish. Annoyed, he cried out to Fortune, pleading not to be trifled with.
After cleaning his nets, he cast a third time, only to bring up stones, shells, and mud. Nearly in despair, he made his fourth and final cast. With great effort, he hauled in not a fish, but a heavy, sealed yellow jar. Delighted, he thought he could sell it to buy wheat.
He examined the jar, shook it, but heard nothing. Intrigued by the lead seal, he pried it open. To his surprise, nothing came out at first. Then, thick smoke billowed forth, rising to the clouds and spreading over the sea and shore. The smoke gathered into a dense mass, from which emerged a gigantic and terrifying genie.
The genie cried out, "Great king of the genii, I will never again disobey you!" Hearing this, the fisherman gathered his courage and asked for the genie's story.
The genie looked at him haughtily. "Speak more civilly," he said, "before I kill you."
"Why kill me?" the fisherman protested. "I just freed you!"
"That will not save you," replied the genie. "I will grant you only one favor: to choose how you die."
When the fisherman asked why, the genie explained his tale: He had rebelled against the king of the genii, who imprisoned him in the copper jar sealed with lead magic. Cast into the sea, the genie vowed in his first century of captivity to make his rescuer rich forever. When no one came, he vowed in the second century to give all the world's treasures to his deliverer. In the third century, he promised to make his savior a king and grant three daily wishes. After centuries passed with no rescue, his patience turned to rage. He then vowed to kill whoever freed him, allowing them only to choose their manner of death. "So choose," the genie concluded.
The fisherman, in despair, implored for his life, but the genie refused. Thinking quickly, the fisherman devised a plan.
"Before I choose my death," he said, "I conjure you to tell me truthfully: were you really inside that small jar? I cannot believe it."
"Yes, I was," insisted the genie.
"I must see it to believe it," said the fisherman.
The genie then transformed back into smoke, which flowed slowly and evenly back into the jar until it was all inside. A voice from within said, "Now do you believe me, unbelieving fisherman?"
Instead of answering, the fisherman swiftly replaced the lead seal, trapping the genie once more.
"Now, O genie," he cried, "it is you who must ask for pardon and choose your death! But no, I will simply throw you back into the sea and build a house on the shore to warn all fishermen against catching such a wicked being, who vows to kill the one who frees him."
The genie struggled but could not escape the enchanted seal. He then tried cunning: "If you remove the cover, I will repay you."
"No," answered the fisherman firmly. "If I trust you, I fear you would treat me as a certain Greek king treated the physician Douban. Listen, and I will tell you that story."
中文翻译
从前，有一位年老贫穷的渔夫，艰难地养活妻子和三个孩子。他每天黎明去打鱼，并立下规矩：撒网绝不超过四次。
一天清晨，他借着月光出发。第一次撒网感觉很沉，他满心希望能捕到大鱼，却只拉上来一头死驴，还把网扯破了。他失望地补好网，第二次撒下。这次拉起来同样沉重，结果却是一篮子垃圾。渔夫很恼火，向命运女神呼喊，求她不要戏弄自己这个可怜的养家人。
他洗净渔网，第三次撒下，只捞起石头、贝壳和淤泥。几乎绝望之际，他进行了第四次，也是最后一次尝试。费了九牛二虎之力拉上来，没有鱼，却是一个沉重的、密封的黄色罐子。渔夫很高兴，想着卖掉它就能买小麦了。
他仔细检查罐子，摇了摇，但没听到声音。铅封引起了他的好奇，他用刀撬开了它。起初，什么也没出来，这让他很惊讶。接着，浓烟喷涌而出，升上云端，弥漫在海面和海岸上。烟雾聚集成一团，一个巨大而可怕的魔鬼从中现身。
魔鬼喊道：“伟大的精灵之王，我再也不敢违抗您了！”听到这话，渔夫鼓起勇气，询问魔鬼的来历。
魔鬼傲慢地看着他。“说话客气点，”他说，“否则我立刻杀了你。”
“为什么要杀我？”渔夫抗议道，“我刚把你放出来！”
“那也救不了你，”魔鬼回答，“我只给你一个恩典：选择你的死法。”
渔夫问起缘由，魔鬼讲述了他的故事：他曾反叛精灵之王，因此被囚禁在这个用铅封魔法密封的铜罐里，扔进大海。在囚禁的第一个世纪，他发誓若有人在一百年内救他，他会让恩人世代富贵。无人前来。第二个世纪，他发誓要给解救者世上所有的财宝。第三个世纪，他承诺让恩人成为国王，并每日满足其三个愿望。几个世纪过去，依然无人相救，他的耐心最终化为愤怒。于是他发誓，谁再救他，他就立刻杀死谁，只允许对方选择死法。“所以，选择吧，”魔鬼总结道。
渔夫陷入绝望，恳求饶命，但魔鬼拒绝了。渔夫急中生智，想出一个计策。
“在我选择死法之前，”他说，“我以你的名誉起誓，请你如实告诉我：你真的曾在那小罐子里吗？我无法相信。”
“是的，我在里面。”魔鬼坚持道。
“我必须亲眼看见才信。”渔夫说。
于是，魔鬼又变回烟雾，缓慢均匀地流回罐中，直到全部进入。罐子里传出声音：“现在你信了吗，多疑的渔夫？”
渔夫没有回答，而是迅速盖回铅封，再次将魔鬼困住。
“现在，哦，魔鬼，”他喊道，“该是你求饶并选择死法的时候了！不过算了，我还是把你扔回大海，并在岸边盖间屋子，警告所有渔夫不要捞起你这样邪恶的家伙——竟发誓要杀死解救你的人。”
魔鬼拼命挣扎，但无法逃脱魔法封印。于是他试图用诡计：“如果你打开盖子，我会报答你。”
“不，”渔夫坚定地回答，“如果我信任你，恐怕你会像某个希腊国王对待杜班医生那样对待我。听着，我来给你讲那个故事。”