English Original
Zhao Jianzi, a renowned general of the State of Jin, prepared to attack the State of Qi. He declared: "Anyone in the army who dares to dissuade me will be sentenced to death."
A warrior named Gong Luwang, clad in armour and holding a sharp weapon, burst into laughter upon seeing Zhao Jianzi.
"Why are you laughing?" Zhao Jianzi asked urgently.
"I recalled something amusing," Gong Luwang replied.
Jianzi said sternly, "Military orders are no joke. Explain yourself, and I shall spare you. Otherwise, you face death."
Calmly, Gong Luwang told a story: "It was the season for gathering mulberries. My neighbor, a man, went to the fields with his wife. In the depths of the mulberry groves, he spotted another woman. He chased after her but failed to catch her and returned disheartened. By then, his wife had already left him in anger. I laugh at my neighbor who, failing to catch the stranger, lost his own wife and ended up alone."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Jianzi seemed to awaken from a dream. He reflected, "If I attack another state now and possibly fail, I would become a general of a subjugated state."
Consequently, he ordered his troops to withdraw and return home.
中文翻译
晋国名将赵简子准备出兵进攻齐国。他命令道：“军中若有人敢劝阻我，定判死刑！”
一位名叫公卢望的武士，身披铠甲，手持利刃，一见赵简子便放声大笑。
“你笑什么？”赵简子急忙问道。
公卢望回答：“我想起了一件趣事。”
简子严厉地说：“军令非同儿戏。讲得出道理便饶你；讲不出，则判你死罪！”
公卢望不慌不忙地讲了一个故事：“正值采桑时节，我的邻居夫妇一同下田。丈夫在桑林深处看见一名女子，便追了上去，却未能追上，只得悻悻而归。而此时，他的妻子早已愤然离去。我笑这位邻居，追逐他人未果，反而失去了自己的妻子，最终落得孤身一人。”
赵简子听完公卢望的故事，如梦初醒。他说道：“如今我若进攻他国，万一失败，我不就成了亡国之将吗？”
于是，他下令收兵回国。