English Original
A man and his son were leading their donkey along a country road. They passed some girls drawing water from a well.
One girl exclaimed, "Look how silly they are! They have a donkey, yet both are walking." Hearing this, the man told his son, "You ride the donkey. You're light, so you won't tire it."
Soon, they met three old men. One said, "Shame! The boy rides while his old father walks." So the man mounted the donkey, and his son walked beside it.
Later, they encountered three women. One cried, "How lazy! That strong man rides while the poor child walks." Confused, they both got on the donkey.
Finally, they met some townspeople who scolded, "How cruel to overload the poor donkey!" Determined to please everyone, they got off, tied the donkey's legs to a pole, and carried it on their shoulders toward town.
On a bridge, the onlookers laughed loudly. Startled by the noise, the donkey struggled, broke free, fell into the water, and drowned.
The man and his son went home empty-handed. The father sighed, "He who tries to please everybody pleases nobody in the end."
中文翻译
一个男人和他的儿子牵着驴走在乡间小路上。他们路过一些在井边打水的女孩。
一个女孩喊道：“看他们多傻啊！有头驴，两个人却都在走路。” 男人听了，对儿子说：“你骑驴吧。你轻，不会累着它。”
不久，他们遇到三位老人。一位老人说：“真不像话！孩子骑着驴，老父亲却走路。” 于是男人骑上驴，儿子在旁边走。
后来，他们碰到三个女人。一个女人喊道：“真懒！那个壮汉骑着驴，可怜的孩子却走路。” 父子俩不知所措，便都骑上了驴。
最后，他们遇到一些镇上的人，这些人责备道：“让可怜的驴驮两个人，太残忍了！” 决心让所有人都满意，他们下了驴，把驴腿绑在杆子上，抬着驴往镇上走。
在一座桥上，围观的人们大声嘲笑。驴被喧闹声惊吓，挣扎起来，挣脱绳索，掉进水里淹死了。
父子俩空手而归。父亲叹息道：“想讨好所有人的人，最后谁也讨好不了。”