English Original
Long ago, in the State of Song, there stood a city gate. Outside the gate lay a moat, where fish lived a peaceful and happy life.
One day, the tower above the city gate caught fire, alarming the townspeople. The commotion even reached the fish in the moat.
"What is all that noise?" the fish wondered. "I must go and see," said a curious black carp. Upon seeing the blazing tower, he rushed back to warn his mates. "Swim for your lives! Swim as fast as you can!" he cried. "The city gate is on fire!"
All the fish except the carps began to flee. One arrogant carp even laughed at them. "Do not laugh," urged the kind black carp. "You should escape too, while there is still time."
"Why should I?" retorted the arrogant carp. "It's their city gate burning. What does that have to do with me in the water?" The fire spread rapidly, and the firefighters soon used up all the water in the city. Yet, the fire raged on. So, they began to fetch water from the moat.
Finally, the fire was extinguished, but the moat was drained dry, leaving a few pitiful carps in their dying struggle. This tale compares the city gate fire to disasters that may seem distant but can spread and ensnare even the innocent.
中文翻译
很久以前，宋国有一座城门。城门外有一条护城河，河里的鱼儿过着安宁快乐的生活。
一天，城楼失火了，惊动了全城百姓。喧闹声甚至传到了护城河的鱼群中。
“这是什么吵闹声？”鱼儿们感到疑惑。“我得去看看，”一条好奇的青鱼说道。看到城楼起火后，它急忙赶回去警告它的同伴。“快逃命！尽你们所能快游！”它喊道。“城门着火了！”
除了鲤鱼，所有的鱼都开始逃离。一条傲慢的鲤鱼甚至嘲笑它们。“别笑了，”好心的青鱼劝道。“你也该及时逃走。”
“我为什么要逃？”傲慢的鲤鱼反驳道。“是他们的城门着火了。这跟我在水里有什么关系？”火势蔓延得很快，城里的消防员用完了所有的水。然而，大火仍在燃烧。于是，他们开始从护城河取水。
最终，大火被扑灭了，但护城河也干涸了，只剩下几条可怜的鲤鱼在作垂死挣扎。这个故事将城门失火比作那些看似与我们无关，实则会蔓延并殃及无辜者的灾祸。