English Original
In the past, a married couple lived in the State of Lu. The husband was a skilled shoemaker, and the wife excelled at weaving silk. One day, they decided to move to the State of Yue to make a living.
When news of their plan spread, a man came to dissuade them. "You'd better not go," he said. "If you try to make a living in Yue, it will be disastrous. You certainly won't succeed there!"
The couple was surprised. "We don't understand," they replied. "Each of us has superb craftsmanship. How could we possibly fail to make a living? Don't talk nonsense!"
"You are indeed highly skilled," the man explained. "But you probably don't know the local customs. You make shoes for people to wear, but the people of Yue prefer to go barefoot. You weave silk to make hats, but they like to wear their hair down and do not use hats. How, then, can you sell your shoes and hats? Your skills, however excellent, will be useless there. How will you make a living?"
Hearing this, the husband and wife saw the light. "Oh," they said, "so our thinking is against the current fashion."
中文翻译
从前，鲁国住着一对夫妇。丈夫是技艺精湛的鞋匠，妻子是织绢能手。一天，他们决定搬到越国去谋生。
他们的计划传开后，一个人前来劝阻。他说：“你们最好不要去。如果你们试图在越国谋生，那将是灾难性的。你们在那里肯定不会成功！”
夫妇俩很惊讶，回答道：“我们不明白你的意思。我们各有高超的手艺，怎么可能无法谋生呢？别胡说八道了！”
那人解释道：“你们的手艺确实很好。但你们可能不了解当地的风俗。你们做鞋子给人穿，但越国人喜欢赤脚。你们织绢做帽子，但他们喜欢披散头发，不戴帽子。那么，你们做的鞋子和帽子怎么卖得出去呢？你们的手艺再高超，在那里也无用武之地。你们将如何谋生呢？”
听了这番话，夫妻俩恍然大悟。他们说：“噢，原来我们的想法不合时宜啊。”