English Original
A man from the state of Wei claimed he could carve a figure of a rhesus monkey on the tip of a sour jujube thorn.
The King of Yan believed him and granted him a generous salary.
A blacksmith heard of this and went to see the king. He said, "I make carving knives, and I know all delicate ornaments are carved with such tools. Logically, the object to be carved must be larger than the knife's tip. The tip of a thorn is far smaller than that of any knife. How could one carve on it? If Your Majesty has doubts, simply ask him to show his carving knife. Then you will know the truth."
Upon hearing the king's request to see his knife, the man from Wei knew his deceitful trick had been exposed. He gathered his belongings and fled in secret.
中文翻译
一个卫国人声称自己能在酸枣刺的尖端雕刻出猕猴的图像。
燕王相信了他的话，赐予了他丰厚的俸禄。
一位铁匠听闻此事，前去拜见燕王。他说：“我是制造刻刀的匠人，深知所有精巧的玩物都是用刻刀雕成的。从道理上讲，被雕刻的物体必须比刀尖大。而枣刺的尖端比任何刀尖都要小得多，怎么可能在上面雕刻呢？大王若不信，只需让他出示他的刻刀，真相自会大白。”
卫人听说国王要查看他的刻刀，知道自己的骗局已被揭穿，于是收拾行李，偷偷逃走了。