小男孩和他的斧子

　　THE BOY AND HIS AXE

　　小男孩和他的斧子

　　A long time ago, there lived a very poor but hard-working boy in a small suburb. His fatherwas so ill that he became bedridden. To earn a living, the boy woke up early in the morning andwent into the jungle to chop wood for sale in the suburb.

　　One particular day, the boy carded his axe and went into the jungle as usual. When he wasnear a lake, he saw a big tree. He climbed up the tree and tried to chop some branches. Suddenlyhis axe slipped and fell into the lake. The boy started crying because he had lost the one tool heneeded to earn his living.

　　Suddenly the water surface rippled and an old man appeared. Seeing that the boy wasfrightened, he said, “My boy, please do not be afraid. Tell me why you are crying so sadly.”

　　“My axe dropped into the water. I need it to earn a living to care for my sickly father.”

　　“Let me search for it,” said the old man. Then he disappeared into the water and the lakebecame calm again. After a while, the water surface tippled again and the old man reappeared. Inhis hand was a shining golden axe.

　　“Is this your axe?” asked the old man.

　　“This axe is beautiful, but it is not mine,” said the boy.

　　“Well, let me go in and search once more.” The old man disappeared into the water again. Amoment later, he reappeared. This time, he was holding a silver axe.

　　“Is this your axe?” asked the old man.

　　“No, mine is just an ordinary one, not made of gold or silver,” replied the boy.

　　“All right, let me go in and search again.” He then disappeared into the water.

　　He reappeared this time carrying the boy's axe.

　　“Yes, yes, that is mine!” shouted the boy excitedly.

　　The old man said, “My dear boy, I am so pleased that you are such an honest person. I amgiving the golden and silver axes to you. You can then find a good doctor and I am sure yourfather will recover very soon.” The old man then disappeared into the water.

　　The boy sold both the axes. With the money, he managed to find a good doctor and sooncured his father of his illness.

　　很久以前，郊外住着一个小男孩，他很穷却很勤劳。他的父亲生了很重的病，卧床不起。为了维持生计，小男孩每天早上很早就起床到丛林里砍木头，然后到郊区去卖。

　　有一天，小男孩磨好斧子，像平常一样走进丛林里。走到湖边时，他看见一棵大树。

　　他爬上大树，想砍些树枝。突然斧子一滑，掉进湖里。男孩哭了起来，因为工具一丢，就没法挣钱养家了。

　　突然水面泛起涟漪，一个老头儿出现了。男孩吓了一跳，老头儿说：“孩子，别害怕。

　　跟我说说你为什么哭得这么伤心啊？”

　　“我的斧子掉进水里去了。我还得用它养活全家，照顾我生病的父亲呢。”

　　“我帮你找找吧。”老头儿说完消失在水里，湖面重归平静。不一会儿，水面有了动静，老头儿又出现了，手里拿着亮闪闪的金斧子。

　　“这把是你的斧子吗？”老头儿问。

　　“这把斧子虽然很漂亮，可它不是我那把。”男孩说。

　　“好吧，那我再进水里找找。”老头儿又消失在水里。一会儿，他出现了，这次手里举着一把银斧子。

　　“这是你的斧子吗？”老头儿问。

　　“不是，我那把就是普通的斧子，不是金的也不是银的。”男孩回答。

　　“好吧，我再进去找找。”说完，老头儿又钻进水里去了。

　　这次老头手里拿着男孩的斧子。

　　“对，对，我的就是这把！”男孩兴奋地喊起来。

　　老头儿说：“好孩子，你这么诚实，我真高兴。现在我要把这金斧子和银斧子都送给你。你可以去找个好大夫，我相信你父亲很快就会好起来的。”说完，老头儿就钻进湖里不见了。

　　男孩卖了两把斧子，拿着钱请了一个好大夫，很快，他的父亲就痊愈了。

 

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