清晨,一個牽著山羊的青年因為大霧迷了路。這時,一位盲人拄著拐杖走過來,青年問他是否也因為大霧迷了路。盲人笑著說:“我眼睛本來就看不見,有沒有大霧對于我沒有什么影響。我走路完全靠記憶,走過的路不會錯的。你跟我走雖然慢一點,但是一定不會迷路。”
One morn, a young man leading a goat lost his way due to the thick mist. When he was at a loss, a blind man came to him with a stick in hand. The young man asked him whether he also lost his way because of the thick mist. The blind man smiled and said, “My eyes are blind and I cannot see anything. Therefore, the mist does not affect me the slightest. I followed the path in my memory and it never goes wrong. Slow as you may be when you follow me, you will never get lost.”
青年喜出望外,牽著山羊跟盲人向前走。盲人一邊在前面引路,一邊和青年攀談起來,問他大清早到哪里去。青年說:“哦,我到鎮(zhèn)上賣羊。”
The young man felt considerably happy and led the goat following the blind man forward. The blind man was guiding the young man and talking with him casually. He asked the young man where he was going on such an early morning. The young man replied, “Oh! I am going to sell my goat!”
盲人說:“是公羊還是母羊?養(yǎng)了幾年了?”青年隨口說:“是母羊,已經(jīng)養(yǎng)了三年啦!”
The blind man asked him, “Male or female? How many years have you kept it?” The young man spoke without too much thought, “A female goat of 3 years!”
霧氣越來越大,青年牽著山羊繼續(xù)跟著盲人走。盲人突然抓住青年的手,大聲說:“這里是派出所,快進去交代偷盜山羊的經(jīng)過吧!”
The mist became denser and denser. The young man was still following the blind man, leading the goat. All of a sudden, the blind man grasped the young man’s hand and shouted at him, “Here is the police station! Go into it and elaborate on how you stole the goat!”
青年是個慣偷,他因偷盜村民養(yǎng)的羊,已經(jīng)多次進派出所了。在民警的追問下,青年承認山羊是剛從一戶村民的羊棚里偷來的。青年疑惑不解地問盲人:“你是盲人,什么都看不見,怎么就知道我是小偷呢?”
The young man has been a thief for a long time. In the past he had been arrested into the police station for stealing goats in the village. Confronted by the police, he admitted the goat was stolen by him from a villager. The young man asked the blind man puzzlingly, “You are blind and can see nothing, but how do you know I am a thief?”
盲人笑著說:“我養(yǎng)了幾十年羊,根據(jù)它們不同的叫聲,可以判斷是母羊還是公羊,多大歲數(shù)。你牽的明明是公羊,你卻說是母羊;明明才一歲多一點,你卻說已經(jīng)養(yǎng)了三年。還有,羊被主人牽著和被陌生人牽著,叫聲完全不同。根據(jù)這些,我判定這羊肯定不是你自己的!”
The blind man smiled, “I have been keeping goats for decades and can tell one of them is male or female as well as their age according to their voices. The goat you led just now is obviously a male goat, but you said it was female. The goat is simply a little more than one year old, but you said you had kept it for three years. Moreover, the goat will bleat totally differently when he is led by a stranger instead of his owner. With regards to all these, I can tell the goat does not belong to you!”
小偷這才明白是怎么回事,頭像遭到霜打的草一樣低了下去。盲人說:“別看我是盲人,心里亮堂著呢!我把你引到這里,是讓你坦白從寬,重新做人。”
Only then did the thief understand the whole thing with his head dropped down like the grass was beaten down by the frost. The blind man then said again, “Do not look down upon my blindness. Actually my heart is bright. I am leading you here just for the purpose that you can confess your deeds candidly and be a new man again!”