There was a man of the State of Song who liked to curry¹ favour with others.

 

One day, he got a piece of uncarved jade² and went to present it to Zi Han, a minister of the State of Song, with the intention to ingratiate himself with the official.

 

Zi Han adamantly³ refused to accept it.

 

Thereupon, this man said in honeyed words: "This is a piece of rare jade. I regard it as a treasure suitable for a gentleman's utensil⁴. If it gets into the hands of an old gentleman like you, to be worn by you or put on your dining table, that would be most suitable and fitting. I am an unrefined man, not deserving such a valuable treasure."

 

"You may regard this piece of jade as a treasure," said Zi Han, "but I do not accept other's fawning⁵, nor do I regard this kind of conduct a treasure."

 

The man of Song felt he had asked for a snub and sneaked⁶ away.

 

宋国有一个人，喜欢奉承别人。

 

有一天，他得到了一块未经雕琢的玉石，便去献给宋国大臣子罕，想讨好一番。

 

子罕执意不受。

 

于是，那人便花言巧语地说：“这是一块珍奇的玉石啊！我把它当做宝贝，适宜于做君子的器皿。要是落在老先生你的手中，挂在你的身上，放在你的餐桌上，是最相称、最适合的。我是一个粗人，不配使用这种贵重的宝物。”

 

子罕回答说：“你把这块玉石当做宝贝，我却不接受别人巴结奉承，并且不把这种行为当做宝贝。”

 

那个宋国人自讨没趣，溜了。

点击收听单词发音