英文幽默故事：The Golden Egg

This Short Story The Golden Egg is quite interesting to all the people. Enjoy reading this story. 

 

 

 

Haria, a poor barber lived alone in his small hut. He was dedicated¹ to his work. And whatever he earns was enough to fulfill² his needs. 

 

 

 

One evening, after returning from work, Haria was hungry. “What shall I cook tonight?" he thought. Just then he heard a hen clucking outside his hut. “That hen would make a great feast for me," thought Haria and prepared to catch the hen. 

 

 

 

With a little effort he was able to catch the hen. As he was about to kill the hen, it squeaked³, “Please do not kill me, O kind man! I will help you." Haria stopped. Though he was surprised that the hen spoke⁴, he asked, “How can you help me?" 

 

 

 

“If you spare my life, I will lay a golden egg everyday for you," said the hen. Haria’s eyes got widened in delight. Haria was surprised to hear this promise. “A golden egg! That too everyday! But why should I believe you? You might be lying," said Haria. “If I do not lay a golden egg tomorrow, you can kill me," said the hen. After this promise, Haria spared the hen and waited for the next day. 

 

 

 

The next morning, Haria found a golden egg lying outside his hut and the hen sitting beside it. “It is true! You really can lay a golden egg!" exclaimed Haria with great delight. He did not reveal this incident to any one, fearing that others would catch the hen. 

 

 

 

From that day onwards, the hen would lay a golden egg everyday. In return, Haria took good care of the hen. Very soon, Haria became rich. 

 

 

 

But he became greedy. He thought, “If I cut open the hen’s stomach, I can get out all the golden eggs at once. I do not have to wait for the hen to lay the golden eggs one by one." 

 

 

 

That night, he brought the hen to the interior portion of his house and killed the hen. But to his dismay, he found no golden eggs. Not even one. 

 

 

 

“What have I done? My greed had made me kill the hen," he wailed⁵. But it was too late.  

1 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

2 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

3 squeaked   

v.短促地尖叫( squeak的过去式和过去分词 )；吱吱叫；告密；充当告密者

参考例句：

• The radio squeaked five. 收音机里嘟嘟地发出五点钟报时讯号。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Amy's shoes squeaked on the tiles as she walked down the corridor. 埃米走过走廊时，鞋子踩在地砖上嘎吱作响。 来自辞典例句

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 wailed   

v.哭叫，哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She wailed over her father's remains. 她对着父亲的遗体嚎啕大哭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The women of the town wailed over the war victims. 城里的妇女为战争的死难者们痛哭。 来自辞典例句