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The Roc and the Sparrow: A Fable of Perspective
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There was once a bird called the roc, whose back was as vast as Mount Tai and whose wings were like clouds that overspread the heavens. When it wheeled up into the air a whirlwind arose, and in each flight it covered ninety thousand Ii, soaring above the misty vapours under the azure sky.…
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The greed that cost him everything
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It is said that in the state of Qi, there lived a man named Dongguo Chang, whose greed knew no bounds. He constantly dreamed of amassing a great fortune—ten thousand taels of gold.
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Lord Ye’s dragon love: A fearful encounter
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Lord Ye was famously fond of dragons. He had dragons carved on his walls, dragons painted on his pillars, and dragons engraved on every vessel in his house. Even his robes and curtains bore intricate dragon patterns.
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The acorn trick: Fooling the monkeys
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A monkey-trainer in the state of Song was fond of monkeys and kept a great many of them. He was able to understand them and they would please him.
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Blind Greed: The Gold Snatcher
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There was a man in the state of Qi who wanted some gold. One morning he dressed himself smartly and went to the market. Arriving at the gold-dealer’s stall, he seized a piece of gold and made off.
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The found title-deed and imagined riches
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A man of the state of Song was strolling along the road when he came across an abandoned title-deed. He took it home and hid it, and used to count the items/notches on the deed in secret.“I am going to be rich,” he told a neighbour.