THE GOLDEN AXE

A Story From China

A long time ago, two brothers lived in a small village. The younger brother was Li
Gang, and the older brother was Li Ping.
Every morning, the brothers crossed over a small river to go to work. One
morning when Li Gang crossed the bridge, his axe fell into a river. He sat down and
cried.
Suddenly he saw an old man in front of him. The old man asked to him, why he
was crying. Li Gang said, i drpped my axe into the water and now i cannot work. Then,
the old man went away.
Soon he returned with a silver axe. Li Gang looked at it and said, That is not my
axe. Then the man brought another axe. It was madeof gold. But li Gang said it
wasnot his axe.
Finally, the old man showed him an iron axe. Li Gang said, That is the axe i lost.
The old man said, you are an honest boy. I will give you your axe and the golden axe
too.
When Li Gang got home, he told to his brother about the man and the axes. But
his brother didnt believe it. So the next morning, Li Ping went to the river and
dropped his axe from the bridge. Then he startedto cry loudly.
The old man came. Li Ping told him that he had dropped his axe. Li Ping asked for
help. When the old man brought a silver axe to him, Li Ping said that it was his. Then,
the old man showed him the golden axe. He said that the golden axe was also his.
The old man was unhappy. He said, You are not an honest boy. You cannot keep
the silver axe or the golden axe. And i will not return your iron axe. Then, the old man
went away and no one ever saw him again.

(Taken from Stories We Brought with Us)