The Boy Who Cried Wolf

Down in the village,the blacksmith heard the cries."There he goes again," he said,and went on hammering his iron.

山下村子里，铁匠听到了喊声。"他又来了。"他说，继续打他的铁。

The baker heard the cries."I will not be fooled a third time," he said,and went on kneading his dough.

面包师听到了喊声。"我不会第三次被骗了。"他说，继续揉他的面团。

The women heard the cries."That boy needs to learn his lesson," they said,and went on with their washing.

妇女们听到了喊声。"那孩子该吃点教训了。"她们说，继续洗她们的衣服。

Nobody came.Nobody dropped their work.Nobody grabbed a stick or a hoe.Nobody ran up the hill.

没有人来。没有人放下手中的活儿，没有人拿起棍子或锄头，没有人往山上跑。

Peter screamed and screamed until his voice was hoarse.He shouted until tears streamed down his face.But it was no use.The villagers had been tricked twice before.They did not believe him anymore.The Wolf attacked the flock.The sheep scattered in all directions,bleating in terror.Peter tried to fight the Wolf off with his shepherd's crook,but he was only a boy,and the Wolf was fierceand strong.The Wolf killed several sheepand dragged one away into the dark forest.

彼得喊啊喊，喊到嗓子都哑了，喊到满脸都是泪水。可是一点用也没有。村里人已经被骗了两次，他们再也不相信他了。狼扑向了羊群。羊吓得四散奔逃，恐惧地咩咩叫着。彼得想用牧羊杖把狼赶走，可他只是一个孩子，而狼又凶狠又强壮。狼咬死了好几只羊，还拖走了一只，消失在了漆黑的森林里。

When it was over,Peter fell to his knees in the blood-stained grass.The surviving sheep huddled together,trembling.Peter looked down at the village.Smoke rose peacefully from the chimneys.Everything looked so calm,so normal.And yet his world had just fallen apart."They did not come," he whispered."I calledand I called,and they did not come."

一切都结束之后，彼得跪倒在沾满鲜血的草地上。活下来的羊挤在一起，瑟瑟发抖。彼得朝山下望去。炊烟从烟囱里安安静静地升起来，一切都显得那么平静、那么正常。可他的世界刚刚崩塌了。"他们没有来，"他轻轻地说，"我叫啊叫啊，他们没有来。"

That evening,Peter walked slowly back to the village.His head was hanging low.The few sheepthat remained followed behind him,their bells clinking sadly.The villagers came out of their housesand watched him pass.No one said a word.But their eyes said everything.

那天傍晚，彼得慢慢地走回村里，头垂得很低。剩下的几只羊跟在他身后，脖子上的铃铛哀伤地叮当着。村里人走出家门，默默地看着他走过。没有一个人说话，可他们的目光已经把什么都说尽了。

Peter's grandfather was waiting for him by the gate.Peter looked up at him,his eyes red from crying."You were right,Grandpa," he whispered."A liar will not be believed,evenwhen he tells the truth.I broke their trust,and now I have paid the price."

爷爷在门口等着他。彼得抬起头，两只眼睛哭得红红的。"您说得对，爷爷，"他轻声说，"说谎的人，就是说了真话也没人信了。我把他们的信任打碎了，现在付出了代价。"

His grandfather put his hand on Peter's shoulder."I am sorry you had to learn this lesson in such a hard way,my boy.But I hope you will remember it for the rest of your life.Now come.Let us see to the sheepthat are left."

爷爷把手放在彼得的肩上。"我很遗憾，你非要用这么惨的方式才能懂得这个道理，孩子。但我希望你一辈子都要记住。好了，来吧。我们去看看剩下的羊。"

From that day on,Peter never told another lie.He tended his sheep faithfullyand honestly.When he was bored,he would sing songs or carve little figures out of wood or talk to his sheep.But he never,ever cried for help unless he truly needed it.And slowly,very slowly,the villagers began to trust him again.But Peter knewthat trust was like a mirror.It would never be quite the same as it was before.

从那天起，彼得再也没有说过一句谎话。他老老实实、认认真真地放着羊。无聊的时候，他会唱唱歌，用木头刻点小玩意儿，或者跟羊说说话。但他再也没有在不需要的时候喊过救命。慢慢地，非常非常慢地，村里人又开始信任他了。但彼得知道，信任就像一面镜子，碎了再拼回去，永远也回不到从前的样子了。

Moral:A liar will not be believed,evenwhen he speaks the truth.Trust takes years to build,seconds to break,and forever to repair.

寓意：说谎的人，就算说真话也没人信。信任要用很多年才能建立，用几秒钟就能打碎，却要用一辈子去修复。