英文幽默故事：The Palace and The Hut

King Vikramaditya was known for his justice and kindness. Even Gods sought his help in setting issues. In his kingdom, no one was unhappy. His people loved him and were proud of him. 

 

Once, the Vikramaditya decided¹ to build a palace on the riverbank. He ordered his ministers to survey the site and start the work. The laborers² were put to work and in a few days the palace was ready. Before bringing the King to show the palace, the minister decided to take a final look. 

 

“Splendid!" the minister exclaimed, looking at the palace. Then suddenly his eyes fell on something and he shouted, “What is that? I did not see that before." All the laborers and the soldiers turned around. There was a hut just a few steps away from the palace gate. “What is this hut doing here?" shouted the minister and added, “And whom does it belong to?" 

 

“Sir, it belongs to an old woman. She has been living here for a long time," replied a soldier. 

 

The minister walked up to the hut and spoke³ to the old lady. “I want to buy your hut. Ask for anything," he said. 

 

“I am sorry, Sir. I can not accept your offer. My hut is dearer to me than my life. I have lived in it with my late husband and I want to die in it," the old lady said. 

 

The minister tried to tell her that her hut would spoil the charm⁴ of the newly constructed palace. But the old lady was strong in her stance and she was ready to face any consequences and any punishment. She refused to sell her hut to the King. The matter was then taken to the King. 

 

The wise and generous king thought for a while, and then said, “Let the old lady have her hut where it is. It will only add to the beauty of the new palace." Then turning to the minister, the King said, “Let us not forget that what seems ugly to us may be precious to someone else." 

 

The people then realized why their king was so highly respected by all the people and by all other neighboring kingdoms.  

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

3 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。

4 charm   

vt.使着迷，使陶醉；n.招人喜欢之处，魅力

参考例句：

• With all imperfections the short play has a real charm.尽管有不少缺欠，这出小戏仍颇具魅力。
• He could resist her charm no longer.他再也抗拒不住她的魅力。