The Deer and the Vineyard
故事全文
There was a deer in the forest that was chased by a hunter and his dogs, so he ran for his dear life. He was panting and out of breath. When he saw a vineyard by the roadside, he quickly dove into the vineyard, and hid among the grapevines. The luxuriant leaves hid the deer well, and the fragrance of the ripened grapes masked the deer’s scent from the hunter’s dogs. The hunter searched high and low for the deer and said, “That’s strange! I saw the deer running this way. How could it have escaped?”The hunter scratched his head, and left with his dogs to search for the deer elsewhere.
The deer breathed a sigh of relief and said, “I’m so lucky to have found these grapevines, or I would have been caught for sure. I’m so hungry after running for so long, and the leaves on this grapevine are large and green and look so delicious. Let me eat my fill and regain my energy before going home.”And so, the deer began to munch hungrily on the leaves of the grapevine.
Just then, the hunter returned to the vineyard as he could not find the deer. When he walked past the grapevine, he heard the sound of rustling leaves and saw the leaves moving. He thought to himself, “The wind isn’t blowing. How come these leaves keep moving?”And so, he walked over to the grapevine stealthily, and found the deer munching on the leaves. The hunter said happily, “So, this is where you’ve been hiding! If you hadn’t been munching on the leaves, I would never have been able to find you!”The hunter raised his bow and shot an arrow toward the deer. The deer got shot by the arrow and fell to the ground. He moaned in pain, “The leaves of the grapevine saved me, but instead of thanking it, I ate its leaves. I should have known better than that!”
