齐国人有一个妻子和一个妾（qie4,younger wife, concubine)，他们三个人一起住。每当丈夫外出，他总是吃饱喝足后回来。他的妻子问他跟谁一起吃喝，他告诉她，一起吃喝的都是富人。

A man of the state of Qi had a wife and a concubine, and the three of them lived together in the same house. Whenever the husband went out, he would come back satiated with food and wine. Being asked by his wife about the people he ate and drank with, he told her that they were all wealthy men.

他的妻子告诉他的妾：“我们的丈夫出去，总是吃饱喝足会后回来；问他跟谁一起吃喝，他都说是富人。但是，从来没有富人到我们家里来，我将要秘密的跟踪他，看看他到底去哪里？

His wife said to his concubine, "Whenever our husband goes out, he would come back satiated with food and wine. I asked him about the people he ate and drank with and he said they were all wealthy men. But no distinguished visitor has ever come to our house. I am going to follow him secretly and find out where he goes."

一天早上，她偷偷的跟踪她的丈夫。整个都城没有人停下来跟他谈话。最后，他到了东郊的墓地，到祭拜祖先的人那里，向他们乞讨作祭品的食物和酒，当他没有吃饱，他就跑到另一家，向其他人乞讨。原来这就是他吃饱喝足的方法。

She got up early one morning and followed her husband stealthily. In the whole capital city no one stopped to talk to him. Eventually he went to the cemetery in the eastern suburbs and begged for leftovers from those who offered food as sacrifices to ancestors in front of the graves. When he did not have enough he would look around for other people offering sacrifice. This was how he became satiated with food and wine.

他的妻子回来告诉他的妾，说：“我们的丈夫，本应该是我们的一辈子的依靠，现在堕落到这种地步。

His wife returned home and told the concubine everything, "Our husband is the support and stay of our lives, and now he has degraded himself to this."

妻子和妾在庭院中一边哭，一边咒骂她们的丈夫，而他却一点也不知道，从外面进来，在他的妻子和妾面前装出一幅傲慢的样子。

The two of them abused him and wept together in the courtyard. Their husband, knowing nothing of what had happened, sauntered in and put on airs in front of his wife and concubine.

在绅士（君子，gentlemen, men with a sense of decency and honor)看来，在所有追求荣华富贵的人中，能让他们的妻子和妾不觉得羞耻的，已经很少了。

In the view of men with a sense of decency and honour, of all the means people employ to gain wealth and riches, few would not cause their wives and concubines to weep together in shame.

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*齐国，初秋战国（475-221BC）时代.
the Era of the Warring States. The pre-Qin (before 1644-1911)period, especially the Era of the Warring States, was a flowering age for Chinese fables and exerted a definite influence on works of later centuries. To those familiar with Aesop's tales, the earliest stories would be of special interest because they are nearest to Aesop's fables in terms of time. (K. L. Kiu, Hongkong University)