Golden, Silver, and Iron Axe

Once upon a time, a woodman who made his living by logging completed his work. He was heading for home. He kept walking with fatigue. He found a river got in the way, and he decided to have a rest on the bridge. He leaned against a wood rail and enjoyed the beautiful riverside view. Unfortunately, his iron axe slipped from his hand at this time. The iron axe sank into the river quickly. The poor man cried, “Oh Oh! That’s my only axe! How can I make money without my axe!” Suddenly, the river was spilt open and an old man appeared in front of the woodman when he decided to dive in the river to find the axe. “I’m the patron of this river.” The old man said, “Why are you sneezing in my place?” The god asked. “I dropped my only axe into the river”, the woodman replied tearfully. “Don’t worry, my son, I can help you,” the god comforted him and disappeared. Soon the god showed up with two shining axes in his hand; one was made of gold and the other was silver. “Which one is your axe, the golden one or the silver one?” the god asked, showing these two axes to the woodman. “I’m sorry, I’m afraid they are not mine,” the woodman responded honestly, “Mine is an old and iron axe.” The woodman responded. The god smiled and held out the iron axe. “Here you go, my son. Both the golden and silver axe are yours. You deserved it for your integrity.” The god left three axes to the woodman and disappeared magically. The woodman was awarded for his honesty and he lived the rest of his life comfortably.

However, a neighbor of the woodman envied him. He purchased a new axe and dropped it into the same river on purpose. He pretended to cry on the bank of the river and squinted to find the god. The god appeared and asked him, “What can I do for you, son?” The neighbor replied, “My axe was dropped in your river.” The god disappeared for a while, and came up with golden axe and silver axe in front of the neighbor. “Which one is yours, my son?” The god asked. The neighbor chuckling answered, “Both are mine!” The god was sternly watching the neighbor, shaking his head and left nothing to him, not even his new axe. The neighbor got his penalty for his greed and dishonesty. (Tianyu Chen)