杯弓蛇影

The Shadow of the Bow in the Cup

很久以前，在一个小村庄里，有一个叫李四的农民。李四是一个非常勤劳的人，但他有一个小小的毛病，就是有时候会很紧张，容易被吓到。

A long time ago, in a small village, there was a farmer named Li Si. Li Si was a very hardworking person, but he had a small flaw: sometimes he got very nervous and was easily scared.

一天，李四的好朋友王五邀请他去家里喝茶。王五的家非常漂亮，院子里种满了花草，还有一棵大树，树上挂着一个精致的弓。两人坐在院子里，一边喝茶，一边聊天。

One day, Li Si's good friend Wang Wu invited him to his home for tea. Wang Wu's home was very beautiful, with a yard full of flowers and plants, and a big tree with a delicate bow hanging from it. The two of them sat in the yard, drinking tea and chatting.

李四正喝着茶，忽然他瞥见茶杯里有一个弯弯的黑影，他立刻紧张起来，心想：“不好！杯子里有一条蛇！”他吓得脸色发白，手里的茶杯差点掉在地上。

As Li Si was drinking his tea, he suddenly noticed a curved black shadow in his teacup. He immediately became nervous and thought, "Oh no! There's a snake in my cup!" He was so scared that his face turned pale, and he nearly dropped the teacup.

王五见状，连忙问他发生了什么事。李四结结巴巴地说：“杯子里有条蛇，我要被蛇咬了！”王五笑了笑，安慰他说：“别怕，先把茶杯放下，我去看看。”

Wang Wu saw this and quickly asked him what had happened. Li Si stammered, "There's a snake in my cup, I'm going to be bitten by a snake!" Wang Wu smiled and reassured him, "Don't be afraid, put the cup down first, and let me take a look."

王五仔细看了看茶杯，又抬头看了看挂在树上的弓，恍然大悟。他对李四说：“你别怕，这不是蛇。你看到的只是挂在树上的弓的影子，反射在茶水里，看起来像蛇罢了。”

Wang Wu carefully looked at the cup and then looked up at the bow hanging from the tree. He suddenly realized what had happened. He said to Li Si, "Don't be afraid, it's not a snake. What you saw was just the shadow of the bow hanging in the tree, reflected in the tea. It looks like a snake."

李四听后，顿时松了一口气，觉得自己刚才真是白担心一场。从那以后，他记住了这个教训，遇到事情时先要冷静观察，不能轻易被表象吓倒。

Hearing this, Li Si breathed a sigh of relief and felt that he had been worrying for nothing. From then on, he remembered this lesson: when encountering something, it is important to stay calm and observe carefully, and not be easily deceived by appearances.