One day, seated in the ancestral hall, King Hui of Liang saw a man leading an ox pass by. He asked: "Where are you taking the ox?"

 

The man leading the ox stopped and answered: "I am taking it to be slaughtered¹ and will use its blood to paint the bell."

 

As King Hui heard this, he felt pity for the ox and said: "How can that be done? You are too cruel. Let it go at once. It is not guilty. How can you kill it? I cannot bear to see it panic-stricken, shedding² tears and trembling before its death."

 

The man leading the ox asked: "Do you mean that I shall let the ox go and not paint the bell? Is that it?"

 

King Hui answered: "What are you saying? How can you not paint the bell! Let the ox go, but use a sheep instead."

 

一天，梁惠王坐在庙堂上，看到堂下有一个人牵着一头牛走过，便问道：“你把牛牵到哪儿去啊？”

 

牵牛的人停下来回答说：“我要把这头牛牵去杀掉，用它的血来涂钟。”

 

惠王听了，对牛十分怜悯，说：“那怎么行呢！你们太残忍了，赶快把牛放掉。它没有罪，怎么能把它杀掉呢？我不忍心看到牛临死前惊恐、流泪、战栗的样子。”

 

牵牛的人问道：“您的意思是要我把牛放了，不必再涂钟了，是吗？”

 

惠王回答说：“你在说什么？钟怎么能不涂呢！把牛放了，就换只羊吧！”

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