The Good Tempered Man

Wang lived in a small town in China. He was a rich man, but he hated spending money, at least, his money. So when he dined in his own house he ate a piece of rye bread and drank a cup of water but when he was called to dine at a friend’s house, he wanted to be served the best of wines and the choicest of fruits.

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One afternoon Wang was sitting by the river when he saw a group of swans fly by. ‘Aha, they are Mr.Chong’s swans. Surely he will not notice if one goes missing.’

Wang picked up a stone and threw it at the swans. One of the swans fell down; Wang promptly picked it up, hid it under his coat and brought it home. That night, Wang ate roasted swan for dinner and went to bed happily. But poor Wang’s happiness did not last long. In the middle of the night Wang woke up with a terrible itching all over his body. Wang started scratching himself all over, but the itching would not stop. Finally, tired with all the scratching Wang fell asleep. He had a dream.