• Three in the Morning and Four in the Evening

    Chinese Fables
    Deep in a lush, green forest, where playful monkeys swung from tree to tree, lived a kind old man. This man took care of a big group of monkeys, and the monkeys loved him. They especially loved the tasty chestnuts he gave them every day.

    One day, the old man realized he didn't have as many chestnuts as before. He needed to give the monkeys a little less, but he didn't want them to be upset.

    So, he gathered all the monkeys together. "My dear monkeys," he said, "I have an idea. How about I give you three chestnuts in the morning and four chestnuts in the evening?"

    The monkeys heard "three" for the morning and started to chatter angrily. "Only three? That's not enough!" they screeched, jumping up and down and baring their teeth a little. They were not happy at all!

    The old man smiled. He thought for a moment and then said, "Alright, alright, I understand. How about this then: I will give you four chestnuts in the morning and three chestnuts in the evening?"

    This time, the monkeys heard "four" for the morning. Their eyes lit up! "Four! Yes, yes! That's much better!" they cheered, clapping their little hands. They thought getting more chestnuts earlier in the day was a wonderful deal.

    The monkeys were so happy with the new plan. They didn't even stop to count that they were still getting the same number of chestnuts each day – seven!

    The old man chuckled to himself. Sometimes, just changing the way you say things can make a big difference, especially when there are yummy chestnuts involved!

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