◎ Han Feizi
Once there was a farmer in the State Song. He was weeding in the field on a very hot day, and his clothes got wet. Suddenly, he saw a hare running quickly. He ran after the hare, but the hare ran away like a shooting arrow. The hare, however, bumped against a stump in the field, broke its neck and died.
The farmer threw down his hoe and picked up the hare. He was overjoyed to capture a hare without any pains, and enjoyed its good significance. He thought weeding was really a tiring job, and farming was also a tough job, but picking up hares without a struggle was much easier. So, he put down his hoe, and no longer worked in the field. Instead, he sat in the shade near the field all day long, dozing and waiting for more hares to collide into the stump.
After many days, the farmer did not get a single hare again. As he had also abandoned farming, his field was covered with weeds, which yielded nothing. All the people of the State Song laughed at him.