Three Clever Friends
Once upon a time in a quiet hamlet, there were three great friends. They lived in little houses of their own a furlong away from one another. Every weekend as the sun dipped over the western hills and the sky turned a tender rose, they gathered under their favorite cherry tree. The sweet twittering of the birds flying homewards, the gurgle of the brook merrily wending its way, and the occasional thunderclaps always filled them with delight. In fact, they derived more pleasure from the sounds of Nature than from the beautiful landscape all around. For alas, all the three companions had extremely bad sight. They loved hot tea and chatted on till the moon shone bright and clear. Often their conversation came round to their eyesight. "Do you know," proudly declared Master Zhang, "lately my vision has improved so much that the other day, at noon, I could easily make out some stars twinkling in the sky." "Is it so?" exclaimed Master Zhung. "But Brother, can you now locate the wee nest of Robin Redbreast high up on that tall tall tree? Look! How lovingly the mother bird is feeding her chicks with those tiny yellow seeds." "Ha, ha, ha," laughed Master Zhing. "Stop bragging, both of you. Brother Zhang, have you forgotten so soon how once you called someone deaf in the Park for not answering to your question, whereas it was a statue? And when a crow which had alighted on its head flew off, you triumphantly chuckled, "Now your hat has blown off, but I'll not tell you." Remember?"
"And now brother Zhung," he continued, "don't you remember bumping several times into a buffalo? I wonder how you both can claim to see stars on the treetop. Should we have a wager to find out who amongst us has the sharpest vision?" "That's not a bad idea! But what is the nature of the bet?" asked his two friends. "Tomorrow, at the crack of dawn, the priest will install an important tablet at the temple entrance. Whosoever amongst us can see it most distinctly will be treated by the others to sumptuous meals," proposed Master Zhing, who always considered himself the wisest of the three. Midnight struck. A chill wind blew over the quiet village. But Master Zhang could not get a wink of sleep. "What if I'm unable to see the tablet clearly? I can't let my friends know that my eyesight is that poor," thought he. Quietly sneaking out of the house he made his way towards the temple. Tap, tap, tap, thrice he knocked on the heavy wooden door.