Original text:

"There are guests, willing to Yangzhou secretariat, or make more money, or ride a crane. One of them said,' I am rich and rode a crane to the state', and I want to have these three things. "

Classical Chinese translation:

The story of Yangzhou crane is widely quoted as the proverb "You can't have your cake and eat it". This proverb means that it is difficult for people to get two opposite things at the same time, or to choose between two opposite things. In this story, "fish" refers to becoming the secretariat of Yangzhou, "bear's paw" refers to riding a crane to rise, and "fish and bear's paw can't have both" means that people can't realize these two wishes at the same time. So it can be translated as "you can't have your cake and eat it" to convey the core meaning of the story.

Story significance:

It reveals people's pursuit of an ideal life. In the story, some people want to be the secretariat of Yangzhou, some people want to have a lot of wealth, and some people want to ride a crane to rise, that is, to pursue a free and relaxed life. And one of them hopes to realize three wishes at the same time, that is, to make a fortune and raise the sky, expressing people's yearning for material and spiritual satisfaction.

Background:

The story of Yangzhou Crane comes from China's novel of Yin Yun in Ming Dynasty. Yin Yun, a writer and calligrapher in the early Ming Dynasty, was famous for writing note novels. Yin Yun's novel is a collection of novels with characters and stories as the theme, in which many philosophical short stories are recorded, Yangzhou Crane is one of them.

The story of Yangzhou crane appeared in the note novels of Ming Dynasty, probably influenced by the social atmosphere and values at that time. During the Ming Dynasty, with the prosperity of commerce and the active social and economic activities, people's pursuit of material wealth and spiritual freedom increased day by day. The story of Yangzhou crane reflects the pursuit of ideal life by some people at that time, that is, they hope to have both material prosperity and spiritual freedom.

With the passage of time, the story of Yangzhou crane has gradually evolved into an idiom or proverb, which is widely quoted on various occasions to describe that it is difficult for people to get two opposite things at the same time or make a choice between two opposite things. The meaning of this idiom or proverb has gone beyond the story itself and become a common language for people to express their life choices.