询楼捕蝉

　　A man carves an idol1 and takes it to the fair. No one buys it, so he begins to shout in order to canvass2 the customer.

　　He says that this idol can bring in wealth and good luck. One man says to the seller, "Hello, My friend, if this is so, you should have the advantages that the idol can bring, why do you want to sell it?" The seller says, "What I want is that I can get cash in at once. The profit from the idol is so slow."

　　This story means: God will never respect people who make a profit by hook or crook3.

　　有人雕刻了一个赫尔墨斯的木像，拿到市场上去卖。因为没有一个买主上前购买，他便大声叫喊，想招揽生意。

　　他说有赐福招财的神出售。这时旁边有一个人对他说道：“喂，朋友，既然这样，你自己应该享受他的好处哇，为什么还要卖掉他呢？”他回答说：“我要的是现在马上可以兑现的利益，这个神的利益却来得很慢哪。”

　　这故事正是说那种不择手段地求利，连神也不尊敬的人。