Chinese Story for Kids: The Hen that Laid the Golden Eggs

杀鸡取卵 (shājīqǔluǎn) Kill the Hen that Lays Golden Eggs (Advanced)

Key Learning Points (Preview):

杀鸡取卵 (shājīqǔluǎn): to kill the hen that lays golden eggs

金 (jīn): adj. golden

Listen to the whole story:

Yǒu yí duì pínqióng de fūfù, tāmen yǎngle yì zhī lǎo mǔjī.
有   一   对 贫穷       的夫妇，他们    养了    一只 老 母鸡。

Once there was a poor couple who kept an old hen.

Tūrán yǒu yì tiān, lǎo mǔjī xiàle yì zhī jīndàn. Bìngqiě yǐhòu měitiān xià yì zhī.
突然    有 一天，  老  母鸡 下了一 只 金蛋。 并且     以后    每天    下  一只。

Suddenly one day, the old hen laid a golden egg. From then on, it laid one every day.

Zhè duì fūfù cóngcǐ guò shàng le fùyù de rìzi.
这    对 夫妇 从此    过   上      了 富裕的日子。

The poor couple began to live a rich life. 

Hòulái, tāmen xiǎng: Jìrán zhè zhī jī měitiān dōu néng xià yì zhī jīndàn, nàme,
后来， 他们    想：   既然   这 只鸡 每天    都     能    下 一 只  金蛋，那么，
jī de dù lǐ kěndìng yǒu hěnduō jīndàn, bùrú shā le jī, bǎ suǒyǒu de jīndàn dōu qǔ chūlái.
鸡的肚里 肯定      有    很多       金蛋，不如  杀了鸡，把所有     的   金蛋  都   取   出来。

Later, they thought to themselves: "Since the hen lays one golden egg every day, it must have lots of golden eggs in its belly; we'd better kill the hen and take all the golden eggs out." 

Yúshì, tāmen shā le lǎo mǔjī.
于是，他们      杀 了老  母鸡。

So, they killed the old hen.

Kěshì pōukāi jī de dùzi yíkàn, bìng méiyǒu jīndàn.
可是    剖开   鸡的 肚子一看， 并     没有     金蛋。

But when they cut open the hen’s belly, there weren’t any golden eggs at all.  

Tāmen bǎ jī shā le, zài yě méiyǒu jīndàn le.
他们     把 鸡杀了，再 也  没有     金蛋   了。

They had killed the hen and now the golden eggs were gone.

Key Learning Points:

杀鸡取卵 (shājīqǔluǎn): to kill the hen that lays golden eggs

"杀 (shā)" means to kill, "鸡 (jī)" means chicken, "取 (qǔ)" means to get and "卵 (luǎn)" usually means ovum, but in the phrase "杀鸡取卵 (shājīqǔluǎn)," "卵 (luǎn)" just means egg.

Example:
Wǒmen bùnéng shājīqǔluǎn, zhǐ gù yǎnqián lìyì.
我们        不能       杀鸡取卵，只 顾   眼前   利益。

We mustn't kill the hen that lays golden eggs for short-term interest.

金 (jīn): adj. golden

Example:
Tā yǒu zhe jīnsè de tóufa hé báijìng de pífū, kànqǐlái xiàng gè gōngzhǔ.
她 有   着  金色   的 头发 和 白净    的皮肤，看起来   像     个   公主。

She has blonde hair and fair skin, so she looks just like a princess.

More Mandarin Idioms for Children:
盲人摸象 The Blind Men and the Elephant
井底之蛙 The Frog in the Well

Chinese for Kids

General Chinese (Intermediate Level)