There was once a boatman who earned his living by transporting passengers from one side of the riverbank to the other.

很久以前，有个摆渡的人，他用船把人们从岸的这边送到对岸，以此赚钱为生。

One particular day, while he was resting, a businessman came and asked impolitely,“Transport me to the opposite side of the river.”

有一天，他正在休息时，一个商人过来很不客气地说：“把我送到对岸去！”

“Yes, please come aboard,”answered the boatman.

“知道了，请上船吧。”艄公说。

“How much do you charge for the trip？”asked the businessman.

“摆渡费是多少？”商人说。

“Eight coins each way,”answered the boatman.

“单程八文钱。”艄公答道。

“Eight coins！”exclaimed¹ the businessman.“That is too expensive！ I will pay you six coins.”

“八文，”商人嚷道，“太贵了，六文吧！”

The boatman then began the journey without saying a word. He rowed and rowed towards the opposite bank. When he was about to reach the other side, he stopped and said,“You may get down here.”

艄公没有跟他争论，便摇着橹，慢慢地向对岸划去。当来到离对岸不远时，艄公停住船说：“请下船吧。”

The businessman was shocked,“You expect me to get off here, right into the river？”

商人惊讶地说：“在这儿下船？想让我掉河里吗？”

The boatman replied politely,“Six coins will only take you here, and eight coins will take you to the riverbank.”

艄公礼貌地说：“六文钱就只能送到这儿了，八文钱可以送到对岸。”

The businessman then said,“Well then, take me back to where we came from.”He thought the boatman would think it troublesome to send him back and would just send him to the other side.

商人说：“好吧，你把我送回刚才来的岸边吧。”商人心想他这么一说，艄公会觉得再返回刚才那岸边太麻烦了，便会把他送到对岸。

The boatman just replied,“Sure！”He then began to row back to where they began their journey. When they arrived, the boatman said,“Altogether twelve coins, six coins each way.”

艄公却说：“好的。”然后他把船划回原来的岸边。这时，艄公说：“去六文，回六文，一共十二文。”

The businessman then realised that the boatman was really serious about it. Then he said,“I am sorry, I will pay you the full fare. Please send me over to the other side now.”

商人意识到艄公是认真的，便说：“是我不好，我会付所有的摆渡费的，现在请把我送到对岸去吧！”

The boatman began to row towards the opposite riverbank.

于是，艄公又送他到对岸去。

So how much did the businessman have to pay finally？ Well, twelve coins plus eight coins, a total of twenty coins！

那么，商人一共要付多少摆渡费呢？十二文加八文，一共二十文钱。