Once upon a time, deep in a forest where no human had ever set foot, there lived a mother bear and her two cubs. The mother bear was old, but every day she worked hard to find food for her children. Seeing how much their mother struggled, the two cubs said, “Mom, we are grown up now. Tomorrow, please let us go out and find food by ourselves.” The mother bear was happy to see their growing independence. She hugged them tightly and gave them many reminders. Although worried, she also felt immense joy as she watched her cubs take their first steps toward self-reliance.
The next morning, the cubs waved goodbye and set off. Along the way, they discovered many new and fascinating things they had never seen at home. Bright blue and red butterflies danced through the air, teasing them playfully, and the colorful forest flowers seemed to invite the cubs to linger and play. The two cubs explored and played until the afternoon, when hunger began to gnaw at them. Suddenly, they spotted a large piece of cheese by the path and shouted with excitement.
They rushed over and grabbed the cheese, intending to split it equally. But greed took over. Whenever one cub tried to break the cheese in half, the other pulled it back, afraid of getting the smaller portion. They forgot their mother’s advice and refused to share. At first, they argued softly, but soon their quarrel grew louder and fiercer.
At that moment, an old fox passing by heard the commotion. He stopped and asked, “What’s going on here? Why are you shouting at each other?” The greedy cubs explained everything to the fox. Known for his cunning ways and long experience in the forest, the fox smiled and said, “No problem. Give the cheese to me, and I will divide it for you. I promise both portions will be exactly equal.”
Overjoyed, the cubs eagerly handed over the cheese. The fox pretended to break it evenly, but he intentionally made one piece much larger than the other. The older cub protested, “This piece is bigger!” The sly fox replied, “No worries. I can fix it so they are equal.” Then he quickly took a big bite from the larger piece. The larger piece became smaller. Now the younger cub shouted, “No! They still aren’t equal!”
The fox licked his lips and reassured them, “Don’t worry. I’ll fix it a little more.” He took another big bite from the larger piece, and again the sizes became uneven. The cubs yelled in frustration, “They’re still not equal!” The fox calmly replied, “Alright, just a little more, and it will be perfect.”
One by one, the cunning fox ate almost the entire cheese while the cubs watched, still arguing over which portion was bigger. Finally, after the fox had eaten most of it, only two tiny pieces remained. He divided them evenly and said, “There, now they are equal. Enjoy, and remember not to fight over food again.” With that, the fox laughed softly and disappeared into the forest.
The two greedy cubs sadly took their portions. They didn’t speak, but they had clearly learned a lesson about the dangers of greed and the importance of sharing.