73. A DEAD DOG'S REVENGE

　　Chinese farmers plow with oxen and water buffaloes, so most Chinese do not eat beef, out of gratitude to these trustworthy animals. But many Chinese regard dogs the same as they regard pigs, as a source of meat. So some Chinese butchers specialize in slaughtering dogs.

　　One such butcher lived in Nanxiang Village in Jiating, near Shanghai. His name was Cai Liu. Dog meat is especially popular in the winter, because they say it warms you up, so as the New Year festival approached, Cai smiled as he whetted his knives and thought about how much money he was going to make.

　　Cai had butchered dogs for years. He had the whole routine down pat. He slit a dog's throat and dumped the carcass into a vat of water. After it had soaked, it would be easier to pull out its fur. He always did it that way. Experience build sefficiency. But things went differently this time. After he dumped the carcass in the vat, his eyes bulged, his ears rang, his heart thumped. He had a premonition of impending doom.

　　Just at that moment, the dog came to life, and with its last mite of strength, lunged out of the vat at Cai! His premonition had prepared him: when he saw the dog coming for him, Cai somersaulted backwards, but the dog was already on him! He tried to fend it off with his hands. It sank its teeth into Cai's forearm!

　　Cai screamed in pain. His neighbors came to see what was wrong. They tried to pry the dog's mouth open with sticks, but its teeth were stuck fast. No matter how many people tried to lever its mouth open, it held onto Cai's arm.

　　"Who would ever imagine that a dog with its throat slit could have such power?" one of the neighbors asked in amazement.

　　"This isn't the time for discussion! Get it off me, will you!" Cai rolled back and forth across the floor trying to sling the dog off, but it seemed to be welded to his forearm.

　　The pain was so intense that tears came to his eyes. The dog kept biting! It hurt more and more. He even wet his pants, but the dog held on!

　　The pain got worse and worse. His heart couldn't stand it. His neighbors watched helplessly as Cai's face went pale. Then-- Ka! They heard the death rattle in Cai's throat.

　　He fell back dead. As he died, the dog released its grip and fell down dead with him.

　　From then on, nobody in that region ever dared to eat dog meat again.

73.死狗的报

　　 中国农民一般用黄牛或者水牛耕地，所以大多数中国人是不吃牛肉的，因为他们很感激这些忠诚的动物。不过，很多中国人认为狗和猪一样，都是肉食。中国的一些屠夫就是专门杀狗的。

　　上海附近的嘉兴有个叫南乡的村子，就住着这样一个屠夫。他的名字叫蔡六。狗肉在冬天特别畅销，因为人们都说它能暖身子。眼看 着春节一天一天近了，蔡一边磨刀的时候，一边盘算着自己能挣多少钱，都 藏不住笑了。

　　蔡已经有多年的杀狗经验了，有一套熟练的杀狗方法。他剖开狗的喉咙，然后把狗扔到一锅沸水中。当狗泡 湿了以后，它身上的皮就好剥了。他一直就是这么做的。经验就是效率，但是这一次有点反常。他把狗扔进锅里以后，自己的眼睛肿了起来，耳朵嗡嗡发响，心脏砰砰地跳。他有一种不祥的预感。

　　就在这时，那只狗又醒过来了 ，它用尽全身最后的力气，从锅里扑向蔡！蔡早有预感，所以他一看到狗向他扑来，马上向后一闪，可是狗已经咬到他了！他用手想把狗弄开，然而狗牙已经深深地扎进他的前臂里了。

　　蔡痛得尖叫起来。邻居们赶来看发生了什么事。他们用棍子想把狗嘴撬开，但是狗牙扎得太牢了。不管人们怎么撬，狗还是紧紧地咬在蔡的臂上。

　　“真想不到，一只被割破喉咙的狗，还有这么大力气！”一个邻居惊讶地说。

　　“现在不是议论的时候！快把它拿走，好吗！”蔡在地上滚来滚去想把狗甩开，然而它好像已经焊在他前臂上一样。

　　蔡疼得流下了眼泪。那只狗还在咬他！越来越疼了。他的衣服都湿了，可是狗还是不松口！

　　伤口越来越疼，他的心脏再也承受不了了。邻居们眼看着他的脸越来越苍白却无能为力。然后——咔！他们听到他的喉咙里发出了最后一声。

　　他倒地死了。与此同时，那只狗终于松了口，也倒下来死了。
　　从那以后，附近再也没人敢吃狗肉了。