第二章（374字）

Reynard the Fox Plays Dead to Steal Fish

1. On a cold winter day, the sky was gray, and Reynard the Fox's pantry was completely empty.

2. His wife Hermeline looked worried, and the children were about to cry from hunger.

3. To feed his family, Reynard had no choice but to go out and look for food.

4. He walked along the woods to a road fenced on both sides and sat down, discouraged.

5. Suddenly, he caught the delicious smell of fresh fish drifting in the wind.

6. A cart full of fresh fish was coming—it was the fishmongers heading to the market.

7. Unable to resist, Reynard immediately came up with a clever plan.

8. He ran to the middle of the road, spread out his limbs, shut his eyes, and stuck out his tongue—pretending to be dead.

9. The fishmongers saw a fox lying in the road and stopped their cart to check.

10. They kicked him, twisted him, even flipped him over and shook him a bit.

11. Reynard didn’t move at all, so they assumed he was dead and tossed him next to a basket of fish at the back of the cart.

12. He landed right beside a pile of herring, quietly bit open the basket, and began to feast.

13. He ate at least thirty herrings and finally felt full.

14. Next, he bit open another basket—it was full of eels.

15. He tasted one and found it delicious, so he picked out the finest ones.

16. He pierced the eels with his teeth, strung them together like a necklace, and hung them around his neck.

17. When the cart bumped slightly, he quietly slid down to the ground from behind the basket.

18. Though careful, he made a small sound, which caught the fishmongers’ attention.

19. Once on the ground, Reynard shouted, “Thanks for the fish, my friends! My fur’s worth more than five francs—I’ll keep it myself!”

20. The fishmongers jumped down to chase him, but he had already vanished, running home with his prize.

21. His wife and children cheered with joy when they saw the eels he brought back.

22. At last, the whole family enjoyed a hearty meal of eel together.