Long ago, in the state of Qi, the king loved listening to a large orchestra of musicians playing the yu (a traditional wind instrument).
很久以前，在齐国，国王非常喜欢听大乐队演奏竽这种传统乐器。

The orchestra had hundreds of musicians, and the king enjoyed the grand performance.
乐队里有上百名乐师，国王非常享受这宏大的演奏场面。

A man named Mr. Nanguo, who didn’t know how to play the yu, wanted to join the orchestra to earn a living.
有个叫南郭先生的人，不会吹竽，却想加入乐队混口饭吃。

He thought, "With so many musicians, I can just pretend to play, and no one will notice."
他想：“这么多人演奏，我只要装装样子，没人会发现的。”

Mr. Nanguo blended in, holding a yu and pretending to blow it during performances.
南郭先生混进了乐队，每次表演时，装模作样地拿着竽假装吹奏。

The king never realized that Mr. Nanguo wasn’t playing a single note.
国王从未察觉南郭先生根本没发出一个音符。

Years passed, and Mr. Nanguo lived comfortably as part of the orchestra.
几年过去了，南郭先生在乐队里过得很舒适。

However, the old king died, and his son became the new ruler.
然而，老国王去世了，新国王继位了。

The new king preferred solo performances and wanted each musician to play individually.
新国王更喜欢独奏，他要求每位乐师单独表演。

Terrified, Mr. Nanguo knew his deception would be exposed.
南郭先生害怕极了，他知道自己的伪装很快会被揭穿。

Rather than face humiliation, he fled the palace, leaving behind his position and reputation.
为了避免丢脸，他逃离了宫殿，丢下了职位和名誉。

The story teaches that relying on deception to succeed will eventually lead to failure and disgrace.
这个故事告诉我们，靠欺骗获取成功最终会导致失败和耻辱。