There was a young scholar named Li Ming in ancient times.
有一个古代的年轻书生叫李明。
He was very smart from a young age and loved to read.
他从小就很聪明，喜欢读书。
He dreamed of becoming a high official to help the people.
他向往成为一个大官，帮助百姓。
One day, Li Ming decided to take the imperial exam and pursue a good job.
有一天，李明决定参加科举考试，去争取一份好差事。
He told himself, "I will study hard and I will surely pass!"
他对自己说：“我要努力读书，必定能考上！”
For the first few days, Li Ming worked very hard.
开始的几天，李明非常用功。
He woke up early every morning and stayed up late every night, reading and studying.
他每天早上早起，晚上不早睡，努力读书。
He practiced writing and memorized poems, feeling smarter every day.
他每天都写字、背诗，觉得自己越来越聪明。
But after a while, he started to feel that studying was tiring.
可是，一段时间后，他开始觉得读书很辛苦。
He began to slack off and often didn’t feel like studying.
他开始偷懒了，常常不想读书。
He thought, “There’s still plenty of time, one day of rest won’t matter.”
他觉得反正还有很多时间，今天休息一下也没关系。
So, he would read while nodding off or go out to play.
于是，他一边看书，一边打瞌睡。
Soon, the exam day arrived, and Li Ming wasn’t well-prepared.
结果，考试的日子很快就到了。
His exam results were poor, and he felt very regretful.
李明准备得不够充分，考试成绩也不好。
He went to his father and complained, “Why did I do so badly?”
他非常懊悔，向父亲诉苦：“为什么我考得这么差？”
His father said, “You can’t be diligent sometimes and lazy at other times."
父亲说：“你不能做事一时认真，一时又懒散。”
“Just like planting a tree—if you let it bask in the sun one day and hide in the shade for the next ten days, how can it grow strong and tall?”
“就像种树一样，一天晒太阳，十天躲进阴凉地。”
Li Ming understood and decided to study consistently every day.
李明听了，明白了。他决定以后每天都坚持学习。
He no longer did things with a half-hearted approach and finally passed the exam.
他不再做“一暴十寒”的事，而是努力坚持，终于考上了。
