Thorough Comprehension of Life (8)

1 Ji Shengzi was celebrated for training fighting cock. Once, his king had a fighting cock of famous species. The king asked Ji Shengzi to train it for him.

2 After ten days, the King wanted to know the training process of the fighting cock. He summoned Ji Shengzi to report. Ji Shengzi said, “Not yet. It is still very rash and has an air of haughty aloofness.”

3 Another ten days passed, the King asked again about the training. Ji Shengzi replied, “It made a progress but it is still imperfect. It is scatterbrained. A little noise or a shadow moving before it will influence it. Therefore, it can’t fight now.”

4 After third ten days, the king was vexatious and impatient because he lost his faces for long failures in the cock fighting stanza. He asked impatiently, “Why does your training last so long?”

5 Ji Shengzi said composedly, “Almost well. Now its eyes still show anger. Though the mood of longing for fighting is fine, it should not reveal the mood. To be a good fighting cock, even revealing a little bit of anger is not acceptable.”

6 As what he said is rational, the king had to tolerate him.

7 The forth ten days passed. Ji Shengzi himself went to see the king before the king summoned. “Successful! Successful! It completely ignores the opponent’s provocation. It looks like a woody cock but it reaches the level of virtue completion. When it stands in the fighting court, its opponents are shocked by its look and spirit and be retreated timidly without fighting.”