Liang Shuiquan: Why Don't We Speak the Truth
Everyone's willing to go along with the crowd. No one admits the truth, and anyone who does is considered a fool! This mentality is widespread and unacceptable.
A friend told me a fascinating story, an old tale that I was hearing for the first time. It goes like this:
There was a tavern with several patrons who drank frequently. These patrons would secretly drink by carving tunnels into the walls and using pipes to siphon wine from the barrels.
They took turns drinking, a nightly habit. The tavern owner was initially shocked by the massive loss of wine, then admired the patrons' clever methods of theft, and finally devised a plan for revenge. He acted nonchalantly and altered the wine barrels to be replaced with large containers filled with urine.
The urine overflowed, making it impossible for the patrons to drink. They rushed to drink, eager to indulge their cravings, each trying to suck up as much as possible, only to regret it as they realized others wouldn't come if they made a scene. They felt it was unfair to be left out.
'Good wine, good wine,' they exclaimed, and retreated.
Similarly, others fell for the trick, refusing to be the only one to suffer, repeating the phrase 'Good wine, good wine' before leaving.
I began to understand why some people avoid telling the truth. Some are willing to endure hardship themselves, allowing others to suffer instead of revealing the truth.
They feel comforted by others' misfortune, and it's not unfair to them.
If someone spoke the truth, they would be shunned and cursed, particularly those who had consumed urine and now appeared to have consumed strong wine.
Everyone's willing to go along with the crowd. No one admits the truth, and anyone who does is considered a fool! This mentality is widespread and unacceptable.
