In the Qin Dynasty, there was a scholar addicted1 to antiques. He was so fond of collecting them that he would buy them nomatter how costly2 they were.

　　One day, a man came to his door to peddle3 a worn-out straw mat. He said to the Qin scholar: "In those years, Ai Gong of the State of Lu gave a seat to Confucius to inquire about political affairs. This was the very straw mat on which Confucius had sat."

　　Overjoyed to hear this, the Qin scholar believed it to be true. So he exchanged the land near his manor4 for this worn-out straw mat.

　　A few days later, another man came to peddle a walking stick. He told the Qin scholar: "This walking stick was used by Gu Gong Dan Fu, ancestor of King Wen of the Zhou Dynasty, when he led his people to leave Bin5 in order to elude6 the invasion of the Di people. In terms of age, it was several hundred years earlier than the straw mat which Confucius had sat on. Sir, what will you reward me?"

　　The Qin scholar was pleased as if he had found a treasure, and gave this man all the money in his house.

　　A few days later, another man with a broken bowl boasted to the Qin scholar: "Sir, neither the straw mat nor the walking stick is a genuine antique, whereas this bowl was actually made in the time of King lie of the Xia Dynasty, which is more remote than the Zhou Dynasty."

　　The Qin scholar believed this broken bowl was more ancient than the straw mat and the walking stick, so he gave up his house and courtyard for the broken bowl.

　　The scholar possessed7 the straw mat, the walking stick and the broken bowl, but he had lost all his fortune. Though he had neither food nor clothes, his fondness for antiques remained unchanged. All along he could not bear to part with these three "antiques".

　　Since then, the Qin scholar, draping the straw mat of Ai Gong of Lu over his shoulders, using the walking stick of Gu Gong Dan Fu, and holding the broken bowl of the time of Xia Jie, begged along the street, and kept on shouting: "Elders and fellow villagers, whoever has Jiang Tai Gong's ancient coins of Jiu Fu (the nine government offices) please give me one."

　　秦朝時，有個讀書人，好古成癖。他喜歡收藏古董古玩，無論價格多么昂貴，都要買下來。

　　一天，有個人拿著一張破席子，登門兜售，對秦士說：“當年，獸哀公設(shè)席，賜孔子坐，詢問政事。這張正是當年孔子坐過的席子。”

　　秦士喜出望外，信以為真，便用莊園附近的田地換下了這張破席子。

　　過了幾天，又有一個人拿著一根拐杖來賣，告訴秦士：“這根手杖，還是周文王的祖先古公宜父，為躲避狄人侵略，率領(lǐng)眾人離開那的時候所用的手杖。論年代，比孔子坐的席子還要早幾百年。先生準備用什么來酬謝我呢?”

　　秦士如獲至寶，將家中全部的錢財都給了這個人。

　　幾天后，又有人端著一只破碗，對秦士夸耀說：“先生，席子和手杖都不是什么古董，而這只破碗，倒真正是夏梁時造的，比周朝更古遠了。”

　　秦士以為，這只破碗比席子和手杖更加古老。于是，他用自己居住的宅院買下了這只破碗。

　　席子、手杖、破碗，三件古董全部到手了，而秦士也傾家蕩產(chǎn)了。這位讀書人，盡管衣食無著，可是他的好古之心，依然如故，始終舍不得丟掉這三件“古董”。

　　從此，秦士披著魯哀公的席子，拄著古公宜父的拐杖，端著夏架時的破碗，沿街乞討，嘴里不停地叫喊著：“父老鄉(xiāng)親，誰有姜太公的九府古錢，請賞我一文吧!”