The Little Elves
Long time ago, there lived a very poor shoemaker. Because the old man was so poor, he had enough leather to make only one pair of shoes. Still, the very understanding old man never complained. “Tomorrow morning, let's make one pair of shoes with a cheerful heart.”
很久以前，有一个非常贫穷的鞋匠。因为他太穷了，他手中的皮革只够做一双鞋子。但是，善良的老人从不抱怨。“明天早上，咱们开开心心地做一双鞋子。”
After the old man cleaned and prepared the leather that he was going to work on the next day, he placed it on the worktable and went to sleep. The next day, it was morning. The old man was very surprised. “Oh, where did this beautiful shoes come from?” On top of the worktable, the leather was gone, instead a pair of shoes that had been made with a lot of effort was there.
老人把第二天需要用的皮革准备好，并擦干净，把皮革放到工作台上，然后就去睡觉了。醒来的时候已经是早上了。老人很惊讶：“哦？这漂亮的鞋子是从哪来的呢？”昨晚工作台上的皮革已经消失不见了，取而代之的是一双精致的鞋子。
A little later, a customer came into the store. “I saw from the outside window the very beautiful shoes. Please, sell the shoes to me.” The customer showed such a great desire to buy the shoes that he bought it for much more than the normal price. With that money, the old man bought enough leather to make four pairs of shoes.
不一会，一位顾客走进店里，“我从窗外看到了这双漂亮的鞋子。请把鞋子卖给我吧。”顾客很想要这双鞋子，因此用高价买下了。有了这笔钱，老人又购置了很多皮革，打算再做四双鞋。
“Dear, Lord thank you very much.” The old man prayed with a grateful heart. “Tomorrow, let's wake up with a fresh feeling and make some beautiful shoes.” However, there was no need to. When the old man woke up from his sleep, the shoes were already made.
“主啊，非常感谢你，”老人满怀感激地祈祷着。“明早咱们一觉醒来再做几双漂亮的鞋子。”然而，老人根本不用做。当老人从睡梦中醒来时，鞋子又做好了。
Because the shoes were so beautiful, all four pairs were sold at a very expensive price. This kept happening all the time. At night, the leather would be carefully prepared, placed on top of the worktable and he would go to sleep. The next morning, a well tailored made shoes would be on top of the worktable.
因为鞋子太好看了，四双鞋价格都卖的很高。而且这种情况一直在发生。晚上，老人精心地准备好皮革放在工作台上，然后就去睡觉。第二天早上，精致的鞋子就会出现在工作台上。
The old man quickly became rich. Whenever the old man saw his neighbors or a poor person, he would help them as if it was his own work and lived happily. It was a few nights before Christmas. After the old man finished preparing the leather and before going to bed, he said to his wife,
老人很快富裕起来。每次看到邻居或其他的穷人，他都会施以援手，并把这当做自己的工作，老人过的很开心。圣诞节前几天，老人将皮革准备好打算上床睡觉时，他对妻子说道，
“Tonight, let's stay awake through the night. Then we can see the person who is helping us.” The old woman, too, was very curious as to who was helping them all this time. “Okay. Let's hide and see.”
“今晚，咱们就别睡觉了。咱们看看究竟是谁在帮助我们。”他的妻子也很好奇，“好，咱们悄悄的躲起来看看吧。”
The old man and the old woman hid behind the closet and watched the workshop table. How much time could have past. Little naked elves started to go up the worktable one by one. “Hurry, Let's Hurry.” The little elves were singing as they started to work.
老人和妻子躲在壁橱后面，盯着工作台。过了好久。一些小精灵开始一个接一个地飞到案台上。“快点，咱们得快点做，”小精灵们边唱歌边开始工作。
“Cut and sew. Cut and sew.” “Let's make wonderful shoes and give it to the old man.” “We are little elves! We are kind elves that help kind people.”
“切一下缝一下。切一下缝一下，咱们做些好看的鞋子，交给老人吧。”“我们是善良的小精灵，我们帮助善良的人。”
The little elves were singing happily as they made beautiful shoes. With little fingers, they skillfully pierced and sewed with a needle and banged with the hammer. The old man and the old woman were so shocked that they could not believe their eyes. The elves, without resting for a second, worked hard and finished making the shoes. When the sun was rising, they quickly hid themselves.
小精灵们高兴地唱着歌欢快地做着鞋子。他们用细小的手指，娴熟的用针刺穿缝合。老人和老妇人惊呆了，不敢相信自己的眼睛。小精灵们，一刻不停歇地努力工作直到做完所有的鞋子。当太阳升起的时候，他们很快就消失了。
“Because of those little elves, we became rich.” “We must show them our gratitude.” In a rush, the old woman found some leather. “The elves weren't wearing any clothes. How cold they must be. Let's make the elves some pants and shirts.” “That's a good idea.”
“因为这些小精灵，我们才变得富有。”“我们必须表达一下对他们的感激之情。”突然，老人的妻子发现了一些皮革。精灵们没有衣服穿。他们一定冻坏了吧。咱们给小精灵们做几条裤子和上衣好了。”“这倒是个好主意。”
The old man and the old woman devotedly made the clothes for the elves. When it was night, the old man and the old woman placed on top of the worktable clothes, instead of the leather. In the middle of the night, the elves came out and discovered their clothes. “What fabulous clothes.” “Yes, they are.” Each of the elves put on their clothes and were very happy. They disappeared as they sang. After that, the old man and the old woman continued to work hard and lived even more happily.
老人和妻子悉心为精灵制作衣服。夜幕再次降临的时候，老人和妻子没有把准备好的皮革放上去而是把做好的衣服放在工作台上。深夜了，精灵们飞出来后，看到了这些衣服。好精美的衣服啊”，“是啊，确实是。”每个精灵都开心地穿上了衣服。他们边唱边飞走了。从那以后，老人和老妻子继续努力工作，生活更加美满幸福。
