Once upon a time, there was an emperor who had a very beautiful horse. This horse was no ordinary horse; it had saved the emperor’s life.
One day, during a battle, the enemy charged forward, but the horse bravely rushed forward, kicked the enemy away, and carried the emperor over a pile of dead horses. It also protected the emperor’s crown and even saved his life.
Because the horse had performed such a great deed, the emperor decided to reward it by having golden hooves nailed to all four of its hooves. Golden hooves were shoes made of gold, shining brightly and extremely valuable.
People said that the horse deserved the golden hooves because it was truly important.
A small beetle also wanted golden horse shoes
Just as the blacksmith was nailing the golden horse shoes onto the horse’s hooves, a small beetle crawled over.
It saw the shiny gold on the horse’s hooves and felt resentful, saying, “The big ones come first, but the small ones should also have a chance. Being small doesn’t mean you’re not important.”
The blacksmith heard it and asked, “What are you doing here?”
The beetle looked up and said, “I want a golden horseshoe too.”
The blacksmith laughed, “You? Are you crazy? You’re not a horse—what do you need a golden horseshoe for?”
The beetle was furious, “Why not? I’m just like that horse—we’re both from the royal stables! It has someone to feed it, someone to brush it, and someone to take care of it. I live there too. Why does it get a golden horseshoe and I don’t?”
The blacksmith shook his head and said, “Horses have golden horseshoes because they have done something meritorious. Don’t you understand?”
The beetle was even angrier when it heard this. “You’re looking down on me! I’m not talking to you anymore! I’m leaving to see the outside world!”
With that, it really flew away.
The outside world did not welcome it
The beetle flew and flew until it came to a garden.It was full of roses and lavender, and the flowers smelled wonderful.
A little ladybug flew over and said happily, “Look how beautiful the flowers are! The air is so fresh!”
The beetle sneered, “What’s so great about that? I’ve seen places a hundred times better than this. There’s not even a pile of manure here. What kind of environment is this?”
It continued flying forward and saw a caterpillar turning into a butterfly, which shouted happily, “I woke up and turned into a butterfly! The world is so beautiful!”
The beetle sneered, “Hmph, you’re just a little insect that can fly. I came from the emperor’s stable! How dare you compare yourself to me?”
With that, it flew away again.
Before long, it started to rain heavily. The beetle couldn’t hide in time and was soaked to the skin. Its wings couldn’t fly anymore. It fell to the ground and lay in the wet grass, unable to move.
It was cold and tired, and it complained, “The weather is terrible! How could the stable be comfortable? It was warm, clean, and there was food. There’s nothing here!”
It met a frog, a centipede, and other beetles
After the rain stopped, the beetle crawled under a broken flower pot to shelter from the rain. There were several frogs there, happily saying, “The weather is so nice today! There’s plenty of rain, the air is fresh, and it’s perfect for swimming!”
The beetle rolled his eyes and said, “What do you know? This dampness is nothing. I’m used to living in a luxurious place like the emperor’s stable.”
The frogs ignored him and hopped away.
Then he met a group of earwigs (a type of small insect). They lived under the flower pots. Although the place was small, the family was very lively. The mothers were all praising their children for being smart and cute.
One ladybug mother asked the beetle, “What do you think of my baby? He wants to crawl into the priest’s ear when he grows up!”
The beetle replied perfunctorily, “Yes, that’s great.” Then he quickly asked, “Is there a garbage dump around here? Someone of my status needs to find a more comfortable place to live.”
No one paid any attention to him.
Finally, it encountered a group of beetles like itself. They invited it to live with them: “Our place is ordinary, but it’s safe. You must be tired. Come rest here.”
The beetle immediately put on airs: “I’m not just an ordinary beetle. I’m from the emperor’s stable, and I have golden hooves on my feet! I’m here on a secret mission—but don’t ask, I won’t tell.”
It spoke mysteriously, but in fact it had no mission at all; it just wanted to make itself seem important.
It got married, then eloped
This group of beetles was very enthusiastic and introduced it to three young female beetles. Their mothers said, “None of them are married yet. If you’re interested, you can talk to them.”
The beetle immediately put on a gentlemanly air: “I’ve seen many beautiful women in the stables, but these three really make my heart flutter!”
The mothers were very happy: “Then talk to them nicely and don’t toy with their feelings.”
As a result, the beetle married one of the girls the next day.
But on the third day, he began to worry: “Getting married is great, but now I have a wife to support. What am I going to eat?Who’s going to take care of me?“
The more he thought about it, the more he felt he had been cheated. He thought to himself, ”She tricked me, so I’ll trick her back!“
So he sneaked away before dawn, leaving his wife at home alone.
When the other beetles found out, they all scolded him, ”That guy is a liar! He left his wife with us and ran away!”
It was caught by humans and almost killed
The beetle continued to wander. It flew into a greenhouse and saw many beautiful flowers. It thought, “There must be a lot of delicious rotten leaves and dung here. I can live here.”
Just as it was feeling pleased with itself, it was suddenly caught by a little boy. The boy and his friends were playing and wrapped it in leaves and put it in his pocket.
Later, they tied it to a small stick, put it in a broken wooden shoe, and made it “sail” for fun.
The wooden shoe floated on the lake, drifting farther and farther away. The beetle was terrified. It couldn’t move or fly, and could only lie there trembling.
A fly flew over and said, “The weather is so nice today. I’m going to sunbathe.”
The beetle cried, “How can you laugh? I’m tied up and about to drown!”
The fly said, “I’m not tied up, I’m leaving.” With that, it flew away.
The beetle despaired, “This world is so cruel! No one will help me, no one understands me. I’m so smart and so noble, yet I’ve ended up like this!”
It was finally saved, and it finally understood
Just as it was about to give up, several girls rowed by and discovered the wooden shoe floating in the water.
They picked up the wooden shoe, saw the beetle tied to it, cut the string with scissors, and placed it on the grass.
One girl smiled and said, “Climb out and fly away! Freedom is so wonderful!”
The beetle was finally free. It flew into the palace and landed on the emperor’s golden horse’s hoof, sitting on the horse’s mane to rest.
At that moment, it suddenly realized something:
“So… the horse has a golden hoof not because it’s stronger than me, but because its existence makes me seem more important. If it weren’t for that horse, who would know I came from the stable? Who would care about me?”
It laughed, “I was so foolish before. I always wanted to have a golden horseshoe like the horse, but in reality, I didn’t need it at all. My value doesn’t lie in gold, but in the world I’ve seen and the things I’ve experienced.”
The truth behind the story
On the surface, this story is about the adventures of a beetle, but it actually addresses a very real issue: How do people view their own value?
At first, the beetle thought it was very important because it lived in the “royal stable.” But it didn’t actually do anything, it just rode on the coattails of the horses.
It wanted golden hooves, not because it had done anything to deserve them, but because it was jealous and vain.
It looked down on others, thinking that the garden was ugly, butterflies were insignificant, and frogs didn’t know how to live.But when it really encountered difficulties, no one helped it.
It wasn’t until it was toyed with by humans and almost drowned that it realized: The world won’t treat you well just because you think you’re important.
In the end, it woke up: true value is not a label given by others (such as “royal beetle”), but what you have experienced and what you have learned.
What moral does this story teach us?
- Don’t live in someone else’s glory
The beetle thought it was great just because it lived in a stable. But it forgot that no matter how fancy the stable was, it wasn’t its achievement.
It’s like some people who think they’re great just because they know a famous person. In reality, other people’s achievements don’t equal your own. - Vanity can lead you astray
The beetle desperately wanted the golden horseshoe to prove that it was “worthy.” But the more it pursued it, the more painful it became.
What truly earns people’s respect is not how expensive your clothes are, but what you have done. - Experience is more important than titles
In the end, the beetle did not get the golden horseshoe, but it went through storms, saw the coldness of human nature, and tasted the preciousness of freedom.
These experiences are more valuable than ten thousand titles of “royal beetle.”
- The world does not revolve around you, but you can learn to adapt
At first, the beetle complained that the world was unfair, but later it said, “This world is not so bad, as long as you know how to deal with it.”
This is very true. Life will not always be smooth, but we can learn to walk in the wind and rain.
Summary: We could all be that beetle
Have you ever felt this way?
You think you are great, but others ignore you.
You see others succeed and feel resentful.
When you encounter setbacks, you blame the world for being unfair.
That beetle is actually the “little me” in each of our hearts—
wanting to be recognized, respected, and different from others.
But true growth isn’t about getting a golden horse hoof.
It’s about understanding that:
I don’t need other people’s things to prove myself.
The paths I’ve walked, the hardships I’ve endured, and the scenery I’ve seen are my true value.
So, don’t always think, “Why does he have it and I don’t?”
Ask yourself first, “What have I done to make this world need me?”
When you stop chasing superficial glamour and instead focus on taking each step steadily,
you will discover:You don’t need a golden horse’s hoof to walk steadily and go far.
