掩耳盗铃 — “Cover ears to steal a bell”

During the Spring and Autumn period, the nobleman Zhi Bo of the state of Jin annihilated the Fan clan. Someone took the opportunity to sneak into the Fan family's residence, intending to steal something. He found a large bell hanging in the courtyard. The bell was cast from high-quality bronze, exquisitely designed with beautiful patterns. The thief was overjoyed and wanted to carry this magnificent bell back home.

However, the bell was too big and heavy for him to move. After much thought, he concluded that the only way was to smash the bell into pieces and then transport them. The thief found a large hammer and struck the bell with all his might.

'Clang!' The loud sound startled him. Panicked, he thought, 'Oh no, this sound will surely alert people to my presence!' In his haste, he lunged at the bell, trying to muffle the sound with his arms, but how could he possibly cover such a sound? The bell's resonance continued to spread far and wide. The more he heard it, the more frightened he became. Instinctively, he pulled his hands back and tightly covered his own ears. 'Aha! The sound has become softer; I can't hear it!' the thief exclaimed happily. 'Brilliant! If I cover my ears, I won't hear the bell sound!'

He immediately found two pieces of cloth, stuffed them into his ears, thinking that now no one else would hear the sound. So, he proceeded to smash the bell, stroke after stroke, while its loud sounds traveled far. People heard the noise, rushed to the scene, and caught the thief.

This story originates from 'Lü Shi Chun Qiu - Zhi Zhi' (The Spring and Autumn Annals of Master Lü - Self-Knowledge). The idiom '掩耳盗钟' (yǎn'ěr dào zhōng), meaning 'covering one's ears to steal a large bell,' later evolved into '掩耳盗铃' (yǎn'ěr dào líng), 'covering one's ears to steal a bell,' serving as a metaphor for foolish acts of self-deception and futile attempts to hide obvious truths.