A king once offered a thousand gold pieces for a swift horse, but three years passed without success. A courtier volunteered to search. Three months later, he found a horse—but dead. He bought its bones for five hundred gold and returned.
The king was furious. “I wanted a living horse! What use are dead bones?”
The courtier replied, “If you pay so much for a dead horse, people will know you truly seek a living one. Soon, horses will come.”
Within a year, three swift horses arrived.
This tale is not about horses, but about sincerity. To attract what you seek—talent, opportunity, or wisdom—you must first show genuine intent. Half-hearted efforts yield nothing. True desire is proven by action, not words.
In life, we often hesitate to invest in what seems useless. Yet the greatest gains begin with small, sincere losses. Buy the bones. The horses will follow.