As a boy, future historian Sima Guang saves a friend who has fallen into a huge water vat by quickly smashing it open with a rock — a famous story of quick thinking under pressure.
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宋朝的时候，有个聪明的小男孩，名叫司马光。
有一天，司马光和几个小伙伴在院子里玩耍，院子里放着一口很大很大的水缸，里面装满了水，深得能没过一个小孩子。
正玩得高兴的时候，有一个小伙伴不小心爬到缸边，"扑通"一声，掉进了水缸里！
其他的孩子都吓坏了，有的哭了起来，有的转身就跑去找大人帮忙。
司马光却没有慌张。他飞快地看了看四周，抱起地上一块大石头，用尽全身力气，朝着水缸狠狠地砸了下去！
"哗啦"一声，水缸被砸出了一个大洞，缸里的水"哗哗哗"地全部流了出来。
水一放光，掉进缸里的小伙伴就得救了！等大人们跑过来的时候，孩子已经安安全全地站在地上了。
司马光长大以后，成为了一位非常了不起的历史学家，写下了一部记录中国一千三百多年历史的大书。
司马光砸缸讲的是司马光在紧急情况下沉着冷静、砸缸救人的故事。这个故事告诉我们，遇到危险的时候，冷静思考、迅速想办法，比惊慌乱跑更重要。
During the Song Dynasty, there lived a clever young boy named Sima Guang.
One day, Sima Guang and a group of friends were playing in a courtyard where a huge water-filled vat stood — big enough, and deep enough, for a small child to fall right in.
While they were playing happily, one of his friends accidentally climbed too close to the edge and — splash! — tumbled straight into the vat.
The other children were terrified. Some burst into tears, and some turned and ran to find an adult.
But Sima Guang didn't panic. He quickly looked around, picked up a large rock, and — with all his strength — struck the vat as hard as he could!
There was a crack, and a hole broke open in the side of the vat. All the water came rushing out in an instant.
As soon as the water was gone, his friend was safe! By the time the grown-ups came running, the boy was already standing safely on the ground.
Sima Guang grew up to become one of China's most important historians, writing an enormous book recording over 1,300 years of Chinese history.
Sima Guang Breaks the Vat is a story about staying calm and thinking clearly in an emergency — instead of panicking, Sima Guang quickly found an unusual solution that saved his friend's life.
