To get into the service of the Emperor, young men had to take an examination. Three such aspirants went to a fortune-teller. They asked him a lot of questions, but the fortune-teller remained silent. Finally, after the three men had finished speaking, he held up one finger. After the examination, it turned out that one of the three young men had passed, while the other two had failed. This made the fortune-teller's reputation even better.

Now this fortune-teller had an apprentice. He asked his master what the secret of his success was. To this the fortune teller replied that his secret was not to say anything. Seeing that his disciple was confused by this, he proceeded to enlighten him thus: "When I held up one finger, it could mean anything. If one person passed, as it happened, then, they will take it that I meant that only one would pass. If two of them had been successful, they would take it that I meant that one of them would fail. And if all three had passed the exam, or failed the exam, of course, they would take it that I meant that all three of them, as a unit, would pass or fail."