"The pear is good for the teeth, but bad for the spleen; the date is good for the spleen, but bad for the teeth."

In the past, someone said:

A young man heard this, thought it over for a long time and said:

"Then, when I eat a pear, I'll keep it in my mouth and chew it with my teeth, but won't swallow it, so it will not do any harm to my spleen. When I eat a date, I won't chew it, but will swallow it whole, so it will not do any harm to my teeth."

When people heard this, they jeered at him:

"You are swallowing a date whole!"