第十三回 · 三魔談笑 The Three Fiends Make Merry — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

三魔談笑 The Three Fiends Make Merry

這zhè兩liǎng個gè搖yáo搖yáo擺bǎi擺bǎi，走zǒu入rù裡lǐ面miàn，慌huāng得de那nà魔mó王wáng奔bēn出chū迎yíng接jiē。熊xióng山shān君jūn道dào：「寅yín將jiāng軍jūn一yí向xiàng得dé意yì，可kě賀hè，可kě賀hè。」特tè處chù士shì道dào：「寅yín將jiāng軍jūn丰fēng姿zī勝shèng常cháng，真zhēn可kě喜xǐ，真zhēn可kě喜xǐ。」魔mó王wáng道dào：「二èr公gōng連lián日rì如rú何hé？」山shān君jūn道dào：「惟wéi守shǒu素sù耳ěr。」處chù士shì道dào：「惟wéi隨suí時shí耳ěr。」三sān個gè敘xù罷bà，各gè坐zuò談tán笑xiào。这zhè两liǎng个gè摇yáo摇yáo摆bǎi摆bǎi，走zǒu入rù里lǐ面miàn，慌huāng得de那nà魔mó王wáng奔bēn出chū迎yíng接jiē。熊xióng山shān君jūn道dào：「寅yín将jiāng军jūn一yí向xiàng得dé意yì，可kě贺hè，可kě贺hè。」特tè处chù士shì道dào：「寅yín将jiāng军jūn丰fēng姿zī胜shèng常cháng，真zhēn可kě喜xǐ，真zhēn可kě喜xǐ。」魔mó王wáng道dào：「二èr公gōng连lián日rì如rú何hé？」山shān君jūn道dào：「惟wéi守shǒu素sù耳ěr。」处chù士shì道dào：「惟wéi随suí时shí耳ěr。」三sān个gè叙xù罢bà，各gè坐zuò谈tán笑xiào。

逐句解 Line by line

These two came swaggering and swaying in, and the Monster King, in a flurry, rushed out to receive them. The Mountain Lord Xiong said: "General Yin has been in fine fettle all this while — my congratulations, my congratulations." The Recluse Te said: "General Yin's bearing surpasses its wont — how delightful, how delightful." The Monster King said: "And how have my two lords fared these several days?" The Mountain Lord said: "I keep to my plain ways, no more." The Recluse said: "I follow the seasons, no more." Their greetings done, they each took a seat and fell to talking and laughing.

寅將軍 (Yín Jiāng-jūn), "General Yin," is the Monster King's own style, and it is the last of the three coded names. 寅 is the third of the twelve earthly branches, the one paired with the tiger in the zodiac — so his title says "tiger" to anyone who can read a calendar, which was everyone. All three monsters, in other words, are wearing their species as a name badge. Their small talk is the joke's finish: 惟守素耳 / 惟隨時耳 — "I keep to my plain ways, that is all" / "I follow the seasons, that is all" — is exactly the studied modesty a scholar-gentleman was expected to produce when complimented.

總評 Commentary

Pure comedy, and placed where it does the most damage. Three man-eating beasts meet and behave like guests at a literary gathering: congratulations offered, health enquired after, modest disclaimers returned on cue.

The novel commits to the bit completely. A tiger receives compliments on his bearing; a bear and an ox trade epigrams about their own simplicity. Nothing in the scene acknowledges what these creatures are, which is what makes it funny — and the reader, who does know, is left holding the irony alone.

There is a second audience, too, and the novel does not let you forget it. Xuanzang is tied up on the floor watching all this. The polite forms are running exactly as long as it takes for the hosts to decide what to do about dinner.