第二十八回 · 呆子偷閒 The Idle Search — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

呆子偷閒 The Idle Search

你nǐ看kàn他tā出chū了le松sōng林lín，往wǎng西xī行xíng經jīng十shí餘yú里lǐ，更gèng不bù曾céng撞zhuàng著zháo一yí個gè人rén家jiā，真zhēn是shì有yǒu狼láng虎hǔ無wú人rén煙yān的de去qù處chù。那nà獃dāi子zi走zǒu得de辛xīn苦kǔ，心xīn內nèi沉chén吟yín道dào：「當dāng年nián行xíng者zhě在zài日rì，老lǎo和hé尚shàng要yào的de就jiù有yǒu；今jīn日rì輪lún到dào我wǒ的de身shēn上shàng，誠chéng所suǒ謂wèi『當dāng家jiā才cái知zhī柴chái米mǐ價jià，養yǎng子zi方fāng曉xiǎo父fù娘niáng恩ēn』。公gōng道dào沒méi去qù化huà處chù。」卻què又yòu走zǒu得de瞌kē睡shuì上shàng來lái，思sī道dào：「我wǒ若ruò就jiù回huí去qù，對duì老lǎo和hé尚shàng說shuō沒méi處chù化huà齋zhāi，他tā也yě不bú信xìn我wǒ走zǒu了le這zhè許xǔ多duō路lù，須xū是shì再zài多duō幌huǎng個gè時shí辰chén，才cái好hǎo去qù回huí話huà。也yě罷bà，也yě罷bà，且qiě往wǎng這zhè草cǎo科kē裡lǐ睡shuì睡shuì。」獃dāi子zi就jiù把bǎ頭tóu拱gǒng在zài草cǎo裡lǐ睡shuì下xià。當dāng時shí也yě只zhǐ說shuō朦méng朧lóng朦méng朧lóng就jiù起qǐ來lái，豈qǐ知zhī走zǒu路lù辛xīn苦kǔ的de人rén，丟diū倒dǎo頭tóu，只zhǐ管guǎn齁hōu齁hōu睡shuì起qǐ。你nǐ看kàn他tā出chū了le松sōng林lín，往wǎng西xī行xíng经jīng十shí余yú里lǐ，更gèng不bù曾céng撞zhuàng著zháo一yí个gè人rén家jiā，真zhēn是shì有yǒu狼láng虎hǔ无wú人rén烟yān的de去qù处chù。那nà呆dāi子zi走zǒu得de辛xīn苦kǔ，心xīn内nèi沉chén吟yín道dào：「当dāng年nián行xíng者zhě在zài日rì，老lǎo和hé尚shàng要yào的de就jiù有yǒu；今jīn日rì轮lún到dào我wǒ的de身shēn上shàng，诚chéng所suǒ谓wèi『当dāng家jiā才cái知zhī柴chái米mǐ价jià，养yǎng子zi方fāng晓xiǎo父fù娘niáng恩ēn』。公gōng道dào没méi去qù化huà处chù。」却què又yòu走zǒu得de瞌kē睡shuì上shàng来lái，思sī道dào：「我wǒ若ruò就jiù回huí去qù，对duì老lǎo和hé尚shàng说shuō没méi处chù化huà斋zhāi，他tā也yě不bú信xìn我wǒ走zǒu了le这zhè许xǔ多duō路lù，须xū是shì再zài多duō幌huǎng个gè时shí辰chén，才cái好hǎo去qù回huí话huà。也yě罢bà，也yě罢bà，且qiě往wǎng这zhè草cǎo科kē里lǐ睡shuì睡shuì。」呆dāi子zi就jiù把bǎ头tóu拱gǒng在zài草cǎo里lǐ睡shuì下xià。当dāng时shí也yě只zhǐ说shuō朦méng胧lóng朦méng胧lóng就jiù起qǐ来lái，岂qǐ知zhī走zǒu路lù辛xīn苦kǔ的de人rén，丢diū倒dǎo头tóu，只zhǐ管guǎn齁hōu齁hōu睡shuì起qǐ。

逐句解 Line by line

你nǐ看kàn他tā出chū了le松sōng林lín，往wǎng西xī行xíng經jīng十shí餘yú里lǐ，更gèng不bù曾céng撞zhuàng著zháo一yí個gè人rén家jiā，真zhēn是shì有yǒu狼láng虎hǔ無wú人rén煙yān的de去qù處chù。你nǐ看kàn他tā出chū了le松sōng林lín，往wǎng西xī行xíng经jīng十shí余yú里lǐ，更gèng不bù曾céng撞zhuàng著zháo一yí个gè人rén家jiā，真zhēn是shì有yǒu狼láng虎hǔ无wú人rén烟yān的de去qù处chù。

Watch him: out of the pines he went, westward more than ten li, and never once ran into a single household — truly a place of wolves and tigers and no human smoke.

西行 xíng; 撞著 zháo (resultative, “ran into”). 無人煙 without a trace of habitation.

那nà獃dāi子zi走zǒu得de辛xīn苦kǔ，心xīn內nèi沉chén吟yín道dào：「當dāng年nián行xíng者zhě在zài日rì，老lǎo和hé尚shàng要yào的de就jiù有yǒu；今jīn日rì輪lún到dào我wǒ的de身shēn上shàng，誠chéng所suǒ謂wèi『當dāng家jiā才cái知zhī柴chái米mǐ價jià，養yǎng子zi方fāng曉xiǎo父fù娘niáng恩ēn』。公gōng道dào沒méi去qù化huà處chù。」那nà呆dāi子zi走zǒu得de辛xīn苦kǔ，心xīn内nèi沉chén吟yín道dào：「当dāng年nián行xíng者zhě在zài日rì，老lǎo和hé尚shàng要yào的de就jiù有yǒu；今jīn日rì轮lún到dào我wǒ的de身shēn上shàng，诚chéng所suǒ谓wèi『当dāng家jiā才cái知zhī柴chái米mǐ价jià，养yǎng子zi方fāng晓xiǎo父fù娘niáng恩ēn』。公gōng道dào没méi去qù化huà处chù。」

That blockhead, footsore and weary, mused to himself: “In the old days, when the Elder Brother was with us, whatever the old monk wanted was simply there. Now that it has fallen to me — truly it is as they say, ‘Only the head of a house knows the price of firewood and rice; only in raising a son do you learn a parent's love.’ In all fairness, there's nowhere to go begging.”

行者 Wukong; Bajie's grievance inverts the reader's — he misses the banished monkey for his usefulness. 那 nà; 走得 de. 當家/養子 — a folk couplet on learning worth through burden.

卻què又yòu走zǒu得de瞌kē睡shuì上shàng來lái，思sī道dào：「我wǒ若ruò就jiù回huí去qù，對duì老lǎo和hé尚shàng說shuō沒méi處chù化huà齋zhāi，他tā也yě不bú信xìn我wǒ走zǒu了le這zhè許xǔ多duō路lù，須xū是shì再zài多duō幌huǎng個gè時shí辰chén，才cái好hǎo去qù回huí話huà。却què又yòu走zǒu得de瞌kē睡shuì上shàng来lái，思sī道dào：「我wǒ若ruò就jiù回huí去qù，对duì老lǎo和hé尚shàng说shuō没méi处chù化huà斋zhāi，他tā也yě不bú信xìn我wǒ走zǒu了le这zhè许xǔ多duō路lù，须xū是shì再zài多duō幌huǎng个gè时shí辰chén，才cái好hǎo去qù回huí话huà。

Then, as he walked, drowsiness came over him, and he thought: “If I just turn back now and tell the old monk there was nowhere to beg, he won't believe I've walked all this way. I'd better dawdle another hour or so before I go back to report.

走得 de. Bajie's calculation — not how to succeed, but how to seem to have tried.

也yě罷bà，也yě罷bà，且qiě往wǎng這zhè草cǎo科kē裡lǐ睡shuì睡shuì。」獃dāi子zi就jiù把bǎ頭tóu拱gǒng在zài草cǎo裡lǐ睡shuì下xià。也yě罢bà，也yě罢bà，且qiě往wǎng这zhè草cǎo科kē里lǐ睡shuì睡shuì。」呆dāi子zi就jiù把bǎ头tóu拱gǒng在zài草cǎo里lǐ睡shuì下xià。

Well, then, well then — I'll just have a nap here in the grass.” And the blockhead burrowed his head into the grass and lay down to sleep.

草科 a clump of tall grass. The resolve to malinger collapses at once into sleep.

當dāng時shí也yě只zhǐ說shuō朦méng朧lóng朦méng朧lóng就jiù起qǐ來lái，豈qǐ知zhī走zǒu路lù辛xīn苦kǔ的de人rén，丟diū倒dǎo頭tóu，只zhǐ管guǎn齁hōu齁hōu睡shuì起qǐ。当dāng时shí也yě只zhǐ说shuō朦méng胧lóng朦méng胧lóng就jiù起qǐ来lái，岂qǐ知zhī走zǒu路lù辛xīn苦kǔ的de人rén，丢diū倒dǎo头tóu，只zhǐ管guǎn齁hōu齁hōu睡shuì起qǐ。

At the time he meant only to doze a moment and then get up; but who could know that a man worn out with walking, once he flings down his head, will simply snore and snore away.

丟倒頭 dǎo (“flung down his head”); 齁齁 the snoring. The comic seal on Bajie's dereliction.

總評 Commentary

Bajie's soliloquy is a small masterpiece of self-justification. He does not decide to fail the errand; he decides how long to loiter so that his failure will look like effort — and then, mid-scheme, falls asleep. The folk couplet he quotes (“only the head of a house knows the price of rice”) is genuinely apt, but he deploys it to excuse himself rather than to reform, and his nostalgia for the banished Wukong is purely practical: he misses the servant, not the brother.

Structurally the nap is the hinge of the whole disaster. With Bajie snoring in the grass and Sha Monk about to be sent after him, the master will be left entirely alone — the precise condition the demon needs. The novel lets low comedy do the work of plot: it is not malice but laziness that opens the door to the Yellow-Robe ordeal.