第二十九回 · 特來擒你 The Confrontation — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

特來擒你 The Confrontation

急jí整zhěng束shù了le披pī掛guà，綽chāo了le鋼gāng刀dāo，走zǒu出chū來lái問wèn道dào：「那nà和hé尚shàng，我wǒ既jì饒ráo了le你nǐ師shī父fù，你nǐ怎zěn麼me又yòu敢gǎn來lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ門mén？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ這zhè潑pō怪guài幹gàn得de好hǎo事shì兒er。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「甚shén麼me事shì？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ把bǎ寶bǎo象xiàng國guó三sān公gōng主zhǔ騙piàn來lái洞dòng內nèi，倚yǐ強qiáng霸bà占zhàn為wéi妻qī，住zhù了le一yì十shí三sān載zǎi，也yě該gāi還huán他tā了le。我wǒ奉fèng國guó王wáng旨zhǐ意yì，特tè來lái擒qín你nǐ。你nǐ快kuài快kuài進jìn去qù，自zì家jiā把bǎ繩shéng子zi綁bǎng縛fù出chū來lái，還hái免miǎn得de老lǎo豬zhū動dòng手shǒu。」急jí整zhěng束shù了le披pī挂guà，绰chāo了le钢gāng刀dāo，走zǒu出chū来lái问wèn道dào：「那nà和hé尚shàng，我wǒ既jì饶ráo了le你nǐ师shī父fù，你nǐ怎zěn么me又yòu敢gǎn来lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ门mén？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ这zhè泼pō怪guài干gàn得de好hǎo事shì儿er。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「甚shén么me事shì？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ把bǎ宝bǎo象xiàng国guó三sān公gōng主zhǔ骗piàn来lái洞dòng内nèi，倚yǐ强qiáng霸bà占zhàn为wéi妻qī，住zhù了le一yì十shí三sān载zǎi，也yě该gāi还huán他tā了le。我wǒ奉fèng国guó王wáng旨zhǐ意yì，特tè来lái擒qín你nǐ。你nǐ快kuài快kuài进jìn去qù，自zì家jiā把bǎ绳shéng子zi绑bǎng缚fù出chū来lái，还hái免miǎn得de老lǎo猪zhū动dòng手shǒu。」

逐句解 Line by line

急jí整zhěng束shù了le披pī掛guà，綽chāo了le鋼gāng刀dāo，走zǒu出chū來lái問wèn道dào：「那nà和hé尚shàng，我wǒ既jì饒ráo了le你nǐ師shī父fù，你nǐ怎zěn麼me又yòu敢gǎn來lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ門mén？」急jí整zhěng束shù了le披pī挂guà，绰chāo了le钢gāng刀dāo，走zǒu出chū来lái问wèn道dào：「那nà和hé尚shàng，我wǒ既jì饶ráo了le你nǐ师shī父fù，你nǐ怎zěn么me又yòu敢gǎn来lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ门mén？」

Hastily he made fast his armor, snatched up his steel sabre, and came out to ask, 'You monks — I spared your master; how do you dare come again and beat upon my door?'

整束了披掛 is to make the armour fast; 綽了鋼刀 (綽 = chāo) is to snatch up the steel blade; 那和尚 takes 那 as the pointing nà. He comes out armed and asking the same question twice over, because from where he stands it is a fair one.

八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ這zhè潑pō怪guài幹gàn得de好hǎo事shì兒er。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「甚shén麼me事shì？」八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ这zhè泼pō怪guài干gàn得de好hǎo事shì儿er。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「甚shén么me事shì？」

Said Eight Rules, 'A fine piece of work you've done, you vile fiend.' Said the old demon, 'What work?'

幹得好事兒 — "a fine piece of work you have done" — is sarcasm of a kind that translates without any adjustment at all; the 得 is the structural de and the 兒 is the suffix er. 潑怪 is "vile fiend." And the demon's reply, 甚麼事 (甚 = shén), "what work?", is entirely sincere. He is playing the straight man without knowing there is a joke.

八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ把bǎ寶bǎo象xiàng國guó三sān公gōng主zhǔ騙piàn來lái洞dòng內nèi，倚yǐ強qiáng霸bà占zhàn為wéi妻qī，住zhù了le一yì十shí三sān載zǎi，也yě該gāi還huán他tā了le。我wǒ奉fèng國guó王wáng旨zhǐ意yì，特tè來lái擒qín你nǐ。你nǐ快kuài快kuài進jìn去qù，自zì家jiā把bǎ繩shéng子zi綁bǎng縛fù出chū來lái，還hái免miǎn得de老lǎo豬zhū動dòng手shǒu。」八bā戒jiè道dào：「你nǐ把bǎ宝bǎo象xiàng国guó三sān公gōng主zhǔ骗piàn来lái洞dòng内nèi，倚yǐ强qiáng霸bà占zhàn为wéi妻qī，住zhù了le一yì十shí三sān载zǎi，也yě该gāi还huán他tā了le。我wǒ奉fèng国guó王wáng旨zhǐ意yì，特tè来lái擒qín你nǐ。你nǐ快kuài快kuài进jìn去qù，自zì家jiā把bǎ绳shéng子zi绑bǎng缚fù出chū来lái，还hái免miǎn得de老lǎo猪zhū动dòng手shǒu。」

Said Eight Rules, 'You lured the Third Princess of Baoxiang into your cave, and, relying on force, usurped her as your wife, and have kept her these thirteen years — high time you gave her back! I bear the king's command and have come on purpose to seize you. Get inside, quickly, bind yourself with a rope and come out — and so spare Old Zhu the trouble of laying hands on you.'

The charge sheet, at last read out. 倚強 (強 = qiáng) 霸占 (占 = zhàn) 為妻 (為 = wéi) is "leaned on force and seized her as a wife" — the verb 霸占 is the one used for grabbing land. 一十三載 (載 = zǎi) is thirteen years. Then a nice pile-up of two different words written with the same character: 也該還他了 uses 還 as huán, to give back, while the 還 of 還免得 (得 = de) is hái, "and moreover." Eight Rules ends by inviting the demon to tie himself up and save everyone the trouble, which is one of the most confident things said in the chapter.

總評 Commentary

The confrontation is framed as a clash of grievances, and the novel lets both sides feel wronged. The demon comes out armoured and aggrieved: the mercy he showed in releasing Tripitaka has been repaid with a battered door. Eight Rules opens with heavy sarcasm and then lays out the real charge — the abduction, the thirteen years of forced marriage, the king's warrant to arrest. The moral weight sits plainly with Eight Rules, and yet the demon's sense of injury is not simple hypocrisy: within the odd courtesy of this whole episode, he did let the monk go, and he is genuinely puzzled to be answered like this.

Eight Rules' swagger is exactly in character. The demand that the demon truss himself up and come out quietly, sparing Old Zhu the exertion, is the talk of a man who has just told a king he is the foremost demon-queller on the road. The reader, remembering both that boast and the guardian gods now standing watch three hundred lǐ away at Baoxiang, can feel the irony gathering. The confidence with which he issues this ultimatum is precisely what the next few minutes will take apart.