Just as they were speaking, the Dragon Mother and the Dragon Daughter slipped out from behind and said: 'Your Majesty, looking at this sage, he is no ordinary being.

The women see what the king has missed, and their intervention against his reluctance is what releases the rod. 正說處 is "just as they were speaking," 處 read chù. 龍婆 and 龍女 are the Dragon Mother, the queen, and the Dragon Daughter, the princess, with 女 here as nǚ, "daughter." 決非小可 is "by no means an ordinary one," 小可 meaning "trifling, common."

In our sea-treasury there is that piece of divine iron that fixes the bed of the River of Heaven, and these past few days its rosy radiance has blazed and its auspicious vapors have surged — might it not be that its hour to appear has come, now that this sage is here?'

A treasure gives off light when its hour has come — the standard sign in this kind of tale that an object is waiting for its owner. 海藏 is the sea-hoard or treasury, with 藏 read zàng, "storehouse," not cáng, "to hide." 一塊 takes yí. 天河定底 is "fixes the bottom of the River of Heaven" — 天河 is the Milky Way, and here the cosmic river whose floods Yu controlled. 霞光艷艷 and 瑞氣騰騰, "rosy radiance gleaming, lucky vapors surging," are the conventional signs of a numinous object about to show itself; 敢莫是 is a vernacular "could it be that…"

The Dragon King said, 'That is the very gauge with which Yu the Great, in the days of taming the floods, fixed the depths of the rivers and seas — a piece of spirit-iron. What use could it be?'

Here is the novel's finest piece of mythic provenance: the cudgel is Yu the Great's surveying rod. 大禹 (Dà Yǔ), Yu the Great, quelled the primordial floods and founded the Xia; 定子 is the fixing-gauge, the depth-measure with which he set the rivers and seas, its 子 the unstressed zi. 一個 and 一塊 both take yí. 能中何用 is "what use could it serve?" — 中 here is zhòng, as in 中用, "to be of use," not zhōng. The Dragon King has no idea what he is holding.

The Dragon Mother said, 'Never mind whether it is of use or not — just give it to him, and let him remake it however he likes; only see him out the palace gate, and there's an end of it.'

The queen's reasoning is exasperated common sense: never mind what it is, give it to him and get him out of the house. 用不用 is "whether of use or not," the middle 不 taking bú before the falling tone of 用. 憑他怎麼改造 is "let him remake it however he pleases," 憑 meaning "leave it to, allow." 便了 is a vernacular "and that's that," 便 read biàn and 了 le.

The old Dragon King did as she said and told Wukong everything. Wukong said, 'Bring it out and let me see.'

依言 is "in accordance with her words"; 盡向悟空說了 is "told the whole of it to Wukong," with 盡 as jìn, "entirely"; 拿出來 is "bring it out."

The Dragon King waved his hands: 'It cannot be lifted, it cannot be carried — the Honored Immortal must go and look at it himself.' Wukong said, 'Where is it? Lead me there.'

Nobody in the palace can lift it, which is the first hint of what the thing weighs. 扛不動 and 擡不動 are "cannot be lifted, cannot be carried," with 扛 read káng, "to carry on the shoulder," and the middle 不 taking bú before the falling tone of 動. 親去看看 is "go in person and have a look"; 何處 is "where," 處 as chù.

The Dragon King duly guided him into the middle of the sea-treasury, where suddenly ten thousand rays of golden light appeared. The Dragon King pointed: 'The thing giving off that light — that is it.'

引導 is "to guide, to lead," 導 read dǎo; 海藏 is again zàng. 金光萬道 is "ten thousand rays of golden light," where 道 is the counter used for streaks of light; 指定 is "pointed out."

Wukong tucked up his robe, stepped forward, and felt it with his hand: it was an iron pillar, about as thick as a peck-measure and more than two zhàng long.

An iron pillar as thick as a grain-measure and over two zhàng long — the novel gives its dimensions before it gives its name. 撩衣 is "to lift or tuck up the robe," 撩 read liāo. 一把 and 一根 both take yì. 柱子 is "pillar," its 子 the unstressed zi. 斗來粗 is "about as thick as a 斗," a peck-measure or dipper, using a vessel to give girth. 二丈有餘 is "more than two zhàng," and 丈 (zhàng, ten chǐ, roughly 3.3 m) is left untranslated; 長 is cháng.

Putting out all his strength, he gripped it with both hands: 'A bit too thick and too long — if it were a little shorter and thinner it would do.'

He complains about the fit, as one might to a tailor. 儘力 is "with all one's strength," 儘 (the same as 盡) read jǐn; 撾過 is "gripped, grasped across," 撾 as zhuā. 忒粗忒長 is "too thick, too long," with 忒 read tè, "excessively"; 些 here softens a comparison, "a bit."

No sooner had he spoken than the treasure grew several chǐ shorter and one span thinner. Wukong hefted it again: 'Thinner still would be better.'

And the pillar obeys — which is the marvel the inscription will shortly explain. 短了幾尺 is "grew several chǐ shorter," 尺 (chǐ, the Chinese foot, roughly 33 cm) left untranslated. 細了一圍 is "thinner by one 圍," a span or girth, with 一 as yì before the rising tone of 圍. 顛一顛 is "gave it a heft," the second 一 taking yì before the level tone of 顛.

And truly the treasure grew several fēn thinner again. Wukong was overjoyed, and carrying it out of the sea-treasury to look, he found that its two ends were two bands of gold, and the middle a length of black iron.

Gold at both ends, black iron between: the object is finally seen whole. 真個 is "truly, indeed." 細了幾分 is "thinner by several fēn," the 分 being a tenth of a 寸, a fine increment — and then 十分歡喜 uses the same character in 十分, "utterly." 海藏 is zàng; 兩頭 is "the two ends"; 金箍 is a gold band or hoop, 箍 read gū; and 一段烏鐵, "a length of black iron," takes yí before the falling tone of 段.

Hard against one band was a line of engraved characters, which read: 'As-You-Will Gold-Banded Rod — weight thirteen thousand five hundred jīn.'

The weapon names itself, in an engraved line beside the band: 如意金箍棒, the As-You-Will Gold-Banded Rod, 13,500 jīn. 緊挨箍 is "hard against the band," 挨 read āi, "close beside," not ái, "to suffer"; 鐫成 is "engraved," 鐫 as juān. In 一行字, "a line of characters," 行 is háng, "row, line," not xíng, and 一 takes yì before it. In 重一萬三千五百斤, 重 is zhòng and 一 takes yí before the falling tone of 萬.

In secret delight he thought: 'This treasure must answer to one's wishes.'

想必 is "surely, it must be that"; 如人意, "answers to one's wishes," is Wukong working out for himself what the name 如意, "as you will," has been telling him.

As he walked, pondering in his mind and muttering aloud, he kept hefting it: 'Shorter and thinner still would be finer yet.' By the time he brought it outside, it was only some two zhàng long and as thick as a bowl's mouth.

He walks and mutters and the rod keeps shrinking to order. 一邊走，一邊… is "as he walked, at the same time…," both 一 taking yì before the level tone of 邊. 心思口念 is "pondering in mind and reciting aloud" — thought and word together, which matters for what the weapon is. 顛著 is "hefting," 著 the state-marking zhe. 二丈長短 is "about two zhàng in length" (長短 here simply means "length"), and 碗口粗細 is "thick as a bowl's mouth" (粗細, "thickness").