第三十回 · 詰問私書 The Charge of the Secret Letter — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

詰問私書 The Charge of the Secret Letter

那nà公gōng主zhǔ聞wén說shuō，嚇xià得de跪guì倒dǎo在zài地dì道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，你nǐ怎zěn麼me今jīn日rì說shuō起qǐ這zhè分fēn離lí的de話huà？」那nà怪guài道dào：「不bù知zhī是shì我wǒ分fēn離lí，是shì你nǐ分fēn離lí哩li。我wǒ把bǎ那nà唐táng僧sēng拿ná來lái，算suàn計jì要yào他tā受shòu用yòng，你nǐ怎zěn麼me不bù先xiān告gào過guò我wǒ，就jiù放fàng了le他tā？原yuán來lái是shì你nǐ暗àn地dì裡lǐ修xiū了le書shū信xìn，教jiào他tā替tì你nǐ傳chuán寄jì；不bù然rán，怎zěn麼me這zhè兩liǎng個gè和hé尚shàng又yòu來lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ門mén，教jiào還huán你nǐ回huí去qù？這zhè不bú是shì你nǐ幹gàn的de事shì？」那nà公gōng主zhǔ闻wén说shuō，吓xià得de跪guì倒dǎo在zài地dì道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，你nǐ怎zěn么me今jīn日rì说shuō起qǐ这zhè分fēn离lí的de话huà？」那nà怪guài道dào：「不bù知zhī是shì我wǒ分fēn离lí，是shì你nǐ分fēn离lí哩li。我wǒ把bǎ那nà唐táng僧sēng拿ná来lái，算suàn计jì要yào他tā受shòu用yòng，你nǐ怎zěn么me不bù先xiān告gào过guò我wǒ，就jiù放fàng了le他tā？原yuán来lái是shì你nǐ暗àn地dì里lǐ修xiū了le书shū信xìn，教jiào他tā替tì你nǐ传chuán寄jì；不bù然rán，怎zěn么me这zhè两liǎng个gè和hé尚shàng又yòu来lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ门mén，教jiào还huán你nǐ回huí去qù？这zhè不bú是shì你nǐ干gàn的de事shì？」

逐句解 Line by line

那nà公gōng主zhǔ聞wén說shuō，嚇xià得de跪guì倒dǎo在zài地dì道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，你nǐ怎zěn麼me今jīn日rì說shuō起qǐ這zhè分fēn離lí的de話huà？」那nà公gōng主zhǔ闻wén说shuō，吓xià得de跪guì倒dǎo在zài地dì道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，你nǐ怎zěn么me今jīn日rì说shuō起qǐ这zhè分fēn离lí的de话huà？」

Hearing this, the princess was so frightened that she dropped to her knees on the ground: "My lord, why do you speak today of parting?"

嚇得 takes the structural 得 (read de), introducing the complement of extent — "frightened to the point of." In 跪倒 the graph 倒 is dǎo ("to fall, drop down"). She seizes on the euphemism 分離 ("parting"), instinctively grasping only its surface and not yet its true weight.

那nà怪guài道dào：「不bù知zhī是shì我wǒ分fēn離lí，是shì你nǐ分fēn離lí哩li。那nà怪guài道dào：「不bù知zhī是shì我wǒ分fēn离lí，是shì你nǐ分fēn离lí哩li。

The demon said: "There is no telling whether it is I who would part from you, or you from me."

A cruel equivocation: he throws her word 分離 back doubled, leaving the threat suspended. The vernacular final particle 哩 is read li.

我wǒ把bǎ那nà唐táng僧sēng拿ná來lái，算suàn計jì要yào他tā受shòu用yòng，你nǐ怎zěn麼me不bù先xiān告gào過guò我wǒ，就jiù放fàng了le他tā？我wǒ把bǎ那nà唐táng僧sēng拿ná来lái，算suàn计jì要yào他tā受shòu用yòng，你nǐ怎zěn么me不bù先xiān告gào过guò我wǒ，就jiù放fàng了le他tā？

"I seized that Tang monk, reckoning to make my meal of him — how is it that, without a word to me first, you set him free?"

Here 受用 shows its grim face: what earlier meant "to enjoy comforts" now means "to consume" — the demon intends to eat the monk. The princess’s compassion in freeing him is, to the demon, precisely her crime.

原yuán來lái是shì你nǐ暗àn地dì裡lǐ修xiū了le書shū信xìn，教jiào他tā替tì你nǐ傳chuán寄jì；不bù然rán，怎zěn麼me這zhè兩liǎng個gè和hé尚shàng又yòu來lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ門mén，教jiào還huán你nǐ回huí去qù？原yuán来lái是shì你nǐ暗àn地dì里lǐ修xiū了le书shū信xìn，教jiào他tā替tì你nǐ传chuán寄jì；不bù然rán，怎zěn么me这zhè两liǎng个gè和hé尚shàng又yòu来lái打dǎ上shàng我wǒ门mén，教jiào还huán你nǐ回huí去qù？

"So it was you who secretly drew up a letter and had him carry it off for you! Otherwise, why would these two monks come pounding at my gate, demanding you be sent home?"

修書信 is to compose and draw up a letter. In 教還你回去 the graph 還 is read huán ("to return, send back") — the demon has correctly reconstructed the whole rescue plot: the princess’s letter, carried out by Tripitaka, which set the mission against him in motion.

這zhè不bú是shì你nǐ幹gàn的de事shì？」这zhè不bú是shì你nǐ干gàn的de事shì？」

"Is this not your doing?"

A blunt closing accusation. 幹的事 — "the thing you did" — strips away all the earlier rhetoric of devotion and names the deed plainly.

總評 Commentary

The demon’s reconstruction of events is essentially accurate, and this is the source of the scene’s tension. The reader knows the princess did write the letter; her peril is therefore real, not a misunderstanding waiting to be dispelled. The vernacular novel here withholds the comfort of dramatic irony working in the heroine’s favour.

The passage pivots on two shadings of a single word. 受用 binds the domestic register (the comforts she "enjoyed") to the cannibal one (the monk to be "enjoyed"), so that the demon’s grievance and his appetite are voiced in the same breath.

The whole rescue plot of the surrounding chapters is compressed into a single furious rhetorical question, hinging on the word 還 (huán): the monks come to have the princess "returned" — and it is exactly this that condemns her in the demon’s eyes.