第三十回 · 審問沙僧 The Demon Interrogates Sha Wujing — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

審問沙僧 The Demon Interrogates Sha Wujing

那nà怪guài聞wén言yán，不bù容róng分fēn說shuō，掄lūn開kāi一yì隻zhī簸bò箕jī大dà小xiǎo的de藍lán靛diàn手shǒu，抓zhuā住zhù那nà金jīn枝zhī玉yù葉yè的de髮fà萬wàn根gēn，把bǎ公gōng主zhǔ揪jiū上shàng前qián，捽zuó在zài地dì下xià。執zhí著zhe鋼gāng刀dāo，卻què來lái審shěn沙shā僧sēng，咄duō的de一yì聲shēng道dào：「沙shā和hé尚shàng，你nǐ兩liǎng個gè輒zhé敢gǎn擅shàn打dǎ上shàng我wǒ們men門mén來lái，可kě是shì這zhè女nǚ子zǐ有yǒu書shū到dào他tā那nà國guó，國guó王wáng教jiào你nǐ們men來lái的de？」那nà怪guài闻wén言yán，不bù容róng分fēn说shuō，抡lūn开kāi一yì只zhī簸bò箕jī大dà小xiǎo的de蓝lán靛diàn手shǒu，抓zhuā住zhù那nà金jīn枝zhī玉yù叶yè的de发fà万wàn根gēn，把bǎ公gōng主zhǔ揪jiū上shàng前qián，捽zuó在zài地dì下xià。执zhí着zhe钢gāng刀dāo，却què来lái审shěn沙shā僧sēng，咄duō的de一yì声shēng道dào：「沙shā和hé尚shàng，你nǐ两liǎng个gè辄zhé敢gǎn擅shàn打dǎ上shàng我wǒ们men门mén来lái，可kě是shì这zhè女nǚ子zǐ有yǒu书shū到dào他tā那nà国guó，国guó王wáng教jiào你nǐ们men来lái的de？」

逐句解 Line by line

那nà怪guài聞wén言yán，不bù容róng分fēn說shuō，掄lūn開kāi一yì隻zhī簸bò箕jī大dà小xiǎo的de藍lán靛diàn手shǒu，抓zhuā住zhù那nà金jīn枝zhī玉yù葉yè的de髮fà萬wàn根gēn，把bǎ公gōng主zhǔ揪jiū上shàng前qián，捽zuó在zài地dì下xià。那nà怪guài闻wén言yán，不bù容róng分fēn说shuō，抡lūn开kāi一yì只zhī簸bò箕jī大dà小xiǎo的de蓝lán靛diàn手shǒu，抓zhuā住zhù那nà金jīn枝zhī玉yù叶yè的de发fà万wàn根gēn，把bǎ公gōng主zhǔ揪jiū上shàng前qián，捽zuó在zài地dì下xià。

At these words the demon, brooking no discussion, swung out a hand broad as a winnowing-basket and indigo-blue, seized the ten thousand strands of that jade-branch, gold-leaf hair, hauled the princess forward, and flung her down upon the ground.

The courtly reasoner disappears, and what is left drags a woman across the floor by her hair. 金枝玉葉 — "golden boughs and jade leaves" — is the set phrase for royal children, and it is doing a lot of work here, because against it the novel sets two details of pure monstrosity: a hand 簸箕大小, the size of a winnowing basket, and 藍靛, indigo — the dark blue of the dye-vat. Everything he said in the opening passage is undone by the colour of his hand.

執zhí著zhe鋼gāng刀dāo，卻què來lái審shěn沙shā僧sēng，咄duō的de一yì聲shēng道dào：「沙shā和hé尚shàng，你nǐ兩liǎng個gè輒zhé敢gǎn擅shàn打dǎ上shàng我wǒ們men門mén來lái，可kě是shì這zhè女nǚ子zǐ有yǒu書shū到dào他tā那nà國guó，國guó王wáng教jiào你nǐ們men來lái的de？」执zhí着zhe钢gāng刀dāo，却què来lái审shěn沙shā僧sēng，咄duō的de一yì声shēng道dào：「沙shā和hé尚shàng，你nǐ两liǎng个gè辄zhé敢gǎn擅shàn打dǎ上shàng我wǒ们men门mén来lái，可kě是shì这zhè女nǚ子zǐ有yǒu书shū到dào他tā那nà国guó，国guó王wáng教jiào你nǐ们men来lái的de？」

Gripping his steel sabre, he turned instead to interrogate Sha the Monk, barking out: "Sha the Monk! How is it you two dared, unbidden, to come pounding at our gate? Was it that this woman sent a letter off to that kingdom of his, and the king dispatched you here?"

In 執著鋼刀 the 著 is zhe, the one that marks an action held in place — gripping, keeping hold of. 輒敢 and 擅 both accuse the monks of presumption: daring rashly, acting without leave. He now swings the interrogation off the princess and onto Sha, and guesses right a third time — the letter, the king's commission, all of it.

總評 Commentary

The passage stages a collapse. The being who was reasoning about ritual propriety a page ago is now hauling a princess across a floor by the hair, and the winnowing-basket hand and the indigo skin put his monstrousness fully back on view. The courtly self-portrait of the opening does not survive contact with his temper.

His question to Sha reconstructs the plot correctly for the third time in as many passages. Everything now rests on the answer: whether Sha confirms the charge and dooms the princess, or takes it on himself.

The idiom 金枝玉葉 sets her royal blood against her complete helplessness, and that contrast is what will move Sha Wujing, in the next passage, to offer his life for hers.