第三十一回 · 假哭賺妖 The Feigned Weeping — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

假哭賺妖 The Feigned Weeping

卻què說shuō那nà怪guài徑jìng回huí洞dòng口kǒu。行xíng者zhě見jiàn他tā來lái時shí，設shè法fǎ哄hǒng他tā，把bǎ眼yǎn擠jǐ了le一yì擠jǐ，撲pū簌sù簌sù淚lèi如rú雨yǔ落luò，兒ér天tiān兒ér地dì的de跌diē腳jiǎo搥chuí胸xiōng，於yú此cǐ洞dòng裡lǐ嚎háo啕táo痛tòng哭kū。那nà怪guài一yì時shí間jiān那nǎ裡lǐ認rèn得de，上shàng前qián摟lǒu住zhù道dào：「渾hún家jiā，你nǐ有yǒu何hé事shì，這zhè般bān煩fán惱nǎo？」那nà大dà聖shèng編biān成chéng的de鬼guǐ話huà，捏niē出chū的de虛xū詞cí，淚lèi汪wāng汪wāng的de告gào道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，常cháng言yán道dào：『男nán子zi少shǎo妻qī財cái沒méi主zhǔ，婦fù女nǚ無wú夫fū身shēn落luò空kōng。』却què说shuō那nà怪guài径jìng回huí洞dòng口kǒu。行xíng者zhě见jiàn他tā来lái时shí，设shè法fǎ哄hǒng他tā，把bǎ眼yǎn挤jǐ了le一yì挤jǐ，扑pū簌sù簌sù泪lèi如rú雨yǔ落luò，儿ér天tiān儿ér地dì的de跌diē脚jiǎo搥chuí胸xiōng，于yú此cǐ洞dòng里lǐ嚎háo啕táo痛tòng哭kū。那nà怪guài一yì时shí间jiān那nǎ里lǐ认rèn得de，上shàng前qián搂lǒu住zhù道dào：「浑hún家jiā，你nǐ有yǒu何hé事shì，这zhè般bān烦fán恼nǎo？」那nà大dà圣shèng编biān成chéng的de鬼guǐ话huà，捏niē出chū的de虚xū词cí，泪lèi汪wāng汪wāng的de告gào道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，常cháng言yán道dào：『男nán子zi少shǎo妻qī财cái没méi主zhǔ，妇fù女nǚ无wú夫fū身shēn落luò空kōng。』

逐句解 Line by line

卻què說shuō那nà怪guài徑jìng回huí洞dòng口kǒu。却què说shuō那nà怪guài径jìng回huí洞dòng口kǒu。

Now the fiend went straight back to the mouth of the cave.

徑回 (jìng huí), to return straightway. 那 read nà.

行xíng者zhě見jiàn他tā來lái時shí，設shè法fǎ哄hǒng他tā，把bǎ眼yǎn擠jǐ了le一yì擠jǐ，撲pū簌sù簌sù淚lèi如rú雨yǔ落luò，兒ér天tiān兒ér地dì的de跌diē腳jiǎo搥chuí胸xiōng，於yú此cǐ洞dòng裡lǐ嚎háo啕táo痛tòng哭kū。行xíng者zhě见jiàn他tā来lái时shí，设shè法fǎ哄hǒng他tā，把bǎ眼yǎn挤jǐ了le一yì挤jǐ，扑pū簌sù簌sù泪lèi如rú雨yǔ落luò，儿ér天tiān儿ér地dì的de跌diē脚jiǎo搥chuí胸xiōng，于yú此cǐ洞dòng里lǐ嚎háo啕táo痛tòng哭kū。

Pilgrim, seeing him come, contrived to gull him: squeezing his eyes to a squint, he let the tears fall pattering like rain, and crying ‘O my heaven, O my earth!’ stamped his feet and beat his breast, wailing and sobbing there within the cave.

哄 (hǒng), to gull, to deceive by cajolery. 撲簌簌 (pū sù sù), of tears falling fast. 兒天兒地 (ér tiān ér dì), an exclamatory wail, “O heaven, O earth”; 兒 here a cry-particle, read ér. 嚎啕痛哭 (háotáo tòngkū), to weep and wail bitterly.

那nà怪guài一yì時shí間jiān那nǎ裡lǐ認rèn得de，上shàng前qián摟lǒu住zhù道dào：「渾hún家jiā，你nǐ有yǒu何hé事shì，這zhè般bān煩fán惱nǎo？」那nà怪guài一yì时shí间jiān那nǎ里lǐ认rèn得de，上shàng前qián搂lǒu住zhù道dào：「浑hún家jiā，你nǐ有yǒu何hé事shì，这zhè般bān烦fán恼nǎo？」

The fiend, for the moment, could in no way tell the difference; he came forward and clasped him, saying, “Wife, what is the matter, that you are so distressed?”

一時間 (yìshí jiān), for the moment. 那裡認得 (nǎlǐ rèn de), could by no means recognize; 那 here read nǎ, 得 read de. 摟住 (lǒu zhù), to embrace. The deictic 那怪 reads nà.

那nà大dà聖shèng編biān成chéng的de鬼guǐ話huà，捏niē出chū的de虛xū詞cí，淚lèi汪wāng汪wāng的de告gào道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，常cháng言yán道dào：『男nán子zi少shǎo妻qī財cái沒méi主zhǔ，婦fù女nǚ無wú夫fū身shēn落luò空kōng。』那nà大dà圣shèng编biān成chéng的de鬼guǐ话huà，捏niē出chū的de虚xū词cí，泪lèi汪wāng汪wāng的de告gào道dào：「郎láng君jūn啊a，常cháng言yán道dào：『男nán子zi少shǎo妻qī财cái没méi主zhǔ，妇fù女nǚ无wú夫fū身shēn落luò空kōng。』

The Great Sage, with his ghost-tale trumped up and his lie confected, told him, all awash in tears, “My lord — as the old saying has it: ‘A man who lacks a wife has no master for his wealth; a woman without a husband has her life set at naught.’

編成鬼話 (biān chéng guǐ huà), to trump up a false tale. 捏出虛詞 (niē chū xū cí), to fabricate empty words. 男子少妻財沒主 (nán zǐ shǎo qī cái méi zhǔ), a proverb: a man without a wife has none to keep his household. 那 read nà.

總評 Commentary

The deception scene is the comic centre of the chapter, and the novel plays it with relish: the Great Sage, in the princess’s form, works himself into a virtuoso display of grief — the squinted eyes, the pattering tears, the wails to heaven and earth, the stamping and breast-beating — while the demon, wholly taken in, embraces his supposed wife with tender concern. The irony is complete and savoured at leisure, the monster consoling the very enemy who has come to destroy him.

Wukong’s theatrical lament is prefaced by a folk proverb on the mutual dependence of husband and wife, deployed with straight-faced cunning to lend his fabricated distress the ring of a wife’s true sorrow. The narrator’s frank labels for the performance — “ghost-tale trumped up,” “lie confected” — let the reader in on the artifice at every step, so that the pleasure lies not in suspense but in watching the trap close by inches.