第三十四回 · 者行孫來 “Che the Pilgrim” Arrives — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

者行孫來 “Che the Pilgrim” Arrives

得dé了le這zhè件jiàn寶bǎo貝bèi，急jí轉zhuǎn身shēn跳tiào出chū門mén外wài，現xiàn了le原yuán身shēn，高gāo叫jiào：「妖yāo怪guài！」那nà把bǎ門mén的de小xiǎo妖yāo問wèn道dào：「你nǐ是shì甚shén人rén，在zài此cǐ呼hū喝hè？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「你nǐ快kuài早zǎo進jìn去qù報bào與yǔ你nǐ那nà潑pō魔mó，說shuō者zhě行xíng孫sūn來lái了le。」那nà小xiǎo妖yāo如rú言yán報bào告gào，老lǎo魔mó大dà驚jīng道dào：「拿ná住zhù孫sūn行xíng者zhě，又yòu怎zěn麼me有yǒu個gè者zhě行xíng孫sūn？」二èr魔mó道dào：「哥gē哥ge，怕pà他tā怎zěn的de？寶bǎo貝bèi都dōu在zài我wǒ手shǒu裡lǐ，等děng我wǒ拿ná那nà葫hú蘆lu出chū去qù，把bǎ他tā裝zhuāng將jiāng來lái。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「兄xiōng弟dì仔zǐ細xì。」得dé了le这zhè件jiàn宝bǎo贝bèi，急jí转zhuǎn身shēn跳tiào出chū门mén外wài，现xiàn了le原yuán身shēn，高gāo叫jiào：「妖yāo怪guài！」那nà把bǎ门mén的de小xiǎo妖yāo问wèn道dào：「你nǐ是shì甚shén人rén，在zài此cǐ呼hū喝hè？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「你nǐ快kuài早zǎo进jìn去qù报bào与yǔ你nǐ那nà泼pō魔mó，说shuō者zhě行xíng孙sūn来lái了le。」那nà小xiǎo妖yāo如rú言yán报bào告gào，老lǎo魔mó大dà惊jīng道dào：「拿ná住zhù孙sūn行xíng者zhě，又yòu怎zěn么me有yǒu个gè者zhě行xíng孙sūn？」二èr魔mó道dào：「哥gē哥ge，怕pà他tā怎zěn的de？宝bǎo贝bèi都dōu在zài我wǒ手shǒu里lǐ，等děng我wǒ拿ná那nà葫hú芦lu出chū去qù，把bǎ他tā装zhuāng将jiāng来lái。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「兄xiōng弟dì仔zǐ细xì。」

逐句解 Line by line

Having got this treasure, he turned quickly and sprang out the gate, resumed his true form, and shouted aloud: “Demons!” The gate-keeping imp asked: “Who are you, shouting here?” Pilgrim said: “Go in at once and report to that foul fiend of yours that Che the Pilgrim has come.” The little imp reported as told, and the old fiend was greatly startled: “We've got Sun the Pilgrim held fast — how is there now a Che the Pilgrim?”

Here is the chapter's best piece of wordplay. 者行孫 zhě xíng sūn is 孫行者 with the syllables shuffled — take the last character of his name, put it first, and you have a brand-new person. English can only approximate it: Sun the Pilgrim becomes Che the Pilgrim, the same three parts in a different order. And it gives the old fiend a genuine logical problem, which is exactly what it was built to do. 你是甚人，在此呼喝 nǐ shì shén rén, zài cǐ hū hè, who are you, shouting here — the questioning shén, 喝 read hè. 那潑魔 nà pō mó, that foul fiend, points.

二èr魔mó道dào：「哥gē哥ge，怕pà他tā怎zěn的de？寶bǎo貝bèi都dōu在zài我wǒ手shǒu裡lǐ，等děng我wǒ拿ná那nà葫hú蘆lu出chū去qù，把bǎ他tā裝zhuāng將jiāng來lái。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「兄xiōng弟dì仔zǐ細xì。」二èr魔mó道dào：「哥gē哥ge，怕pà他tā怎zěn的de？宝bǎo贝bèi都dōu在zài我wǒ手shǒu里lǐ，等děng我wǒ拿ná那nà葫hú芦lu出chū去qù，把bǎ他tā装zhuāng将jiāng来lái。」老lǎo魔mó道dào：「兄xiōng弟dì仔zǐ细xì。」

The second fiend said: “Brother, what's there to fear of him? The treasures are all in my hands; let me take the gourd out and bottle him up.” The old fiend said: “Be careful, brother.”

寶貝都在我手裡 bǎo bèi dōu zài wǒ shǒu lǐ, the treasures are all in my hands — 都 read dōu, and the confidence is about to be very expensive. 拿那葫蘆出去 ná nà hú lu chū qù, take that gourd out, pointing; 把他裝將來 bǎ tā zhuāng jiāng lái, bottle him up, with 將 in the movement. 兄弟仔細 xiōng dì zǐ xì, careful, brother — 仔 read zǐ, and it is the one sensible thing anybody says in this passage.

總評 Commentary

The pseudonym is the chapter's cleverest small joke and its own bait. Having recovered the cord, Wukong strolls out, resumes his shape, and announces himself under a name made by shuffling his own — presenting the demons with the puzzle that gives the old fiend pause: Sun the Pilgrim is tied up in the cave, so who is this? The riddle is Wukong's invention, designed to draw out the one treasure he still lacks.

The second fiend's confident answer supplies exactly what the trick was fishing for: the treasures are in hand, so let the gourd do its work. The reader, who has been told twice now that a thing goes as its master pleases, watches the demon reach for the one weapon that might swallow the Great Sage — and understands that Wukong has provoked this precisely to find out whether a stolen name can beat a treasure that knows its owner. The old fiend's 兄弟仔細 hangs over the scene like a warning nobody can read.