第三十八回 · 拿賊拿贓 To Catch a Thief, Catch the Loot — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

拿賊拿贓 To Catch a Thief, Catch the Loot

常cháng言yán道dào：『拿ná賊zéi拿ná贓zāng。』那nà怪guài物wù做zuò了le三sān年nián皇huáng帝dì，又yòu不bù曾céng走zǒu了le馬mǎ腳jiǎo，漏lòu了le風fēng聲shēng。他tā與yǔ三sān宮gōng妃fēi后hòu同tóng眠mián，又yòu和hé兩liǎng班bān文wén武wǔ共gòng樂lè，我wǒ老lǎo孫sūn就jiù有yǒu本běn事shì拿ná住zhù他tā，也yě不bù好hǎo定dìng個gè罪zuì名míng。」唐táng僧sēng道dào：「怎zěn麼me不bù好hǎo定dìng罪zuì？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「他tā就jiù是shì個gè沒méi嘴zuǐ的de葫hú蘆lú，也yě與yǔ你nǐ滾gǔn上shàng幾jǐ滾gǔn。他tā敢gǎn道dào：『我wǒ是shì烏wū雞jī國guó王wáng，有yǒu甚shén逆nì天tiān之zhī事shì，你nǐ來lái拿ná我wǒ？』將jiāng甚shén執zhí照zhào與yǔ他tā折zhé辯biàn？」常cháng言yán道dào：『拿ná贼zéi拿ná赃zāng。』那nà怪guài物wù做zuò了le三sān年nián皇huáng帝dì，又yòu不bù曾céng走zǒu了le马mǎ脚jiǎo，漏lòu了le风fēng声shēng。他tā与yǔ三sān宫gōng妃fēi后hòu同tóng眠mián，又yòu和hé两liǎng班bān文wén武wǔ共gòng乐lè，我wǒ老lǎo孙sūn就jiù有yǒu本běn事shì拿ná住zhù他tā，也yě不bù好hǎo定dìng个gè罪zuì名míng。」唐táng僧sēng道dào：「怎zěn么me不bù好hǎo定dìng罪zuì？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「他tā就jiù是shì个gè没méi嘴zuǐ的de葫hú芦lú，也yě与yǔ你nǐ滚gǔn上shàng几jǐ滚gǔn。他tā敢gǎn道dào：『我wǒ是shì乌wū鸡jī国guó王wáng，有yǒu甚shén逆nì天tiān之zhī事shì，你nǐ来lái拿ná我wǒ？』将jiāng甚shén执zhí照zhào与yǔ他tā折zhé辩biàn？」

逐句解 Line by line

常cháng言yán道dào：『拿ná賊zéi拿ná贓zāng。』常cháng言yán道dào：『拿ná贼zéi拿ná赃zāng。』

As the common saying goes: 'To catch a thief, catch him with the loot.'

拿賊拿贓: 'seize a thief, seize the stolen goods' — a proverb of procedure: a charge needs material proof.

那nà怪guài物wù做zuò了le三sān年nián皇huáng帝dì，又yòu不bù曾céng走zǒu了le馬mǎ腳jiǎo，漏lòu了le風fēng聲shēng。那nà怪guài物wù做zuò了le三sān年nián皇huáng帝dì，又yòu不bù曾céng走zǒu了le马mǎ脚jiǎo，漏lòu了le风fēng声shēng。

That fiend has played emperor for three years now, and has never once shown a horse's hoof or let slip a whisper of the truth.

走馬腳: to 'show a horse's hoof,' i.e. betray the secret (cf. 露馬腳). 漏風聲: to let the wind of it leak out. 那 = nà.

他tā與yǔ三sān宮gōng妃fēi后hòu同tóng眠mián，又yòu和hé兩liǎng班bān文wén武wǔ共gòng樂lè，我wǒ老lǎo孫sūn就jiù有yǒu本běn事shì拿ná住zhù他tā，也yě不bù好hǎo定dìng個gè罪zuì名míng。」他tā与yǔ三sān宫gōng妃fēi后hòu同tóng眠mián，又yòu和hé两liǎng班bān文wén武wǔ共gòng乐lè，我wǒ老lǎo孙sūn就jiù有yǒu本běn事shì拿ná住zhù他tā，也yě不bù好hǎo定dìng个gè罪zuì名míng。」

He shares his bed with the consorts of the three palaces and takes his pleasure with the two files of civil and military officers; even if old Sun had the skill to seize him, it would be no easy thing to fix a charge on him.'

三宮妃后…兩班文武: the palace consorts and the ranks of officials — the demon is embedded in every relation of the realm. 和 = hé; 共樂 keeps 樂 = lè (joy); 不好 = 'not easy.'

唐táng僧sēng道dào：「怎zěn麼me不bù好hǎo定dìng罪zuì？」唐táng僧sēng道dào：「怎zěn么me不bù好hǎo定dìng罪zuì？」

The Tang Monk said: 'Why should it be hard to charge him with a crime?'

Tripitaka's plain challenge: the crime is obvious, so why the difficulty?

行xíng者zhě道dào：「他tā就jiù是shì個gè沒méi嘴zuǐ的de葫hú蘆lú，也yě與yǔ你nǐ滾gǔn上shàng幾jǐ滾gǔn。行xíng者zhě道dào：「他tā就jiù是shì个gè没méi嘴zuǐ的de葫hú芦lú，也yě与yǔ你nǐ滚gǔn上shàng几jǐ滚gǔn。

The Pilgrim said: 'Even were he a mouthless gourd, he would still roll a few rolls against you.'

沒嘴的葫蘆: 'a mouthless gourd' — proverbial for one with nothing to say; yet even so, Wukong warns, the demon would 'roll a few rolls,' i.e. put up a defense. 滾上幾滾: to wriggle, roll about.

他tā敢gǎn道dào：『我wǒ是shì烏wū雞jī國guó王wáng，有yǒu甚shén逆nì天tiān之zhī事shì，你nǐ來lái拿ná我wǒ？』他tā敢gǎn道dào：『我wǒ是shì乌wū鸡jī国guó王wáng，有yǒu甚shén逆nì天tiān之zhī事shì，你nǐ来lái拿ná我wǒ？』

He would dare to say: "I am the king of Wuji — what crime against Heaven have I committed, that you come to seize me?"

The imagined defense: the demon, secure on the throne, would demand the charge against him. 有甚 = shén ('what').

將jiāng甚shén執zhí照zhào與yǔ他tā折zhé辯biàn？」将jiāng甚shén执zhí照zhào与yǔ他tā折zhé辩biàn？」

And with what warrant would you argue him down?'

執照: a warrant, a license. 將甚執照: with what warrant (將 = jiāng, 'with'; 甚 = shén). 折辯: to argue down, refute.

總評 Commentary

Wukong's legal scruple is here fully argued. His premise is the proverb 拿賊拿贓 — a thief must be caught with the loot — and his difficulty is that the demon's three-year reign has left no seam: no betraying 'horse's hoof,' no leaked whisper, and a place at the center of every relation of the realm, from the royal bed to the ranks of officials.

The comedy lies in the Monkey King's imagined cross-examination. The demon, though 'a mouthless gourd,' would still 'roll a few rolls' — mount a defense — and would demand, from the throne, to know the charge against him. Without a warrant (執照) or a body of evidence, Wukong foresees, the seizure would collapse into an unwinnable argument.

The passage crystallizes the chapter's turn from force to proof. The demon cannot be simply overpowered and denounced; his usurpation must be documented. This is why the drowned king's body must be recovered — the corpus delicti that will convert Wukong's certainty into a prosecutable case — and the plan he unfolds next follows directly from this juridical need.