第三十八回 · 廊廡見屍 The Corpse Beneath the Gallery — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

廊廡見屍 The Corpse Beneath the Gallery

那nà龍lóng王wáng前qián走zǒu，這zhè獃dāi子zi隨suí後hòu。轉zhuǎn過guò了le水shuǐ晶jīng宮gōng殿diàn，只zhǐ見jiàn廊láng廡wǔ下xià，橫héng躺tǎng著zhe一yí個gè六liù尺chǐ長cháng軀qū。龍lóng王wáng用yòng手shǒu指zhǐ定dìng道dào：「元yuán帥shuài，那nà廂xiāng就jiù是shì寶bǎo貝bèi了le。」八bā戒jiè上shàng前qián看kàn了le，呀ya！原yuán來lái是shì個gè死sǐ皇huáng帝dì，戴dài著zhe沖chōng天tiān冠guān，穿chuān著zhe赭zhě黃huáng袍páo，踏tà著zhe無wú憂yōu履lǚ，繫jì著zhe藍lán田tián帶dài，直zhí挺tǐng挺tǐng睡shuì在zài那nà廂xiāng。八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「難nán難nán難nán，算suàn不bù得dé寶bǎo貝bèi。想xiǎng老lǎo豬zhū在zài山shān為wéi怪guài時shí，時shí常cháng將jiāng此cǐ物wù當dàng飯fàn，且qiě莫mò說shuō見jiàn的de多duō少shǎo，吃chī也yě吃chī夠gòu無wú數shù，那nǎ裡lǐ叫jiào做zuò甚shén麼me寶bǎo貝bèi？」那nà龙lóng王wáng前qián走zǒu，这zhè呆dāi子zi随suí后hòu。转zhuǎn过guò了le水shuǐ晶jīng宫gōng殿diàn，只zhǐ见jiàn廊láng庑wǔ下xià，横héng躺tǎng著zhe一yí个gè六liù尺chǐ长cháng躯qū。龙lóng王wáng用yòng手shǒu指zhǐ定dìng道dào：「元yuán帅shuài，那nà厢xiāng就jiù是shì宝bǎo贝bèi了le。」八bā戒jiè上shàng前qián看kàn了le，呀ya！原yuán来lái是shì个gè死sǐ皇huáng帝dì，戴dài著zhe冲chōng天tiān冠guān，穿chuān著zhe赭zhě黄huáng袍páo，踏tà著zhe无wú忧yōu履lǚ，系jì著zhe蓝lán田tián带dài，直zhí挺tǐng挺tǐng睡shuì在zài那nà厢xiāng。八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「难nán难nán难nán，算suàn不bù得dé宝bǎo贝bèi。想xiǎng老lǎo猪zhū在zài山shān为wéi怪guài时shí，时shí常cháng将jiāng此cǐ物wù当dàng饭fàn，且qiě莫mò说shuō见jiàn的de多duō少shǎo，吃chī也yě吃chī够gòu无wú数shù，那nǎ里lǐ叫jiào做zuò甚shén么me宝bǎo贝bèi？」

逐句解 Line by line

那nà龍lóng王wáng前qián走zǒu，這zhè獃dāi子zi隨suí後hòu。那nà龙lóng王wáng前qián走zǒu，这zhè呆dāi子zi随suí后hòu。

The Dragon-King went ahead, and the blockhead followed behind.

那 = nà; the dragon-king leads the pig to the body.

轉zhuǎn過guò了le水shuǐ晶jīng宮gōng殿diàn，只zhǐ見jiàn廊láng廡wǔ下xià，橫héng躺tǎng著zhe一yí個gè六liù尺chǐ長cháng軀qū。转zhuǎn过guò了le水shuǐ晶jīng宫gōng殿diàn，只zhǐ见jiàn廊láng庑wǔ下xià，横héng躺tǎng著zhe一yí个gè六liù尺chǐ长cháng躯qū。

They passed round the halls of the Crystal Palace, and there, beneath the covered walk, lay stretched out a body six chi in length.

廊廡: the covered walkway/gallery. 橫躺著: lying stretched out (著 = zhe). 六尺長軀: a body six chǐ in length (尺 = chǐ; 長 = cháng).

龍lóng王wáng用yòng手shǒu指zhǐ定dìng道dào：「元yuán帥shuài，那nà廂xiāng就jiù是shì寶bǎo貝bèi了le。」龙lóng王wáng用yòng手shǒu指zhǐ定dìng道dào：「元yuán帅shuài，那nà厢xiāng就jiù是shì宝bǎo贝bèi了le。」

The Dragon-King pointed with his hand and said: 'Marshal, there is the treasure.'

那廂: 'over there' (那 = nà, deictic). The dragon-king's bland 'there is the treasure.'

八bā戒jiè上shàng前qián看kàn了le，呀ya！八bā戒jiè上shàng前qián看kàn了le，呀ya！

Bajie went up to look — ah!

The narrator's 呀! marks Bajie's shock at finding a corpse.

原yuán來lái是shì個gè死sǐ皇huáng帝dì，戴dài著zhe沖chōng天tiān冠guān，穿chuān著zhe赭zhě黃huáng袍páo，踏tà著zhe無wú憂yōu履lǚ，繫jì著zhe藍lán田tián帶dài，直zhí挺tǐng挺tǐng睡shuì在zài那nà廂xiāng。原yuán来lái是shì个gè死sǐ皇huáng帝dì，戴dài著zhe冲chōng天tiān冠guān，穿chuān著zhe赭zhě黄huáng袍páo，踏tà著zhe无wú忧yōu履lǚ，系jì著zhe蓝lán田tián带dài，直zhí挺tǐng挺tǐng睡shuì在zài那nà厢xiāng。

It was a dead emperor — wearing a sky-piercing crown, robed in ochre-yellow, shod in carefree slippers, girt with a Lantian jade belt — lying stiff and straight over there.

沖天冠…赭黃袍…無憂履…藍田帶: the sky-piercing crown, ochre-yellow robe, 'carefree' slippers, and Lantian-jade belt — the full imperial regalia. 戴著…繫著: worn, girt (著 ×4 = zhe; 繫 = jì). 那 = nà.

八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「難nán難nán難nán，算suàn不bù得dé寶bǎo貝bèi。八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「难nán难nán难nán，算suàn不bù得dé宝bǎo贝bèi。

Bajie laughed: 'No, no, no — this can't count as a treasure.'

難難難: 'no, no, no' (難 = nán, here as a dismissive 'hard/no'). 算不得: cannot count as (得 = dé).

想xiǎng老lǎo豬zhū在zài山shān為wéi怪guài時shí，時shí常cháng將jiāng此cǐ物wù當dàng飯fàn，且qiě莫mò說shuō見jiàn的de多duō少shǎo，吃chī也yě吃chī夠gòu無wú數shù，那nǎ裡lǐ叫jiào做zuò甚shén麼me寶bǎo貝bèi？」想xiǎng老lǎo猪zhū在zài山shān为wéi怪guài时shí，时shí常cháng将jiāng此cǐ物wù当dàng饭fàn，且qiě莫mò说shuō见jiàn的de多duō少shǎo，吃chī也yě吃chī够gòu无wú数shù，那nǎ里lǐ叫jiào做zuò甚shén么me宝bǎo贝bèi？」

'Back when Old Pig was a monster in the mountains, I used to make a meal of such things all the time; never mind how many I've seen — I've eaten more than I can count. However could you call this a treasure?'

在山為怪: when [I] was a monster in the mountains (為 = wéi). 將此物當飯: made a meal of such things (將 = jiāng; 當 = dàng, 'to treat as'). 無數: countless (數 = shù). 那裡叫做甚麼寶貝: 'how could you call this a treasure?' (那 = nǎ, rhetorical; 甚麼 = shén me).

總評 Commentary

The 'treasure' is revealed, and it is a corpse — a dead emperor in full regalia, the sky-piercing crown, the ochre robe, the jade belt, laid out beneath the palace gallery. The novel lingers on the imperial trappings, which mark the body unmistakably as a king's, even as Bajie's reaction deflates the solemnity: 'this can't count as a treasure.'

Bajie's dismissal draws on his monstrous past for grimly comic effect. As a cannibal ogre in the mountains, he says, he used to eat such corpses by the score — a reminder of the disciples' unregenerate origins that the novel deploys for shock and laughter alike. The pig who now guards a holy monk was once a devourer of the dead, and his connoisseur's disdain for a single corpse is played entirely for comedy.

The scene turns on a double irony. Bajie, sent to fetch a treasure, refuses the one object of value in the room — the very body the whole expedition was mounted to recover. The dragon-king, who must persuade the pig to carry off the corpse, now faces the task of making a dead king seem worth the trouble, and his solution drives the haggling of the next passage.