第四十八回 · 街聞河凍 Word in the Street: the River Frozen — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

街聞河凍 Word in the Street: the River Frozen

不bù覺jué天tiān色sè將jiāng晚wǎn，又yòu仍réng請qǐng到dào廳tīng上shàng晚wǎn齋zhāi。只zhǐ聽tīng得dé街jiē上shàng行xíng人rén都dōu說shuō：「好hǎo冷lěng天tiān啊a，把bǎ通tōng天tiān河hé凍dòng住zhù了le。」三sān藏zàng聞wén言yán道dào：「悟wù空kōng，凍dòng住zhù河hé，我wǒ們men怎zěn生shēng是shì好hǎo？」陳chén老lǎo道dào：「乍zhà寒hán乍zhà冷lěng，想xiǎng是shì近jìn河hé邊biān淺qiǎn水shuǐ處chù凍dòng結jié。」那nà行xíng人rén道dào：「把bǎ八bā百bǎi里lǐ都dōu凍dòng的de似sì鏡jìng面miàn一yì般bān，路lù口kǒu上shàng有yǒu人rén走zǒu哩li。」三sān藏zàng聽tīng說shuō有yǒu人rén走zǒu，就jiù要yào去qù看kàn。陳chén老lǎo道dào：「老lǎo爺yé莫mò忙máng，今jīn日rì晚wǎn了le，明míng日rì去qù看kàn。」遂suì此cǐ別bié卻què鄰lín叟sǒu。又yòu晚wǎn齋zhāi畢bì，依yī然rán歇xiē在zài廂xiāng房fáng。不bù觉jué天tiān色sè将jiāng晚wǎn，又yòu仍réng请qǐng到dào厅tīng上shàng晚wǎn斋zhāi。只zhǐ听tīng得dé街jiē上shàng行xíng人rén都dōu说shuō：「好hǎo冷lěng天tiān啊a，把bǎ通tōng天tiān河hé冻dòng住zhù了le。」三sān藏zàng闻wén言yán道dào：「悟wù空kōng，冻dòng住zhù河hé，我wǒ们men怎zěn生shēng是shì好hǎo？」陈chén老lǎo道dào：「乍zhà寒hán乍zhà冷lěng，想xiǎng是shì近jìn河hé边biān浅qiǎn水shuǐ处chù冻dòng结jié。」那nà行xíng人rén道dào：「把bǎ八bā百bǎi里lǐ都dōu冻dòng的de似sì镜jìng面miàn一yì般bān，路lù口kǒu上shàng有yǒu人rén走zǒu哩li。」三sān藏zàng听tīng说shuō有yǒu人rén走zǒu，就jiù要yào去qù看kàn。陈chén老lǎo道dào：「老lǎo爷yé莫mò忙máng，今jīn日rì晚wǎn了le，明míng日rì去qù看kàn。」遂suì此cǐ别bié却què邻lín叟sǒu。又yòu晚wǎn斋zhāi毕bì，依yī然rán歇xiē在zài厢xiāng房fáng。

逐句解 Line by line

不bù覺jué天tiān色sè將jiāng晚wǎn，又yòu仍réng請qǐng到dào廳tīng上shàng晚wǎn齋zhāi。不bù觉jué天tiān色sè将jiāng晚wǎn，又yòu仍réng请qǐng到dào厅tīng上shàng晚wǎn斋zhāi。

Before they knew it the light was failing, and they were asked once again to the hall for the evening meal.

不覺: 覺 is jué, the awareness sense — "without noticing" — set against the jiào of 睡覺 back at the temple, where Eight Rules wanted his bed. 將晚: 將 is jiāng, "about to."

只zhǐ聽tīng得dé街jiē上shàng行xíng人rén都dōu說shuō：「好hǎo冷lěng天tiān啊a，把bǎ通tōng天tiān河hé凍dòng住zhù了le。」只zhǐ听tīng得dé街jiē上shàng行xíng人rén都dōu说shuō：「好hǎo冷lěng天tiān啊a，把bǎ通tōng天tiān河hé冻dòng住zhù了le。」

They heard the people in the street all saying: 「What a bitter cold — the River That Reaches to Heaven has frozen fast!」

聽得: 得 is dé. 行人: 行 is xíng. 都 is dōu. Note how the news arrives — not as a portent, but as people in the street grumbling about the weather.

三sān藏zàng聞wén言yán道dào：「悟wù空kōng，凍dòng住zhù河hé，我wǒ們men怎zěn生shēng是shì好hǎo？」三sān藏zàng闻wén言yán道dào：「悟wù空kōng，冻dòng住zhù河hé，我wǒ们men怎zěn生shēng是shì好hǎo？」

Tripitaka heard it and said: 「Wukong, if the river is frozen fast, what shall we do?」

The question will not quite carry across into English. 怎生是好 can mean "how are we to manage?" or "what a chance — how do we use it?" Tripitaka may not know himself which he means. The next few passages settle it.

陳chén老lǎo道dào：「乍zhà寒hán乍zhà冷lěng，想xiǎng是shì近jìn河hé邊biān淺qiǎn水shuǐ處chù凍dòng結jié。」陈chén老lǎo道dào：「乍zhà寒hán乍zhà冷lěng，想xiǎng是shì近jìn河hé边biān浅qiǎn水shuǐ处chù冻dòng结jié。」

Old Chen said: 「The cold came on so suddenly — it will be the shallow water near the bank that has set.」

淺水處: 處 is chù. 乍寒乍冷, cold coming on in fits and starts. The old man is still reasoning from ordinary weather, and reasoning well.

那nà行xíng人rén道dào：「把bǎ八bā百bǎi里lǐ都dōu凍dòng的de似sì鏡jìng面miàn一yì般bān，路lù口kǒu上shàng有yǒu人rén走zǒu哩li。」那nà行xíng人rén道dào：「把bǎ八bā百bǎi里lǐ都dōu冻dòng的de似sì镜jìng面miàn一yì般bān，路lù口kǒu上shàng有yǒu人rén走zǒu哩li。」

The passer-by said: 「The whole eight hundred li of it is frozen smooth as the face of a mirror, and there are people walking on it up at the landing.」

那行人 is nà, with 行 as xíng; 都 is dōu. 似 is sì, a reading fixed across this edition, and the final 哩 is li. 一般 keeps 一 at yì before a level tone.

三sān藏zàng聽tīng說shuō有yǒu人rén走zǒu，就jiù要yào去qù看kàn。三sān藏zàng听tīng说shuō有yǒu人rén走zǒu，就jiù要yào去qù看kàn。

When Tripitaka heard that people were walking on it, he wanted to go and see straight away.

Eleven characters, and the trap has caught. The Dame designed those walkers for exactly this reaction, and it comes on the instant.

陳chén老lǎo道dào：「老lǎo爺yé莫mò忙máng，今jīn日rì晚wǎn了le，明míng日rì去qù看kàn。」陈chén老lǎo道dào：「老lǎo爷yé莫mò忙máng，今jīn日rì晚wǎn了le，明míng日rì去qù看kàn。」

Old Chen said: 「Do not be in haste, your reverence. It is late today; go and see tomorrow.」

莫忙 — the first of Old Chen's three attempts to slow the monk down, and the only one he accepts.

遂suì此cǐ別bié卻què鄰lín叟sǒu。遂suì此cǐ别bié却què邻lín叟sǒu。

So they took their leave of the neighbour elders.

別卻, to part from. The evening winds up.

又yòu晚wǎn齋zhāi畢bì，依yī然rán歇xiē在zài廂xiāng房fáng。又yòu晚wǎn斋zhāi毕bì，依yī然rán歇xiē在zài厢xiāng房fáng。

The evening meal being done, they rested in the side chamber as before.

依然, as before. The household routine holds for one more night.

總評 Commentary

The news comes in the most ordinary way imaginable: people in the street, complaining about the weather. Nobody announces a marvel. The River That Reaches to Heaven, eight hundred li of it, has gone hard as a mirror, and the fact reaches the pilgrims third-hand over supper.

Old Chen's instinct is to disbelieve the scale of it — surely only the shallows by the bank — and the passer-by corrects him with the detail that matters: there are people walking on it. Those people are the Mandarin-Fish Dame's transformed water-creatures, stationed at the landing for precisely this purpose, and the novel lets the reader recognise them a full page before any character does.

Tripitaka's response is immediate and, in context, terrible in its innocence. He wants to go and look at once. Only nightfall stops him, and only for a night.