第六十六回 · 微微冷笑 A Faint Cold Laugh — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

微微冷笑 A Faint Cold Laugh

妖yāo王wáng聽tīng說shuō，微wēi微wēi冷lěng笑xiào道dào：「那nà太tài子zǐ，你nǐ捨shě了le國guó家jiā，從cóng那nà國guó師shī王wáng菩pú薩sà，修xiū的de是shì甚shén麼me長cháng生shēng不bù老lǎo之zhī術shù？只zhǐ好hǎo收shōu捕bǔ淮huái河hé水shuǐ怪guài，卻què怎zěn麼me聽tīng信xìn孫sūn行xíng者zhě誑kuáng謬miù之zhī言yán，千qiān山shān萬wàn水shuǐ，來lái此cǐ納nà命mìng？看kàn你nǐ可kě長cháng生shēng可kě不bù老lǎo也yě？」妖yāo王wáng听tīng说shuō，微wēi微wēi冷lěng笑xiào道dào：「那nà太tài子zǐ，你nǐ舍shě了le国guó家jiā，从cóng那nà国guó师shī王wáng菩pú萨sà，修xiū的de是shì甚shén么me长cháng生shēng不bù老lǎo之zhī术shù？只zhǐ好hǎo收shōu捕bǔ淮huái河hé水shuǐ怪guài，却què怎zěn么me听tīng信xìn孙sūn行xíng者zhě诳kuáng谬miù之zhī言yán，千qiān山shān万wàn水shuǐ，来lái此cǐ纳nà命mìng？看kàn你nǐ可kě长cháng生shēng可kě不bù老lǎo也yě？」

逐句解 Line by line

妖yāo王wáng聽tīng說shuō，微wēi微wēi冷lěng笑xiào道dào：「那nà太tài子zǐ，你nǐ捨shě了le國guó家jiā，從cóng那nà國guó師shī王wáng菩pú薩sà，修xiū的de是shì甚shén麼me長cháng生shēng不bù老lǎo之zhī術shù？妖yāo王wáng听tīng说shuō，微wēi微wēi冷lěng笑xiào道dào：「那nà太tài子zǐ，你nǐ舍shě了le国guó家jiā，从cóng那nà国guó师shī王wáng菩pú萨sà，修xiū的de是shì甚shén么me长cháng生shēng不bù老lǎo之zhī术shù？

The fiend king heard him out and said with a faint cold laugh, "You there, prince — you gave up a kingdom and followed that Bodhisattva King and Preceptor: what art of long life and no ageing is it you have cultivated?

Both 那 are nà, pointing, though the first is used as a form of address — you there. 長 is cháng in 長生.

只zhǐ好hǎo收shōu捕bǔ淮huái河hé水shuǐ怪guài，卻què怎zěn麼me聽tīng信xìn孫sūn行xíng者zhě誑kuáng謬miù之zhī言yán，千qiān山shān萬wàn水shuǐ，來lái此cǐ納nà命mìng？只zhǐ好hǎo收shōu捕bǔ淮huái河hé水shuǐ怪guài，却què怎zěn么me听tīng信xìn孙sūn行xíng者zhě诳kuáng谬miù之zhī言yán，千qiān山shān万wàn水shuǐ，来lái此cǐ纳nà命mìng？

You are fit only to catch water-monsters in the Huai. How is it you have listened to Sun the Pilgrim's lying nonsense and come a thousand hills and ten thousand streams to hand over your life here?

誑 is read kuáng. 只好收捕淮河水怪 throws the prince's own poem back at him: he boasted of gathering in water-monsters, and the fiend makes that his ceiling.

看kàn你nǐ可kě長cháng生shēng可kě不bù老lǎo也yě？」看kàn你nǐ可kě长cháng生shēng可kě不bù老lǎo也yě？」

Let us see whether you can live long, whether you can escape ageing!"

長生不老 comes back from the fiend's first sentence, now split across two clauses with a can-you in front of each. The threat is to put the claim to the test.

總評 Commentary

The fiend's reply is the best piece of rhetoric anyone produces in this chapter. He does not dispute a single item in the poem; he takes the prince's own strongest line — gathering in water-monsters — and turns it into a limit. Fit only for the Huai, and nothing further.

Then he attacks the transaction rather than the man. Monkey's words are lies and nonsense, and the prince has crossed a thousand hills on the strength of them. The fiend is telling him he has been recruited under false pretences — which, given what happened to the last two detachments, is not an unreasonable thing to say.

Let us see whether you can live long closes it by proposing a test. The prince claimed deathlessness in verse; the fiend offers to check. It is the same move he made against the dragons, who answered a legal claim with a club — except that here he has found something in the boast itself to work with.