第六十六回 · 送命來也 He Comes To Give Up His Life — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

送命來也 He Comes To Give Up His Life

行xíng者zhě揝zǎn拳quán，欣xīn然rán領lǐng教jiào。一yì隻zhī手shǒu掄lūn著zhe鐵tiě棒bàng，直zhí至zhì山shān門mén外wài，高gāo叫jiào道dào：「妖yāo魔mó，你nǐ孫sūn爺yé爺ye又yòu來lái了le，可kě快kuài出chū來lái，與yǔ你nǐ見jiàn個gè上shàng下xià。」小xiǎo妖yāo又yòu忙máng忙máng奔bēn告gào。妖yāo王wáng問wèn道dào：「他tā又yòu領lǐng多duō少shǎo兵bīng來lái叫jiào戰zhàn？」小xiǎo妖yāo道dào：「別bié無wú甚shén兵bīng，止zhǐ他tā一yí個gè。」妖yāo王wáng笑xiào道dào：「那nà猴hóu兒er計jì窮qióng力lì竭jié，無wú處chù求qiú人rén，斷duàn然rán是shì送sòng命mìng來lái也yě。」行xíng者zhě揝zǎn拳quán，欣xīn然rán领lǐng教jiào。一yì只zhī手shǒu抡lūn着zhe铁tiě棒bàng，直zhí至zhì山shān门mén外wài，高gāo叫jiào道dào：「妖yāo魔mó，你nǐ孙sūn爷yé爷ye又yòu来lái了le，可kě快kuài出chū来lái，与yǔ你nǐ见jiàn个gè上shàng下xià。」小xiǎo妖yāo又yòu忙máng忙máng奔bēn告gào。妖yāo王wáng问wèn道dào：「他tā又yòu领lǐng多duō少shǎo兵bīng来lái叫jiào战zhàn？」小xiǎo妖yāo道dào：「别bié无wú甚shén兵bīng，止zhǐ他tā一yí个gè。」妖yāo王wáng笑xiào道dào：「那nà猴hóu儿er计jì穷qióng力lì竭jié，无wú处chù求qiú人rén，断duàn然rán是shì送sòng命mìng来lái也yě。」

逐句解 Line by line

行xíng者zhě揝zǎn拳quán，欣xīn然rán領lǐng教jiào。行xíng者zhě揝zǎn拳quán，欣xīn然rán领lǐng教jiào。

Pilgrim gripped his fist and gladly received the instruction.

教 is jiào in 領教, to receive instruction. Eight characters, and no further questions.

一yì隻zhī手shǒu掄lūn著zhe鐵tiě棒bàng，直zhí至zhì山shān門mén外wài，高gāo叫jiào道dào：「妖yāo魔mó，你nǐ孫sūn爺yé爺ye又yòu來lái了le，可kě快kuài出chū來lái，與yǔ你nǐ見jiàn個gè上shàng下xià。」一yì只zhī手shǒu抡lūn着zhe铁tiě棒bàng，直zhí至zhì山shān门mén外wài，高gāo叫jiào道dào：「妖yāo魔mó，你nǐ孙sūn爷yé爷ye又yòu来lái了le，可kě快kuài出chū来lái，与yǔ你nǐ见jiàn个gè上shàng下xià。」

With one hand he swung his iron rod, went straight outside the mountain gate and called aloud, "Fiend! Your Grandfather Sun is here again — come out quickly and let us see which of us is uppermost."

爺爺 is yé ye with an unstressed second syllable — Monkey styling himself somebody's grandfather, which is standard swagger for him. 一隻手, one hand, is the detail the whole scene will turn on, and it is planted here without comment.

小xiǎo妖yāo又yòu忙máng忙máng奔bēn告gào。小xiǎo妖yāo又yòu忙máng忙máng奔bēn告gào。

The small fiends hurried in with word again.

Seven characters to send the alarm in. 奔 is bēn here, simply to run, with no destination named after it — the reading shifts to bèn only when a place follows.

妖yāo王wáng問wèn道dào：「他tā又yòu領lǐng多duō少shǎo兵bīng來lái叫jiào戰zhàn？」妖yāo王wáng问wèn道dào：「他tā又yòu领lǐng多duō少shǎo兵bīng来lái叫jiào战zhàn？」

The fiend king asked, "How many troops has he brought this time to challenge us?"

少 is shǎo in 多少, how many. The question assumes the pattern of the chapter: each visit has come with a bigger company than the last.

小xiǎo妖yāo道dào：「別bié無wú甚shén兵bīng，止zhǐ他tā一yí個gè。」小xiǎo妖yāo道dào：「别bié无wú甚shén兵bīng，止zhǐ他tā一yí个gè。」

The small fiends said, "No troops at all — only himself."

甚 is shén. The answer breaks the pattern for the first time.

妖yāo王wáng笑xiào道dào：「那nà猴hóu兒er計jì窮qióng力lì竭jié，無wú處chù求qiú人rén，斷duàn然rán是shì送sòng命mìng來lái也yě。」妖yāo王wáng笑xiào道dào：「那nà猴hóu儿er计jì穷qióng力lì竭jié，无wú处chù求qiú人rén，断duàn然rán是shì送sòng命mìng来lái也yě。」

The fiend king laughed and said, "That monkey's schemes are spent and his strength gone, and he has nowhere left to ask; he must be coming to give up his life."

無處求人 is very nearly what Monkey said of himself on the hillside — no quarter left to ask help of — and the fiend has read the situation correctly in every particular except the one that matters.

總評 Commentary

The fiend's reasoning is sound, and it is the reasoning the chapter has taught the reader to share. Monkey has arrived alone after three defeats, having exhausted Wudang, Xuyi and every company they lent him. A lone arrival at that point does look like a man out of options.

What the fiend cannot see is that arriving alone is now the plan. You may lose but you may not win has turned the appearance of exhaustion into the instrument, and every inference the fiend draws is exactly the inference he is meant to draw.

One hand is the other half of it. Monkey is holding a fist closed around a written word, so he can only fight one-handed — and that involuntary handicap is about to be offered as a boast.