第八十回 · 戰兢兢的 Trembling on His Knees — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

戰兢兢的 Trembling on His Knees

那nà小xiǎo和hé尚shàng即jí忙máng跑pǎo出chū，戰zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de跪guì下xià道dào：「列liè位wèi老lǎo爺yé，唐táng老lǎo爺yé請qǐng哩li。」八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「哥gē啊a，他tā請qǐng便biàn罷bà了le，卻què這zhè般bān戰zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de，何hé也yě？」那nà小xiǎo和hé尚shàng即jí忙máng跑pǎo出chū，战zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de跪guì下xià道dào：「列liè位wèi老lǎo爷yé，唐táng老lǎo爷yé请qǐng哩li。」八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「哥gē啊a，他tā请qǐng便biàn罢bà了le，却què这zhè般bān战zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de，何hé也yě？」

逐句解 Line by line

那nà小xiǎo和hé尚shàng即jí忙máng跑pǎo出chū，戰zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de跪guì下xià道dào：「列liè位wèi老lǎo爺yé，唐táng老lǎo爺yé請qǐng哩li。」那nà小xiǎo和hé尚shàng即jí忙máng跑pǎo出chū，战zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de跪guì下xià道dào：「列liè位wèi老lǎo爷yé，唐táng老lǎo爷yé请qǐng哩li。」

The little monk ran straight out and knelt down trembling. "Your honours, the venerable Tang invites you in."

戰兢兢 doubles its last syllable to make the shaking visible, in the same way 喜孜孜 did for the demon's good spirits when she came out of the wood.

八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「哥gē啊a，他tā請qǐng便biàn罷bà了le，卻què這zhè般bān戰zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de，何hé也yě？」八bā戒jiè笑xiào道dào：「哥gē啊a，他tā请qǐng便biàn罢bà了le，却què这zhè般bān战zhàn兢jīng兢jīng的de，何hé也yě？」

Bajie laughed and said, "Brother, if he is inviting us then let him invite us — but why all this trembling?"

Here 罷了 takes 罷 as bà, the full word: let that be enough, have done. It is the chapter's twelfth and last use of the character, six of them the light ba that softens a suggestion and six this one.

總評 Commentary

The novice kneels to a pig and a monkey because he is too frightened to do anything else, and Bajie finds it funny rather than gratifying.

That reaction is a small piece of character work the book does well. Bajie has spent the chapter being called a blockhead and a sack of rot, and when somebody finally kneels to him he does not enjoy it. He just wonders what is wrong with the man.