Canonical Classics ← 第八十一回
第八十一回
鎮zhèn海hǎi寺sì心xīn猿yuán知zhī怪guài
黑hēi松sōng林lín三sān眾zhòng尋xún師shī

At the Sea-Calming Monastery the Mind-Ape Knows the Fiend · In the Black Pine Wood the Three Seek Their Master

千里之遙
模式 Mode Read Study
拼音 Pinyin Off
字體 Script 繁
原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

千里之遙 A Thousand Li To The South

行xíng者zhě道dào:「既jì知zhī,一yī一yī說shuō來lái。」土tǔ地dì道dào:「那nà妖yāo精jīng攝shè你nǐ師shī父fù去qù,在zài那nà正zhèng南nán下xià,離lí此cǐ有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遙yáo。那nà廂xiāng有yǒu座zuò山shān,喚huàn做zuò陷xiàn空kōng山shān。行xíng者zhě道dào:「既jì知zhī,一yī一yī说shuō来lái。」土tǔ地dì道dào:「那nà妖yāo精jīng摄shè你nǐ师shī父fù去qù,在zài那nà正zhèng南nán下xià,离lí此cǐ有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遥yáo。那nà厢xiāng有yǒu座zuò山shān,唤huàn做zuò陷xiàn空kōng山shān。


逐句解 Line by line

行xíng者zhě道dào:「既jì知zhī,一yī一yī說shuō來lái。」 行xíng者zhě道dào:「既jì知zhī,一yī一yī说shuō来lái。」

Pilgrim said, "Since you know, then out with it, every bit."

一一, one by one, is a fixed set phrase, and both characters keep the citation tone yī rather than shifting as a running numeral would. Chapters 66 and 74 read it the same way.

土tǔ地dì道dào:「那nà妖yāo精jīng攝shè你nǐ師shī父fù去qù,在zài那nà正zhèng南nán下xià,離lí此cǐ有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遙yáo。 土tǔ地dì道dào:「那nà妖yāo精jīng摄shè你nǐ师shī父fù去qù,在zài那nà正zhèng南nán下xià,离lí此cǐ有yǒu千qiān里lǐ之zhī遥yáo。

The earth god said, "That fiend who carried off your master went away to the due south of here, a thousand lǐ distant.

那 is nà at both appearances, pointing. A Ming lǐ is about 576 metres, so a thousand of them is some 576 kilometres — and Pilgrim covers that in a fraction of one somersault.

那nà廂xiāng有yǒu座zuò山shān,喚huàn做zuò陷xiàn空kōng山shān。 那nà厢xiāng有yǒu座zuò山shān,唤huàn做zuò陷xiàn空kōng山shān。

There is a mountain over there, called the Mountain of Hollow Emptiness.

陷空山 — the mountain that sinks away into nothing. The name is the answer to the riddle-verse's earthen passage.


總評 Commentary

The intelligence arrives, and it is precise: due south, a thousand lǐ, a named mountain. Two minor gods have the answer the whole company lacked.

The distance is worth doing the arithmetic on. A thousand Ming lǐ is around 576 kilometres — a serious journey on foot and nothing at all to a creature whose single somersault covers a hundred and eight thousand of them.

The mountain's name is the chapter's last piece of foreshadowing paying off. The riddle-verse said she made an earthen passage her door and house. The place is called Hollow Emptiness, and what is in it has no bottom.