第八十三回 · 一窟妖精 A Hollow Packed With Fiends — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

一窟妖精 A Hollow Packed With Fiends

那nà行xíng者zhě惱nǎo起qǐ性xìng來lái，捻niǎn著zhe金jīn箍gū棒bàng，一yí下xià闖chuǎng將jiāng進jìn去qù。那nà裡lǐ邊biān窄zhǎi小xiǎo，窩wō著zhe一yì窟kū妖yāo精jīng。三sān太tài子zǐ縱zòng起qǐ天tiān兵bīng，一yì齊qí擁yōng上shàng，一yí個gè個gè那nǎ裡lǐ去qù躲duǒ？行xíng者zhě尋xún著zháo唐táng僧sēng，和hé那nà龍lóng馬mǎ，和hé那nà行xíng李li。那nà行xíng者zhě恼nǎo起qǐ性xìng来lái，捻niǎn着zhe金jīn箍gū棒bàng，一yí下xià闯chuǎng将jiāng进jìn去qù。那nà里lǐ边biān窄zhǎi小xiǎo，窝wō着zhe一yì窟kū妖yāo精jīng。三sān太tài子zǐ纵zòng起qǐ天tiān兵bīng，一yì齐qí拥yōng上shàng，一yí个gè个gè那nǎ里lǐ去qù躲duǒ？行xíng者zhě寻xún着zháo唐táng僧sēng，和hé那nà龙lóng马mǎ，和hé那nà行xíng李li。

逐句解 Line by line

那nà行xíng者zhě惱nǎo起qǐ性xìng來lái，捻niǎn著zhe金jīn箍gū棒bàng，一yí下xià闖chuǎng將jiāng進jìn去qù。那nà行xíng者zhě恼nǎo起qǐ性xìng来lái，捻niǎn着zhe金jīn箍gū棒bàng，一yí下xià闯chuǎng将jiāng进jìn去qù。

That set Pilgrim's temper going. He gripped the gold-banded rod and charged straight in at a rush.

惱起性來 is to have one's temper come up, and 著 is zhe, gripping and going on gripping. After all the paperwork, the chapter gives him back the rod in eleven characters.

那nà裡lǐ邊biān窄zhǎi小xiǎo，窩wō著zhe一yì窟kū妖yāo精jīng。那nà里lǐ边biān窄zhǎi小xiǎo，窝wō着zhe一yì窟kū妖yāo精jīng。

It was cramped in there, a hollow packed with fiends.

窩著 keeps 著 at zhe — holed up and staying holed up. 一窟 is one burrow-full, and the measure word is the same animal vocabulary the chapter has used for her all along.

三sān太tài子zǐ縱zòng起qǐ天tiān兵bīng，一yì齊qí擁yōng上shàng，一yí個gè個gè那nǎ裡lǐ去qù躲duǒ？三sān太tài子zǐ纵zòng起qǐ天tiān兵bīng，一yì齐qí拥yōng上shàng，一yí个gè个gè那nǎ里lǐ去qù躲duǒ？

The Third Prince set the heavenly troops on and they crowded in all at once. Where was any of them to hide?

那 is nǎ, the rhetorical where — and this is the third time in a few passages that the novel has used that question. Twice it meant the searchers found nothing; here it means the fiends have nowhere left. The same sentence shape, turned round. 子 takes zǐ.

行xíng者zhě尋xún著zháo唐táng僧sēng，和hé那nà龍lóng馬mǎ，和hé那nà行xíng李li。行xíng者zhě寻xún着zháo唐táng僧sēng，和hé那nà龙lóng马mǎ，和hé那nà行xíng李li。

Pilgrim found the Tang Monk, and the dragon horse, and the baggage.

尋著 puts 著 at zháo, the achieved reading — the same word that failed at 找不著 two passages back, now succeeding. The list is flat and complete: master, horse, luggage. Everything lost in the road outside the cave is recovered in one line of thirteen characters.

總評 Commentary

The rescue takes four segments and no fight worth describing. After three thousand characters of obstruction the actual recovery is an inventory.

The two readings of one character tell the whole story of the chapter. He could not get her found; now he gets the master found. Between the two lies a lawsuit, an army and a small demon with a curious head.