第九十七回 · 與他對證 Let Us Go to the Kou House — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

與他對證 Let Us Go to the Kou House

你nǐ看kàn他tā三sān人rén一yí個gè個gè逞chěng兇xiōng，眾zhòng官guān只zhǐ以yǐ寇kòu家jiā遮zhē飾shì。三sān藏zàng勸quàn解jiě了le道dào：「徒tú弟dì，是shì也yě不bù得dé明míng白bái。我wǒ們men且qiě到dào寇kòu家jiā去qù，一yì則zé吊diào問wèn，二èr來lái與yǔ他tā對duì證zhèng對duì證zhèng，看kàn是shì何hé人rén見jiàn我wǒ做zuò賊zéi？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「說shuō得dé是shì。等děng老lǎo孫sūn把bǎ那nà死sǐ的de叫jiào起qǐ來lái，看kàn是shì哪nǎ個gè打dǎ他tā？」你nǐ看kàn他tā三sān人rén一yí个gè个gè逞chěng凶xiōng，众zhòng官guān只zhǐ以yǐ寇kòu家jiā遮zhē饰shì。三sān藏zàng劝quàn解jiě了le道dào：「徒tú弟dì，是shì也yě不bù得dé明míng白bái。我wǒ们men且qiě到dào寇kòu家jiā去qù，一yì则zé吊diào问wèn，二èr来lái与yǔ他tā对duì证zhèng对duì证zhèng，看kàn是shì何hé人rén见jiàn我wǒ做zuò贼zéi？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「说shuō得dé是shì。等děng老lǎo孙sūn把bǎ那nà死sǐ的de叫jiào起qǐ来lái，看kàn是shì哪nǎ个gè打dǎ他tā？」

逐句解 Line by line

你nǐ看kàn他tā三sān人rén一yí個gè個gè逞chěng兇xiōng，眾zhòng官guān只zhǐ以yǐ寇kòu家jiā遮zhē飾shì。你nǐ看kàn他tā三sān人rén一yí个gè个gè逞chěng凶xiōng，众zhòng官guān只zhǐ以yǐ寇kòu家jiā遮zhē饰shì。

You should have seen the three of them swaggering, every one of them, while the officers could only put it all down to the Kou family.

逞兇 — swaggering, throwing their weight about. All three disciples, not just Monkey. Even Sha Monk is enjoying this. 只以寇家遮飾 — could only put it all down to the Kou family. The officials are covering themselves by blaming the complainants, which is both cowardly and, in fairness, largely true. It also guarantees the next scene: everyone is now going to the Kou house.

三sān藏zàng勸quàn解jiě了le道dào：「徒tú弟dì，是shì也yě不bù得dé明míng白bái。我wǒ們men且qiě到dào寇kòu家jiā去qù，一yì則zé吊diào問wèn，二èr來lái與yǔ他tā對duì證zhèng對duì證zhèng，看kàn是shì何hé人rén見jiàn我wǒ做zuò賊zéi？」三sān藏zàng劝quàn解jiě了le道dào：「徒tú弟dì，是shì也yě不bù得dé明míng白bái。我wǒ们men且qiě到dào寇kòu家jiā去qù，一yì则zé吊diào问wèn，二èr来lái与yǔ他tā对duì证zhèng对duì证zhèng，看kàn是shì何hé人rén见jiàn我wǒ做zuò贼zéi？」

Tripitaka smoothed it over. "Disciples — nothing here can be made clear. Let us go to the Kou house: first to pay our respects to the dead, and second to have it out with them face to face, and see who it was that saw us commit a robbery."

不得明白 — nothing can be made clear. Here the two characters before the verb mean cannot and the second keeps its full weight — the same shape as the frozen robbers who could not move, and the opposite of Kou Hong who could not bring himself to let go. 吊問 — to pay respects to the dead. Tripitaka's first thought is still the correct observance, even towards the family that had him gaoled. 對證 — to have it out face to face. A legal word again: the confrontation of parties in a hearing. Tripitaka is asking for the cross-examination the prefect never held.

行xíng者zhě道dào：「說shuō得dé是shì。等děng老lǎo孫sūn把bǎ那nà死sǐ的de叫jiào起qǐ來lái，看kàn是shì哪nǎ個gè打dǎ他tā？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「说shuō得dé是shì。等děng老lǎo孙sūn把bǎ那nà死sǐ的de叫jiào起qǐ来lái，看kàn是shì哪nǎ个gè打dǎ他tā？」

Monkey said, "Well said. Let old Monkey call up the dead man and see whom he says beat him to death."

說得是 — well said. Monkey agreeing with his master without argument, for the second time in the chapter. The first time it walked them into prison. 把那死的叫起來 — call up the dead man. He says it flatly, as a plan, in a room full of officials, and the next passage records that they all took it for a joke. 哪個 — which one. The question word, kept separate in this edition from the word for that, so there is no doubt he is asking for a name.

總評 Commentary

Tripitaka asks for exactly the right thing and names it in the court's own vocabulary: a confrontation of the parties, so that the person who claims to have seen the crime can say so to their faces. It is the hearing that should have happened two days ago, and he has to organise it himself, after the verdict, as a private visit.

The officials' response is to blame the complainants. That is self-serving and it is also broadly accurate — the false complaint did start this — but it conveniently forgets that a magistrate convicted on it without inquiry. The chapter lets them get away with it.

And then Monkey says he will call the dead man up, and everybody laughs. It is the only moment in the chapter where he tells the plain truth about what he intends to do, and it is the one thing nobody believes.