修之路·烨天

原文

杨宪益译文

霍克斯译文

且说贾琏自回家参见过众人，回至房中。

But let us return to Jia Lian. After he had greeted the rest of the family he went to his own quarters;

But let us now turn to Jia Lian. When he had finished seeing everyone in the family, Jia Lian returned at last to his own apartment.

正值凤姐近日多事之时，无片刻闲暇之工，见贾琏远路归来，少不得拨冗接待，

and busy as Xifeng was, with not a moment to herself, she set everything aside to welcome her husband back from his long journey.

Xi-feng, though still so busy that she had not a moment’s leisure, had somehow contrived to find time to welcome back her wandering lord.

房内无外人，便笑道：“国舅老爷大喜！国舅老爷一路风尘辛苦。小的听见昨日的头起报马来报，说今日大驾归府，略预备了一杯水酒掸尘，不知赐光谬领否？”

Once they were alone she said jokingly, “Congratulations, Your Excellency, kinsman of the Imperial House! Your Excellency must have had a tiring journey. Your handmaid, hearing yesterday that your exalted carriage would return today, prepared some watery wine by way of welcome. Will the Imperial Kinsman deign to accept it?”

‘Congratulations, Imperial Kinsman!’ she said with a smile when, except for the servants, they were at last alone together. ‘You have had a tiring journey, Imperial Kinsman. Yesterday when the courier gave notice of your arrival, I prepared a humble entertainment to celebrate your homecoming. Will the Imperial Kinsman graciously condescend to take a cup of wine with his handmaid?’

贾琏笑道：“岂敢岂敢，多承多承。”

“You honour me too much,” Jia Lian replied with a chuckle. “I am quite overwhelmed.”

Jia Lian replied in the same vein: ‘Madam, you are too kind! I am your most oble-e-eged and humble servant, ma’am!’

一面平儿与众丫鬟参拜毕，献茶。

When Pinger and the other maids had paid their respects and served tea,

As they joked together, Patience and the other maids came forward to welcome their Master back, after which they served them both with tea.

贾琏遂问别后家中的诸事，又谢凤姐的操持劳碌。

Jia Lian asked his wife what had happened during his absence and thanked her for looking after things so well.

Jia Lian asked Xi-feng about the events that had occurred during his absence and thanked her for looking after things so well while he was away.

凤姐道：“我那里照管得这些事！

“I’m incapable of running things,” she sighed.

‘I am not much of a manager really,’ said Xi-feng.

见识又浅，口角又笨，心肠又直率，人家给个棒槌，我就认作‘针’。

“I’m too ignorant, blunt and tactless, always getting hold of the wrong end of the stick.

‘I haven’t got the knowledge, and I’m too poor at expressing myself and too simple-minded — always inclined to “take a ramrod for a needle”, as they say.

脸又软，搁不住人给两句好话，心里就慈悲了。

And I’m so soft-hearted, anyone can get round me.

Besides, I’m too soft-hearted for the job. Anyone who says a few kind words can get the better of me.

况且又没经历过大事，胆子又小，太太略有些不自在，就吓的我连觉也睡不着了。

Besides, lack of experience makes me nervous. When Her Ladyship is the least displeased I’m too frightened to sleep a wink.

And my lack of experience makes me so nervous. Aunt Wang only had to be the slightest bit displeased and I would get so upset that I couldn’t sleep at night.

我苦辞了几回，

Time and again I’ve begged to be relieved of such a responsibility,

I begged her not to make me do all these things, but she insisted.

太太又不容辞，倒反说我图受用，不肯习学了。

but instead of agreeing she accuses me of being lazy and unwilling to learn.

She said I only refused out of laziness and unwillingness to learn.

殊不知我是捻着一把汗儿呢。

She doesn’t realize what a cold sweat I’m in,

I don’t think she realizes even now the state I have been in

一句也不敢多说，一步也不敢多走。

terrified of saying one word out of turn or taking one false step.

— too scared to move or even to open my mouth for fear of saying or doing something wrong.

你是知道的，咱们家所有的这些管家奶奶们，那一位是好缠的？

“And you know how difficult our old stewardesses are,

And you know what a difficult lot those old stewardesses are.

错一点儿他们就笑话打趣，偏一点儿他们就指桑说槐的报怨。

laughing at the least mistake and ‘accusing the elm while pointing at the mulberry tree’ if one shows the least bias.

The tiniest mistake and they are all laughing at you and making fun; the tiniest hint of favouritism and they are grumbling and complaining. You know their way of “cursing the oak-tree when they mean the ash”.

‘坐山观虎斗’，‘借剑杀人’，‘引风吹火’，‘站干岸儿’，‘推倒油瓶不扶’，都是全挂子的武艺。

Talk about ‘sitting on a hill to watch tigers fight,’ ‘murdering with a borrowed sword,’ ‘borrowing wind to fan the fire,’ ‘watching people drown from a dry bank’ and ‘not troubling to right an oil bottle that’s been knocked over’ — they’re all old hands at such tricks.

Those old women know just how to sit on the mountain-top and watch the tigers fight; how to murder with a borrowed knife, or help the wind to fan the fire. They will look on safely from the bank while you are drowning in the river. And the fallen oil-bottle can drain away: they are not going to pick it up.

况且我年纪轻，头等不压众，怨不得不放我在眼里。

On top of that, I’m too young to carry much weight; so naturally they pay no attention to me.

On top of that, as I am so young, I haven’t got much authority over them; so it was all I could do to prevent them from ignoring me altogether.

更可笑那府里忽然蓉儿媳妇死了，珍大哥又再三再四的在太太跟前跪着讨情，只要请我帮他几日，

“As if that weren’t bad enough, when Rong’s wife suddenly died Cousin Zhen repeatedly begged Her Ladyship on his knees to let me help them out for a few days.

And to crown it all, when Rong’s wife died Cousin Zhen kept coming round to see Aunt Wang and begging her on his knees to let me help out for a day or two next door.

我是再四推辞，太太断不依，只得从命。

I declined over and over again, but as she insisted I had to have a try.

I said again and again that I couldn’t do it; but Aunt Wang agreed just to please him, so there was nothing for it but to do as I was told.

依旧被我闹了个马仰人翻，更不成个体统，

As usual I made a shocking mess of things —even worse than here.

I’m afraid I made a terrible mess of it—even worse than I did here.

至今珍大哥哥还抱怨后悔呢。

I’m sure Cousin Zhen is still regretting his rashness.

And now it seems Cousin Zhen is beginning to grumble and says he wishes he had never asked me.

你这一来了，明儿你见了他，好歹描补描补，

When you see him tomorrow, do apologize for me.

When you see him tomorrow, do please try to make it up with him.

就说我年纪小，原没见过世面，谁叫大爷错委他的。”

Tell him he should never have entrusted such a task to someone so young and inexperienced.”

Tell him it’s because I’m young and inexperienced. You might even hint that it’s his own fault for having asked me in the first place!’