欧美人文风情第82篇:中秋节的故事(下)

 After nine days of walking, Houyi went into a big forest. It was too dark to see anything. 在走了九天后，后羿走进一座大森林。那里太黑以至于看不见任何东西。

Suddenly, he heard some terrifying voices. Then, Houyi saw several pairs of ghost eyes. 突然间，他听到一些可怕的声音。然后，后羿看到好几双鬼眼。

Houyi took out his bow and arrows to shoot them. 后羿拿出他的弓箭来射它们。

These ghost eyes at last disappeared but only after Houyi had shot eighty-one arrows at them. 在后羿射对它们射出八十一支箭后这些鬼眼最终才消失。

Houyi continued his journey. He climbed over nine mountains, and crossed six rivers and three deserts. 后羿继续他的旅程。他爬过九座山，并渡过六条河流和三片沙漠。

At last, he arrived at the mountain where the Queen Mother lived. 最后，他抵达了王母娘娘住的那座山。

The mountain was very high and steep, and surrounded by a river. To get to the mountain, Houyi had to cross the river. 那座山非常高且陡，四周环绕着河流。要到山那边，后羿必须跨越河流。

Houyi took out a rope and tied it to an arrow. He put the arrow in his bow, and shot it toward the mountain. 后羿拿出绳索并将它绑在一支箭上。他搭箭上弓，射向那座山。

Then Houyi grabbed¹ the rope tightly² while he shot the arrow, and he was flying through the air. 接着在他射出箭时后羿紧紧地抓住绳索，然后他飞过天空。

The arrow and Houyi with it flew over the river, and landed onto the mountain. 箭和后羿一同飞过河流，并降落在山上。

As a reward for killing³ all of the evil monsters, the Queen Mother gave him two magic tablets that had the power to give eternal⁴ life. 作为杀死所有邪恶怪物的奖赏，王母娘娘给了他两颗有长生不老力量的神奇仙丹。

The Queen Mother told him, "These two tablets are for you and Chang'e. You and your wife should eat them on August 15th when the moon is full. 王母娘娘告诉他：“这两颗仙丹是给你和嫦娥的。你和你的妻子应该在月圆时的八月十五那天吃掉它们。

However, the one who eats the two tablets alone will die." 但是，单独吃掉两颗仙丹的人会死去。”

Houyi thought about what the Queen Mother told him as he returned home with the tablets. 在后羿带着仙丹回家时，他想着王母娘娘告诉他的话。

When Houyi arrived back home after a long journey, Chang'e felt very relieved, and cried in his arms. 当后羿在漫长的旅程后回到家时，嫦娥感到非常宽慰，并在他臂弯里哭泣。

"Do not cry," Houyi said, "See what I brought you," as he took out the tablets. “别哭”后羿说，“看我带给你什么”他边说边拿出仙丹。

"Put them in the safe place, and we will eat them on August 15th when the moon is full, and then we will never die." “把他们放在安全的地方，我们将会在月圆时的八月十五吃下它们，然后我们就永远不会死。”

Houyi was happy. Chang'e also smiled. But then he warned Chang'e, 后羿很开心。嫦娥也笑了。但接着他警告嫦娥：

"Do not eat both of them when I am out; otherwise, you will die! And how can I live without you?" “不要在我出去时把两颗都吃掉，否则，你会死去!没有你我要怎么活？”

The long-awaited August 15th finally came. In the morning when Houyi left home, Chang'e reminded her husband to come home early. 期盼已久的八月十五终于来临。早上当后羿离开家门时，嫦娥提醒她的丈夫要早点回家。

When evening came, she cooked delicious food, and put on some make-up, and then waited for Houyi. 当傍晚来临，她煮了美味的佳餚，并化了点妆，然后等待后羿。

Chang'e waited until the full moon hung in the middle of the sky, but Houyi did not return. 嫦娥等到满月挂在天空中央，但后羿没有回来。

Chang'e was utterly⁵ heartbroken. She thought, "How could he forget such an important day?" 嫦娥是彻底地心碎了。她想：“他怎么可以忘记这么重要的一天？”

Then, she stopped crying, and ate two tablets, because she did not want to live anymore. 然后，她止住不哭，并吃下两片药，因为她再也不想活了。

However, instead of dying, Chang'e's body became light as a feather, and she began to float up. 但是，嫦娥没有死掉，反而是身体变得像羽毛一样轻，她开始往上飘。

When Chang'e realized that she was flying, she shouted loudly, "Houyi, I don't want to leave you!" 当嫦娥意识到她在飞，她大声地喊叫：“后羿，我不想离开你!”

And she flew out of the house and up into the sky. 然后她飞出房子并飞向天空。

Houyi arrived home with a big, dead tiger over his shoulder. 后羿返抵家门，肩上有头硕大、死掉的老虎。

He found the cold food on the table, but he cannot find his beloved wife. 他发现桌上冷掉的食物，但他找不到他挚爱的妻子。

Then he heard Chang'e's voice from the sky, and rushed out of the house. 然后他从天上听见嫦娥的声音，便冲出房子。

He could just see Chang'e disappearing up into the sky. "Chang'e!" 他只可以看到嫦娥消失在天际。“嫦娥!”

Houyi shouted desperately⁶, but he would never see his wife again. 后羿绝望地喊，但他再也无法看到他的妻子。

Houyi was so upset that he fainted. 后羿非常伤心结果昏倒了。

And Chang'e kept looking back to the Earth, and cried as she floated up and up. 嫦娥一直回头看地球，一面哭一面越飘越高。

Finally, Chang'e arrived at the Moon Palace on the moon. 最后，嫦娥抵达月球上的月宫。

The Palace was deserted⁷ and cold, and there was nothing there except for a tall laurel tree and the rabbit. 月宫荒芜且寒冷，那里什么都没有，只有一棵高大的桂树和兔子。

She was all alone. 她孑然一身。

A year passed, it was August 15th again. 一年过去，又是八月十五日。

And Chang'e stood at the door of the Moon Palace looking down at the small house far away on the Earth where she and Houyi had lived in the human world. 嫦娥站在月宫门前，向下看远在地球上她和后羿在人类世界生活过的小房子。

With tears in her eyes, Chang'e saw a table with all kinds of foods and desserts on it. 她眼中含着泪，嫦娥看到一张摆满各种食物和甜点的桌子。

At the courtyard, Houyi was sitting at the table, and he was crying. 在庭院里，后羿坐在桌前，而且他在哭。

And now on the 15th of August every year, the moon is very bright and gentle, 现在每年的八月十五日，月亮都非常明亮且柔和，

just like Chang'e's eyes as she watches her husband so far away. 就像嫦娥从远方注视着丈夫时的眼神一样。

 

1 grabbed   

v.抢先，抢占( grab的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指匆忙地）取；攫取；（尤指自私、贪婪地）捞取

参考例句：

• He was grabbed by two men and frogmarched out of the hall. 他被两个男人紧抓双臂押出大厅。
• She grabbed the child's hand and ran. 她抓住孩子的手就跑。

2 tightly   

adv.紧紧地，坚固地，牢固地

参考例句：

• My child holds onto my hand tightly while we cross the street.横穿马路时，孩子紧拉着我的手不放。
• The crowd pressed together so tightly that we could hardly breathe.人群挤在一起，我们几乎喘不过气来。

3 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

4 eternal   

adj.永久的，无休止的，永恒的，永不改变的

参考例句：

• Stop this eternal chatter!不要唠叨个不停！
• Rome has been called the Eternal City.罗马一向被称为不朽之城。

5 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

6 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

7 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。