第二十一回：畫圖省識春風面
Chapter 21
“A painting did scant
justice to the beauty of her face.”
左非右與褲白撿了一些枯枝，在塔下燃起一個火堆。苗人出外經常帶著除蟲菊之類的藥草，放在火堆旁，可以避免蟲擾。
Zuo Feiyo and Ku Bai gathered some
dry branches and made a fire below the tower. When the Miaos
went out, they often brought herbs such as chrysanthemums for insecticide. These were placed next to the fire to
prevent harassment from insects.
在一幢黑暗的鐘塔下，群峰森繞，山深霧黑，暗夜透著無限的神秘與落寞。大家圍坐在火堆旁，熊熊的火光，忽明忽滅地映照在四人的面龐上。
Below
the dark bell tower, surrounded by mountain peaks and forests, the remoteness
of the mountains and dark mountain mists, the night emitted infinite mystery
and loneliness. They sat around the
blazing fire, its light now highlighting now throwing into shadow, the faces of
the 4 people.
文祥與衣紅只是緊緊地依偎著，自從見面後，兩個人沒有說過一句話。褲白面無表情地望著面前這兩個人，畢竟經過了風浪的顛簸，很多感受並不是語言能表達的。
Wen Xiang
and Yi Hong simply clung closely to one another. They hadn’t spoken a word since they met. Ku Bai’s face
was impassive as he regarded the two of them. After all, they’d been tossed about on
the stormy waves of trouble, and there were many feelings that didn’t lend
themselves to expression with words.
左非右真是滿心的衝擊，打從師父說鐘響時才見面，叫他來接文祥起，他心裡就直打鼓。他不敢違背師命，又怕師父所言不確。首先，天下如此之大，文祥真會在車站等著他去？他太寄望師父每算必準，因為他沒有百分之百的信心，如果易理不是絕對正確，他日以繼夜地學習，豈不是自欺欺人？這次的火星任務，在他看來是全盤皆敗，那表示師父算錯了。如果連師父也算錯，顯然這條路走下去，將不知伊于胡底。
Zuo Feiyo was in a state of
complete shock. From the moment his
master had told him they’d meet when the bell stuck, to his setting forth to
meet Wen Xiang, Zuo Feiyo’s mind had been troubled. He didn’t dare disobey his master’s
command but he feared his master’s words might have been inaccurate. First of all, the world was a vast
place. Would Wen Xiang really be waiting for him at the station? He sorely wanted his master’s calculations
to be correct every time, because he himself didn’t have 100 % faith. If the
theory of Yi was not absolutely
correct, then wouldn’t his days and nights of study be have been wasted on a
false doctrine? As far as he was
concerned, this mission to Mars had been a complete failure. It meant that his master’s calculation
had been wrong. If his master had
been wrong, it was clear that if he continued on this path, he would never know
what end awaited him.
不料文祥果然在車站，師父沒有算錯，他憂喜參半，心中像有七八隻猴子，沒有片刻安寧。他早上剛會過衣紅，知道她不可能離開。如果文祥一定要去見衣紅，他實在找不出理由拒絕。萬一他們見面了，而鐘聲尚未響起，那不是又算錯了嗎？
To
his surprise, Wen Xiang was at the station. His master had been right. He felt a mixture of relief and
worry. His mind seemed to contain 7
or 8 monkeys leaping about, leaving him not a moment of peace. He had just met Yi Hong that morning and
knew she couldn’t have left. If Wen
Xiang insisted on seeing Yi Hong, he really couldn’t
think of an excuse to refuse. What
if they met and the bell didn’t sound, wouldn’t that be another
miscalculation?
他想方設法的阻撓，目的只有一個，這次一定要讓師父的預言正確，否則自己的信心必將崩潰。沒想到正是因為自己橫加阻攔，反而無巧不巧，到最後正如師父所言，當鐘聲響起時，衣紅與文祥終於相見了。
He
tried every means to stop Wen Xiang with one purpose
in mind. This time he would make
his master’s prediction come true.
Otherwise, his faith would be totally shattered. He could never have anticipated that
just because of his intervention, things turned out to be just as his
master had predicted. At the sound
of the bell, Yi Hong and Wen Xiang finally met.
「天哪！天哪！天機難測！天機難測！」為什麼自己學了這麼久，信念始終不夠堅定？每一次的印證，都有另一次的疑竇。明明事後可以說是絲絲入扣，無可挑剔，但每次得卦總有一千個理由，讓自己胡猜亂想，有時信心十足，有時卻又茫然若失。
“Good heavens!
The hidden plans of providence are unpredictable! The hidden plans of providence are
unpredictable!” After studying all
this time, why was his faith still so shaky? Each confirmation led to another
doubt. After everything was all
over it was true that all threads could be neatly tied up. There was no faulting this. But for every hexagram he obtained there
were 1,000 reasons that led him to make blind and muddled conjectures. Sometimes he was very confident, but
sometimes he seemed to be at a loss.
「褲白，要不要聽故事？」左非右想不下去了，決定打破沉默。
“Ku Bai, would
you like to hear a story?” Zuo Feiyo couldn’t think anymore
so he decided to break the silence.
「好呀！」褲白並不十分熱衷。
“Sure!” Ku Bai wasn’t
very enthusiastic.
「記得我上次告訴你的邵康節吧？」
“Remember the Shao Kangjie I told you about
last time?”
「記得，就是那個燒餅夾油條的人。」
“Yes. The guy who ate a shaobing youtiao.” (Note 1)
「什麼燒餅夾油條？」
“What shaobing youtiao?”
「你不是講過，還有什麼燒餅歌嗎？」
“Didn’t you say something about the
‘Song of the Shaobing’?
(Note 2)?”
「唉！那是劉伯溫！」
“Ai! That was Liu Bowen!”
「嗄！劉伯溫！有什麼分別？」
“Uh? Liu Bowen! What’s the difference?”
「當然有分別，他是宋朝的大儒，對先天數極有心得，透悉宇宙人生。」
“Of course there’s a difference. He was a great scholar in the Song Dynasty
who had a thorough understanding of predestination. He thoroughly understood the universe
and life.”
「我是電腦時代的大傻瓜，對伴人受苦有心得，不瞭解什麼叫人生。」
“I was a great fool in the computer age. I had a thorough understanding of what
it was like to suffer with others, but I knew nothing about life.”
「你要聽不要聽？」左非右不耐煩了。
“You want to hear it
or not?” Zuo
Feiyo was becoming impatient.
「唉！當然要聽，不過每次都是有聽沒有懂。」褲白顯然也有滿腔煩惱。
“Ai! Of course I do. But every time I don’t get what it is
you’re saying.” Ku Bai was obviously very annoyed.
「其實我也一樣，經常是有講沒有懂。」
“Actually, I’m the same way. I often talk about things without
understanding them.”
「啊！我記起來了！」褲白振作著說：「他有首桃花詩！」
“Ah! I remember now!” Ku Bai stirred
himself to say, “He wrote a Peach Flower poem!”
「梅花詩！」左非右糾正他。
“Plum Flower
poem!” Zuo
Feiyo corrected him.
「梅花桃花有什麼差？你就講故事吧！」
“Peach flower, plum
flower; what difference does it make?
Just tell your story!”
「有一次，邵康節看到桌上有個花瓶，突發奇想，他知道一切事物都有運數，便想知道花瓶是否也在數中。於是他為花瓶占了一課，一看卦象，他幾乎不能相信，卦上表示，花瓶將命終於當日午時。怎麼可能呢？他家裡一無貓狗，二無小孩，三來天青氣朗，無風無颸，花瓶總不會自己滾下來吧？
“Once, Shao
Kangjie saw a flower vase on the table. A peculiar idea suddenly struck
him. He knew everything had a
predetermined fate so he wanted to see if this was the case with the flower
vase. Therefore, he performed a
divination. When he saw the
hexagram, he couldn’t believe it. According
to the hexagram the vase would cease to exist at noon the same day. How could it possibly be? First, he kept no dog or cat at home,
and second, he had no children.
Third, the weather was clear and there was no wind or breeze. The vase couldn’t fall down by itself,
could it?
「他再一看，時刻也差不多了，決定滿足一下自己的好奇心，看看花瓶怎麼破法。於是他正襟危坐，兩眼瞪著花瓶。眼看著午時就要到了，老婆叫他吃午飯，他說：『不要急！再等一下！』
“He checked the hour and it was
almost time. He decided to satisfy
his own curiosity and see how the vase would be broken. So he sat there erect, with his eyes
fixed on the vase. It was almost
noon and his wife called him in for lunch.
He said, ‘No hurry! Wait for
a moment!’
「老婆問：『幹嘛要等一下？』
“His wife asked, ‘Why
wait for a moment?’
「他說：『我在看這個瓶子怎麼破法！』
“He said, ‘I’m watching
to see how this vase will break!’
「老婆罵道：『你管它怎麼破！』
“His wife scorned him,
‘Why worry about how it’s going to break?’
「他說：『我剛才給它占了一卦，竟然命終於今日午時！』
“He said, ‘I just made
a divination. Its existence will
end at noon today!’
「他老婆大怒，說：『你這個窮酸！自己越算越窮，還要給瓶子算！你想知道它怎麼破是吧？我給你看，它是怎麼破的！』
“Angrily, his wife said, ‘You penniless fool! The more divinations you make, the
poorer you become. Now you’ve made
a divination for a vase! You want
to know how it’ll break, right?
I’ll show you how it’s going to be destroyed!’
「他老婆說完，便拿起花瓶，往地上一丟，瓶子應聲而破，正好是午時！」
“His wife had no
sooner finished speaking than she picked up the vase and threw it on the
floor. The vase gave a loud crash
and shattered. It was exactly
noon!”
左非右一口氣說完，幾個人各有所思，半晌無語。
Zuo Feiyo finished the story without stopping. Everyone present was preoccupied with
their own thoughts and no one spoke for some time.
褲白說：「邵康節一定很喜歡他老婆，老婆卻不喜歡他！」
Ku Bai
said, “Shao Kangjie must have really loved his wife, but his wife didn’t love
him!”
左非右詫道：「奇怪？這跟主題有什麼關係？」
Zuo
Feiyo was surprised. “Now what the heck has that got
to do with this topic?”
「什麼關係？他老婆早就想打破這個瓶子了！」褲白氣得臉色脹紅。
“What’s that got to do with the
topic? His wife had wanted to break
the vase for a long time!” Ku Bai’s face was red with anger.
「你為什麼不說這是我編的呢？」
“Why don’t you just
accuse me of making this up?”
「當然是你編的！就算花瓶摔在地上，也未必就會破！」
“Of course you made it
up! Even if a vase is thrown on the
ground it won’t necessarily break!”
「小白，你怎麼了？」
“Bai, what’s wrong
with you?”
「我怎麼了？」褲白蜷曲著身體，雙手環抱兩膝，望著那堆火發呆。
“What’s wrong with me?” Ku Bai hunched
up his body and hugged both his knees with his arms. He stared at the fire, lost in thought.
「你應該高興呀！」
“You should be happy!”
「瓶子都破了，我有什麼好高興的？」
“The vase was broken
so what’s there to be happy about?”
左非右一想，又「啪」地打了自己一個耳括子，在萬籟俱寂的夜裡，這一聲顯得特別清脆。大家莫明所以，都怔怔地望著他。
Zuo Feiyo thought for a moment and “pa”, slapped his own cheek again. In the complete silence of the night,
the slap seemed especially loud and clear.
No one understood his reason for doing this and they all stared at him,
dumbfounded.
「是蚊蟲！」左非右有點不好意思，自嘲地說：「我再講個蚊蟲的故事吧！」
“It was a mosquito!”
Zuo Feiyo was a
little bit embarrassed, and mocking himself said, “I’ll tell a story about
mosquitoes, then!”
褲白近來心緒起伏不定，他也不知道為什麼，只是心中有股難以遏止的怨氣。幾年來他一直跟著衣紅，把她當作親姐姐，從來不曾想過其他問題。自從在火星看到衣紅與文祥分手時難分難捨的樣子，他心裡便對文祥恨如頭醋。
Ku Bai had been very moody recently and he couldn’t understand
why. It’s just that he felt an
irrepressible anger in his heart.
He had been with Yi Hong for the past few years and had treated her as
his own big sister. He had never
thought about other questions.
Ever since he’d seen how inseparable Yi Hong and Wen Xiang
had become on Mars, his heart was full of hatred and jealousy.
他認為衣紅變了，變得不是他的了，分明衣姐人就在身邊，但這個人不再是一個完整的人了，好像缺了什麼。他隱約知道那是因為文祥，但是他不願意提起那個人，甚至只要一想到心裡就非常難受。衣紅也一反過去大方爽直的個性，總是靜靜地，一個人沉湎在回憶中。風不懼是從來不大開口，三個人在一起時，便成了三個木雕泥塑的人像。
He
felt that Yi Hong had changed. She
no longer belonged to him. It was
clear that even though Yi Hong was with him, she was no longer a complete
person. She seemed to be wanting in
some way. He vaguely knew it had
something to do with Wen Xiang, but he didn’t want to
bring his name up. It got to the point where even thinking about it made him
miserable. For her part, Yi Hong’s usual
self-assured and straightforward nature had changed. She had become quiet, someone lost in reverie. Feng Buju had never been talkative. When the 3 of them were together, they were
like 3 human statues fashioned from clay.
在他們去金頂寺盜硅長石時，褲白已經心神不寧，他期盼見不到文祥的心理更甚於失手被捕的疑懼。甚至在這之前，當左非右與風不懼商量著如何裝扮成文祥以營救衣紅時，褲白心中還在盤算，到時怎麼拆穿他們，怎麼彰顯自己才是搭救衣紅的英雄。
Before they went to the Golden Roof
Monastery to steal the felsite, Ku Bai had been uneasy.
His hope that he wouldn’t see Wen Xiang was
stronger than his fear of being captured should they fail. Even before that, when Zuo Feiyo and Feng
Buju were discussing how they should disguise
themselves as Wen Xiang when it came time to save Yi
Hong, Ku Bai had mulled over how to expose them when
the time came, and how to claim merit as the hero who saved Yi Hong.
最後，那一刻到來了，褲白發現他這個英雄簡直是負薪救火，連自己都保不了。眼睜睜的看著衣紅被喇嘛抓住，自己卻嚇得眼花腿軟，那一剎的無力感，是他生平最強烈的震撼。最後救星出現了，不是文祥，那股莫名的快樂幾乎蓋過了失敗的羞辱。然而，隨之而來衣紅的那聲慘呼「不是他」！褲白的心又為之粉碎了。
Finally, the moment arrived. Ku Bai
discovered that he, the hero, was adding fuel to the flames: he
couldn’t even save himself. When right
before his very eyes Yi Hong was captured by a lama, he was so frightened that
he became giddy and weak in the knees.
That moment of being unable to do what he would have liked to have done,
was the greatest shock to his whole life.
Finally, a savior emerged.
It wasn’t Wen Xiang. An indescribable joy almost completely
overcame the humiliation of having failed.
However, when in its wake came Yi Hong’s remorseful cry, “It’s not him!”,
Ku Bai’s heart was again shattered.
自後，褲白一直在矛盾情結中反來覆去。回廟裡見到法慧禪師，禪師只命三人前往雞鳴山閉關，等八日文祥來時再說。
From
that point on, Ku Bai had been tormented by these
conflicting feelings. When they
returned to the temple to see Zen Master Fa Hui, the Zen Master simply ordered them to seclude
themselves at Jiming Mountain. Everything would have to wait until Wen Xiang’s arrival on the 8th.
現在，文祥來了，衣紅也平靜如水，褲白心底卻是風起雲湧。左非右被褲白這麼一搶白，突然想通了，這一趟火星任務是一次考驗，每個人的成敗都在一念之間。他不知道能不能幫助褲白，只覺得不應該放棄任何機會，畢竟他也在考驗之中。
Now Wen Xiang
was here and Yi Hong was as tranquil as the surface of a pool. But a storm had erupted in Ku Bai’s heart.
When Ku Bai had interrupted him,
Zuo Feiyo suddenly
understood. This mission to Mars had
been a test. All success or failure
hinges on a single thought. He was
uncertain if he’d be able to help Ku Bai or not. He only felt he shouldn’t allow any
chance to slip by. After all, he
too was being tested.
「文兄可能不知道什麼是蚊蟲？」左非右說。
“Wen probably doesn’t
know what a mosquito is,” Zuo Feiyo
said.
「啊！我知道。」文祥說。乍然相逢，千言萬語不知從何說起。他搜索枯腸，最後發覺不說話就等於道盡了一切。然而褲白的情緒卻讓他一驚，那不是最基本、最原始的反應嗎？他以往不知道，現在能裝做不知道嗎？他怎麼化解呢？如果不妥善處理，受傷害的將不止是褲白，也包括了衣紅與自己。
“Ah!
I know”, Wen Xiang said. In their sudden reunion, Wen Xiang had so much to say he didn’t know where to
begin. He wracked his brain and
finally discovered that by remaining silent was the same as saying all he
wanted to say. However, Ku Bai’s state of mind startled him. Wasn’t that the basic, the most primal
reaction? In the past he’d had no
idea. Now could he pretend that he
didn’t know? How was he going to
resolve this? If this wasn’t
handled right, Ku Bai wouldn’t be the only one
hurt. Yi Hong and himself would be
hurt as well.
「蚊蟲是吸血的昆蟲，知道吧？」
“A mosquito is an
insect that sucks blood, right?”
「當然知道，其實我並不是你們想像中的電腦時代的溫室人。」說到這裡，文祥想起衣紅的禁忌，趕忙把文娃關了。
“Of course. Actually, I’m not a man from the
computer age hothouse you imagine me to be.” Having said this, Wen Xiang remembered Yi Hong’s taboo and quickly turned Wen Wa off.
「那就好，褲白，如果有隻蚊蟲叮了你，你會怎樣？」
“Good. Ku Bai. If a mosquito bites you, what would you
do?”
「怎樣？打死牠！」褲白說。
“What would I do? Kill it!” Ku Bai said.
「好極了，這個故事發生在四十年前，那時的人比今天的人還要自私，人人只顧自己不說，別人的死活是從來不關心的。」
“Great. This story took place 40 years ago. People in those days were even more
selfish than they are today. Not
only were they solely interested in themselves, they paid no heed to the travail
of others.”
「今天的人還不是一樣？」褲白餘氣未消。
“Aren’t people today
still the same?” Ku Bai was still angry.
「不一樣，至少我們這幾個，還有心為人類奉獻，你不能否認吧？」褲白默默無言，左非右繼續說：「但是總有例外的，那時全世界都被一種免疫功能喪失的疾病所困擾，叫做『愛滋病』。有人說，這是上帝為了懲罰人類的淫亂，因為同性戀者不當的性行為，破壞了上帝創造的免疫功能。
“No. At least the few of us are still willing
to serve the people. You can’t deny
that, can you?” Ku Bai remained silent.
Zuo Feiyo continued,
“But there’s always some exception.
At that time, the entire world was troubled by a disease which paralyzed
a person’s immune system. It was
called ‘AIDS’. Some said it was a
God's punishment of mankind for their immorality. Unorthodox sexual conduct among
homosexuals had destroyed the immune function created by God.
「不論如何，愛滋病由同性戀傳染到異性戀者，以至於全人類。最初還局限於性行為的傳染，但是人們坐視不救，也可能是無力回天。總之，最後病毒大量繁殖，經過進化，已可以透過血液、唾液的交換傳染，到本世紀初，甚至已有空氣傳染的趨勢。
“Anyway, AIDS was transmitted
from homosexuals to heterosexuals and finally, to the entire human race. At first, it was transmitted strictly
through sexual contact. However,
mankind merely looked on and did nothing about it. Perhaps it was because they felt
powerless in the face of heaven.
Anyway, the virus finally multiplied in great numbers and, after
evolving into an improved form, it could be transmitted by blood transfusion
and the exchange of saliva. At the
turn of this century, there were even indications that it could be transmitted through
the air.
「總之，千萬人死亡了，全世界受感染者已達數億，而且正以每年百分之三的增長率，成為本世紀最嚴重的疾病威脅。當時，在泰國有一個研究毒蛇血清的研究所，裡頭有位名叫拉雅的年輕研究員。一天，實驗室來了一個客人，送來一條罕見的毒蛇。這個客人患了愛滋病，其實這已不算什麼大事，有些國家患病率之高，幾乎已到了亡國滅種的地步。但是人的生命力極強，在沒有絕望之前，總要想盡方法活下去。
“Anyway,
millions of people died and several hundred millions of people in the world
were infected. The rate was
increasing by 3% each year and threatened to become the most lethal disease of
the century. At that time, there
was a research center in Thailand studying the blood serum of poisonous snakes,
where a young researcher named Laya was employed. One day, a visitor came to the lab and
delivered a rarely seen poisonous snake.
The visitor had AIDS.
Actually, this wasn’t so unusual.
In some countries the rate of infection had risen to the point where it
could almost wipe out the entire population. However, Man’s will to live is very powerful. Before giving up in despair, they would
try anything to stay alive.
「拉雅的研究室非常潔淨，觸目都是白色，而且經過消毒殺菌。這時，除了這位愛滋病患者、拉雅與那條毒蛇外，還有一個活的生命體。」
“Laya’s research room was very
clean. Everything was white and had
been sterilized. At this time,
aside from this AIDS patient, Laya, and that
poisonous snake, there was one more living organism.”
左非右故意賣關子，環顧眾人，發現效果不錯，大家都注目聆聽。他想用旁敲側擊的方法點化褲白，用和蚊蟲有關的故事做例子，就是想喚起褲白對文祥厭惡的聯想，以及提醒他們應該擔負的責任。他接著說：「那是隻無意中飛進來的蚊蟲，糟糕的是，這隻蚊子已經在客人身上吸了不少血。客人覺得很癢，立刻警告拉雅，說那隻蚊蟲帶有愛滋病毒，必須消滅，以免傳染。
Zuo Feiyo deliberately stopped to create an air of suspense. He looked around and found the effect had been successful. Everyone was listening intently. He intended to use an indirect approach to make Ku Bai understand. By using this story of a mosquito as an example, he thought to make Ku Bai aware of his hatred toward Wen Xiang and to remind them of their responsibilities. He continued, “The mosquito had flown in unintentionally. The only trouble was that this mosquito had taken in a good deal of blood from the visitor. The visitor felt itchy and immediately warned Laya, saying that the mosquito was now a carrier of the AIDS virus. It had to be destroyed to avoid contaminating others.
「拉雅突然想到，如果能製造毒蛇血清，為什麼不能造愛滋的血清呢？正在思考時，蚊蟲飛到他左手臂上，他不僅沒有打死牠，反而讓牠繼續吸血。他悄悄地取了一個燒杯，慢慢將蚊子扣在燒杯內。
“Suddenly Laya
had an idea. If he could make the
blood serum of poisonous snakes, why couldn’t he make a blood serum for AIDS? Just as he was thinking, the mosquito
flew over and landed on his left arm.
He not only didn’t kill it, he let it continue to suck his blood. He quietly took a beaker and slowly
turned it over to keep the mosquito inside.
「當然他也怕被傳染，立刻把那塊蚊蟲叮過的地方挖下，再用火消毒。他在這隻蚊蟲身上查出了兩個人的體液，一個帶有愛滋病毒，一個還沒有被感染。拉雅以這兩種體液為樣品，分別培養，仔細追蹤病毒感染的過程，終於瞭解了病毒對遺傳基因核糖核酸的複製過程，從而有了突破性的發現，不過，最後他還是不幸死於愛滋病。」
“Of course he was afraid of
being infected. He immediately cut
out the mosquito bite area and used fire to sterilize his wound. He discovered two different body fluids
in this mosquito; one with AIDS and the other was not yet infected. Therefore Laya,
using these two body fluids as samples, made separate cultures and closely monitored
the process of the virus
infection. At last, he understood
how the virus cloned genetic RNA, thereby making a breakthrough discovery. Unfortunately, in the end he died of
AIDS.”
「不是有了突破性的進展嗎？怎麼還會病死呢？」褲白問。
“Didn’t he make a
breakthrough advance? Why did he still
die?” Ku Bai
asked.
「愛滋病的徹底根治與他無關，他卻是最先瞭解感染原因的人。如果他像你一樣，一巴掌就把蚊蟲打死，很可能我們至今還受愛滋病的威脅呢！」
“The final cure of AIDS had nothing to do with him. But he was the first one to understand
the cause of infection. If he was
like you, and killed the mosquito with one slap, maybe today there would still
be an AIDS threat!”
「我是說氣話，師父要是知道我要打蚊子，一定會把我趕出廟門的！」褲白倒不是笨得連這點暗示都不懂，他突然想通了，慚愧地說。
“That was my anger talking. If my master knew that I was going to
kill a mosquito, for sure he would kick me out of his temple!” Ku Bai wasn’t
so stupid as to have missed the hint.
He had suddenly seen the point and
his words were contrite.
「如果蚊蟲咬你，你難免會生氣。現在又沒有蚊蟲，就算有，也沒有咬你呀，你又生什麼氣呢？」
“If a mosquito bites you, it’s difficult to avoid being
angry. But now there’s no mosquito,
and even if there was, it didn’t bite you.
Why are you angry?”
「我不是生蚊蟲的氣。」褲白說。
“I’m not angry at the mosquitoes.” Ku Bai said.
「那還有什麼氣好生呢？難道你忘了你的責任，禪師對你的期許？」
“So why get angry? Could it be you’ve forgotten your
responsibility and the Zen Master’s hopes for you?”
「我已經不生氣了。」
“I’m not angry
anymore.”
「問題不在於你生不生氣，而是你為什麼生氣。如果原因還在，你說不生氣，也只是暫時的。」
“The problem is not whether you’re angry
or not. It’s why you’re angry. If the cause is still there, even if you
say you’re not angry, it’ll only be temporary.”
褲白望了衣紅一眼，再不說話了。
Ku Bai
glanced at Yi Hong and fell silent.
衣紅並不是不清楚褲白對自己的感情，她沒預料到事態的嚴重性。近來她一顆心全都懸在文祥身上，褲白天天陪伴在身邊，對她而言，他只是一個聊解寂寞的同伴而已。
It
wasn’t that Yi Hong wasn’t aware of Ku Bai’s feelings
for her. But she hadn’t anticipated
how serious it was. Recently all
she could think of was Wen Xiang. Ku Bai
accompanied her everyday, and as far as she was concerned, he was only keeping
her company in her loneliness.
剛才左非右一個耳光，把她打醒了，原來褲白也是一個人，一個仰慕她的異性。
Zuo Feiyo’s slap just now had alerted her. Ku Bai was
also a human being; someone of the opposite sex who adored her.
衣紅出身在一個平凡的家庭，但是父母非常明理，衣紅是少數入學的苗人之一。她不但成績傲人，而且從小就喜歡讀書。小小一個人，掌上電書比她的頭還要大，但她一看就是幾個小時。她最初著迷於《紅樓夢》，而最欣賞的角色竟然是史湘雲。後來她又迷上了《東周列國誌》、《三國演義》，此外，舉凡諸子百家，她都頗有涉獵。
Yi
Hong came from an ordinary family but her parents were reasonable and
understanding. Yi Hong was one the
few Miaos who attended school. Not only did she have good grades at
school, she had enjoyed reading since she was little. A small figure with palm size e-books
bigger than her head, once she started reading, Yi Hong would read on for
hours. At first she was obsessed
with the “Dream of the Red Chamber”,
and the character she most admired was no one other than Shi Xiangyun. Later
she became obsessed with the “Stories of
the Nations in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty”, and “Romance of the Three Kingdoms”. In addition, she had read extensively in
the various ancient philosophies.
在一個偶然的機會下，她讀到了《徐霞客遊記》，那一剎心靈上的悸動，簡直不是語言文字所能形容的。當她讀到〈粵西遊日記〉時，她發現那些山名、地名都是她熟稔的，就在她四周。她憬悟到自己是大自然的女兒，立志要回到大自然。自後，只要有閑暇，她就會慫恿同學們結伴逃到城外，按書索驥，徜徉在青山綠水中。
By accident, she came across the
book, “The Travel Journal of Xu Xiake”.
At that moment, words were
inadequate to describe the pounding of her heart. When she read the chapter, ‘Diary of Traveling to Guangxi’,
she noticed that all those mountain and place names were familiar to her. They were right around her. She realized that she was a daughter of
nature and she made up her mind to return to the world of nature. Since then, whenever there was free time,
she would encourage her classmates to join her and escape beyond the city, where,
seeking the locations described in the book, they lingered among green hills
and blue waters.
苗人喜歡唱歌，常在月圓之夜，成群結隊，在山谷間狂吹蘆笙，亂擊銅鼓，跳月②趕郎，作樂不休。電腦當局基於尊重各民族的傳統習俗，對他們的出出入入不加聞問。正因如此，這些熱愛自然的人倒很能適應電腦時代，生活悠然自得。
The
Miaos liked to sing. On nights when the moon was full, groups
of them would always gather in the valleys and, with great gusto, play their
bamboo pipes, bang away on brass drums, join in the communal dance, and shoo men
away. It was immense fun for
everyone. The Computer Authority Bureau, out of
respect for the traditional customs of various tribes, paid no heed to their
coming and going. And this was
precisely the reason why these ardent lovers of nature easily adapted to the
computer age and still lead a happy and contented life.
崇左瀕臨左江，左江發源於越南。另外還有一條支流，叫做黑水河，源自六詔山，其間山高水深、溪盤谷閟，有很多動人的神話傳說。
Chongzuo is
located on the bank of the Zuo River, whose headwaters
are in Vietnam. There is another
branch river known as the Black Water River, which originates in the Liuzhao Mountain. Lying
between them are tall mountains, deep waters, twisting creeks, and hidden
valleys. There are many moving legends and myths associated with
this area.
對那些喜愛唱歌的人，他們最鍾愛的一個神話，是傳說六詔山上住著一對神仙，他們唯一的痛苦是不會唱歌。在男女對唱時，他們經常下山來偷聽。如果有人唱得好，讓神仙聽到了，往往會被邀到仙山上，一同去做神仙。
For those who enjoy singing, the
most cherished myth tells of an immortal couple
living in the Liuzhao Mountains. The only thing that grieved them was
that they couldn’t sing. When a man
and a woman were singing to one another, they would often descend the mountain to
listen in secret. If any who sang
well were heard by the immortals, they would invariably be invited to the fairy
mountain to live with them as immortals.
當然有人不信，那些苗人就會引吭高歌，然後萬山齊應，他們認為，那些回聲就是做了神仙的歌者跟著唱和的。
Of
course there were those who didn’t believe this story. The Miaos
would raise their voices in song, and the mountains would respond. They believed that these echoes were
from those singers who had become immortals.
常有一些歌者不知何故就失蹤了，雖然家長親友有些擔心，但信念高於一切，他們會誠心地祝福，畢竟做神仙要比做凡人好。不過也有人說，那是被一些壞人拐騙了。說歸說，信者不多，因為誰也說不上來，在這個時代，拐了人能做什麼？
Frequently
there would be some singers disappeared for no reason. Although some parents, relatives, or
friends were worried, faith was more important than anything else. They sincerely wished them the best. After all, being an immortal is better
than being a mortal. But others
said that these people had been abducted by brigands. Saying is one thing, but not many people
believed it because nobody could explain why, in this day and age, anyone would
want to kidnap people.
衣紅才十三歲，已經是個娃娃頭了，只要她一吆喝，總有一大堆年齡不等的娃娃，從各個角落鑽出來，跟在她屁股後面活蹦亂跳。大家管她叫大阿姐，她就按著順序，在每個人的名字下加個數字，久而久之，便成為各人的別名了。
By the time she was 13, Yi Hong had become a leader among children. All she had to do was shout and without fail, children of all ages would emerge from everywhere, to skip happily along behind her. Everybody called her Big Sister. Then, in ascending order, she added a number to everyone’s name. As time passed, these became their nicknames.
這天，衣紅聽說晚上有個盛大的跳月，她便糾集了眾家娃娃，說：「我要去看踩月亮，有誰敢跟我去？」
One day, Yi Hong heard that there was going to be
a grand moonlight dance that night.
So she gathered her gang of children and said, “I’m going to watch them
‘stepping’ in
moonlight’. Who dares come with
me?”
照理苗人要行完成人禮後，才能參加跳月。而且跳月一般都在晚上八點左右，月色明瑩時才開始，一直要跳到深夜。這還不說，跳月都在深山中進行，因為要有高大的山峰，回聲才夠清晰，還要有夠大的山谷，大家才能盡興。
Usually,
the Miaos have to wait until after they’ve been
initiated into adulthood before they can take part in the moonlight dance. The moonlight dance generally doesn’t
begin until 8 o’clock at night, when the moon is brightest, and lasts until the
late hours. Moreover, the moonlight
dance is held in a remote mountain area because tall mountains are necessary for
their singing to echo clearly. Also
the valley must be large enough so that everyone can enjoy themselves to their
heart’s content.
他們這個塞子的「馬郎坡」③，在六詔山南支，一個叫黑風嶺的地方。以一個成年人的腳力，起碼要走上五、六個鐘頭才能到達。
The
“Malang hill” of their community is located on the southern branch of Liuzhao Mountains at a place called Black Wind Range. It takes at least 5 or 6 hours for an
adult to reach there on foot.
娃娃們面面相覷，半晌，只有一個同族的男孩巾二，和一個傜族姑娘阿么，兩個人壯著膽子，站了出來。
The
children looked at each other in surprise.
After some moments, a boy named Jin-2, from the same tribe, and a girl
named Youngest, of the Yao tribe, boldly stepped
forward.
不過，阿么提出一個附帶條件，就是寧願走遠路，也不肯走水邊。她永遠忘不了有一次衣紅促狹，把她按在水裡，差一點淹死了！
However,
Youngest proposed a stipulation.
She’d rather go by a longer detour than walk along the river. She could never forget that once Yi
Hong, in a moment of meanness, held her under water until she’d almost drowned!
眼看沒得選擇，衣紅只好權且答應，三個人下午就逃出城去。這時他們所用的電腦是第二代的「衣領式」電腦。因為第一代的腕型比較笨重，而在出城後，電腦就一點用都沒有了。他們嫌麻煩，便把電腦取下，結果經常遺失。偶而也有山中的遊民會搶奪苗人的飾物，所以第二代便把電腦改藏在上衣的硬領中。
It
looked like she had no choice, so for time being Yi Hong agreed. The 3 of them sneaked out of the city
that afternoon. At that time, the
computer they were using was a second generation ‘collar’ computer, because the
first generation wrist computer was clumsier. Once the user was outside the city the
computer became useless. They were
too troublesome so people would take them off. As a result, computers were often
lost. Once in awhile, vagrants in
the mountains would rob Miaos of their clothes and
ornaments. For this reason the
second-generation computer was modified so it could be concealed in the
collar.
苗傜的祖先大都是從中原逃避戰亂而來，到這裡以後，立刻愛上了當地的山光水色，定居下來。他們很重視傳統，穿的衣服必定有領有袖，而且認為衣服代表人的尊重，即令再好的衣裳，也不會有人搶奪的。
The ancestors of the Yaos and Miaos were mostly people
from the central plain who had fled from the wars. When they reached this spot, they immediately
fell in love with the beautiful local scenery of mountain and river, and had
settled down there. They placed
great value on their traditions.
All their clothing must have both collar and sleeves. They also believed that clothes were
representative of a person’s dignity.
No matter how well the clothes were made, nobody would ever take them by
force.
此外，苗人的服飾也有講究，因為經常出入山區，多在衣角中塞些防蟲防瘴的藥草。久而久之便衍為習俗，他們稱為「塞青」。電腦時代到來後，便在恒溫衣上加織了一些中空的硬式夾邊，以供塞青之用。
Moreover, Miao
clothing had a special feature.
Because they often traveled to and from the mountains, most of them
would put some herbs in the folds of their clothes as a preventive against
insects and infectious disease. As
time went on, this became a custom and was known as “stuffing the green”. With the advent of the computer era,
hollow hard strips were added to the seams of thermostatic clothes for “stuffing
the green”.
衣紅根本不知道往黑風嶺怎麼走法，她只是從別人口裡套出一點端倪，知道順著黑水河，一直往上游走，大約有六十公里路程，等聽到歌聲，就算找到了。
Yi
Hong had no idea how to get to Black Wind Range. She just picked up some clues from
talking to others. She knew that by
following the Black Water River upstream for about 60 kilometers, when heard the
sound of singing they’d found it.
剛出城時，還有不少青年男女作伴同行，好不愉快。尤其是看到這三個乳臭未乾的娃娃，大家都願意放慢步伐，跟他們說東道西，沿途增添了不少歡笑。
When
they left the city many youngsters, both boys and girls, accompanied them, all
of them really having a good time.
This was especially the case when they spotted the 3 young and
inexperienced children. Everyone
was willing to walk slower and talk with them, and this added considerable
pleasure along the way.
等走進了山區，便遇到一條溪流，兩旁山勢逼仄，溪喧如雷，亂石湧激，千橫萬疊。人必須在石頭上跳上蹤下，再不然就得涉水前進。阿么怕水，有些石頭又高出她甚多，不論大家怎樣勸說，她死也不肯涉溪而過。
After
they entered the mountains they came upon a creek. The mountains on either side of the
creek closed in on them and the sound of water was like thunder. Stacks of scattered rocks created swift
torrents of white water. They either had to jump from rock to rock
or else enter the water and wade to the other side. Youngest was afraid of water and some
rocks were much taller than she was.
No matter how the others coaxed her, she stubbornly refused to wade
across the creek.
那就繞道吧，山路也到得了，可就遠多了。那些青年怕耽誤時間，便丟下他們先走了。看看前面還有幾十公里的山路，阿么說：「大阿姐，你們兩個去吧，我回城去。」
The
only thing to do was make a detour.
There was a mountain path that led there, but it would be a much longer
journey. The young people were
anxious not to waste time, so they went on ahead. Noting that they faced several dozen
kilometers of mountain path, Youngest said, “Big sister, you two go ahead. I’ll head back to town.”
「那怎麼可以！要回去大家一起回去！」衣紅斬釘截鐵地說。
“That won’t do! If you’re going back, we’ll go back together!” Yi Hong said with firm
determination.
「好不容易走到這裡了，回去太可惜。」巾二不同意。
“We’ve made it this
far, it’d be a shame to turn back!”
Jin-2 was of a different mind.
「阿么膽子太小了！水有什麼好怕的？」
“Youngest lacks
courage! Why be afraid of
water?”
「我就是怕嘛！」
“I just am, that’s all!”
「不要怕！來，再泡一次水就不怕了！」
“Don’t be afraid! Come, get wet one more time and then you
won’t be afraid.
阿么一聽，魂飛天外，嚇得大叫一聲，往山邊就跑。衣紅是出了名的狠人，她想做的事，很少有半途而廢的。阿么在前逃，衣紅在後追，巾二也急了，大叫道：「大阿姐！別鬧了！你們到底要不要去嘛！」
When
Youngest heard this, she was terrified.
She gave a scream of terror and ran for the mountains. Yi Hong had a reputation for being obstinate. Once she started to do something she
rarely quit. Youngest was running ahead
and Yi Hong was chasing after her.
Jin-2 was getting anxious and he shouted, “Big sister! Quit fooling around! Are you going or not!”
在阿么是逃命，衣紅只是好玩，這一帶山石疊架，阿么嬌小的身影轉了幾個彎，就沒有了影子。衣紅更覺得有趣了，口裡說著：「好哇！阿么哇！等我逮到妳，今天非要妳喝個飽不可！」
Youngest was running for her life, but
for Yi Hong it was only a game. In
this part of the mountains, the rocks were piled one on the other. After a few turns, the small figure of
Youngest was out of sight. Yi Hong
felt this was even more fun. She
said, “All right, Youngest! When I
get you, I’m going to make sure you drink your fill today!”
衣紅追著找著，繞過了參差磊落的亂石，但見棘莽蒙密，荊榛齊人。舉目四望，空山寂寂，哪裡有阿么的影子？衣紅雖不服氣，心裡也有點發毛了。她壯著膽子，兩眼東瞧西看，嘴裡還喊著：「阿么哇！小心喲，不要叫蛇咬到了！」
Yi
Hong chased after her, trying to find her.
She went around the numerous, jagged piles of randomly laid rocks. The only sight she saw was the densely
grown thorns and underbrush as tall as a man. She looked around her and found there
was nothing but silent mountains.
Youngest was nowhere to be seen.
Although Yi Hong was loath to admit defeat, she began to feel nervous. As she summoned up courage and kept
looking in every direction, she shouted, “Youngest! Be careful. Don’t get bitten by a snake!”
這裡山勢嶙嶒陡峭，重巖積莽，稍一不慎便會摔跤。這些都還難不倒衣紅，她從小就是捉迷藏的高手，知道人如果躲在石頭後面，從下面往上看，是看不到的。她決定往上爬，只是在那峭石夾立的巖崖側面有一些黑忽忽的山洞，令衣紅戒心頓起。洞裡可能有吃人的野獸，真要鑽出一隻來，那就麻煩了。
The
mountains here were towering, rugged, and steep. Cliffs could be seen, one after the other,
and the underbrush was thickly grown.
The slightest slip and a person would fall. But these posed no obstacle to Yi
Hong. She had been good at
hide-and-seek ever since she was a little girl. She knew that if a person was hiding
behind a rock, one couldn’t see them from below. She made up her mind to climb up. But those dark caves located at the side
of the rugged cliff instantly put Yi Hong on her guard. It was possible there might be
man-eating beasts in those caves.
If one really came creeping out, they’d in trouble.
一想到野獸，兩腿就有點發軟，這時已顧不得面子，衣紅扯開嗓子大叫：「鬼阿么！死阿么！妳躲在哪裡？還不快點出來！」
At
the thought of wild beasts, Yi Hong’s knees weakened a little. By now it was no longer a matter of
dignity so Yi Hong shouted at top of her lungs, “Youngest, you little devil! Damn you, Youngest! Where are you hiding? Come out right this minute!”
突然聽到身後「啊」的一聲尖叫，立刻就沒有聲息了。衣紅一驚，回頭看去，只見山下灌木處處，濃影森森，連石塊都被遮住了。衣紅爬上一塊平砥如枰的巨石，瞠目四望，這才看出掩映在樹縫之中，那條轟雷湧雪的溪流竟已在數十公尺之下了。
Suddenly,
she heard a sharp gasp behind her, but instantly all was silent. Startled, Yi Hong turned around to
look. All she saw were dense shrubs
and frightfully dark shadows, concealing even the boulders. Yi Hong climbed onto a gigantic boulder
that had a flat surface resembling a chessboard, and looked intently in all
directions. Only then did she
discover, through the concealing tree branches, that the roaring river, foaming
and spuming, was already dozens of meters below her.
衣紅頭皮一陣發麻，糟了，她急得大叫：「阿么！巾二！」
A
tingling sensation went through Yi Hong.
Oh, no. She cried out
hurriedly, “Youngest! Jin-2!”
「阿么！巾二！」山谷回音陣陣，衣紅無心欣賞，她立刻飛步下山。有道是上山容易下山難，尤其是這裡亂石攢繞，連落腳處都不好找。衣紅真的慌了，連聲呼叫，都沒有回音。「阿么！巾二！你們再不出聲，小心我打死你們！」
“Youngest! Jin-2!” Echoes resounded one after another down
the valley. Yi Hong was not in the
mood to enjoy it and immediately fled down the mountain as fast as she could
go. There’s a saying to the effect
that, “it’s easier to go up a mountain than to come down.” This was especially so here, encircled as
it was by a confusion of rocks, where it was very difficult to even find a
foothold. Yi Hong was truly
desperate. She kept on calling
their names but there was no response.
“Youngest! Jin-2! If you don’t answer me now, you’d better
watch out, or I’ll give you a spanking like you’ve never had before!”
「哈哈！小丫頭，他們已經死了！妳來打吧！」突然一個粗聲粗氣的男聲應道。
Suddenly a rough male voice spoke up, “Ha
Ha!
Little girl, they’re already dead!
Come and spank them!”
衣紅嚇得發抖：「他們怎麼死了呢？」
Yi Hong was shaking with
fear. “How could they be dead?”
那人說：「當然是我殺的！」
That man said, “Needless to
say I killed them!”
衣紅說：「你怎麼可以殺人呢？」
Yi Hong said, “How dare you
kill someone?”
那人說：「老子喜歡呀！」
The man said, “I enjoy it!”
又有一人說：「別胡扯了，快去把她抓來，這三個夠我們用上半年了！」
Another voice was heard. “Cut the crap. Grab her now. The 3 of them should last us for at
least half a year!”
聽起來很像流言中的「拐子」，衣紅嚇得魄散魂飛，四面一看，除了剛剛的山洞，已經無處可藏。野獸雖然可怕，這兩個拐子更是恐怖。她反應飛快，立刻一溜煙，躲到一個看似蛇窩，剛好能鑽得進去的小洞中。
It sounded like the “kidnapers”
people talked about. Yi Hong was
scared out of her wits. Looking
around, there was no place to hide except the caves she had seen earlier. Wild beasts may have been frightening,
but these two kidnapers were even more terrible. She reacted swiftly. In the blink of an eye, she slipped into
a small opening that looked like a snake nest, and which was just enough to
allow her body to enter.
不一會，她聽到有沉重的腳步聲，好像是兩個人，在洞口附近來回走了幾趟。那粗嗓子叫著：「小姑娘，出來吧！我看到妳了！」
In
a short while, she heard heavy footsteps which seemed to be from two
people. They walked back and forth
in front of the opening several times.
The rough voice cried out, “Little girl. Come out! I see you!”
另外一個聲音說：「她怎麼跑得這麼快？我叫你不要開口你不聽！」
Another voice said, “How come she
ran so fast? I told you not to open
your mouth but you wouldn’t listen!”
「跑不掉的！就那麼兩條小短腿！能跑到哪兒去！」
“She won’t get
away! How far can her little legs
run?”
「跑不掉？總不能這樣耗下去吧？」
“Won’t get away? We can’t continue to waste time like
this.”
「身上背著人，叫我怎麼找？」
“How can I look around
while I’m carrying someone on my back?”
「先把他們放下來，我們順著這些山洞，一個一個找，非把她抓出來不可！」
&nbs