兔子的英文翻译：老王(杨绛)

2021年1月20日发(作者：连篇累牍)
翻译：老王（杨绛）

Translation: Lao Wang (Yang Jiang)
(translated: alexcwlin; edited: adam.L)
我常坐老王的三轮。他登，我坐，一路上我们说着闲话。

I always took a ride in
Lao Wang’s passenger tricycle. I sat while he was peddling, and we chitchatted
along the way.
*************************** *********************************************
据老王自己讲：北京解放后，登三轮的都组织起来，

According to what Lao Wang said that after Beijing was liberated, passenger tricycle operators became
organized.

那时候他
―
脑袋慢
‖
，< br>―
没绕过来
‖
，
―
晚了一步
‖
，就
―
进不去了
‖
。

He was ―slow in the brain department‖, ―a failure to change with time‖, ―one step behind‖ and therefore
he ―was shut out at the door‖.

他感叹自己
―
人老了，没用了
‖
。

He said with a sigh that ―you really can’t
do anything
when you get old.‖

老王常有失群落伍的惶恐
,
因为他是单干户。

Lao Wong was always apprehensive about being behind the time because he was a loner.

他靠着活命的只是一辆破旧的 三轮车。有个哥哥，死了，有两个侄儿
―
没出息
‖
，此外就没什么亲
人。

He relied on his run-down tricycle to make a living. He had an older brother who was deceased. His two
living nephews were ―good
-for-
nothings‖. Ot
her than those, he had no relatives.
************************ ************************************************
老王只有一只眼，另一只是
―
田螺眼
‖
，瞎的。

Lao Wang only had one eye and the other was blind
–

a so called ―snail eye‖.

乘客不愿坐他的车，怕他看不清，撞了什么。

Passengers were unwilling to sit in his vehicle over concerns that he could not see properly and run into
things.

有人说，这老光棍大约年轻时候不老实，害了什么恶病，瞎掉一只眼。

Some people said this punk likely was fooling around when he was young and caught a disease that led to
the loss of an eye.

他那只好眼也有病，天黑了就看不见。

There was also something wrong with his good eye and he
couldn’t see once it
got dark.

有一次，他撞在电杆上，撞得半面肿胀，又青又紫。

One time he banged into an electric pole. Half of his face swelled up and turned black and blue.

那时候我们在干校，我女儿说他是夜盲症，给他吃了大瓶的鱼肝油，晚上就看得见了。

At that time we were in reform school. My daughter said he had nyctalopia and gave him a big bottle of
cod-liver oil. Afterwards he could see at night.

他也许是从小营养不良而瞎了一眼，也许是得了恶病，反正同是不幸，而后者该是更深的不幸。

Maybe he lost sight in one eye because of malnutrition since he was little or he fell seriously ill. Either
way it was a great misfortune and in the latter case it would be more devastating.
******************************* *****************************************
有一天傍晚，我们夫妇散步，

One evening my husband and I were taking a stroll.

经过一个荒僻的小胡同，看见一个破破落落的大院，

We passed by a small off-the-beaten-track alley and saw a dilapidated courtyard.

里面有几间塌败的小屋；老王正登着他那辆三轮进大院去。

Inside there were a few small run-down huts, and Lao Wang was peddling his tricycle to go inside.

后来我坐着老王的车和他闲聊的时候，问起那里是不是他的家。他说，住那儿多年了。

Later in chatting with him while riding in his tricycle, I asked whether that place was his home. He said
he had been living there for quite a few years.
********************************* ***************************************
有一年夏天，老王给我们楼下人家送冰，愿意给我们家带送，车费减半。

One summer Lao Wang was delivering ice for someone living downstairs from our home and was willing
to tag on our ice delivery at half price.

我们当然不要他减半收费。每天清晨，老王抱着冰上三楼，代我们放入冰箱。

Of course we wouldn’t ask him for half
-price. Every early morning Lao Wang would carry ice to the third
floor and deposit it for us in the ice box.

他送的冰比他前任送的大一倍，冰价相等。

The ice he delivered was double the size of that for the former deliveryman at comparable prices.

胡同口登三轮的我们大多熟识，老王是其中最老实的。

We knew most of the tricycle operators at the entrance of the alley and Lao Wang would be considered as
one of the most honorable.

他从没看透我们是好欺负的主顾，他大概压根儿没想到这点。

He never saw through we were pushovers, or maybe he never thought of that point.
******************* ************************************************** ***

―
文化大革命
‖
开始，默存不知怎么的一条腿走不得路了。

The Cultural Revolution started and Mo Cun, for unknown reasons, became lame in one leg and could not
walk.

我代他请了假，烦老王送他上医院。

I asked for a leave of absence on his behalf and troubled Lao Wang to take him to hospital.

我自己不敢乘三轮，挤公共汽车到医院门口等待。

I did not dare to ride in tricycle. I took public transit to the hospital and waited at the entrance.

老王帮我把默存扶下车，却坚决不肯拿钱。

Lao Wang gave me a hand to help Mo Cun down the tricycle but vehemently refused to take money.

他说：
―
我送钱先生看病，不要钱。
‖
我一定要给钱，他哑着嗓子悄悄问我：
―
你还有钱吗
?‖
我笑说
有钱，他拿了钱却还不大放心。

He said: ―I take Mr. Qian to see the doctor and I don’t
want
to get paid.‖ I insisted to pay him, and he said
quietly with a cracked voice: ―Do you still have money?‖ I said I did.

He took the money but still wasn’t
too at ease.
**************************************** ********************************
我们从干校回来，载客三轮都取缔了。

After we returned from reform school, passenger tricycles were banned.

老王只好把他那辆三轮改成运货的平板三轮。

Lao Wang was forced to turn his tricycle into a delivery flatbed tricycle.

他并没有力气运送什么货物。幸亏 有一位老先生愿把自己降格为
―
货
‖
，让老王运送。

He didn’t have the stamina to deliver any good
s. Fortunately an older gentleman was willing to lower his
own status into ―goods‖ and allow Lao Wang to deliver him.

老王欣然在三轮平板的周围装上半寸高的边缘，好像有了这半寸边缘，乘客就围住了不会掉落。

Lao Wang gladly installed half-an-inch-high edge around the flatbed, and seemingly the half- an-inch edge
could surround the passenger and prevent him from falling off.

我问老王凭这位主顾，是否能维持生活。他说可以凑合。

I asked Lao Wang if he could support his living by relying on this customer. He said he could make ends
meet.

可是过些时老王病了，不知什么病，花钱吃了不知什么药，总不见好。

But shortly afterwards Lao Wang became ill. Nobody knew what kind of sickness it was and paid
medication he had taken did not make him better.
开始几个月他还能扶病到我家来，以后只好托他同院的老李来代他传话了。

In the first few months since he got sick, he could still struggle to my home. Afterwards he asked Lao Li
in the same courtyard to deliver his messages.
***************************** *******************************************
有一天，我在家听到打门，开门看见老王直僵僵地镶嵌在门框里。

One day I heard a knock at the door. I opened it and saw Lao Wang standing stiff at the door frame.

往常他坐在登三轮的座上，或抱着冰伛着身子进我家来，不显得那么高。

He never appeared that tall when I sat in his tricycle or he was carrying ice into our home with bent back.

也许他平时不那么瘦，也不那么直僵僵的。他面色死灰，两只眼上都结 着一层翳，分不清哪一只
瞎、哪一只不瞎。

Maybe ordinarily he was not that skinny or stiff. His face was deadly pale and there was a film of mucus
over both eyes. It was hard to distinguish which eye was blind and which one was not.

说得可笑些，他简直 像棺材里倒出来的，就像我想像里的僵尸，骷髅上绷着一层枯黄的干皮，打
上一棍就会散成一堆白骨。< br>
To put it in a joking way, he practically looked like a nightmare walking-corpse that came straight out
from a coffin, or a yellow skin- bound skeleton that would shatter into a pile of bones with one blow of a
club.

我吃惊地说：
―
啊呀，老王，你好些了吗
?‖

I said in shock: ―Oh gosh! Are you getting better, Lao Wang?‖