Around the World in Eighty Days · chapter 3 of 8
The Elephant
一头大象
The railway in India ends in the middle of the forest, so Fogg buys an elephant. Then a strange, sad procession appears in the trees.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 火车走进印度的森林，忽然停了下来。天刚刚亮，四周一个人也没有。
Huǒchē zǒujìn Yìndù de sēnlín, hūrán tíng le xiàlái. Tiān gānggāng liàng, sìzhōu yí gè rén yě méiyǒu.
The train rolled into the Indian forest and suddenly stopped. Dawn was just breaking, and there was no one around.
- Passepartout 怎么停了？前面的铁路呢？先生，铁路怎么没有了？
Zěnme tíng le? Qiánmiàn de tiělù ne? Xiānsheng, tiělù zěnme méiyǒu le?
Why did it stop? Where's the railway ahead? Sir, where did the tracks go?
- The Guide 铁路还没有修好，先生。前面的八十公里，火车不能走，只能走路。
Tiělù hái méiyǒu xiūhǎo, xiānsheng. Qiánmiàn de bāshí gōnglǐ, huǒchē bùnéng zǒu, zhǐnéng zǒulù.
The railway isn't finished, sir. For the next eighty kilometers, trains can't run. You can only walk.
Chapter 3 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of Around the World in Eighty Days is free, and so are The Second Cup of Tea, Mulan, The Butterfly Lovers, Journey to the West: The Monkey King, Cinderella, The Night of the Nian, Chang'e and the Moon, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, Aesop's Fables, Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, The Ugly Duckling, Pangu and Nüwa: How the World Began, Beauty and the Beast, The Magic Lotus Lantern, Alice in Wonderland, Zhong Kui the Demon Queller, The Odyssey, Robin Hood, Jiang Ziya Goes Fishing, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Kitchen God from start to finish.
- Phileas Fogg 那我们怎么去加尔各答？我们没有时间等。
Nà wǒmen zěnme qù Jiā'ěrgèdá? Wǒmen méiyǒu shíjiān děng.
Then how do we get to Calcutta? We have no time to wait.
- Passepartout 走路？先生，我的腿！八十公里！我会走一个星期！
Zǒulù? Xiānsheng, wǒ de tuǐ! Bāshí gōnglǐ! Wǒ huì zǒu yí gè xīngqī!
Walk? Sir, my legs! Eighty kilometers! It would take me a week!
- Phileas Fogg 我们不走路。你看，那边有一头大象。
Wǒmen bù zǒulù. Nǐ kàn, nàbiān yǒu yì tóu dàxiàng.
We won't walk. Look, there's an elephant over there.
- The Guide 大象？先生，那是我朋友的大象，我们不卖！
Dàxiàng? Xiānsheng, nà shì wǒ péngyou de dàxiàng, wǒmen bú mài!
An elephant? Sir, that's my friend's elephant. We don't sell it!
- Phileas Fogg 我给你一千英镑，现在就给你。
Wǒ gěi nǐ yìqiān yīngbàng, xiànzài jiù gěi nǐ.
I'll give you a thousand pounds, right now.
- The Guide 不卖，先生。这是一头很好很好的大象。
Bú mài, xiānsheng. Zhè shì yì tóu hěn hǎo hěn hǎo de dàxiàng.
Not for sale, sir. This is a very, very good elephant.
- Phileas Fogg 两千英镑。
Liǎngqiān yīngbàng.
Two thousand pounds.
- The Guide 两……两千？好，好，好！这头大象是您的了！我再给您带路！
Liǎng… Liǎngqiān? Hǎo, hǎo, hǎo! Zhè tóu dàxiàng shì nín de le! Wǒ zài gěi nín dàilù!
Two... two thousand? Fine, fine, fine! The elephant is yours! And I'll show you the way too!
- Passepartout 先生，我们真的坐大象吗？我怕它会把我摔下去！
Xiānsheng, wǒmen zhēn de zuò dàxiàng ma? Wǒ pà tā huì bǎ wǒ shuāixiàqù!
Sir, are we really riding an elephant? I'm afraid it will throw me off!
- Passepartout 先生，我给它起一个名字吧，就叫“小山”。
Xiānsheng, wǒ gěi tā qǐ yí gè míngzi ba, jiù jiào “Xiǎoshān”.
Sir, let me give it a name. Let's call it "Little Mountain."
- Phileas Fogg 叫什么都可以，只要它走得快一点儿。
Jiào shénme dōu kěyǐ, zhǐyào tā zǒu de kuài yìdiǎnr.
Call it whatever you like, as long as it walks a little faster.
- Passepartout 哎哟！哎哟！先生，大象走路，为什么这么摇？我的肚子也在摇！
Āiyō! Āiyō! Xiānsheng, dàxiàng zǒulù, wèishénme zhème yáo? Wǒ de dǔzi yě zài yáo!
Ow! Ow! Sir, why does an elephant sway so much when it walks? Even my stomach is swaying!
- The Guide 朋友，大象慢慢走，才不会累。你们坐好！
Péngyou, dàxiàng mànmàn zǒu, cái búhuì lèi. Nǐmen zuò hǎo!
Friend, an elephant walks slowly so it won't get tired. Sit tight!
- Phileas Fogg 我们已经走了三个小时。今天晚上，我们要到下一个火车站。
Wǒmen yǐjīng zǒu le sān gè xiǎoshí. Jīntiān wǎnshang, wǒmen yào dào xià yí gè huǒchē zhàn.
We have walked for three hours. Tonight, we must reach the next station.
- Passepartout 先生，如果我们赶不上船，钱和荣誉，都没有了。
Xiānsheng, rúguǒ wǒmen gǎn bú shàng chuán, qián hé róngyù, dōu méiyǒu le.
Sir, if we miss the ship, the money and our honor are both gone.
- Phileas Fogg 所以我们不能停。
Suǒyǐ wǒmen bùnéng tíng.
That's why we can't stop.
- The Guide 嘘！你们听，前面有很多人，还有鼓声。
Xū! Nǐmen tīng, qiánmiàn yǒu hěn duō rén, háiyǒu gǔshēng.
Shh! Listen. There are many people ahead, and there are drums.
- Passepartout 那是什么？他们在做什么？
Nà shì shénme? Tāmen zài zuò shénme?
What is that? What are they doing?
- The Guide 先生，那是一个很难过的时候。一位老国王去世了。
Xiānsheng, nà shì yí gè hěn nánguò de shíhou. Yí wèi lǎo guówáng qùshì le.
Sir, this is a very sad day. An old king has passed away.
- The Guide 她叫艾达，在孟买长大，是一位很有礼貌的年轻夫人。
Tā jiào Àidá, zài Mèngmǎi zhǎngdà, shì yí wèi hěn yǒu lǐmào de niánqīng fūrén.
Her name is Aouda. She grew up in Bombay, and she is a very polite young lady.
- The Guide 可是按照他们的老风俗，明天早上，她也要跟着国王一起离开。
Kěshì ànzhào tāmen de lǎo fēngsú, míngtiān zǎoshang, tā yě yào gēnzhe guówáng yìqǐ líkāi.
But by their old custom, tomorrow morning she must leave this world along with the king.
- Passepartout 离开？你是说，她自己愿意吗？
Líkāi? Nǐ shì shuō, tā zìjǐ yuànyì ma?
Leave? Do you mean she's willing?
- The Guide 她不愿意。她一路上哭着，可是没有人能帮她。
Tā bú yuànyì. Tā yílù shàng kūzhe, kěshì méiyǒu rén néng bāng tā.
She is not. She has been crying all the way, but no one can help her.
- Passepartout 先生！那个夫人还这么年轻……我们不能看着不管！
Xiānsheng! Nàge fūrén hái zhème niánqīng… Wǒmen bùnéng kànzhe bùguǎn!
Sir! That lady is so young... We can't just watch and do nothing!
- Phileas Fogg 艾达夫人……她明天早上才……这么说，我们还有一个晚上。
Àidá fūrén… Tā míngtiān zǎoshang cái… Zhème shuō, wǒmen háiyǒu yí gè wǎnshang.
Lady Aouda... not until tomorrow morning... So we still have one night.
- Passepartout 可是先生，我们的船怎么办？我们已经没有时间了！
Kěshì xiānsheng, wǒmen de chuán zěnme bàn? Wǒmen yǐjīng méiyǒu shíjiān le!
But sir, what about our ship? We have no time left!
- Phileas Fogg 时间可以再找，一个人的一生，只有一次。我们去救她。
Shíjiān kěyǐ zài zhǎo, yí gè rén de yìshēng, zhǐyǒu yí cì. Wǒmen qù jiù tā.
We can find time again. A person only has one life. We're going to save her.
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- Why does the train stop in the forest?
“铁路还没有修好，先生。”
- How does Fogg get the elephant owner to sell?
“我给你一千英镑。”……“两千英镑。”
- What is the sad news the guide tells them?
“一位老国王去世了。”……“明天早上，她也要跟着国王一起离开。”
- What does Passepartout fear will happen if they miss the ship?
“如果我们赶不上船，钱和荣誉，都没有了。”
- What does Fogg decide at the end?
“我们去救她。”