Three Kingdoms: Borrowing Arrows with Straw Boats · chapter 3 of 6
Two Lazy Days
两天过去了
The boats are ready and the clock is ticking, but Zhuge Liang spends his precious days sleeping, fanning himself and gazing at the sky.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 鲁肃没有告诉周瑜，自己准备好了二十条快船。蓝布、草把子，也都放好了。
Lǔ Sù méiyǒu gàosu Zhōu Yú, zìjǐ zhǔnbèi hǎo le èrshí tiáo kuài chuán. Lán bù, cǎo bǎzi, yě dōu fàng hǎo le.
Without a word to Zhou Yu, Lu Su got twenty fast boats ready himself. The blue cloth and the straw bundles were all in place.
- The Young Soldier 大人，船上放这么多草，是要喂马吗？
Dàrén, chuán shang fàng zhème duō cǎo, shì yào wèi mǎ ma?
Sir, why is there so much straw on the boats? Are we feeding horses?
- Lu Su 喂什么马！我也不知道要干什么。别问了，快放好！
Wèi shénme mǎ! Wǒ yě bù zhīdào yào gàn shénme. Bié wèn le, kuài fàng hǎo!
Horses? Don't be silly! I don't know what it's for either. Stop asking and get it in place!
Chapter 3 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of Three Kingdoms: Borrowing Arrows with Straw Boats 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 and The Odyssey from start to finish.
- The Young Soldier 是！大人，我的鼓，要不要也带上？
Shì! Dàrén, wǒ de gǔ, yào bu yào yě dài shàng?
Yes, sir! Sir, should I bring my drum too?
- Lu Su 带上，带上！还有，这件事千万别让都督知道！
Dài shàng, dài shàng! Hái yǒu, zhè jiàn shì qiānwàn bié ràng dūdū zhīdào!
Bring it, bring it! And don't let the commander hear a word of this!
- Narrator 第一天，诸葛亮没有去看船。他一整天都在看书、睡觉。
Dì yī tiān, Zhūgě Liàng méiyǒu qù kàn chuán. Tā yì zhěng tiān dōu zài kàn shū, shuìjiào.
On the first day, Zhuge Liang didn't even go to look at the boats. He spent the whole day reading and sleeping.
- Lu Su 先生，船已经准备好了，你怎么还在睡觉？时间不多了啊！
Xiānsheng, chuán yǐjīng zhǔnbèi hǎo le, nǐ zěnme hái zài shuìjiào? Shíjiān bù duō le a!
Sir, the boats are ready, so how can you still be asleep? We're running out of time!
- Zhuge Liang 鲁兄，别急。今天没有什么事要做，睡一会儿，看一会儿书，正好。
Lǔ xiōng, bié jí. Jīntiān méiyǒu shénme shì yào zuò, shuì yíhuìr, kàn yíhuìr shū, zhènghǎo.
Relax, Brother Lu. There's nothing to do today. A little sleep, a little reading: just right.
- Lu Su 没有事？十万支箭，你一支都还没有做啊！
Méiyǒu shì? Shíwàn zhī jiàn, nǐ yì zhī dōu hái méiyǒu zuò a!
Nothing to do? A hundred thousand arrows, and you haven't made a single one!
- Zhou Yu 鲁肃，你又去看诸葛亮了？他今天做了多少支箭？
Lǔ Sù, nǐ yòu qù kàn Zhūgě Liàng le? Tā jīntiān zuò le duōshao zhī jiàn?
Lu Su, you went to see Zhuge Liang again? How many arrows has he made today?
- Lu Su 一……一支也没有。他在睡觉。
Yì… yì zhī yě méiyǒu. Tā zài shuìjiào.
N-not one. He's sleeping.
- Zhou Yu 哈哈！睡觉？好，让他睡！一天已经过去了，我看他还能睡几天！
Hāhā! Shuìjiào? Hǎo, ràng tā shuì! Yì tiān yǐjīng guòqù le, wǒ kàn tā hái néng shuì jǐ tiān!
Ha! Sleeping? Fine, let him sleep! One day is already gone. Let's see how many more days he can sleep!
- Narrator 第二天，太阳很好。诸葛亮躺在江边，一边扇扇子，一边看天。
Dì èr tiān, tàiyáng hěn hǎo. Zhūgě Liàng tǎng zài jiāngbiān, yìbiān shān shànzi, yìbiān kàn tiān.
The second day was sunny. Zhuge Liang lay on the riverbank, fanning himself and gazing at the sky.
- Lu Su 先生，第二天都快过去了！你怎么还躺在这里？
Xiānsheng, dì èr tiān dōu kuài guòqù le! Nǐ zěnme hái tǎng zài zhèlǐ?
Sir, the second day is almost over! How can you still be lying around here?
- Lu Su 天这么冷，你还在扇扇子？明天就是第三天了啊！
Tiān zhème lěng, nǐ hái zài shān shànzi? Míngtiān jiù shì dì sān tiān le a!
It's freezing, and you're still fanning yourself? Tomorrow is the third day!
- Zhuge Liang 扇一扇，头脑更清楚。鲁兄，你也坐下来，跟我一起看看天吧。
Shān yi shān, tóunǎo gèng qīngchu. Lǔ xiōng, nǐ yě zuò xiàlái, gēn wǒ yìqǐ kànkan tiān ba.
A little fanning clears the head. Sit down, Brother Lu, and look at the sky with me.
- Lu Su 看天？天上有箭吗？
Kàn tiān? Tiān shang yǒu jiàn ma?
Look at the sky? Are there arrows up there?
- Zhuge Liang 现在没有。到时候，就有了。
Xiànzài méiyǒu. Dào shíhou, jiù yǒu le.
Not yet. When the time comes, there will be.
- Lu Su 又是“到时候”！先生，我都快急死了，你还有心看天！
Yòu shì “dào shíhou”! Xiānsheng, wǒ dōu kuài jí sǐ le, nǐ hái yǒu xīn kàn tiān!
“When the time comes” again! Sir, I'm worried sick, and you're in the mood for sky-gazing!
- Zhuge Liang 你看，今天的风越来越小，江上的水，也越来越静了。
Nǐ kàn, jīntiān de fēng yuè lái yuè xiǎo, jiāng shang de shuǐ, yě yuè lái yuè jìng le.
Look: the wind keeps dropping, and the river is growing stiller and stiller.
- Lu Su 风小了，水静了……这跟十万支箭，有什么关系？
Fēng xiǎo le, shuǐ jìng le… Zhè gēn shíwàn zhī jiàn, yǒu shénme guānxi?
The wind's dropping, the water's still… What does that have to do with a hundred thousand arrows?
- Zhuge Liang 关系可大了。鲁兄，今天晚上早点儿睡吧。
Guānxi kě dà le. Lǔ xiōng, jīntiān wǎnshang zǎodiǎnr shuì ba.
Oh, it has everything to do with them. Go to bed early tonight, Brother Lu.
- Zhou Yu 鲁肃，今天呢？他还在扇扇子？
Lǔ Sù, jīntiān ne? Tā hái zài shān shànzi?
Lu Su, what about today? Is he still fanning himself?
- Lu Su 还……还在扇。
Hái… hái zài shān.
S-still fanning.
- Zhou Yu 好！他写了军令状，还敢这样！明天就是第三天了！
Hǎo! Tā xiě le jūnlìngzhuàng, hái gǎn zhèyàng! Míngtiān jiù shì dì sān tiān le!
Excellent! He wrote a military pledge, and he dares to lounge around like this! Tomorrow is the third day!
- Zhou Yu 来人！明天派五百个士兵到江边去。诸葛亮拿不出箭，就把他带来见我！
Lái rén! Míngtiān pài wǔbǎi gè shìbīng dào jiāngbiān qù. Zhūgě Liàng ná bu chū jiàn, jiù bǎ tā dài lái jiàn wǒ!
Guards! Tomorrow, send five hundred soldiers to the riverbank. If Zhuge Liang can't produce the arrows, bring him to me!
- Zhou Yu 诸葛亮啊诸葛亮，这次你再聪明，也没有办法了！
Zhūgě Liàng a Zhūgě Liàng, zhè cì nǐ zài cōngming, yě méiyǒu bànfǎ le!
Zhuge Liang, oh, Zhuge Liang. This time, however clever you are, there's no way out!
- Narrator 那天夜里，天上看不见星星，风也停了。
Nà tiān yè lǐ, tiān shang kàn bu jiàn xīngxing, fēng yě tíng le.
That night, there were no stars to be seen in the sky, and the wind died away.
- Zhuge Liang 没有星星，也没有风……好，就是今天夜里了。
Méiyǒu xīngxing, yě méiyǒu fēng… Hǎo, jiù shì jīntiān yè lǐ le.
No stars, and no wind… Good. Tonight is the night.
- Narrator 第三天，天还没亮，诸葛亮就来找鲁肃。
Dì sān tiān, tiān hái méi liàng, Zhūgě Liàng jiù lái zhǎo Lǔ Sù.
On the third day, before it was even light, Zhuge Liang came to find Lu Su.
- Zhuge Liang 鲁兄，快起来！跟我去拿箭。
Lǔ xiōng, kuài qǐlái! Gēn wǒ qù ná jiàn.
Brother Lu, get up! Come with me to fetch the arrows.
- Lu Su 先生？天还没亮啊！拿箭？去哪儿拿？
Xiānsheng? Tiān hái méi liàng a! Ná jiàn? Qù nǎr ná?
Sir? It's not even light yet! Fetch the arrows? From where?
- Zhuge Liang 别问。去了，你就知道了。
Bié wèn. Qù le, nǐ jiù zhīdào le.
Don't ask. Come along, and you'll see.
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What does the young soldier think the straw is for?
“船上放这么多草，是要喂马吗？”
- What does Zhuge Liang do on the first day?
“他一整天都在看书、睡觉。”
- What does Zhuge Liang point out about the weather on the second day?
“今天的风越来越小，江上的水，也越来越静了。”
- What does Zhou Yu order for the third day?
“明天派五百个士兵到江边去。诸葛亮拿不出箭，就把他带来见我！”
- What is the sky like that night?
“天上看不见星星，风也停了。”
All chapters in Three Kingdoms: Borrowing Arrows with Straw Boats.