The Butterfly Lovers · chapter 6 of 25
A Bowl of Water
一碗水
Shanbo's question hangs in the lamplight. One wrong word, and Yingtai's three years in Hangzhou could end on the very first night.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 杭州学堂的第一个晚上。山伯拿着灯，看着英台红红的脸。
Hángzhōu xuétáng de dì yī gè wǎnshang. Shānbó názhe dēng, kànzhe Yīngtái hónghóng de liǎn.
The first night at the school in Hangzhou. Shanbo held up the lamp and looked at Yingtai's red face.
- Zhu Yingtai 他问我是不是女孩子……英台，别怕，快笑！
Tā wèn wǒ shì bu shì nǚháizi… Yīngtái, bié pà, kuài xiào!
He's asking if I'm a girl... Don't panic, Yingtai. Laugh, quick!
- Zhu Yingtai 哈哈哈！我是女孩子？梁兄，我看你比我还像女孩子呢！
Hāhāhā! Wǒ shì nǚháizi? Liáng xiōng, wǒ kàn nǐ bǐ wǒ hái xiàng nǚháizi ne!
Ha ha ha! Me, a girl? Brother Liang, if you ask me, you look more like a girl than I do!
Chapter 6 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Part 1 of The Butterfly Lovers (chapters 1–5) is free, and The Second Cup of Tea, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, The Kitchen God, Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, Chang'e and the Moon, Alice in Wonderland and Judge Dee's Cases are free from start to finish.
- Liang Shanbo 我？我哪儿像女孩子了？
Wǒ? Wǒ nǎr xiàng nǚháizi le?
Me? How do I look like a girl?
- Zhu Yingtai 你说话那么轻，脸比我的还红，还一直问我冷不冷。
Nǐ shuōhuà nàme qīng, liǎn bǐ wǒ de hái hóng, hái yìzhí wèn wǒ lěng bu lěng.
You talk so softly, your face is redder than mine, and you keep asking if I'm cold.
- Liang Shanbo 哈哈，我是哥哥嘛，当然要问。可是英台，你睡觉为什么不脱衣服？
Hāhā, wǒ shì gēge ma, dāngrán yào wèn. Kěshì Yīngtái, nǐ shuìjiào wèi shénme bù tuō yīfu?
Ha ha, I'm the big brother, of course I ask. But Yingtai, why don't you take your clothes off to sleep?
- Zhu Yingtai 这是我们祝家的规矩。祝家的男人睡觉，从来不脱衣服。
Zhè shì wǒmen Zhù jiā de guīju. Zhù jiā de nánrén shuìjiào, cónglái bù tuō yīfu.
It's a Zhu family rule. Zhu men never take their clothes off to sleep.
- Liang Shanbo 原来是这样！那头巾也不拿下来，也是规矩吗？
Yuánlái shì zhèyàng! Nà tóujīn yě bù ná xiàlái, yě shì guīju ma?
So that's it! And keeping your head-cloth on, is that a rule too?
- Zhu Yingtai 当然。还有一个最重要的规矩，你等一下。
Dāngrán. Hái yǒu yí gè zuì zhòngyào de guīju, nǐ děng yíxià.
Of course. And there's one more rule, the most important one. Wait a moment.
- Zhu Yingtai 你看，我在床中间放一碗水。你睡这边，我睡那边。
Nǐ kàn, wǒ zài chuáng zhōngjiān fàng yì wǎn shuǐ. Nǐ shuì zhèbiān, wǒ shuì nàbiān.
Look, I'm putting a bowl of water in the middle of the bed. You sleep on this side, I'll sleep on that side.
- Liang Shanbo 床上放一碗水？这是做什么用的？
Chuáng shàng fàng yì wǎn shuǐ? Zhè shì zuò shénme yòng de?
A bowl of water on the bed? What's that for?
- Zhu Yingtai 晚上谁碰翻了水，就罚谁给对方写一百个字。
Wǎnshang shéi pèngfān le shuǐ, jiù fá shéi gěi duìfāng xiě yìbǎi gè zì.
Whoever knocks the water over in the night has to write a hundred characters for the other one.
- Liang Shanbo 好！我睡觉最老实了，一动也不动，就像一块石头。
Hǎo! Wǒ shuìjiào zuì lǎoshi le, yí dòng yě bú dòng, jiù xiàng yí kuài shítou.
Deal! Nobody sleeps stiller than me. I don't move at all, just like a stone.
- Zhu Yingtai 你这个书呆子，真是太老实了。好了，我吹灯了。
Nǐ zhège shūdāizi, zhēn shì tài lǎoshi le. Hǎo le, wǒ chuī dēng le.
You bookworm, you're far too honest. All right, I'm blowing out the lamp.
- Narrator 房间里黑了。山伯很快就睡了，真的像一块石头。
Fángjiān lǐ hēi le. Shānbó hěn kuài jiù shuì le, zhēn de xiàng yí kuài shítou.
The room went dark. Shanbo was asleep in no time, just like a stone.
- Zhu Yingtai 他就在旁边，我能听见他睡觉的声音……英台，你怎么还不睡？
Tā jiù zài pángbiān, wǒ néng tīngjiàn tā shuìjiào de shēngyīn… Yīngtái, nǐ zěnme hái bú shuì?
He's right beside me. I can hear him breathing... Yingtai, why are you still awake?
- Zhu Yingtai 千万别动，千万别碰翻了水。明天，后天，还有三年……
Qiānwàn bié dòng, qiānwàn bié pèngfān le shuǐ. Míngtiān, hòutiān, hái yǒu sān nián…
Don't move. Whatever you do, don't knock over the water. Tomorrow, the day after, three whole years...
- Liang Shanbo 天亮了！英台，你快看，水一点儿也没动！
Tiān liàng le! Yīngtái, nǐ kuài kàn, shuǐ yìdiǎnr yě méi dòng!
It's morning! Yingtai, look, the water hasn't moved at all!
- Liang Shanbo 我说得对吧？我一次也没动，一个字也不用写！
Wǒ shuō de duì ba? Wǒ yí cì yě méi dòng, yí gè zì yě bú yòng xiě!
Didn't I tell you? I didn't move once, and I don't have to write a single character!
- Zhu Yingtai 是啊，石头先生。你睡得真好……我也睡得很好。
Shì a, shítou xiānsheng. Nǐ shuì de zhēn hǎo… wǒ yě shuì de hěn hǎo.
Yes, Mr. Stone. You slept beautifully... and so did I.
- Yinxin 公子早！梁公子早！洗脸水来了，热的！
Gōngzǐ zǎo! Liáng gōngzǐ zǎo! Xǐliǎn shuǐ lái le, rè de!
Morning, Young Master! Morning, Young Master Liang! Here's your washing water, nice and hot!
- Liang Shanbo 银心早！我去叫四九起床，不叫他，他不会起来。
Yínxīn zǎo! Wǒ qù jiào Sìjiǔ qǐchuáng, bú jiào tā, tā bú huì qǐlái.
Morning, Yinxin! I'll go and get Sijiu up. If nobody wakes him, he never gets up.
- Yinxin 公子，昨天晚上没事吧？我一个晚上都没睡好！
Gōngzǐ, zuótiān wǎnshang méi shì ba? Wǒ yí gè wǎnshang dōu méi shuì hǎo!
Young Master, was last night all right? I hardly slept a wink!
- Zhu Yingtai 他差一点儿就看出来了。还好有这碗水，还好他是个书呆子。
Tā chà yìdiǎnr jiù kàn chūlái le. Hái hǎo yǒu zhè wǎn shuǐ, hái hǎo tā shì gè shūdāizi.
He very nearly saw through me. Thank goodness for this bowl of water, and thank goodness he's a bookworm.
- Yinxin 公子，这个办法真好。一碗水，比我这个书童还有用！
Gōngzǐ, zhège bànfǎ zhēn hǎo. Yì wǎn shuǐ, bǐ wǒ zhège shūtóng hái yǒuyòng!
Young Master, what a clever idea. One bowl of water is more use than this book boy!
- Sijiu 睡觉不脱衣服，床上还放一碗水……祝家的规矩也太多了！
Shuìjiào bù tuō yīfu, chuáng shàng hái fàng yì wǎn shuǐ… Zhù jiā de guīju yě tài duō le!
Sleeping in your clothes, a bowl of water on the bed... The Zhu family has far too many rules!
- Liang Shanbo 四九，别乱说。每家都有自己的规矩。
Sìjiǔ, bié luàn shuō. Měi jiā dōu yǒu zìjǐ de guīju.
Sijiu, don't talk nonsense. Every family has its own rules.
- Yinxin 就是！四九，你的腿天天要断，你的嘴怎么一次也不断？
Jiù shì! Sìjiǔ, nǐ de tuǐ tiāntiān yào duàn, nǐ de zuǐ zěnme yí cì yě bú duàn?
Exactly! Sijiu, your legs are about to snap every day, so how come your mouth never does?
- Sijiu 嘴断了，我还怎么吃饼？
Zuǐ duàn le, wǒ hái zěnme chī bǐng?
If my mouth snapped, how would I eat my cakes?
- Sijiu 公子，我刚才去打水，别的学生都在说：祝公子长得比女孩子还漂亮！
Gōngzǐ, wǒ gāngcái qù dǎ shuǐ, biéde xuésheng dōu zài shuō: Zhù gōngzǐ zhǎng de bǐ nǚháizi hái piàoliang!
Young Master, I went for water just now, and all the other students are saying Young Master Zhu is prettier than a girl!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- How does Yingtai answer Shanbo's question at first?
“我看你比我还像女孩子呢”
- Why does Yingtai say she sleeps in her clothes?
“这是我们祝家的规矩……从来不脱衣服”
- What happens to whoever knocks over the bowl of water?
“就罚谁给对方写一百个字”
- What does Yingtai do while Shanbo sleeps?
“我能听见他睡觉的声音……你怎么还不睡？”
- What does Sijiu say the other students are saying?
“祝公子长得比女孩子还漂亮”