The Butterfly Lovers · chapter 5 of 8
The Eighteen-Li Farewell
十八相送
Eighteen li on the road home, and Yingtai drops hint after hint. Will her dear, earnest brother ever catch one?
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Read what you hear
- Narrator 第二天一早，梁山伯送英台回家。一里，两里，三里……他们走得很慢很慢。
Dì èr tiān yì zǎo, Liáng Shānbó sòng Yīngtái huí jiā. Yì lǐ, liǎng lǐ, sān lǐ… tāmen zǒu de hěn màn hěn màn.
Early the next morning, Shanbo set off to walk Yingtai home. One li, two li, three li… they walked very, very slowly.
- Zhu Yingtai 梁兄，你看，河里有两只鸭子，一只公的，一只母的。
Liáng xiōng, nǐ kàn, hé lǐ yǒu liǎng zhī yāzi, yì zhī gōng de, yì zhī mǔ de.
Brother Liang, look. Two ducks on the river, a drake and a hen.
- Liang Shanbo 是啊，是有两只鸭子。那又怎么样呢？
Shì a, shì yǒu liǎng zhī yāzi. Nà yòu zěnmeyàng ne?
So there are. What about them?
- Zhu Yingtai 你说，我像哪一只？
Nǐ shuō, wǒ xiàng nǎ yì zhī?
Tell me, which one am I like?
- Liang Shanbo 你当然像公的那只！你是我的好兄弟啊。
Nǐ dāngrán xiàng gōng de nà zhī! Nǐ shì wǒ de hǎo xiōngdì a.
The drake, of course! You're my good brother.
- Zhu Yingtai 梁兄，你再看前面，有两只白鹅。公鹅走在前面，母鹅在后面叫他“哥哥”呢！
Liáng xiōng, nǐ zài kàn qiánmiàn, yǒu liǎng zhī bái é. Gōng é zǒu zài qiánmiàn, mǔ é zài hòumiàn jiào tā “gēge” ne!
Brother Liang, now look up ahead. Two white geese. The gander walks in front, and the goose behind is calling him “big brother”!
- Liang Shanbo 鹅怎么会说话？我怎么一句也没听见？
É zěnme huì shuōhuà? Wǒ zěnme yí jù yě méi tīngjiàn?
Geese can't talk! How come I didn't hear a word?
- Zhu Yingtai 母鹅还在笑你呢，笑你是一只呆头鹅！
Mǔ é hái zài xiào nǐ ne, xiào nǐ shì yì zhī dāitóu'é!
And now she's laughing at you. She says you're a silly goose!
- Liang Shanbo 我是呆头鹅？好好好，英台说是，那就是吧！
Wǒ shì dāitóu'é? Hǎo hǎo hǎo, Yīngtái shuō shì, nà jiù shì ba!
I'm a silly goose? All right, all right. If Yingtai says so, it must be true!
- Narrator 走着走着，他们过了一座小石桥，来到了一口井边。
Zǒuzhe zǒuzhe, tāmen guò le yí zuò xiǎo shíqiáo, lái dào le yì kǒu jǐng biān.
On and on they walked. They crossed a little stone bridge and came to a well.
- Zhu Yingtai 梁兄，你看井里的影子。一个男的，一个女的，像不像一对夫妻？
Liáng xiōng, nǐ kàn jǐng lǐ de yǐngzi. Yí gè nán de, yí gè nǚ de, xiàng bu xiàng yí duì fūqī?
Brother Liang, look at our reflections in the well. A man and a woman. Don't we look like husband and wife?
- Liang Shanbo 英台，别开玩笑了！井里明明是两个男人嘛！
Yīngtái, bié kāi wánxiào le! Jǐng lǐ míngmíng shì liǎng gè nánrén ma!
Yingtai, stop joking! That's clearly two men down there!
- Zhu Yingtai 天啊，我要怎么说，这个书呆子才会明白？
Tiān a, wǒ yào zěnme shuō, zhège shūdāizi cái huì míngbai?
Heavens. What will it take to make this bookworm understand?
- Narrator 太阳快下山了，他们已经走了十八里路。
Tàiyáng kuài xià shān le, tāmen yǐjīng zǒu le shíbā lǐ lù.
The sun was going down. They had already walked eighteen li.
- Zhu Yingtai 梁兄，就送到这里吧。我家有个妹妹，长得跟我一模一样。
Liáng xiōng, jiù sòng dào zhèlǐ ba. Wǒ jiā yǒu gè mèimei, zhǎng de gēn wǒ yìmú-yíyàng.
Brother Liang, this is far enough. I have a sister at home who looks exactly like me.
- Liang Shanbo 跟你一模一样？那她一定又聪明，又好看，也喜欢读书吧？
Gēn nǐ yìmú-yíyàng? Nà tā yídìng yòu cōngming, yòu hǎokàn, yě xǐhuan dú shū ba?
Exactly like you? Then she must be clever and lovely, and fond of books too!
- Zhu Yingtai 我想让她嫁给你。你一定要来我家提亲，好不好？
Wǒ xiǎng ràng tā jià gěi nǐ. Nǐ yídìng yào lái wǒ jiā tíqīn, hǎo bu hǎo?
I want her to marry you. You must come to my house and ask for her hand. Will you?
- Liang Shanbo 好！我一定去！你妹妹叫什么名字？
Hǎo! Wǒ yídìng qù! Nǐ mèimei jiào shénme míngzi?
Yes! I'll come, I promise! What's your sister's name?
- Zhu Yingtai 等你来了，就知道了。可是你要早点儿来，晚了……就来不及了。
Děng nǐ lái le, jiù zhīdào le. Kěshì nǐ yào zǎo diǎnr lái, wǎn le… jiù láibují le.
Come and you'll find out. But you have to come soon. If you're late… it will be too late.
- Liang Shanbo 放心吧，我一定早点儿去！英台，天快黑了，你路上小心！
Fàngxīn ba, wǒ yídìng zǎo diǎnr qù! Yīngtái, tiān kuài hēi le, nǐ lù shang xiǎoxīn!
Don't worry, I'll come soon, I promise! It's getting dark, Yingtai. Take care on the road!
- Narrator 可是梁山伯不知道，这个“妹妹”，就是站在他面前的人。
Kěshì Liáng Shānbó bù zhīdào, zhège “mèimei”, jiù shì zhàn zài tā miànqián de rén.
But Shanbo didn't know that this “sister” was the very person standing in front of him.
What changed in the story?
- What does Yingtai point out on the river?
“河里有两只鸭子，一只公的，一只母的。”
- Which duck does Shanbo say Yingtai is like, and why?
“你当然像公的那只！你是我的好兄弟啊。”
- What does Yingtai call Shanbo after the geese?
“笑你是一只呆头鹅！”
- What does Shanbo say he sees in the well?
“井里明明是两个男人嘛！”
- What does Yingtai make Shanbo promise?
“你一定要来我家提亲……可是你要早点儿来”