Journey to the West: The Monkey King · chapter 14 of 25
The Underworld
地府
Two silent men drag Wukong's soul to a dark city where King Yama rules the dead. They say his time is up. Old Sun has other ideas.
Read what you hear
- Sun Wukong 这是哪儿？好黑……好冷……老孙不是在松树下边睡觉吗？
Zhè shì nǎr? Hǎo hēi… hǎo lěng… Lǎo Sūn bú shì zài sōngshù xiàbian shuìjiào ma?
Where am I? So dark… so cold… Wasn't Old Sun asleep under the pine tree?
- Sun Wukong 你们两个，拉着老孙去哪儿？快放开！
Nǐmen liǎng gè, lāzhe Lǎo Sūn qù nǎr? Kuài fàngkāi!
You two, where are you dragging Old Sun? Let go of me!
- Narrator 两个人不说话，用绳子拉着悟空，来到了一座黑黑的城。
Liǎng gè rén bù shuōhuà, yòng shéngzi lāzhe Wùkōng, lái dào le yí zuò hēihēi de chéng.
The two men said nothing. They pulled Wukong along on the rope until they came to a dark, dark city.
Chapter 14 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Part 1 of Journey to the West: The Monkey King (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 The Hound of the Baskervilles are free from start to finish.
- Sun Wukong 城门上有字：幽冥界……这不是阎王住的地方吗？
Chéngmén shang yǒu zì: Yōumíng Jiè… zhè bú shì Yánwáng zhù de dìfang ma?
There are words over the city gate: the Underworld… Isn't this where King Yama lives?
- Sun Wukong 地府？老孙怎么到地府来了？
Dìfǔ? Lǎo Sūn zěnme dào dìfǔ lái le?
The Underworld? How did Old Sun end up in the Underworld?
- Narrator 一个人拿出纸来：“孙悟空，你的时间到了。你看，这是你的名字。”
Yí gè rén ná chū zhǐ lái: “Sūn Wùkōng, nǐ de shíjiān dào le. Nǐ kàn, zhè shì nǐ de míngzi.”
One of them held up the paper. “Sun Wukong, your time is up. Look, here is your name.”
- Sun Wukong 胡说！老孙学了不老的本领，不会老，也不会死！
Húshuō! Lǎo Sūn xué le bù lǎo de běnlǐng, bú huì lǎo, yě bú huì sǐ!
Nonsense! Old Sun has learned how never to grow old. I won't grow old, and I won't die!
- Sun Wukong 阎王？阎王管人，管不了老孙！
Yánwáng? Yánwáng guǎn rén, guǎn bu liǎo Lǎo Sūn!
King Yama? Yama may rule over people, but he has no power over Old Sun!
- Sun Wukong 还拉？谁敢拿绳子拉老孙？
Hái lā? Shéi gǎn ná shéngzi lā Lǎo Sūn?
Still pulling? Who dares drag Old Sun around on a rope?
- Sun Wukong 老孙耳朵里的针，出来！大！大！大！
Lǎo Sūn ěrduo li de zhēn, chūlai! Dà! Dà! Dà!
Needle in Old Sun's ear, come out! Bigger! Bigger! Bigger!
- Narrator 金箍棒只打了一下，两个人都倒了，绳子也开了。
Jīn gū bàng zhǐ dǎ le yíxià, liǎng gè rén dōu dǎo le, shéngzi yě kāi le.
The staff struck just once, and both men fell flat. The rope came undone.
- Sun Wukong 阎王！快给老孙出来！
Yánwáng! Kuài gěi Lǎo Sūn chūlai!
King Yama! Come out here and face Old Sun!
- Narrator 鬼们都跑了。小鬼们大叫：“不好了！一个毛脸的猴子，像雷一样打进来了！”
Guǐmen dōu pǎo le. Xiǎo guǐmen dàjiào: “Bù hǎo le! Yí gè máoliǎn de hóuzi, xiàng léi yíyàng dǎ jìnlai le!”
The ghosts all fled, and the little ghosts cried, “Help! A hairy-faced monkey is smashing his way in like thunder!”
- Narrator 十个阎王穿好衣服，跑了出来，向悟空拜了又拜。
Shí gè Yánwáng chuān hǎo yīfu, pǎo le chūlai, xiàng Wùkōng bài le yòu bài.
The ten kings of the Underworld threw on their robes, came running out and bowed to Wukong again and again.
- King Yama 请……请上仙留下名字！
Qǐng… qǐng shàngxiān liúxià míngzi!
Please… Immortal, please tell us your name!
- King Yama 您……您是哪一位神仙？从哪里来？
Nín… nín shì nǎ yí wèi shénxiān? Cóng nǎli lái?
Which… which immortal might you be? Where are you from?
- Sun Wukong 名字？你们的纸上，不是写着吗？
Míngzi? Nǐmen de zhǐ shang, bú shì xiězhe ma?
My name? Isn't it written right there on your paper?
- Sun Wukong 你们不认识老孙，为什么还叫人来抓老孙？
Nǐmen bú rènshi Lǎo Sūn, wèi shénme hái jiào rén lái zhuā Lǎo Sūn?
If you don't even know Old Sun, why did you send men to catch him?
- King Yama 不敢，不敢！上仙您看，名字一样的人很多……
Bù gǎn, bù gǎn! Shàngxiān nín kàn, míngzi yíyàng de rén hěn duō…
We wouldn't dare! Immortal, you see, so many people share the same name…
- King Yama 是不是……是不是我们的人弄错了？
Shì bu shì… shì bu shì wǒmen de rén nòngcuò le?
Could it be… could it be that our men made a mistake?
- Sun Wukong 胡说！胡说！纸上写的，是老孙的名字！
Húshuō! Húshuō! Zhǐ shang xiě de, shì Lǎo Sūn de míngzi!
Nonsense! Nonsense! The name on that paper was Old Sun's!
- Sun Wukong 老孙是花果山水帘洞的孙悟空，是从石头里跳出来的！
Lǎo Sūn shì Huāguǒ Shān Shuǐlián Dòng de Sūn Wùkōng, shì cóng shítou li tiào chūlai de!
Old Sun is Sun Wukong of the Water Curtain Cave on Flower Fruit Mountain. I jumped out of a stone!
- King Yama 是，是！上仙别生气……请坐，请坐！
Shì, shì! Shàngxiān bié shēngqì… qǐng zuò, qǐng zuò!
Yes, yes! Immortal, please don't be angry… Have a seat, have a seat!
- Sun Wukong 好，老孙就坐这儿！这把椅子真舒服！
Hǎo, Lǎo Sūn jiù zuò zhèr! Zhè bǎ yǐzi zhēn shūfu!
Fine. Old Sun will sit right here! What a comfy chair!
- King Yama 他……他坐了我的椅子……
Tā… tā zuò le wǒ de yǐzi…
He… he's sitting in my chair…
- Sun Wukong 阎王，你们的生死簿，放在哪儿？
Yánwáng, nǐmen de shēngsǐbù, fàng zài nǎr?
King Yama, where do you keep your Book of Life and Death?
- King Yama 生……生死簿？
Shēng… shēngsǐbù?
The… the Book of Life and Death?
- Sun Wukong 快把生死簿拿来！老孙要看看！
Kuài bǎ shēngsǐbù ná lái! Lǎo Sūn yào kànkan!
Bring me the Book of Life and Death, now! Old Sun wants a look!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What do the two men tell Wukong at the city gate?
“你的时间到了”
- How does Wukong get free of the rope?
“金箍棒只打了一下，两个人都倒了，绳子也开了”
- Why do the ghosts run away?
“一个毛脸的猴子，像雷一样打进来了”
- What does King Yama say may have happened?
“是不是我们的人弄错了”
- What does Wukong demand at the end?
“快把生死簿拿来”