Journey to the West: The Four Pilgrims · chapter 9 of 25
A Gift on the Road
路上的礼物
A kind old woman gives Tang Seng a robe, a cap and a secret, while Wukong drinks tea with an old acquaintance in the Eastern Sea.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 路边，那个老奶奶走到了唐僧面前。
Lùbiān, nàge lǎonǎinai zǒu dào le Táng Sēng miànqián.
By the road, the old woman came up to Tang Seng.
- Guanyin 小师父，你为什么一个人坐在这里？
Xiǎo shīfu, nǐ wèi shénme yí gè rén zuò zài zhèlǐ?
Young master, why are you sitting here all alone?
- Tang Seng 老人家，我的徒弟不听话，走了。我一个人，不知道怎么办。
Lǎorénjia, wǒ de túdì bù tīnghuà, zǒu le. Wǒ yí gè rén, bù zhīdào zěnme bàn.
Grandmother, my disciple wouldn't listen, and now he's gone. On my own, I don't know what to do.
Chapter 9 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Part 1 of Journey to the West: The Four Pilgrims (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.
- Guanyin 我这里有一件衣服和一顶花帽子，是我儿子的。
Wǒ zhèlǐ yǒu yí jiàn yīfu hé yì dǐng huā màozi, shì wǒ érzi de.
I have a robe here, and a flowered cap. They were my son's.
- Guanyin 他做了三天和尚，就死了。这些，送给你吧。
Tā zuò le sān tiān héshang, jiù sǐ le. Zhèxiē, sòng gěi nǐ ba.
He was a monk for only three days, and then he died. Take them. They're yours.
- Tang Seng 这……这是您儿子的东西，我不能要。
Zhè… zhè shì nín érzi de dōngxi, wǒ bù néng yào.
But... these were your son's. I can't take them.
- Guanyin 拿着。徒弟回来，你就给他穿上，戴上。他不听话，你就念这个。
Názhe. Túdì huílai, nǐ jiù gěi tā chuān shàng, dài shàng. Tā bù tīnghuà, nǐ jiù niàn zhège.
Take them. When your disciple comes back, have him put them on. And if he won't listen, say this.
- Guanyin 这个叫紧箍咒。你听好，我只教你一次。
Zhège jiào jǐn gū zhòu. Nǐ tīng hǎo, wǒ zhǐ jiāo nǐ yí cì.
It's called the Tightening Spell. Listen carefully. I'll teach it to you only once.
- Narrator 老奶奶小声念了几句，唐僧都记住了。
Lǎonǎinai xiǎoshēng niàn le jǐ jù, Táng Sēng dōu jìzhù le.
The old woman softly said a few lines, and Tang Seng remembered every word.
- Tang Seng 我记住了。老人家，您……您是谁？
Wǒ jìzhù le. Lǎorénjia, nín… nín shì shéi?
I've got it. Grandmother, who... who are you?
- Narrator 老奶奶笑了笑，变成金光，往东边飞走了。
Lǎonǎinai xiào le xiào, biànchéng jīnguāng, wǎng dōngbian fēi zǒu le.
The old woman smiled, turned into golden light and flew away to the east.
- Tang Seng 是观音菩萨！谢谢菩萨！
Shì Guānyīn Púsà! Xièxie Púsà!
It was Guanyin! Thank you, Bodhisattva!
- Dragon King of the Eastern Sea 大圣，请喝我东海的茶。您今天……不是来拿东西的吧？
Dàshèng, qǐng hē wǒ Dōng Hǎi de chá. Nín jīntiān… bú shì lái ná dōngxi de ba?
Great Sage, please, have some of my Eastern Sea tea. You haven't come to... take anything today, have you?
- Sun Wukong 不拿！老孙打死了六个强盗，师父就说啊说，说啊说……老孙不做和尚了！
Bù ná! Lǎo Sūn dǎsǐ le liù gè qiángdào, shīfu jiù shuō a shuō, shuō a shuō… Lǎo Sūn bú zuò héshang le!
Not a thing! Old Sun killed six robbers, and Master talked and talked and talked... So Old Sun quit being a monk!
- Dragon King of the Eastern Sea 大圣，你看墙上的画。这个年轻人，叫张良。
Dàshèng, nǐ kàn qiáng shàng de huà. Zhège niánqīngrén, jiào Zhāng Liáng.
Great Sage, look at the picture on the wall. This young man is Zhang Liang.
- Dragon King of the Eastern Sea 一个老人的鞋子掉了三次，张良就去拿了三次。
Yí gè lǎorén de xiézi diào le sān cì, Zhāng Liáng jiù qù ná le sān cì.
An old man's shoe fell three times, and three times Zhang Liang went and fetched it.
- Sun Wukong 三次？老孙一次也不去拿！
Sān cì? Lǎo Sūn yí cì yě bú qù ná!
Three times? Old Sun wouldn't fetch it even once!
- Dragon King of the Eastern Sea 张良一句不好听的话也没说。后来，老人教他很多本领。
Zhāng Liáng yí jù bù hǎotīng de huà yě méi shuō. Hòulái, lǎorén jiāo tā hěn duō běnlǐng.
Zhang Liang never said one cross word. Later, the old man taught him many great skills.
- Dragon King of the Eastern Sea 大圣，你不好好跟着师父，就永远是个妖怪。
Dàshèng, nǐ bù hǎohǎo gēnzhe shīfu, jiù yǒngyuǎn shì gè yāoguài.
Great Sage, if you don't follow your master faithfully, you'll be a demon forever.
- Sun Wukong 永远是个妖怪……不行！老孙这就坐筋斗云回去！
Yǒngyuǎn shì gè yāoguài… Bù xíng! Lǎo Sūn zhè jiù zuò jīndǒuyún huíqu!
A demon forever... No way! Old Sun is riding his somersault cloud straight back!
- Sun Wukong 师父，老孙回来了！
Shīfu, Lǎo Sūn huílai le!
Master, Old Sun is back!
- Tang Seng 你去哪儿了？
Nǐ qù nǎr le?
Where did you go?
- Sun Wukong 坐筋斗云，去东海龙王家喝茶了！
Zuò jīndǒuyún, qù Dōng Hǎi Lóngwáng jiā hē chá le!
Old Sun rode his somersault cloud over to have tea with the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea!
- Tang Seng 出家人不说假话。你才走了一会儿！
Chūjiārén bù shuō jiǎhuà. Nǐ cái zǒu le yíhuìr!
Monks don't tell lies. You were only gone a little while!
- Sun Wukong 师父不知道，老孙一个筋斗，十万八千里！
Shīfu bù zhīdào, Lǎo Sūn yí gè jīndǒu, shíwàn bāqiān lǐ!
What Master doesn't know is that one somersault takes Old Sun a hundred and eight thousand li!
- Tang Seng 好吧。我饿了，包里有吃的，你拿给我。
Hǎo ba. Wǒ è le, bāo lǐ yǒu chī de, nǐ ná gěi wǒ.
All right. I'm hungry. There's food in the bag. Get it for me.
- Sun Wukong 这是什么？一件衣服，还有一顶花帽子！
Zhè shì shénme? Yí jiàn yīfu, hái yǒu yì dǐng huā màozi!
What's this? A robe, and a flowered cap too!
- Tang Seng 那是我小时候的。戴上这个帽子，不用学，就会念经。
Nà shì wǒ xiǎoshíhou de. Dài shàng zhège màozi, búyòng xué, jiù huì niànjīng.
Those are from when I was little. Whoever wears that cap can read scriptures without learning.
- Sun Wukong 好师父，给老孙戴吧！
Hǎo shīfu, gěi Lǎo Sūn dài ba!
Dear Master, let Old Sun wear it!
- Narrator 衣服不大不小，正好。悟空戴上帽子，唐僧轻轻地念了起来……
Yīfu bú dà bù xiǎo, zhènghǎo. Wùkōng dài shàng màozi, Táng Sēng qīngqīng de niàn le qǐlai…
The robe was not too big and not too small. Wukong put on the cap, and Tang Seng quietly began to say the words...
- Sun Wukong 师父？你在念什么？
Shīfu? Nǐ zài niàn shénme?
Master? What are you saying?
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- Whose robe and cap does the old woman give Tang Seng?
“是我儿子的……他做了三天和尚，就死了”
- What should Tang Seng do if his disciple won't listen?
“他不听话，你就念这个……这个叫紧箍咒”
- Who was the old woman really?
“是观音菩萨”
- What does the Dragon King warn Wukong about?
“你不好好跟着师父，就永远是个妖怪”
- What does Tang Seng say the cap can do?
“戴上这个帽子，不用学，就会念经”