Lu Ban the Master Builder · chapter 1 of 4
The Sleepy Master
爱睡觉的师父
Young Lu Ban walks for days to learn from a master who can make anything, only to find the old man fast asleep and his axes worn out.
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Read what you hear
- Narrator 很久很久以前，鲁国有一个年轻人。他叫鲁班。
Hěn jiǔ hěn jiǔ yǐqián, Lǔ Guó yǒu yí gè niánqīngrén. Tā jiào Lǔ Bān.
Long, long ago, in the State of Lu, there lived a young man named Lu Ban.
- Lu Ban 走了很多很多天……我到了！就是这座山！
Zǒu le hěn duō hěn duō tiān… wǒ dào le! Jiù shì zhè zuò shān!
Days and days of walking… and I've made it! This is the mountain!
- Lu Ban 人们说，山上住着一个老人。他什么都会做！
Rénmen shuō, shān shang zhùzhe yí gè lǎorén. Tā shénme dōu huì zuò!
People say an old man lives up on this mountain, and he can make anything!
- Lu Ban 我要跟他学。我要做最好的房子，最好的桥！
Wǒ yào gēn tā xué. Wǒ yào zuò zuì hǎo de fángzi, zuì hǎo de qiáo!
I'm going to learn from him. I want to build the finest houses and the finest bridges!
- Narrator 山上的小房子里，一个老人在床上睡觉。
Shān shang de xiǎo fángzi lǐ, yí gè lǎorén zài chuáng shang shuìjiào.
In a little house on the mountain, an old man lay fast asleep in bed.
- Lu Ban 老人家，您好！我叫鲁班。我想跟您学做东西！
Lǎorénjia, nín hǎo! Wǒ jiào Lǔ Bān. Wǒ xiǎng gēn nín xué zuò dōngxi!
Good day, sir! My name is Lu Ban. I'd like you to teach me how to make things!
- The Old Master 别叫……我还要睡……
Bié jiào… wǒ hái yào shuì…
Don't wake me… I'm still sleeping…
- Lu Ban 老人家！您起来一下，好吗？
Lǎorénjia! Nín qǐlái yíxià, hǎo ma?
Sir! Could you get up, just for a moment?
- The Old Master 起来？明天……明天再说……
Qǐlái? Míngtiān… míngtiān zài shuō…
Get up? Tomorrow… we'll talk about it tomorrow…
- Lu Ban 他又睡了。好吧，我不叫他了。
Tā yòu shuì le. Hǎo ba, wǒ bú jiào tā le.
He's gone back to sleep. Oh well, I won't wake him.
- Lu Ban 让我看看……这么多斧子！可是都坏了，都不快了。
Ràng wǒ kànkan… zhème duō fǔzi! Kěshì dōu huài le, dōu bú kuài le.
Let me take a look… So many axes! But they're all worn out. Not one of them is sharp.
- Lu Ban 有了！我来磨斧子。他起来的时候，斧子都是新的！
Yǒu le! Wǒ lái mó fǔzi. Tā qǐlái de shíhou, fǔzi dōu shì xīn de!
I know! I'll sharpen the axes. By the time he wakes up, they'll all be as good as new!
- Narrator 鲁班磨了七天七夜。老人也睡了七天七夜。
Lǔ Bān mó le qī tiān qī yè. Lǎorén yě shuì le qī tiān qī yè.
For seven days and seven nights, Lu Ban sharpened axes. And for seven days and seven nights, the old man slept.
- The Old Master 啊，睡得真好！我的斧子，怎么都这么亮？
À, shuì de zhēn hǎo! Wǒ de fǔzi, zěnme dōu zhème liàng?
Ahh, what a lovely sleep! Hey, why are my axes all so shiny?
- Lu Ban 老人家，您起来了！是我磨的。
Lǎorénjia, nín qǐlái le! Shì wǒ mó de.
Sir, you're awake! I sharpened them.
- The Old Master 你是谁？你磨了多久？
Nǐ shì shéi? Nǐ mó le duō jiǔ?
And who are you? How long have you been at it?
- Lu Ban 我叫鲁班。我磨了七天。您……也睡了七天。
Wǒ jiào Lǔ Bān. Wǒ mó le qī tiān. Nín… yě shuì le qī tiān.
My name is Lu Ban. I've been sharpening for seven days. And you… have been asleep for seven days.
- The Old Master 七天？哈哈！我还以为，我只睡了一个晚上！
Qī tiān? Hāhā! Wǒ hái yǐwéi, wǒ zhǐ shuì le yí gè wǎnshang!
Seven days? Ha ha! And I thought I'd only slept one night!
- The Old Master 好，鲁班。你看看门口的大树。你能砍下来吗？
Hǎo, Lǔ Bān. Nǐ kànkan ménkǒu de dà shù. Nǐ néng kǎn xiàlái ma?
Very well, Lu Ban. See that big tree by the door? Can you chop it down?
- Lu Ban 这么大的树？它比房子还高！
Zhème dà de shù? Tā bǐ fángzi hái gāo!
A tree that big? It's taller than a house!
- The Old Master 怎么，你怕了？
Zěnme, nǐ pà le?
What's the matter? Scared?
- Lu Ban 不怕！我今天就砍！
Bú pà! Wǒ jīntiān jiù kǎn!
Not at all! I'll start chopping today!
- Narrator 鲁班砍了十二天。第十二天，大树倒了。
Lǔ Bān kǎn le shí'èr tiān. Dì shí'èr tiān, dà shù dǎo le.
Lu Ban chopped for twelve days. On the twelfth day, the great tree came down.
- The Old Master 好孩子！从今天起，你是我的学生了！
Hǎo háizi! Cóng jīntiān qǐ, nǐ shì wǒ de xuésheng le!
Good lad! From this day on, you're my student!
- Lu Ban 谢谢师父！
Xièxie shīfu!
Thank you, Master!
- Narrator 三年过去了。鲁班会做房子，会做车，也会做桥了。
Sān nián guòqù le. Lǔ Bān huì zuò fángzi, huì zuò chē, yě huì zuò qiáo le.
Three years went by. Now Lu Ban could build houses and carts, and bridges too.
- The Old Master 鲁班，你可以回家了。这些斧子，师父送给你！
Lǔ Bān, nǐ kěyǐ huí jiā le. Zhèxiē fǔzi, shīfu sòng gěi nǐ!
Lu Ban, it's time for you to go home. These axes are a gift from your old master!
- Lu Ban 师父，以后我有问题，问谁呢？
Shīfu, yǐhòu wǒ yǒu wèntí, wèn shéi ne?
Master, who will I ask when I have questions from now on?
- The Old Master 问小草，问小虫……它们会教你。好了，我要睡了……
Wèn xiǎo cǎo, wèn xiǎo chóng… tāmen huì jiāo nǐ. Hǎo le, wǒ yào shuì le…
Ask the grass. Ask the little bugs… They'll teach you. Now, I'm going back to sleep…
- Lu Ban 小草会教我？小草不会说话啊！师父，您先别睡！
Xiǎo cǎo huì jiāo wǒ? Xiǎo cǎo bú huì shuōhuà a! Shīfu, nín xiān bié shuì!
Grass will teach me? Grass can't even talk! Master, don't fall asleep yet!
What changed in the story?
- What does Lu Ban want from the old man on the mountain?
“我要跟他学。我要做最好的房子，最好的桥！”
- What does Lu Ban do while the old man sleeps?
“我来磨斧子……鲁班磨了七天七夜。”
- How long does the old man think he has been asleep?
“我还以为，我只睡了一个晚上！”
- Why does the old man make Lu Ban his student?
“第十二天，大树倒了。……你是我的学生了！”
- Who does the master say will teach Lu Ban from now on?
“问小草，问小虫……它们会教你。”