The Second Cup of Tea · chapter 6 of 8
A Voice on the Phone
电话里的声音
Late one night, Jiang Ning calls Lu Wei just to hear his voice. What she hears instead is a whisper, a woman's laugh, and her own name.
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Read what you hear
- Jiang Ning 星期二晚上十点，我一个人坐在沙发上。
Xīngqī'èr wǎnshang shí diǎn, wǒ yí gè rén zuò zài shāfā shang.
Tuesday night, ten o'clock. I'm sitting on the sofa by myself.
- Jiang Ning 电脑开着，可是我一个字也没看。
Diànnǎo kāizhe, kěshì wǒ yí gè zì yě méi kàn.
My laptop is open, but I haven't read a single word.
- Jiang Ning 这两天，陆伟很少给我打电话。他说他很忙。
Zhè liǎng tiān, Lù Wěi hěn shǎo gěi wǒ dǎ diànhuà. Tā shuō tā hěn máng.
For two days now, Lu Wei has hardly called. He says he's busy.
- Jiang Ning 我想听听他的声音。我给他打了电话。
Wǒ xiǎng tīngting tā de shēngyīn. Wǒ gěi tā dǎ le diànhuà.
I want to hear his voice, so I call him.
- Lu Wei ……对，星期四晚上七点。别告诉江宁！
… Duì, xīngqīsì wǎnshang qī diǎn. Bié gàosu Jiāng Níng!
…Right, Thursday night at seven. Don't tell Jiang Ning!
- Jiang Ning 别告诉江宁？
Bié gàosu Jiāng Níng?
Don't tell Jiang Ning?
- Jiang Ning 我还听见一个女人在笑：“阿伟，快！下一个！”
Wǒ hái tīngjiàn yí gè nǚrén zài xiào: “Ā Wěi, kuài! Xià yí gè!”
I can hear a woman laughing, too: “A-Wei, hurry! Next one!”
- Lu Wei 喂？江宁？你……你好！
Wéi? Jiāng Níng? Nǐ… nǐ hǎo!
Hello? Jiang Ning? Oh… hi!
- Jiang Ning 你在哪儿？旁边有人吗？
Nǐ zài nǎr? Pángbiān yǒu rén ma?
Where are you? Is someone with you?
- Lu Wei 没有，没有人！我在家。
Méiyǒu, méiyǒu rén! Wǒ zài jiā.
No, nobody! I'm at home.
- Jiang Ning 没有人？可是我听见了。
Méiyǒu rén? Kěshì wǒ tīngjiàn le.
Nobody? But I heard her.
- Lu Wei 江宁，我今天有点儿忙。明天给你打电话，好吗？
Jiāng Níng, wǒ jīntiān yǒudiǎnr máng. Míngtiān gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà, hǎo ma?
Jiang Ning, I'm a bit busy tonight. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?
- Jiang Ning ……好。
… Hǎo.
…Okay.
- Jiang Ning 电话没有声音了。我看着手机，看了很久。
Diànhuà méiyǒu shēngyīn le. Wǒ kànzhe shǒujī, kàn le hěn jiǔ.
The line goes quiet. I stare at my phone for a long time.
- Jiang Ning 那个女人是谁？“下一个”是什么意思？
Nàge nǚrén shì shéi? “Xià yí gè” shì shénme yìsi?
Who was that woman? And what did “next one” mean?
- Jiang Ning 星期四晚上……那是我们的星期四啊。
Xīngqīsì wǎnshang… nà shì wǒmen de xīngqīsì a.
Thursday night… That's our Thursday.
- Jiang Ning 我想起那个下雨的星期四。他的桌子上，有两杯茶和一束花。
Wǒ xiǎng qǐ nàge xià yǔ de xīngqīsì. Tā de zhuōzi shang, yǒu liǎng bēi chá hé yí shù huā.
I think back to that rainy Thursday: two cups of tea on his table, and a bunch of flowers.
- Jiang Ning 那天，我想错了。那个女人是他的姐姐。
Nà tiān, wǒ xiǎng cuò le. Nàge nǚrén shì tā de jiějie.
I got it wrong that night. That woman was his sister.
- Jiang Ning 这次，我是不是又想错了？
Zhè cì, wǒ shì bú shì yòu xiǎng cuò le?
Am I getting it wrong again this time?
- Jiang Ning 我给陆芳打电话。可是她没有接。
Wǒ gěi Lù Fāng dǎ diànhuà. Kěshì tā méiyǒu jiē.
I call Lu Fang. But she doesn't pick up.
- Jiang Ning 我们的星期四，他要跟谁在一起？
Wǒmen de xīngqīsì, tā yào gēn shéi zài yìqǐ?
Our Thursday. Who is he going to spend it with?
What changed in the story?
- What does Jiang Ning overhear before Lu Wei speaks to her?
“别告诉江宁！”
- What does the woman in the background say?
“阿伟，快！下一个！”
- When Jiang Ning asks if anyone is with him, what does Lu Wei say?
“没有，没有人！我在家。”
- What mistake does Jiang Ning remember making once before?
“那天，我想错了。那个女人是他的姐姐。”
- Why does “Thursday night” upset Jiang Ning?
“那是我们的星期四啊”