The Little Mermaid · chapter 1 of 5
The Fifteenth Birthday
十五岁生日
On her fifteenth birthday the youngest mermaid finally swims up to the surface and sees a prince's party. Then the sky turns black.
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Read what you hear
- Narrator 很久很久以前，海底有一座大房子。国王有六个女儿，小人鱼最小。
Hěn jiǔ hěn jiǔ yǐqián, hǎidǐ yǒu yízuò dà fángzi. Guówáng yǒu liù gè nǚ'ér, Xiǎo Rényú zuì xiǎo.
Long, long ago, there was a great palace at the bottom of the sea. The king had six daughters, and the little mermaid was the youngest.
- Eldest Sister 小妹，起床！今天你十五岁了！
Xiǎomèi, qǐchuáng! Jīntiān nǐ shí wǔ suì le!
Wake up, little sister! You're fifteen today!
- The Little Mermaid 十五岁？那我今天可以上去了吗？
Shí wǔ suì? Nà wǒ jīntiān kěyǐ shàngqù le ma?
Fifteen? Then can I go up to the surface today?
- Eldest Sister 可以！我们五个人都去过了。你是最后一个。
Kěyǐ! Wǒmen wǔ gè rén dōu qù guò le. Nǐ shì zuìhòu yí gè.
Yes! All five of us have been already. You're the last one.
- The Little Mermaid 我等了五年！五年比五百年还长！
Wǒ děng le wǔ nián! Wǔ nián bǐ wǔ bǎi nián háicháng!
I've waited five years! Five years is longer than five hundred!
- Eldest Sister 好了好了。奶奶在等你，她有礼物。
Hǎo le hǎo le. Nǎinai zài děng nǐ, tā yǒu lǐwù.
All right, all right. Grandmother is waiting for you, and she has a gift.
- Grandmother 来，我的孩子，头低一点。我给你戴上白花和贝壳。
Lái, wǒ de háizi, tóu dī yìdiǎn. Wǒ gěi nǐ dài shàng bái huā hé bèi ké.
Come, my child, lower your head a little. I'll put white flowers and shells on you.
- The Little Mermaid 哎哟！奶奶，这些贝壳好疼！
Āi yō! Nǎinai, zhèxiē bèi ké hǎo téng!
Ow! Grandmother, these shells hurt!
- Grandmother 想漂亮，就要忍一忍。
Xiǎng piàoliang, jiùyào rěn yi rěn.
If you want to be beautiful, you have to put up with a little.
- The Little Mermaid 那我不要漂亮了！我只想上去看看！
Nà wǒ búyào piàoliang le! Wǒ zhǐ xiǎng shàngqù kàn kan!
Then I don't want to be beautiful! I just want to go up and look!
- Grandmother 听着，孩子。你可以看，可以听，可是不要靠近人。人和我们不一样。
Tīngzhe, háizi. Nǐ kěyǐ kàn, kěyǐ tīng, kěshì búyào kàojìn rén. Rén hé wǒmen bù yíyàng.
Listen, child. You may look and listen, but don't go near the humans. They are not like us.
- The Little Mermaid 我记住了，奶奶！
Wǒ jìzhù le, nǎinai!
I'll remember, Grandmother!
- Eldest Sister 听说人有两条腿，走路的时候很奇怪！
Tīngshuō rén yǒu liǎng tiáo tuǐ, zǒulù de shíhou hěn qíguài!
I heard humans have two legs, and they look so funny when they walk!
- The Little Mermaid 两条腿？那我一定要看看！
Liǎng tiáo tuǐ? Nà wǒ yídìng yào kàn kan!
Two legs? Then I simply must see that!
- Eldest Sister 小妹，回来要告诉我们你看见了什么！
Xiǎomèi, huílái yào gàosu wǒmen nǐ kànjiàn le shénme!
Little sister, tell us everything you see when you come back!
- The Little Mermaid 哇……天是红的，海是金色的。
Wa… Tiān shì hóng de, hǎi shì jīn sè de.
Wow... the sky is red, and the sea is gold.
- The Little Mermaid 那是什么？一只大船！船上有灯，还有好多人！
Nà shì shénme? Yìzhī dà chuán! Chuán shàng yǒu dēng, háiyǒu hǎoduō rén!
What's that? A big ship! There are lights on it, and so many people!
- Sailor 王子十六岁了！大家一起说，生日快乐！
Wángzǐ shí liù suì le! Dàjiā yìqǐ shuō, shēngrì kuàilè!
The prince is sixteen! Everyone together now: happy birthday!
- The Little Mermaid 王子？哪一个是王子？
Wángzǐ? Nǎ yí gè shì Wángzǐ?
A prince? Which one is the prince?
- The Prince 谢谢大家！今天晚上，我们吃，我们唱，我们跳！
Xièxie dàjiā! Jīntiān wǎnshang, wǒmen chī, wǒmen chàng, wǒmen tiào!
Thank you, everyone! Tonight we eat, we sing, we dance!
- The Little Mermaid 是他……他的眼睛好黑，笑得好开心。我不想看别的地方了。
Shì tā… Tā de yǎnjing hǎo hēi, xiào de hǎo kāixīn. Wǒ bù xiǎng kàn biéde dìfang le.
It's him... His eyes are so dark, and his smile is so happy. I don't want to look anywhere else.
- Sailor 放烟花了！
Fàng yānhuā le!
Fireworks!
- The Little Mermaid 天上开花了！红的，蓝的，金色的！
Tiānshàng kāihuā le! Hóng de, lán de, jīn sè de!
Flowers are blooming in the sky! Red, blue, gold!
- Sailor 王子，快许一个愿吧！
Wángzǐ, kuài xǔ yí gè yuàn ba!
Prince, make a wish!
- The Prince 我的愿望？我想每天都在海上！
Wǒ de yuànwàng? Wǒ xiǎng měi tiān dōu zài hǎi shàng!
My wish? I want to be out on the sea every single day!
- The Prince 这是我最好的生日！
Zhè shì wǒ zuìhǎo de shēngrì!
This is my best birthday ever!
- The Little Mermaid 再近一点点……奶奶不会知道的。
Zài jìn yìdiǎndiǎn… Nǎinai bú huì zhīdao de.
Just a tiny bit closer... Grandmother won't know.
- Sailor 船长，你看天上！云越来越黑了！
Chuánzhǎng, nǐ kàn tiānshàng! Yún yuèláiyuè hēi le!
Captain, look at the sky! The clouds are getting darker and darker!
- Captain 大风要来了！大家快回船里，抓紧绳子！
Dà fēng yào lái le! Dàjiā kuài huí chuán lǐ, zhuājǐn shéng zi!
A big wind is coming! Everyone back on board, and hold the ropes tight!
- The Prince 别怕！大家一起来，我们能过去！
Bié pà! Dàjiā yìqǐ lái, wǒmen néng guò qù!
Don't be afraid! All together, we can get through this!
- Sailor 大浪来了！
Dà làng lái le!
A huge wave!
- Sailor 王子掉进海里了！
Wángzǐ diào jìn hǎi lǐ le!
The prince has fallen into the sea!
What changed in the story?
- What is special about today for the little mermaid?
“今天你十五岁了！”
- What does Grandmother say about the shells and flowers?
“想漂亮，就要忍一忍。”
- What warning does Grandmother give?
“可是不要靠近人。”
- What is the party on the ship for?
“王子十六岁了！大家一起说，生日快乐！”
- How does the chapter end?
“王子掉进海里了！”