The Magic Brocade · chapter 3 of 4
Fire and the Cold Sea
火山和冷海
A San rides the stone horse through a mountain of fire and across a freezing sea. On Sun Mountain, a fairy finds him hiding, and the eldest fairy senses a human.
Read what you hear
- The Stone Horse 抓紧了！前面就是火山，很热很热！
Zhuā jǐn le! Qiánmiàn jiù shì huǒshān, hěn rè hěn rè!
Hold tight! The fire mountain is just ahead, and it is very hot!
- A San 好热！火好大！我的手好热！
Hǎo rè! Huǒ hǎo dà! Wǒ de shǒu hǎo rè!
So hot! The fire is huge! My hands are burning hot!
- The Stone Horse 闭上眼睛。别看火，也别回头。
Bì shàng yǎnjing. Bié kàn huǒ, yě bié huí tóu.
Close your eyes. Don't look at the fire, and don't look back.
Chapter 3 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of The Magic Brocade is free, and so are The Second Cup of Tea, Mulan, The Butterfly Lovers, Journey to the West: The Monkey King, Cinderella, The Night of the Nian, Chang'e and the Moon, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, Aesop's Fables, Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, The Ugly Duckling, Pangu and Nüwa: How the World Began, Beauty and the Beast, The Magic Lotus Lantern, Alice in Wonderland, Zhong Kui the Demon Queller, The Odyssey, Robin Hood, Jiang Ziya Goes Fishing, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Kitchen God from start to finish.
- A San 妈妈……妈妈……我不能回头……我要带锦回家……
Māma… māma… wǒ bù néng huí tóu… wǒ yào dài jǐn huí jiā…
Mama... Mama... I can't look back... I have to bring the brocade home...
- The Stone Horse 对！你想着你的妈妈，火就没那么热。
Duì! Nǐ xiǎng zhe nǐ de māma, huǒ jiù méi nàme rè.
Yes! Think of your mother, and the fire won't feel so hot.
- A San 我想着她！我在想妈妈织的小河！
Wǒ xiǎng zhe tā! Wǒ zài xiǎng māma zhī de xiǎo hé!
I'm thinking of her! I'm thinking of the little river Mama wove!
- A San 咦……真的没那么热了！
Yí… zhēn de méi nàme rè le!
Hey... it really isn't as hot anymore!
- A San 石马，你的腿不热吗？
Shímǎ, nǐ de tuǐ bú rè ma?
Stone Horse, aren't your legs hot?
- The Stone Horse 我是石头，我不怕热。可是你是小孩子，你要小心。
Wǒ shì shítou, wǒ bú pà rè. Kěshì nǐ shì xiǎo háizi, nǐ yào xiǎoxīn.
I'm stone, so I don't mind the heat. But you're a child, so be careful.
- The Stone Horse 快到了！再跑一下，就过去了！
Kuài dào le! Zài pǎo yíxià, jiù guòqù le!
Almost there! One more dash and we're through!
- A San 我们过来了！火山在后面了！
Wǒmen guòlái le! Huǒshān zài hòumiàn le!
We made it across! The fire mountain is behind us!
- The Stone Horse 现在是冷海。抓紧，别掉下去。
Xiànzài shì lěng hǎi. Zhuā jǐn, bié diào xiàqù.
Now comes the cold sea. Hold tight, and don't fall off.
- A San 好冷！我的手动不了了！
Hǎo lěng! Wǒ de shǒu dòng bù liǎo le!
So cold! I can't move my hands!
- A San 我想回家……我想回头看妈妈……
Wǒ xiǎng huí jiā… wǒ xiǎng huí tóu kàn māma…
I want to go home... I want to look back for Mama...
- The Stone Horse 不能回头！回头，你就回不了家。
Bù néng huí tóu! Huí tóu, nǐ jiù huí bù liǎo jiā.
Don't look back! If you do, you'll never get home.
- A San 对……不回头。妈妈在家等我，我要回去！
Duì… bù huí tóu. Māma zài jiā děng wǒ, wǒ yào huíqù!
Right... I won't look back. Mama is waiting for me at home, and I'm going back!
- A San 一、二、三，往前走！一、二、三，往前走！
Yī, èr, sān, wǎng qián zǒu! Yī, èr, sān, wǎng qián zǒu!
One, two, three, forward! One, two, three, forward!
- A San 石马，你累不累？
Shímǎ, nǐ lèi bú lèi?
Stone Horse, are you tired?
- The Stone Horse 不累。我在这儿等了很多年，就是在等一个不回头的孩子。
Bú lèi. Wǒ zài zhèr děng le hěn duō nián, jiù shì zài děng yí gè bù huí tóu de háizi.
Not tired. I've waited here many years for a child who wouldn't look back.
- The Stone Horse 你这个孩子，真有意思。
Nǐ zhège háizi, zhēn yǒu yìsi.
You are quite a child.
- A San 石马，你看！前面有光！好大的光！
Shímǎ, nǐ kàn! Qiánmiàn yǒu guāng! Hǎo dà de guāng!
Stone Horse, look! There's a light ahead! A great big light!
- The Stone Horse 那就是太阳山。你到了。
Nà jiù shì Tàiyáng Shān. Nǐ dào le.
That is Sun Mountain. You've arrived.
- A San 好多仙女……好多织布机……石马在外面等我，我一个人进来了。
Hǎo duō xiānnǚ… hǎo duō zhībùjī… Shímǎ zài wàimiàn děng wǒ, wǒ yí gè rén jìn lái le.
So many fairies... so many looms... The stone horse is waiting outside, and I came in alone.
- A San 啊！我妈妈的锦！在那儿！
Ā! Wǒ māma de jǐn! Zài nàr!
Ah! My mother's brocade! It's over there!
- A San 我要过去……先躲在织布机后面。
Wǒ yào guòqù… xiān duǒ zài zhībùjī hòumiàn.
I need to get over there... First I'll hide behind a loom.
- A San 我只要拿了锦，就马上回家。不会有人看见我。
Wǒ zhǐyào ná le jǐn, jiù mǎshàng huí jiā. Bú huì yǒu rén kànjiàn wǒ.
I'll grab the brocade and go straight home. Nobody will see me.
- Huigu 咦？织布机后面有一个人！
Yí? Zhībùjī hòumiàn yǒu yí gè rén!
Oh? There's a person behind the loom!
- A San 嘘！仙女姐姐，请你别说话！
Xū! Xiānnǚ jiějie, qǐng nǐ bié shuōhuà!
Shh! Fairy sister, please don't say anything!
- Huigu 你是人？人怎么会来太阳山？
Nǐ shì rén? Rén zěnme huì lái Tàiyáng Shān?
You're a human? How did a human get to Sun Mountain?
- A San 我走了很远的路，在找我妈妈的锦。风把它吹到这儿来了。
Wǒ zǒu le hěn yuǎn de lù, zài zhǎo wǒ māma de jǐn. Fēng bǎ tā chuī dào zhèr lái le.
I walked a long way looking for my mother's brocade. The wind blew it here.
- Huigu 那块锦是你妈妈织的？我们都爱看它！
Nà kuài jǐn shì nǐ māma zhī de? Wǒmen dōu ài kàn tā!
Your mother wove that brocade? We all love looking at it!
- The Eldest Fairy 惠姑，你在和谁说话？让我看看！
Huìgū, nǐ zài hé shéi shuōhuà? Ràng wǒ kànkan!
Huigu, who are you talking to? Let me see!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What does the stone horse tell A San not to do?
“闭上眼睛。别看火，也别回头。”
- What helps A San when the fire feels too hot?
“你想着你的妈妈，火就没那么热。”
- What tempts A San at the freezing sea?
“我想回家……我想回头看妈妈……”
- What does A San see in the hall on Sun Mountain?
“啊！我妈妈的锦！在那儿！”
- Who finds A San hiding?
“咦？织布机后面有一个人！”