The Magic Lotus Lantern · chapter 3 of 6
Under Mount Hua
压在华山下
Without her lantern, Sanshengmu must face her brother alone and make a hard choice. Fourteen years later, a boy starts asking questions.
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Read what you hear
- Narrator 第二天早上，二郎神又来了。宝莲灯在他的手里。
Dì èr tiān zǎoshang, Èrláng Shén yòu lái le. Bǎolián Dēng zài tā de shǒu li.
The next morning, Erlang Shen came back. The Lotus Lantern was in his hand.
- Erlang Shen 三妹，你的宝莲灯，现在是我的了。
Sānmèi, nǐ de Bǎolián Dēng, xiànzài shì wǒ de le.
Sister, your Lotus Lantern is mine now.
- Sanshengmu 没有宝莲灯……我打不过二哥了。
Méiyǒu Bǎolián Dēng… wǒ dǎ bu guò èrgē le.
Without the Lotus Lantern... I can't beat my brother.
- Liu Yanchang 那是三娘的灯！你怎么能拿别人的东西？还给她！
Nà shì Sānniáng de dēng! Nǐ zěnme néng ná biérén de dōngxi? Huán gěi tā!
That's Sanniang's lantern! How dare you take other people's things? Give it back to her!
- Erlang Shen 不是我拿的，是哮天犬拿的。
Bú shì wǒ ná de, shì Xiàotiānquǎn ná de.
I didn't take it. Xiaotian did.
- Liu Yanchang 你的狗，还吃了我的一百个包子！一个也没有了！
Nǐ de gǒu, hái chī le wǒ de yìbǎi gè bāozi! Yí gè yě méiyǒu le!
And your dog ate all hundred of my buns! There's not a single one left!
- Erlang Shen ……哮天犬，别吃了！
… Xiàotiānquǎn, bié chī le!
...Xiaotian, stop eating!
- Erlang Shen 三妹，天条就是天条。你要压在华山下面。
Sānmèi, tiāntiáo jiù shì tiāntiáo. Nǐ yào yā zài Huà Shān xiàmiàn.
Sister, heaven's law is heaven's law. You will be shut away under Mount Hua.
- Sanshengmu 好，我跟你走。可是二哥，他们两个没有错。你放了他们。
Hǎo, wǒ gēn nǐ zǒu. Kěshì èrgē, tāmen liǎng gè méiyǒu cuò. Nǐ fàng le tāmen.
All right, I'll go with you. But Brother, these two have done nothing wrong. Let them go.
- Erlang Shen ……天条管的是神仙。一个读书人，一个小孩子，我不要。
… Tiāntiáo guǎn de shì shénxiān. Yí gè dúshūrén, yí gè xiǎo háizi, wǒ bú yào.
...Heaven's law is for gods. A scholar and a baby are no business of mine.
- Liu Yanchang 三娘，不要走！我跟你一起去！
Sānniáng, bú yào zǒu! Wǒ gēn nǐ yìqǐ qù!
Sanniang, don't go! I'm coming with you!
- Sanshengmu 彦昌，你要留下来。沉香还小，他不能没有爸爸。
Yànchāng, nǐ yào liú xiàlái. Chénxiāng hái xiǎo, tā bù néng méiyǒu bàba.
Yanchang, you have to stay. Chenxiang is still so little. He can't lose his father too.
- Sanshengmu 沉香，妈妈要走了。你带着这块沉香，妈妈一闻就知道是你。
Chénxiāng, māma yào zǒu le. Nǐ dàizhe zhè kuài chénxiāng, māma yì wén jiù zhīdào shì nǐ.
Chenxiang, Mama has to go now. Keep this agarwood with you, and Mama will know you by its smell.
- Liu Yanchang 三娘，我们……还能看见你吗？
Sānniáng, wǒmen… hái néng kànjiàn nǐ ma?
Sanniang, will we... ever see you again?
- Sanshengmu 能。等沉香长大了，你告诉他：妈妈在华山下面，等他来。
Néng. Děng Chénxiāng zhǎngdà le, nǐ gàosu tā: māma zài Huà Shān xiàmiàn, děng tā lái.
You will. When Chenxiang is grown, tell him this: his mother is under Mount Hua, waiting for him to come.
- Sanshengmu 二哥，你拿了我的灯。可是，有一天，它会回来的。
Èrgē, nǐ ná le wǒ de dēng. Kěshì, yǒu yì tiān, tā huì huílái de.
Brother, you have taken my lantern. But one day, it will come back.
- Narrator 二郎神用手一指，华山慢慢地压了下来。三圣母被压在了山下。
Èrláng Shén yòng shǒu yì zhǐ, Huà Shān mànmàn de yā le xiàlái. Sānshèngmǔ bèi yā zài le shān xià.
Erlang Shen pointed, and Mount Hua slowly came down. Sanshengmu was shut away beneath the mountain.
- Liu Yanchang 三娘！三娘！
Sānniáng! Sānniáng!
Sanniang! Sanniang!
- Sanshengmu 彦昌……照顾好我们的沉香……
Yànchāng… zhàogù hǎo wǒmen de Chénxiāng…
Yanchang... take good care of our Chenxiang...
- Liu Yanchang 三娘，你等着！我们的儿子，一定会来救你！
Sānniáng, nǐ děngzhe! Wǒmen de érzi, yídìng huì lái jiù nǐ!
Sanniang, wait for us! Our son will come and save you, I promise!
- Erlang Shen 三妹……对不起。天条就是天条。
Sānmèi… duìbuqǐ. Tiāntiáo jiù shì tiāntiáo.
Sister... I'm sorry. Heaven's law is heaven's law.
- Narrator 一年，两年……十四年过去了。
Yì nián, liǎng nián… shísì nián guòqù le.
One year passed, then two... then fourteen.
- Chenxiang 爸爸！村里的孩子又说，我没有妈妈！
Bàba! Cūn li de háizi yòu shuō, wǒ méiyǒu māma!
Dad! The village kids said it again, that I don't have a mother!
- Liu Yanchang 沉香，别听他们的。来，吃个包子！
Chénxiāng, bié tīng tāmen de. Lái, chī gè bāozi!
Don't listen to them, Chenxiang. Here, have a bun!
- Chenxiang 我不要包子，我要妈妈！我的妈妈在哪儿？
Wǒ bú yào bāozi, wǒ yào māma! Wǒ de māma zài nǎr?
I don't want a bun, I want my mother! Where is she?
- Liu Yanchang 你的妈妈……在很远的地方。
Nǐ de māma… zài hěn yuǎn de dìfang.
Your mother is... somewhere far away.
- Chenxiang 很远？有多远？你每一次都这么说！
Hěn yuǎn? Yǒu duō yuǎn? Nǐ měi yí cì dōu zhème shuō!
Far away? How far? That's what you always say!
- Liu Yanchang 这个孩子……跟他的妈妈一样。
Zhège háizi… gēn tā de māma yíyàng.
This boy... he's just like his mother.
- Chenxiang 爸爸，你天天晚上都看着华山。我的妈妈……是不是在华山？
Bàba, nǐ tiāntiān wǎnshang dōu kànzhe Huà Shān. Wǒ de māma… shì bu shì zài Huà Shān?
Dad, you look at Mount Hua every single night. Is my mother... at Mount Hua?
What changed in the story?
- Who took the Lotus Lantern in the night?
“不是我拿的，是哮天犬拿的。”
- What does Sanshengmu ask her brother to do before she goes?
“他们两个没有错。你放了他们。”
- How will Sanshengmu know her son when he is grown?
“你带着这块沉香，妈妈一闻就知道是你。”
- What does Liu promise after the mountain comes down?
“我们的儿子，一定会来救你！”
- Why does Chenxiang think his mother might be at Mount Hua?
“你天天晚上都看着华山。我的妈妈……是不是在华山？”