World classic, retold in simple Mandarin
The Three Musketeers
三个火枪手
The Three Musketeers (三个火枪手, Sān gè huǒqiāngshǒu) is a classic by Alexandre Dumas, retold in simple Mandarin as an 8-chapter story with audio for learners at about HSK 3 (Intermediate).
Retold from Alexandre Dumas's classic novel: a brave country boy joins three famous musketeers and races to London to save the queen's diamonds before the ball.
Meet the voices
- Narrator · 旁白 — The warm storyteller of the tale.
- D'Artagnan · 达达尼昂 — A brave, hot-headed eighteen-year-old from the country who dreams of becoming a musketeer.
- Athos · 阿多斯 — The calm, serious leader of the three musketeers.
- Porthos · 波尔多斯 — A huge, boastful musketeer who loves his fancy clothes.
- Aramis · 阿拉密斯 — A smooth, polite musketeer with a handkerchief and a joke ready.
- Captain Treville · 特雷维尔 — The stern captain of the musketeers.
- Rochefort · 罗什福尔 — A scarred man who works for the Cardinal.
- Milady · 米拉迪 — A beautiful and dangerous lady who spies for the Cardinal.
- Constance · 康斯坦斯 — The queen's loyal servant.
- Jussac · 朱萨克 — The proud captain of the Cardinal's guards.
- The King · 国王 — The king of France, who likes a good story and a brave boy.
- The Queen · 王后 — The kind, graceful queen whose secret is in danger.
- The Cardinal · 红衣主教 — The powerful, scheming cardinal who runs the kingdom.
- Duke of Buckingham · 白金汉 — The English duke who holds the queen's diamonds.
- The Old Craftsman · 老师傅 — A slow, careful goldsmith who believes good things cannot be rushed.
- Mr. Bonacieux · 博纳希厄 — D'Artagnan's frightened landlord.
- Ship's Captain · 船长 — A booming sea captain who jokes with D'Artagnan.
8 chapters, one journey
Chapter 1: The Yellow Pony
黄色的小马
A country boy rides into Paris to become a musketeer, loses his letter and picks a fight with three of the best swordsmen in the city, all in one day.
Free to read
Chapter 2: Noon at the Convent
中午十二点
Three duels turn into one big fight when the Cardinal's guards arrive, and the king wants to meet the boy who won it.
SayMei Stories
Chapter 3: The Queen's Secret
王后的秘密
A frightened woman brings D'Artagnan a secret that could ruin the queen, and only four friends can keep it.
SayMei Stories
Chapter 4: The Road to the Sea
去海边的路
Four friends ride for the sea with the queen's letter, but the Cardinal has men on every road.
SayMei Stories
Chapter 5: The Duke in London
伦敦的公爵
The duke opens the box of diamonds and finds a terrible surprise: two are gone.
SayMei Stories
Chapter 6: Four Days
只有四天
With only four days left, D'Artagnan races home through a night of storms, tired horses and enemies.
SayMei Stories
Chapter 7: The Night of the Ball
舞会之夜
The queen walks into the ball wearing her diamonds, and the Cardinal has a trick of his own ready.
SayMei Stories
Chapter 8: All for One
大家为一个人
The Cardinal calls D'Artagnan in for a surprise, and the four friends get one last chance to say the words that made them friends.
SayMei Stories
Key words in The Three Musketeers
Behind the story
The Three Musketeers was written by the French author Alexandre Dumas and first published in 1844 as a newspaper serial. It is set in the 1620s, when musketeers were soldiers who guarded the king of France, and it follows a young man from Gascony, D'Artagnan, who comes to Paris hoping to join them.
In China the book is known as 三个火枪手, and it has been translated many times since the early twentieth century. Chinese readers know it as a classic adventure of loyal friendship, and it is often read in schools and enjoyed by young readers. The motto of the four friends, 'all for one, one for all', is easy to say and easy to remember in any language.
Did you know?
- Alexandre Dumas also wrote The Count of Monte Cristo, another famous adventure story that many Chinese readers love.
- The real Cardinal Richelieu was one of the most powerful men in France, and the guards who wore red cloaks in this story were called his guards.
- In the novel, the musketeers wear a blue tabard with a white cross, which is why they are easy to spot in the story.