The White Snake · chapter 1 of 3
An Umbrella at West Lake
西湖边的伞
Spring rain at West Lake, a young woman with a secret, and a kind stranger who gives away his umbrella, while an old monk watches from the bridge.
Hear the chapter
Read what you hear
- Narrator 很久很久以前的一个春天，杭州的西湖边，突然下起了大雨。
Hěn jiǔ hěn jiǔ yǐqián de yí gè chūntiān, Hángzhōu de Xī Hú biān, tūrán xià qǐ le dàyǔ.
Long, long ago, one spring day, a heavy rain suddenly began to fall on West Lake in Hangzhou.
- Bai Suzhen 雨这么大，我又没有带伞……先到这棵大树下面站一会儿吧。
Yǔ zhème dà, wǒ yòu méiyǒu dài sǎn… xiān dào zhè kē dà shù xiàmiàn zhàn yíhuìr ba.
It's pouring, and of course I have no umbrella… I'll wait under this big tree for a while.
- Bai Suzhen 谁也不知道，我本来是一条白蛇。我在山上学了一千年法术，才变成了人。
Shéi yě bù zhīdào, wǒ běnlái shì yì tiáo bái shé. Wǒ zài shān shang xué le yìqiān nián fǎshù, cái biànchéng le rén.
No one knows it, but I was once a white snake. I studied magic in the mountains for a thousand years before I became human.
- Bai Suzhen 我不想再回山上去了。我想做一个人，在人间好好地生活。
Wǒ bù xiǎng zài huí shān shang qù le. Wǒ xiǎng zuò yí gè rén, zài rénjiān hǎohǎo de shēnghuó.
I don't want to go back to the mountains. I want to be a person and live a good life among people.
- Xu Xian 姑娘！雨下得这么大，你怎么没有伞？来，这把伞给你用吧！
Gūniang! Yǔ xià de zhème dà, nǐ zěnme méiyǒu sǎn? Lái, zhè bǎ sǎn gěi nǐ yòng ba!
Miss! It's pouring. Don't you have an umbrella? Here, take mine!
- Bai Suzhen 给我？那你怎么办呢？
Gěi wǒ? Nà nǐ zěnme bàn ne?
For me? But what about you?
- Xu Xian 我没关系，我跑得很快！我叫许仙，在前面的药店工作。
Wǒ méi guānxi, wǒ pǎo de hěn kuài! Wǒ jiào Xǔ Xiān, zài qiánmiàn de yàodiàn gōngzuò.
I'll be fine, I'm a fast runner! My name is Xu Xian. I work at the pharmacy up ahead.
- Bai Suzhen 许公子，谢谢你。我叫白素贞。这把伞，我怎么还给你呢？
Xǔ gōngzǐ, xièxie nǐ. Wǒ jiào Bái Sùzhēn. Zhè bǎ sǎn, wǒ zěnme huán gěi nǐ ne?
Thank you, Mr. Xu. My name is Bai Suzhen. But how will I return your umbrella?
- Xu Xian 明天下午，我再来这里拿，好吗？
Míngtiān xiàwǔ, wǒ zài lái zhèlǐ ná, hǎo ma?
I'll come back here for it tomorrow afternoon. All right?
- Bai Suzhen 好，明天我就在这里等你。
Hǎo, míngtiān wǒ jiù zài zhèlǐ děng nǐ.
All right. I'll be right here waiting for you tomorrow.
- Xu Xian 白姑娘的眼睛真美……明天，我一定要早一点儿来！
Bái gūniang de yǎnjing zhēn měi… míngtiān, wǒ yídìng yào zǎo yìdiǎnr lái!
Miss Bai has such beautiful eyes… Tomorrow I'm coming early!
- Narrator 湖边的桥上，一个老和尚一直在看着他们。他叫法海。
Hú biān de qiáo shang, yí gè lǎo héshang yìzhí zài kànzhe tāmen. Tā jiào Fǎhǎi.
On a bridge by the lake, an old monk had been watching them all along. His name was Fahai.
- Fahai 那个穿白衣服的女子，身上有妖气……她不是人！
Nàge chuān bái yīfu de nǚzǐ, shēnshang yǒu yāoqì… tā bú shì rén!
That woman in white carries a demon's air… She is not human!
- Xu Xian 白姑娘，你真的在这里等我！我……我是来拿伞的。
Bái gūniang, nǐ zhēn de zài zhèlǐ děng wǒ! Wǒ… wǒ shì lái ná sǎn de.
Miss Bai, you really waited for me! I… I came for my umbrella.
- Bai Suzhen 许公子，你只是来拿伞的吗？
Xǔ gōngzǐ, nǐ zhǐshì lái ná sǎn de ma?
Mr. Xu, is the umbrella the only reason you came?
- Xu Xian 不是……昨天晚上，我一直在想你，一晚上都没有睡好。
Bú shì… zuótiān wǎnshang, wǒ yìzhí zài xiǎng nǐ, yì wǎnshang dōu méiyǒu shuì hǎo.
No… I thought about you all last night. I hardly slept.
- Narrator 一个月以后，他们结婚了，还开了一家小药店。
Yí gè yuè yǐhòu, tāmen jiéhūn le, hái kāi le yì jiā xiǎo yàodiàn.
A month later they were married, and they opened a little pharmacy of their own.
- Bai Suzhen 相公，这些病人家里都很穷。没有钱也没关系，我们先给他们看病吧。
Xiànggong, zhèxiē bìngrén jiā lǐ dōu hěn qióng. Méiyǒu qián yě méi guānxi, wǒmen xiān gěi tāmen kànbìng ba.
My husband, these patients are all very poor. Never mind the money. Let's treat them first.
- Xu Xian 好，都听娘子的。娘子，你的心比西湖还美！
Hǎo, dōu tīng niángzǐ de. Niángzǐ, nǐ de xīn bǐ Xī Hú hái měi!
Whatever you say, my dear. Your heart is even lovelier than West Lake!
- Fahai 许仙，站住！我是金山寺的法海。你的身上，有妖气。
Xǔ Xiān, zhànzhù! Wǒ shì Jīnshān Sì de Fǎhǎi. Nǐ de shēnshang, yǒu yāoqì.
Xu Xian, stop right there! I am Fahai of Jinshan Temple. There is a demon's air about you.
- Xu Xian 妖气？师父，你在说什么？我听不懂。
Yāoqì? Shīfu, nǐ zài shuō shénme? Wǒ tīng bù dǒng.
A demon's air? Master, what are you talking about? I don't understand.
- Fahai 你的娘子不是人。端午节那天，让她喝一杯雄黄酒，你就知道了！
Nǐ de niángzǐ bú shì rén. Duānwǔjié nà tiān, ràng tā hē yì bēi xiónghuángjiǔ, nǐ jiù zhīdào le!
Your wife is not human. On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, have her drink a cup of realgar wine. Then you'll know!
- Xu Xian 雄黄酒？……不会的，不会的。我的娘子这么好，怎么会是妖怪呢？
Xiónghuángjiǔ?… Bú huì de, bú huì de. Wǒ de niángzǐ zhème hǎo, zěnme huì shì yāoguài ne?
Realgar wine?… No. No, it can't be. My wife is so good. How could she be a demon?
What changed in the story?
- What is Bai Suzhen's secret?
“谁也不知道，我本来是一条白蛇。”
- Why does Xu Xian give Bai Suzhen his umbrella?
“雨下得这么大，你怎么没有伞？来，这把伞给你用吧！”
- Why does Xu Xian really come back the next day?
“我是来拿伞的……昨天晚上，我一直在想你”
- What does Bai Suzhen want to do for the poor patients?
“没有钱也没关系，我们先给他们看病吧。”
- What does Fahai tell Xu Xian to do?
“端午节那天，让她喝一杯雄黄酒，你就知道了！”