The White Snake · chapter 5 of 25
The Dragon Boat Wine
端午节的酒
At the Dragon Boat Festival, Xu Xian brings his wife a cup of realgar wine, the one thing a snake should never drink.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 端午节到了。苏州的河边，都是看船的人。
Duānwǔjié dào le. Sūzhōu de hé biān, dōu shì kàn chuán de rén.
The Dragon Boat Festival came. The riverbanks of Suzhou were crowded with people watching the boats.
- Xiaoqing 小姐，今天家家都喝雄黄酒。雄黄酒是我们蛇最怕的！
Xiǎojiě, jīntiān jiājiā dōu hē xiónghuángjiǔ. Xiónghuángjiǔ shì wǒmen shé zuì pà de!
Miss, today every house drinks realgar wine. It's what we snakes fear most!
- Xiaoqing 我们喝了它，就会变回蛇！你今天在房间里，哪儿也别去，好不好？
Wǒmen hē le tā, jiù huì biàn huí shé! Nǐ jīntiān zài fángjiān lǐ, nǎr yě bié qù, hǎo bu hǎo?
If we drink it, we turn back into snakes! Stay in your room today and don't go anywhere, all right?
Chapter 5 is part of SayMei Stories Unlimited ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapters 1–3 of The White Snake are free, and The Second Cup of Tea, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, The Kitchen God, Little Red Riding Hood, The Ugly Duckling, Chang'e and the Moon, Alice in Wonderland and Judge Dee's Cases are free from start to finish.
- Bai Suzhen 怕什么？我修行了一千多年。一杯酒，又不会死！
Pà shénme? Wǒ xiūxíng le yìqiān duō nián. Yì bēi jiǔ, yòu bú huì sǐ!
What's there to fear? I've practiced for over a thousand years. One cup of wine won't kill me!
- Bai Suzhen 你这条小青蛇，才修行了几百年，你要小心！你就说你病了，在床上别起来。
Nǐ zhè tiáo xiǎo qīngshé, cái xiūxíng le jǐ bǎi nián, nǐ yào xiǎoxīn! Nǐ jiù shuō nǐ bìng le, zài chuáng shàng bié qǐlái.
You little green snake, you've practiced only a few hundred years, so you be careful! Say you're ill, and stay in bed.
- Xiaoqing 小姐不听我的……那我去做尼姑！
Xiǎojiě bù tīng wǒ de… nà wǒ qù zuò nígū!
Miss won't listen to me... then I'm off to be a nun!
- Bai Suzhen 又是尼姑？你是我的丫头，快去“病”吧。
Yòu shì nígū? Nǐ shì wǒ de yātou, kuài qù “bìng” ba.
A nun again? You're my maid. Off you go and be “ill.”
- Xiaoqing 好，好……“我病了……我的头好疼……”
Hǎo, hǎo… “Wǒ bìng le… wǒ de tóu hǎo téng…”
Fine, fine... “I'm ill... oh, my head hurts so much...”
- Bai Suzhen 小青，你这样太假了！
Xiǎoqīng, nǐ zhèyàng tài jiǎ le!
Xiaoqing, nobody will ever believe that!
- Narrator 中午，许仙拿着雄黄酒，来到楼上。
Zhōngwǔ, Xǔ Xiān názhe xiónghuángjiǔ, láidào lóu shàng.
At noon, Xu Xian came upstairs carrying realgar wine.
- Xu Xian 娘子！今天是端午节，我拿来了雄黄酒！
Niángzǐ! Jīntiān shì Duānwǔjié, wǒ nálái le xiónghuángjiǔ!
My dear! It's the Dragon Boat Festival, and I've brought realgar wine!
- Bai Suzhen 雄黄酒？官人，你也喝雄黄酒？
Xiónghuángjiǔ? Guānrén, nǐ yě hē xiónghuángjiǔ?
Realgar wine? You drink that too, dear?
- Xu Xian 对！家家都喝。大家都说，喝了它，蛇和妖怪都不会来！
Duì! Jiājiā dōu hē. Dàjiā dōu shuō, hē le tā, shé hé yāoguài dōu bú huì lái!
That's right! Every house drinks it. They say that once you've drunk it, snakes and demons keep away!
- Bai Suzhen 官人，我今天很累，不能喝酒。
Guānrén, wǒ jīntiān hěn lèi, bù néng hē jiǔ.
I'm very tired today, dear. I can't drink.
- Xu Xian 就一杯！一年就一个端午节，娘子，你就和我喝一杯吧！
Jiù yì bēi! Yì nián jiù yí gè Duānwǔjié, niángzǐ, nǐ jiù hé wǒ hē yì bēi ba!
Just one cup! The Dragon Boat Festival only comes once a year. Please, my dear, have one cup with me!
- Xu Xian 你不喝，我就不去看船了，就站在这儿等！
Nǐ bù hē, wǒ jiù bú qù kàn chuán le, jiù zhàn zài zhèr děng!
If you don't drink, I won't go and watch the boats. I'll just stand right here and wait!
- Bai Suzhen 不喝，官人会不高兴的……就一杯，应该没关系吧。
Bù hē, guānrén huì bù gāoxìng de… jiù yì bēi, yīnggāi méi guānxi ba.
If I refuse, he'll be hurt... Just one cup should be all right.
- Bai Suzhen 好吧，官人，就一杯。
Hǎo ba, guānrén, jiù yì bēi.
All right, dear. Just one cup.
- Xu Xian 太好了，娘子，干杯！
Tài hǎo le, niángzǐ, gānbēi!
Wonderful! To you, my dear!
- Xu Xian 你在这儿休息吧，我去河边看船，一会儿就回来！
Nǐ zài zhèr xiūxi ba, wǒ qù hé biān kàn chuán, yíhuìr jiù huílái!
You rest here. I'm going down to the river to watch the boats. I'll be back soon!
- Bai Suzhen 官人走了……好热……身体里像有火一样……
Guānrén zǒu le… hǎo rè… shēntǐ lǐ xiàng yǒu huǒ yíyàng…
He's gone... so hot... it's like there's a fire inside me...
- Bai Suzhen 不行……我的法术……我不能变回去……不能吓到我的丈夫……
Bùxíng… wǒ de fǎshù… wǒ bù néng biàn huíqu… bù néng xià dào wǒ de zhàngfu…
No... my magic... I mustn't change back... I mustn't frighten my husband...
- Narrator 白素贞睡在床上。没多久，她变回了一条大白蛇。
Bái Sùzhēn shuì zài chuáng shàng. Méi duōjiǔ, tā biàn huí le yì tiáo dà báishé.
Bai Suzhen lay down on the bed. Before long, she had turned back into a huge white snake.
- Xu Xian 船真好看！可是娘子一个人在家，我还是回去看看她吧。
Chuán zhēn hǎokàn! Kěshì niángzǐ yí gè rén zài jiā, wǒ háishi huíqu kànkan tā ba.
The boats are wonderful! But my wife's at home alone. I'd better go back and see how she is.
- Xu Xian 娘子，你好点儿了吗？你怎么不说话？别吓我……
Niángzǐ, nǐ hǎo diǎnr le ma? Nǐ zěnme bù shuōhuà? Bié xià wǒ…
My dear, are you feeling better? Why don't you answer? Don't frighten me...
- Xu Xian 啊！蛇！好大的一条白蛇！
Ā! Shé! Hǎo dà de yì tiáo báishé!
Ah! A snake! A huge white snake!
- Xu Xian 它的头比我的头还大……眼睛那么亮……
Tā de tóu bǐ wǒ de tóu hái dà… yǎnjing nàme liàng…
Its head is bigger than mine... and its eyes, so bright...
- Xu Xian 我的娘子呢？我的娘子呢？
Wǒ de niángzǐ ne? Wǒ de niángzǐ ne?
Where's my wife? Where's my wife?
- Xu Xian 好冷……手和脚……像冰一样……我不想死……娘子……救我……
Hǎo lěng… shǒu hé jiǎo… xiàng bīng yíyàng… wǒ bù xiǎng sǐ… niángzǐ… jiù wǒ…
So cold... my hands and feet... like ice... I don't want to die... my dear... save me...
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- Why is Xiaoqing worried about the festival?
“雄黄酒是我们蛇最怕的！”
- What does Bai tell Xiaoqing to do?
“你就说你病了，在床上别起来”
- Why does Xu bring realgar wine?
“家家都喝”
- Why does Bai agree to drink one cup?
“不喝，官人会不高兴的……就一杯，应该没关系吧”
- What does Xu find when he comes back?
“好大的一条白蛇！”