Urashima Taro · chapter 3 of 4
Never Open the Box
千万不要打开
A window for every season: Taro sees a whole year in one afternoon. But the winter window makes him homesick, and the princess gives him a box with one rule.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 太郎住了一天，又一天，又一天……有一天，公主带他来到了龙宫的四个窗户前面。
Tàiláng zhù le yì tiān, yòu yì tiān, yòu yì tiān… Yǒu yì tiān, gōngzhǔ dài tā láidào le Lónggōng de sì gè chuānghu qiánmiàn.
Taro stayed one day, and then another, and then another... One day, the princess led him to the four windows of the Dragon Palace.
- Princess Otohime 太郎，这是东边的窗户。你看，外面是什么？
Tàiláng, zhè shì dōngbian de chuānghu. Nǐ kàn, wàimiàn shì shénme?
Taro, this is the east window. Look, what's outside?
- Urashima Taro 是春天！树上开满了花，真漂亮！
Shì chūntiān! Shù shang kāimǎn le huā, zhēn piàoliang!
It's spring! The trees are covered in blossoms. How beautiful!
Chapter 3 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of Urashima Taro 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 and The Odyssey from start to finish.
- Princess Otohime 南边的窗户外面，是夏天。西边的窗户外面，是秋天。
Nánbian de chuānghu wàimiàn, shì xiàtiān. Xībian de chuānghu wàimiàn, shì qiūtiān.
Outside the south window, it's summer. Outside the west window, it's autumn.
- Urashima Taro 夏天的太阳，秋天的红叶……一个下午，我看了一年！
Xiàtiān de tàiyáng, qiūtiān de hóngyè… yí gè xiàwǔ, wǒ kàn le yì nián!
Summer sunshine, red autumn leaves... I've seen a whole year in one afternoon!
- The Turtle 一年？这有什么。我已经看了两百年了……呼……
Yì nián? Zhè yǒu shénme. Wǒ yǐjīng kàn le liǎngbǎi nián le… hū…
A year? That's nothing. I've watched two hundred of them... Zzz...
- Urashima Taro 海龟又睡了！公主，北边的窗户呢？
Hǎiguī yòu shuì le! Gōngzhǔ, běibian de chuānghu ne?
The turtle's asleep again! Princess, what about the north window?
- Princess Otohime 北边的窗户，是冬天。
Běibian de chuānghu, shì dōngtiān.
The north window is winter.
- Narrator 窗户外面下着大雪。雪里有一个小村子，家家都在做晚饭。
Chuānghu wàimiàn xiàzhe dà xuě. Xuě lǐ yǒu yí gè xiǎo cūnzi, jiājiā dōu zài zuò wǎnfàn.
Outside, heavy snow was falling. In the snow lay a little village, and in every house someone was cooking supper.
- Urashima Taro 下雪了……妈妈一个人在家，冷不冷？她还在门口等我吗？
Xià xuě le… māma yí gè rén zài jiā, lěng bu lěng? Tā hái zài ménkǒu děng wǒ ma?
It's snowing... Mom's all alone at home. Is she cold? Is she still waiting for me by the door?
- Urashima Taro 海龟，海龟，快起来！我来龙宫几天了？
Hǎiguī, hǎiguī, kuài qǐlái! Wǒ lái Lónggōng jǐ tiān le?
Turtle, Turtle, wake up! How many days have I been in the Dragon Palace?
- The Turtle 几天？我们海龟不知道几天，只知道几年……呼……
Jǐ tiān? Wǒmen hǎiguī bù zhīdào jǐ tiān, zhǐ zhīdào jǐ nián… hū…
Days? We turtles don't keep track of days, only years... Zzz...
- Urashima Taro 这里有公主，有好吃的，有会跳舞的鱼……可是，这里没有妈妈。
Zhèlǐ yǒu gōngzhǔ, yǒu hǎochī de, yǒu huì tiàowǔ de yú… kěshì, zhèlǐ méiyǒu māma.
There's a princess here, wonderful food, fish that dance... but Mom isn't here.
- Princess Otohime 太郎，你怎么不笑了？
Tàiláng, nǐ zěnme bú xiào le?
Taro, why have you stopped smiling?
- Urashima Taro 公主，我想妈妈了。她老了，只有我一个孩子。我说过，晚饭以前回家。
Gōngzhǔ, wǒ xiǎng māma le. Tā lǎo le, zhǐ yǒu wǒ yí gè háizi. Wǒ shuōguo, wǎnfàn yǐqián huí jiā.
Princess, I miss my mother. She's old, and I'm her only child. I told her I'd be home before dinner.
- Princess Otohime 在龙宫，你可以一直这么年轻，一直这么快乐。你真的要走吗？
Zài Lónggōng, nǐ kěyǐ yìzhí zhème niánqīng, yìzhí zhème kuàilè. Nǐ zhēn de yào zǒu ma?
Here in the Dragon Palace, you could stay this young and this happy forever. Do you really want to leave?
- Urashima Taro 谢谢你，乙姬。这里什么都好。可是妈妈在等我，我要回家。
Xièxie nǐ, Yǐjī. Zhèlǐ shénme dōu hǎo. Kěshì māma zài děng wǒ, wǒ yào huí jiā.
Thank you, Otohime. Everything here is wonderful. But my mother is waiting for me. I have to go home.
- Narrator 公主拿出一个黑色的小盒子，上面有一条红带子。
Gōngzhǔ ná chū yí gè hēisè de xiǎo hézi, shàngmiàn yǒu yì tiáo hóng dàizi.
The princess brought out a small black box with a red cord tied around it.
- Princess Otohime 太郎，这个盒子，送给你。可是你要记住：千万不要打开它！
Tàiláng, zhège hézi, sòng gěi nǐ. Kěshì nǐ yào jìzhù: qiānwàn bú yào dǎkāi tā!
Taro, this box is my gift to you. But you must remember: never, ever open it!
- Urashima Taro 千万不要打开？那……里面有什么？
Qiānwàn bú yào dǎkāi? Nà… lǐmiàn yǒu shénme?
Never open it? Then... what's inside?
- Princess Otohime 你不用知道。只要你不打开它，你就还能回到龙宫，还能见到我。
Nǐ búyòng zhīdào. Zhǐyào nǐ bù dǎkāi tā, nǐ jiù hái néng huídào Lónggōng, hái néng jiàndào wǒ.
You don't need to know. As long as you never open it, you can come back to the Dragon Palace and see me again.
- Urashima Taro 好，我记住了。我一定不打开，我还要回来看你！
Hǎo, wǒ jìzhù le. Wǒ yídìng bù dǎkāi, wǒ hái yào huílái kàn nǐ!
All right, I'll remember. I promise I won't open it. I'm coming back to see you!
- Princess Otohime 那……我等你。太郎，别忘了我。
Nà… wǒ děng nǐ. Tàiláng, bié wàng le wǒ.
Then... I'll wait for you. Taro, don't forget me.
- Urashima Taro 我不会忘的！乙姬，再见！
Wǒ bú huì wàng de! Yǐjī, zàijiàn!
I'll never forget you! Goodbye, Otohime!
- The Turtle 啊？要走了？好，好，坐上来吧！抓好了！
Á? Yào zǒu le? Hǎo, hǎo, zuò shànglái ba! Zhuā hǎo le!
Huh? Leaving already? All right, all right, climb on! Hold on tight!
- Urashima Taro 海龟，这次慢一点儿，好吗？
Hǎiguī, zhè cì màn yìdiǎnr, hǎo ma?
Turtle, could you go a little slower this time?
- The Turtle 慢？在水里？我不会慢的！
Màn? Zài shuǐ lǐ? Wǒ bú huì màn de!
Slow? In the water? Never!
- Narrator 海龟带着太郎，往上游啊游，游回了太郎的海边。
Hǎiguī dàizhe Tàiláng, wǎng shàng yóu a yóu, yóu huí le Tàiláng de hǎibiān.
The turtle swam up and up with Taro on his back, all the way to Taro's own beach.
- Urashima Taro 到了！是我的海边！我回来了！……咦？
Dào le! Shì wǒ de hǎibiān! Wǒ huílái le!… Yí?
We're here! It's my beach! I'm back! ...Huh?
- The Turtle 浦岛先生，怎么了？
Pǔdǎo xiānsheng, zěnme le?
What's wrong, Mr. Urashima?
- Urashima Taro 我的小船呢？海边的房子……怎么都不一样了？
Wǒ de xiǎo chuán ne? Hǎibiān de fángzi… zěnme dōu bù yíyàng le?
Where's my boat? And the houses along the shore... why do they all look different?
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What does Taro see through the east window?
“是春天！树上开满了花，真漂亮！”
- What does Taro see through the north window?
“窗户外面下着大雪。雪里有一个小村子，家家都在做晚饭。”
- Why can't the turtle tell Taro how many days he has stayed?
“我们海龟不知道几天，只知道几年……”
- What does the princess say Taro could have if he stayed?
“你可以一直这么年轻，一直这么快乐。”
- Why must Taro never open the box?
“只要你不打开它，你就还能回到龙宫，还能见到我。”