Zhong Kui the Demon Queller · chapter 1 of 3
First Place
第一名
A scholar with the fiercest face in Chang'an comes first in the exam, and the palace gate stays shut. What will he do next?
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- Narrator 很久很久以前，长安有一个读书人，叫钟馗。
Hěn jiǔ hěn jiǔ yǐqián, Cháng'ān yǒu yí gè dúshūrén, jiào Zhōng Kuí.
Long, long ago, there was a scholar in Chang'an named Zhong Kui.
- Zhong Kui 杜平，快看！长安到了！
Dù Píng, kuài kàn! Cháng'ān dào le!
Du Ping, look! We're in Chang'an!
- Du Ping 钟馗，等等我！你走得太快了！
Zhōng Kuí, děngdeng wǒ! Nǐ zǒu de tài kuài le!
Zhong Kui, wait for me! You walk way too fast!
- Zhong Kui 后天就考试了！我要考第一名，做一个好官，帮助大家！
Hòutiān jiù kǎoshì le! Wǒ yào kǎo dì yī míng, zuò yí gè hǎo guān, bāngzhù dàjiā!
The exam is the day after tomorrow! I'm going to come first, become a good official and help everyone!
- Du Ping 第一名？好！你考第一名，我请你吃饭！
Dì yī míng? Hǎo! Nǐ kǎo dì yī míng, wǒ qǐng nǐ chīfàn!
First place? All right! If you come first, dinner is on me!
- Yaya 哎呀！我的球！
Āiyā! Wǒ de qiú!
Oh no! My ball!
- Zhong Kui 小朋友，你的球！给你。
Xiǎopéngyou, nǐ de qiú! Gěi nǐ.
Little one, here's your ball! Take it.
- Yaya 啊！有鬼！妈妈，有鬼！
Ā! Yǒu guǐ! Māma, yǒu guǐ!
Aah! A ghost! Mommy, a ghost!
- Zhong Kui 鬼？哪儿有鬼？别怕，我来保护你！
Guǐ? Nǎr yǒu guǐ? Bié pà, wǒ lái bǎohù nǐ!
A ghost? Where? Don't be scared, I'll protect you!
- Yaya 就是你！你的眼睛好大，胡子好长！
Jiù shì nǐ! Nǐ de yǎnjing hǎo dà, húzi hǎo cháng!
It's you! Your eyes are so big and your beard is so long!
- Du Ping 哈哈！钟馗，鬼就是你！
Hāhā! Zhōng Kuí, guǐ jiù shì nǐ!
Ha ha! Zhong Kui, the ghost is you!
- Zhong Kui 我？我的脸……有这么可怕吗？
Wǒ? Wǒ de liǎn… yǒu zhème kěpà ma?
Me? Is my face… really that scary?
- Zhong Kui 小朋友，别怕。你看，我在笑呢！
Xiǎopéngyou, bié pà. Nǐ kàn, wǒ zài xiào ne!
Don't be scared, little one. Look, I'm smiling!
- Yaya 啊！你笑，更可怕了！
Ā! Nǐ xiào, gèng kěpà le!
Aah! When you smile, it's even scarier!
- Du Ping 钟馗，快来看！名字都在这儿！第一个……是你！
Zhōng Kuí, kuài lái kàn! Míngzi dōu zài zhèr! Dì yī gè… shì nǐ!
Zhong Kui, come and look! All the names are here! The first one… is you!
- Zhong Kui 我？第一名？我考了第一名！
Wǒ? Dì yī míng? Wǒ kǎo le dì yī míng!
Me? First place? I came first!
- Du Ping 太好了！我请你吃饭，吃三天！
Tài hǎo le! Wǒ qǐng nǐ chīfàn, chī sān tiān!
Wonderful! I'll treat you to dinner, three days of it!
- Zhong Kui 先不吃饭！明天，我去皇宫，见皇帝！
Xiān bù chīfàn! Míngtiān, wǒ qù huánggōng, jiàn huángdì!
Not yet! Tomorrow I go to the palace to meet the emperor!
- The Official 第一名在哪儿？让我看看！
Dì yī míng zài nǎr? Ràng wǒ kànkan!
Where is this first-place scholar? Let me see him!
- Zhong Kui 大人，我是钟馗！我考了第一名！
Dàrén, wǒ shì Zhōng Kuí! Wǒ kǎo le dì yī míng!
Sir, I am Zhong Kui! I came first in the exam!
- The Official 你？第一名？哈哈哈！你们看，这个第一名像鬼！
Nǐ? Dì yī míng? Hāhāhā! Nǐmen kàn, zhège dì yī míng xiàng guǐ!
You? First place? Ha ha ha! Look, everyone, our top scholar looks like a ghost!
- Du Ping 大人，他写得最好！
Dàrén, tā xiě de zuì hǎo!
Sir, nobody wrote better than he did!
- The Official 写得好有什么用？皇帝看到这样的脸，会不高兴！
Xiě de hǎo yǒu shénme yòng? Huángdì kàndào zhèyàng de liǎn, huì bù gāoxìng!
What good is fine writing? The emperor will be very unhappy to see a face like that!
- The Official 不行，不行！你不能进皇宫。走吧！
Bù xíng, bù xíng! Nǐ bù néng jìn huánggōng. Zǒu ba!
No, no! You can't come into the palace. Off you go!
- Zhong Kui 我考了第一名……可是他们只看我的脸。
Wǒ kǎo le dì yī míng… kěshì tāmen zhǐ kàn wǒ de liǎn.
I came first… but all they look at is my face.
- Zhong Kui 好，我走！可是你们记住：看人，不能只看脸！
Hǎo, wǒ zǒu! Kěshì nǐmen jìzhù: kàn rén, bù néng zhǐ kàn liǎn!
Fine, I'll go! But remember this: you can't judge a person by his face!
- Du Ping 钟馗，等等我！我们回家吧？
Zhōng Kuí, děngdeng wǒ! Wǒmen huíjiā ba?
Zhong Kui, wait for me! Shall we go home?
- Zhong Kui 你回家吧，杜平。我不回家了。
Nǐ huíjiā ba, Dù Píng. Wǒ bù huíjiā le.
You go home, Du Ping. I'm not going home.
- Du Ping 钟馗！你要去哪儿？
Zhōng Kuí! Nǐ yào qù nǎr?
Zhong Kui! Where are you going?
- Zhong Kui 你们都怕我的脸？好！从今天起，我要让鬼也怕我的脸！
Nǐmen dōu pà wǒ de liǎn? Hǎo! Cóng jīntiān qǐ, wǒ yào ràng guǐ yě pà wǒ de liǎn!
You're all afraid of my face? Fine! From today, I'll make ghosts afraid of it too!
What changed in the story?
- What does Zhong Kui want to do in Chang'an?
“我要考第一名，做一个好官，帮助大家！”
- Why does little Yaya scream when she sees Zhong Kui?
“就是你！你的眼睛好大，胡子好长！”
- What happens when Zhong Kui smiles at Yaya?
“你笑，更可怕了！”
- Why won't the official let Zhong Kui into the palace?
“皇帝看到这样的脸，会不高兴！……你不能进皇宫。”
- What does Zhong Kui decide at the end?
“从今天起，我要让鬼也怕我的脸！”