第四十九回 · 詐敗佯輸 The Feigned Rout — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

詐敗佯輸 The Feigned Rout

三sān人rén在zài水shuǐ底dǐ下xià鬥dòu經jīng兩liǎng個gè時shí辰chén，不bù分fēn勝shèng敗bài。豬zhū八bā戒jiè料liào道dào不bù得dé贏yíng他tā，對duì沙shā僧sēng丟diū了le個gè眼yǎn色sè。二èr人rén詐zhà敗bài佯yáng輸shū，各gè拖tuō兵bīng器qì，回huí頭tóu就jiù走zǒu。那nà怪guài物wù教jiào：「小xiǎo的de們men，扎zhā住zhù在zài此cǐ，等děng我wǒ追zhuī趕gǎn上shàng這zhè廝sī，捉zhuō將jiāng來lái與yǔ汝rǔ等děng湊còu吃chī啞yǎ。」你nǐ看kàn他tā如rú風fēng吹chuī敗bài葉yè，似sì雨yǔ打dǎ殘cán花huā，將jiāng他tā兩liǎng個gè趕gǎn出chū水shuǐ面miàn。三sān人rén在zài水shuǐ底dǐ下xià斗dòu经jīng两liǎng个gè时shí辰chén，不bù分fēn胜shèng败bài。猪zhū八bā戒jiè料liào道dào不bù得dé赢yíng他tā，对duì沙shā僧sēng丢diū了le个gè眼yǎn色sè。二èr人rén诈zhà败bài佯yáng输shū，各gè拖tuō兵bīng器qì，回huí头tóu就jiù走zǒu。那nà怪guài物wù教jiào：「小xiǎo的de们men，扎zhā住zhù在zài此cǐ，等děng我wǒ追zhuī赶gǎn上shàng这zhè厮sī，捉zhuō将jiāng来lái与yǔ汝rǔ等děng凑còu吃chī哑yǎ。」你nǐ看kàn他tā如rú风fēng吹chuī败bài叶yè，似sì雨yǔ打dǎ残cán花huā，将jiāng他tā两liǎng个gè赶gǎn出chū水shuǐ面miàn。

逐句解 Line by line

三sān人rén在zài水shuǐ底dǐ下xià鬥dòu經jīng兩liǎng個gè時shí辰chén，不bù分fēn勝shèng敗bài。三sān人rén在zài水shuǐ底dǐ下xià斗dòu经jīng两liǎng个gè时shí辰chén，不bù分fēn胜shèng败bài。

The three of them fought beneath the water for two double-hours without deciding it either way.

時辰 is the double-hour, a twelfth part of the day: four hours of fighting. 不分勝敗分 fēn.

豬zhū八bā戒jiè料liào道dào不bù得dé贏yíng他tā，對duì沙shā僧sēng丟diū了le個gè眼yǎn色sè。猪zhū八bā戒jiè料liào道dào不bù得dé赢yíng他tā，对duì沙shā僧sēng丢diū了le个gè眼yǎn色sè。

Eight Rules reckoned he could not win, and threw Sha Monk a look.

料道, to reckon or judge; 不得贏得 dé, potential. 丟了個眼色, to signal with the eyes — the whole plan is carried in a glance.

二èr人rén詐zhà敗bài佯yáng輸shū，各gè拖tuō兵bīng器qì，回huí頭tóu就jiù走zǒu。二èr人rén诈zhà败bài佯yáng输shū，各gè拖tuō兵bīng器qì，回huí头tóu就jiù走zǒu。

The two of them feigned a rout and made a show of losing, trailed their weapons, turned and fled.

詐敗佯輸 is the tactic Wukong set out before he left the water, executed to the letter. The four characters pair two near-synonyms, as the novel's set phrases usually do.

那nà怪guài物wù教jiào：「小xiǎo的de們men，扎zhā住zhù在zài此cǐ，等děng我wǒ追zhuī趕gǎn上shàng這zhè廝sī，捉zhuō將jiāng來lái與yǔ汝rǔ等děng湊còu吃chī啞yǎ。」那nà怪guài物wù教jiào：「小xiǎo的de们men，扎zhā住zhù在zài此cǐ，等děng我wǒ追zhuī赶gǎn上shàng这zhè厮sī，捉zhuō将jiāng来lái与yǔ汝rǔ等děng凑còu吃chī哑yǎ。」

The monster gave the order: "You little ones, hold your ground here. Let me run this fellow down, and I'll bring him back for you all to share in the eating."

教 jiào, causative "ordered." 扎住, to halt and hold position; 捉將來將 jiāng, directional. The final 啞 stands for 呀, the vernacular exclamatory particle.

你nǐ看kàn他tā如rú風fēng吹chuī敗bài葉yè，似sì雨yǔ打dǎ殘cán花huā，將jiāng他tā兩liǎng個gè趕gǎn出chū水shuǐ面miàn。你nǐ看kàn他tā如rú风fēng吹chuī败bài叶yè，似sì雨yǔ打dǎ残cán花huā，将jiāng他tā两liǎng个gè赶gǎn出chū水shuǐ面miàn。

And see him now — like a wind driving withered leaves, like rain beating the last of the blossom — as he chased the two of them up to the surface.

將他兩個趕出水面: 將 here is the disposal coverb, equivalent to 把. 似 sì. The two similes are the narrator's, and they flatter the demon at the exact moment he is being led into the trap.

總評 Commentary

Ninety-five characters to lose four hours and set the ambush. The economy is worth noticing: the fight itself was given a hundred and ninety-one characters of verse, and its outcome — two double-hours, no decision — is disposed of in a single line of prose. What the block spends its space on instead is the mechanism of the feint, and the one sentence that undoes the demon.

That sentence is his order to his troops: hold here, I will run him down and bring him back for you all to share. It is a promise of a meal, and it is why he goes up alone after two opponents while a hundred spearmen stand still at the bottom of the river. The narrator then follows him up with two similes of a conqueror driving all before him — withered leaves in the wind, blossom under rain — and the flattery is exact and ironic, since the leaves are leading him somewhere.