第六十回 · 演演方法 He Tries the Method — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

演演方法 He Tries the Method

這zhè大dà聖shèng不bù管guǎn他tā死sǐ活huó，捽zuó脫tuō手shǒu，拽zhuài大dà步bù，徑jìng出chū了le芭bā蕉jiāo洞dòng。正zhèng是shì：無wú心xīn貪tān美měi色sè，得dé意yì笑xiào顏yán回huí。將jiāng身shēn一yí縱zòng，踏tà祥xiáng雲yún，跳tiào上shàng高gāo山shān，將jiāng扇shàn子zi吐tǔ出chū來lái，演yǎn演yǎn方fāng法fǎ。將jiāng左zuǒ手shǒu大dà指zhǐ頭tóu捻niǎn著zhe那nà柄bǐng上shàng第dì七qī縷lǚ紅hóng絲sī，念niàn了le一yì聲shēng「𠲛huí噓xū啊a吸xī嘻xī吹chuī呼hū」，果guǒ然rán長zhǎng了le有yǒu一yí丈zhàng二èr尺chǐ長cháng短duǎn。这zhè大dà圣shèng不bù管guǎn他tā死sǐ活huó，捽zuó脱tuō手shǒu，拽zhuài大dà步bù，径jìng出chū了le芭bā蕉jiāo洞dòng。正zhèng是shì：无wú心xīn贪tān美měi色sè，得dé意yì笑xiào颜yán回huí。将jiāng身shēn一yí纵zòng，踏tà祥xiáng云yún，跳tiào上shàng高gāo山shān，将jiāng扇shàn子zi吐tǔ出chū来lái，演yǎn演yǎn方fāng法fǎ。将jiāng左zuǒ手shǒu大dà指zhǐ头tóu捻niǎn着zhe那nà柄bǐng上shàng第dì七qī缕lǚ红hóng丝sī，念niàn了le一yì声shēng「𠲛huí嘘xū啊a吸xī嘻xī吹chuī呼hū」，果guǒ然rán长zhǎng了le有yǒu一yí丈zhàng二èr尺chǐ长cháng短duǎn。

逐句解 Line by line

這zhè大dà聖shèng不bù管guǎn他tā死sǐ活huó，捽zuó脫tuō手shǒu，拽zhuài大dà步bù，徑jìng出chū了le芭bā蕉jiāo洞dòng。这zhè大dà圣shèng不bù管guǎn他tā死sǐ活huó，捽zuó脱tuō手shǒu，拽zhuài大dà步bù，径jìng出chū了le芭bā蕉jiāo洞dòng。

The Great Sage, caring nothing whether she lived or died, shook off her hand, strode out with a great step, and went straight from the Banana-Leaf Cave.

拽 is zhuài, to stride or haul, where pypinyin supplies zhuāi. 不管他死活 is as cold as the novel ever gets about a character it has just spent two passages humiliating.

正zhèng是shì：無wú心xīn貪tān美měi色sè，得dé意yì笑xiào顏yán回huí。正zhèng是shì：无wú心xīn贪tān美měi色sè，得dé意yì笑xiào颜yán回huí。

⚠ Truly it was a case of: with no heart for beauty he coveted none, and getting his will he turned back laughing.

This couplet is introduced by 正是 and is NOT verse: 維基文庫 leaves it unindented, so it stays prose and takes no showcase. Of the chapter's six 正是 only one, in the final block, actually tags a rhapsody. 得意 takes dé.

將jiāng身shēn一yí縱zòng，踏tà祥xiáng雲yún，跳tiào上shàng高gāo山shān，將jiāng扇shàn子zi吐tǔ出chū來lái，演yǎn演yǎn方fāng法fǎ。将jiāng身shēn一yí纵zòng，踏tà祥xiáng云yún，跳tiào上shàng高gāo山shān，将jiāng扇shàn子zi吐tǔ出chū来lái，演yǎn演yǎn方fāng法fǎ。

He gave his body a spring, trod the auspicious cloud, leapt up onto a high mountain, spat out the fan and tried the method over.

Both 將 are jiāng and need positional specs. 演演 doubles the verb — he rehearses rather than performs.

將jiāng左zuǒ手shǒu大dà指zhǐ頭tóu捻niǎn著zhe那nà柄bǐng上shàng第dì七qī縷lǚ紅hóng絲sī，念niàn了le一yì聲shēng「𠲛huí噓xū啊a吸xī嘻xī吹chuī呼hū」，果guǒ然rán長zhǎng了le有yǒu一yí丈zhàng二èr尺chǐ長cháng短duǎn。将jiāng左zuǒ手shǒu大dà指zhǐ头tóu捻niǎn着zhe那nà柄bǐng上shàng第dì七qī缕lǚ红hóng丝sī，念niàn了le一yì声shēng「𠲛huí嘘xū啊a吸xī嘻xī吹chuī呼hū」，果guǒ然rán长zhǎng了le有yǒu一yí丈zhàng二èr尺chǐ长cháng短duǎn。

He pinched the seventh strand of red silk on the handle with the thumb of his left hand, said once the words U+20C9B, xu, a, xi, xi, chui, hu — and sure enough it grew to a zhàng and two chǐ in length.

⚠ 長 divides: 長了 is the verb zhǎng, to grow, and 長短 the noun cháng, length. 捻著 takes the durative zhe. The astral graph opening the incantation is U+20C9B, and this is its second and last occurrence in the chapter; the source sets it in 「」 here where the first instance had 『』.

總評 Commentary

The exit is three verbs long and entirely without ceremony. He shakes off her hand, takes a stride, and is gone. The novel has just shown him humiliating a woman he spent an evening deceiving, and it does not give him a backward glance or the reader a moment to dwell on it.

The couplet that follows is the storyteller's verdict rather than the narrator's, and it is offered as praise. He had no heart for beauty, so he coveted none; he got what he came for, so he laughs on the way back. Whether the first half is true is a question the previous two passages have left the reader well placed to consider.

What he does on the peak is a rehearsal. 演演方法 — he tries the method over — and the fan behaves exactly as instructed: seventh strand, left thumb, seven syllables, one zhàng two chǐ. The system works, and the working of it is what makes the discovery of the next passage possible.