🔊 Beside the well there was the ruin of an old stone wall. When I came back from my work, the next evening, I saw from some distance away my little prince sitting on top of a wall, with his feet dangling. And I heard him say:

井边有一堵古老石墙的废墟。

🔊

dangling /ˈdæŋɡlɪŋ/

v. 悬垂,悬挂➕

🔊 "Then you don't remember. This is not the exact spot."

第二天傍晚,我干完活回来,远远望见我的小王子坐在那堵墙头上,双腿悬空晃荡。我听见他说:

🔊 Another voice must have answered him, for he replied to it: "Yes, yes! It is the right day, but this is not the place."

"那么你不记得了。这不是准确的地点。"

🔊 I continued my walk toward the wall. At no time did I see or hear anyone. The little prince, however, replied once again:

一定是有另一个声音回答了他,因为他接着回应道:"是的,是的！日子是对的,但地点不对。"

🔊 "—Exactly. You will see where my track begins, in the sand. You have nothing to do but wait for me there. I shall be there tonight."

我继续朝墙走去。我一直没有看见或听见任何其他人。然而,小王子却再次回应:

🔊

track /træk/

n. 踪迹,足迹；轨道➕

🔊

tonight /təˈnaɪt/

adv. 在今晚➕

🔊 I was only twenty metres from the wall, and I still saw nothing.

"——正是。你会看到我的足迹在沙地里开始的地方。你只要在那里等我就好。我今晚会到那里。"

🔊 After a silence the little prince spoke again:

我离墙只有二十米了,却仍然什么也没看见。

🔊 "You have good poison? You are sure that it will not make me suffer too long?"

一阵沉默之后小王子又开口了:"你带着好的毒药吗？你确定它不会让我痛苦太久？"

🔊

poison /ˈpɔɪzn/

n. 毒药,毒物➕

🔊

suffer /ˈsʌfər/

v. 遭受,受苦➕

🔊 I stopped in my tracks, my heart torn asunder; but still I did not understand.

我停下了脚步,心如刀绞；但我还是不明白。

🔊

asunder /əˈsʌndər/

adv. 成碎片；分开➕

🔊 "Now go away," said the little prince. "I want to get down from the wall."

"现在走开吧,"小王子说。"我想从墙上下来了。"

🔊 I dropped my eyes, then, to the foot of the wall—and I leaped into the air. There before me, facing the little prince, was one of those yellow snakes that take just thirty seconds to bring your life to an end. Even as I was digging into my pocket to get out my revolver I made a running step back. But, at the noise I made, the snake let himself flow easily across the sand like the dying spray of a fountain, and, in no apparent hurry, disappeared, with a light metallic sound, among the stones.

于是我垂下目光,望向墙脚——接着我惊跳起来。就在我面前,正对着小王子的,是一条黄蛇,这种蛇只需三十秒就能结束你的生命。我甚至还没来得及把手伸进口袋掏出左轮手枪,便向后急退一步。但是,我弄出的声响惊动了它,那条蛇从容不迫地滑过沙地,像喷泉将竭时的最后水花,带着一丝轻微的金属声,不慌不忙地消失在乱石之中。

🔊

leaped /liːpt/

v. 跳,跳跃（leap的过去式）➕

🔊

snakes /sneɪks/

n. 蛇（snake的复数形式）➕

🔊

revolver /rɪˈvɒlvər/

n. 左轮手枪➕

🔊

metallic /məˈtælɪk/

adj. 金属的；有金属特性的➕

🔊 I reached the wall just in time to catch my little man in my arms; his face was white as snow.

我及时赶到墙边,把我的小人儿抱进怀里；他的脸色雪白。

🔊 "What does this mean?" I demanded. "Why are you talking with snakes?"

"这是怎么回事？"我质问道。"你为什么要跟蛇说话？"

🔊

demanded /dɪˈmɑːndɪd/

v. 要求,质问（demand的过去式）➕

🔊 I had loosened the golden muffler that he always wore. I had moistened his temples, and had given him some water to drink. And now I did not dare ask him any more questions. He looked at me very gravely, and put his arms around my neck. I felt his heart beating like the heart of a dying bird, shot with someone's rifle ...

我解开了他一直围着的金色围巾。我用湿布润湿了他的太阳穴,又给他喝了点水。此刻,我不敢再问他更多的问题了。他非常严肃地看着我,用胳膊搂住了我的脖子。我感觉到他的心在跳动,像一只被猎枪击中、奄奄一息的小鸟的心脏……

🔊

muffler /ˈmʌflər/

n. 围巾；消音器➕

🔊

moistened /ˈmɔɪsnd/

v. 使湿润（moisten的过去式）➕

🔊

temples /ˈtemplz/

n. 太阳穴；庙宇（temple的复数形式）➕

🔊

gravely /ˈɡreɪvli/

adv. 严肃地；严重地➕

🔊

rifle /ˈraɪfl/

n. 步枪➕

🔊 "I am glad that you have found what was the matter with your engine," he said. "Now you can go back home—"

"我很高兴你找到了飞机引擎的毛病,"他说。"现在你可以回家了——"

🔊 "How do you know about that?"

"你怎么知道这事？"

🔊 I was just coming to tell him that my work had been successful, beyond anything that I had dared to hope.

我正打算去告诉他,我的工作取得了成功,这结果超出了我最大胆的期望。

🔊

beyond /bɪˈjɒnd/

prep. 超过；在...之外➕

🔊 He made no answer to my question, but he added: "I, too, am going back home today ..."

他没有回答我的问题,而是补充说:"我,今天也要回家了……"

🔊 Then, sadly— "It is much farther ... It is much more difficult..."

接着,他忧伤地说——"那要远得多……也困难得多……"

🔊 I realized clearly that something extraordinary was happening. I was holding him close in my arms as if he were a little child; and yet it seemed to me that he was rushing headlong toward an abyss from which I could do nothing to restrain him ...

我清楚地意识到,某种非同寻常的事情正在发生。我把他紧紧抱在怀里,仿佛他还是个小孩子；然而,我却觉得他正一头冲向某个深渊,而我对此无能为力,无法阻止他……

🔊

extraordinary /ɪkˈstrɔːdənri/

adj. 非凡的,特别的➕

🔊

abyss /əˈbɪs/

n. 深渊➕

🔊

restrain /rɪˈstreɪn/

v. 抑制,阻止➕

🔊 His look was very serious, like some one lost far away.

他的眼神非常严肃,仿佛迷失在遥远的地方。

🔊 "I have your sheep. And I have the sheep's box. And I have the muzzle ..."

"我有你的绵羊。我也有装绵羊的盒子。我连嘴套也有……"

🔊 And he gave me a sad smile.

他给了我一个忧伤的微笑。

🔊 I waited a long time. I could see that he was reviving little by little.

我等了很久。我能看出他正在一点点恢复。

🔊

reviving /rɪˈvaɪvɪŋ/

v. 复苏,恢复生机➕

🔊 "Dear little man," I said to him, "you are afraid ..."

"亲爱的小人儿,"我对他说,"你害怕了……"

🔊 He was afraid, there was no doubt about that. But he laughed lightly.

他确实害怕了,这一点毫无疑问。但他却轻轻地笑了。

🔊

lightly /ˈlaɪtli/

adv. 轻轻地,轻微地➕

🔊 "I shall be much more afraid this evening ..."

"今天晚上,我会更害怕……"

🔊 Once again I felt myself frozen by the sense of something irreparable. And I knew that I could not bear the thought of never hearing that laughter any more. For me, it was like a spring of fresh water in the desert.

再一次,一种无法挽回的感觉将我冻僵。我知道,我无法承受再也听不到那笑声的念头。对我来说,那笑声如同沙漠中的一泓清泉。

🔊

frozen /ˈfroʊzən/

adj. 冻结的,冷冻的➕

🔊

irreparable /ɪˈrɛpərəbəl/

adj. 不可挽回的,无法修复的➕

🔊

spring /sprɪŋ/

n. 泉水➕

🔊 "Little man," I said, "I want to hear you laugh again."

"小人儿,"我说,"我想再听你笑一笑。"

🔊 But he said to me:

但他对我说:

🔊 "Tonight, it will be a year ... My star, then, can be found right above the place where I came to the Earth, a year ago ..."

"今晚,就满一整年了……到时候,我的星星会正好出现在一年前我降落到地球的那个地方的正上方……"

🔊 "Little man," I said, "tell me that it is only a bad dream—this affair of the snake, and the meeting-place, and the star..."

"小人儿,"我说,"告诉我,这只是一场噩梦——关于这条蛇,关于那个会面的地点,还有那颗星星……"

🔊

affair /əˈfeər/

n. 事件,事务➕

🔊

meeting-place /ˈmiːtɪŋ pleɪs/

n. 会面地点➕

🔊 But he did not answer my plea. He said to me, instead: "The thing that is important is the thing that is not seen ..."

但他没有理会我的恳求。相反,他对我说:"最重要的东西,是眼睛看不见的……"

🔊

plea /pliː/

n. 恳求,请求➕

🔊 "Yes, I know ..."

"是的,我知道……"

🔊 "It is just as it is with the flower. If you love a flower that lives on a star, it is sweet to look at the sky at night. All the stars are a-bloom with flowers ..."

"就像那朵花一样。如果你爱上一朵住在一颗星星上的花,那么夜里仰望星空,你就会感到甜蜜。所有的星星上都好像开满了鲜花……"

🔊

a-bloom /əˈbluːm/

adj. 盛开的,开花的➕

🔊 "Yes, I know ..."

"是的,我知道……"

🔊 "It is just as it is with the water. Because of the pulley, and the rope, what you gave me to drink was like music. You remember—how good it was."

"就像那水一样。因为有了辘轳和绳子,你给我喝的水,就像音乐一样美妙。你记得吗——它是多么甘甜。"

🔊

pulley /ˈpʊli/

n. 滑轮➕

🔊 "Yes, I know..."

"是的,我知道……"

🔊 "And at night you will look up at the stars. Where I live everything is so small that I cannot show you where my star is to be found. It is better, like that. My star will just be one of the stars, for you. And so you will love to watch all the stars in the heavens ... they will all be your friends. And, besides, I am going to make you a present..."

"夜里,你会抬头看星星。我住的地方一切都那么小,我没法指给你看我的星星在哪里。这样反倒更好。对你来说,我的星星只是众多星星中的一颗。这样,你就会喜欢观看天上所有的星星……它们都会成为你的朋友。而且,我还要送你一件礼物……"

🔊

heavens /ˈhɛvənz/

n. 天空,天堂（复数）➕

🔊 He laughed again.

他又笑了起来。

🔊 "Ah, little prince, dear little prince! I love to hear that laughter!"

"啊,小王子,亲爱的小王子！我就爱听你这样笑！"

🔊 "That is my present. Just that. It will be as it was when we drank the water ..."

"这就是我的礼物。就是这个。它会像我们喝到的水那样……"

🔊 "What are you trying to say?"

"你想说什么？"

🔊 "All men have the stars," he answered, "but they are not the same things for different people. For some, who are travelers, the stars are guides. For others they are no more than little lights in the sky. For others, who are scholars, they are problems. For my businessman they were wealth. But all these stars are silent. You—you alone—will have the stars as no one else has them—"

"每个人都有自己的星星,"他回答说,"但对不同的人来说,它们意义不同。对旅行的人来说,星星是向导。对另一些人来说,它们不过是天上微弱的亮光。对学者来说,星星是他们要研究的难题。对我那位商人来说,星星就是财富。但所有这些星星都是沉默的。而你——只有你——将拥有跟所有人都不一样的星星——"

🔊

scholars /ˈskɒləz/

n. 学者,学问渊博的人➕

🔊

wealth /welθ/

n. 财富；大量,丰富➕

🔊

silent /ˈsaɪlənt/

adj. 沉默的,寂静的；未记载的➕

🔊 "What are you trying to say?"

"你想说什么？"

🔊 "In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night... You—only you—will have stars that can laugh!"

"我将会住在其中一颗星星上。我将会在其中一颗星星上欢笑。那么,当你在夜晚仰望星空时,就会觉得仿佛所有的星星都在欢笑……你——只有你——会拥有会笑的星星！"

🔊 And he laughed again.

他又笑了。

🔊 "And when your sorrow is comforted (time soothes all sorrows) you will be content that you have known me. You will always be my friend. You will want to laugh with me. And you will sometimes open your window, so, for that pleasure ... And your friends will be properly astonished to see you laughing as you look up at the sky! Then you will say to them, \"Yes, the stars always make me laugh!\" And they will think you are crazy. It will be a very shabby trick that I shall have played on you ..."

"等到你的悲伤平复之后（时间会抚平所有忧伤）,你会因为认识了我而感到高兴。你将永远是我的朋友。你会想要和我一起欢笑。有时,你会为了这份快乐,就这样推开窗户……你的朋友们看到你望着天空发笑,一定会非常惊讶！那时,你就可以对他们说,\"是的,星星总是让我发笑！\"他们一定会以为你疯了。那我就是跟你开了个很恶劣的玩笑……"

🔊

sorrow /ˈsɒrəʊ/

n. 悲伤,悲痛；伤心事➕

🔊

soothes /suːðz/

v. 安慰,抚慰；减轻,缓解（疼痛或焦虑）➕

🔊

content /kənˈtent/

adj. 满足的,满意的➕

🔊

properly /ˈprɒpəli/

adv. 恰当地,正确地；真正地➕