中国故事38 | Don't Look Here 此地无银三百两|don't|中国故事|无银|翻译|银子

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38、Don't Look Here

此地无银三百两

古时候有个人攒了三百两银子，因怕被人偷去，便埋在后院的地里，在石墙上写道“此地无银三百两”，此人写完，觉得自己甚是聪明，愉快地离开了。隔壁王二看到字迹，立刻挖出了银子，欣喜地回到自己家中。为了使银子的原主人不怀疑自己，王二在石墙的自己下写道：“隔壁王二不曾偷。”

Where do you think is the best place to keep your money safe? Is it safe under your mattress? But what if a thief breaks in and finds it? Maybe you put it in a steel safe. But what if you forget the secret combination?

Long ago, in ancient China, someone else thought about this question—a lot! His name was Zhang San.

Zhang San worked hard for his money. At the end of each day, he would say proudly, “Another day, another tael of silver.”

Zhang San saved all his money. After 300 hundred days, he had saved up 300 taels of silver!

Zhang San kept his money in a bundle under his pillow. Every night he counted his money. “Look at all those pieces of silver!” Zhang San said to himself.

One night, as he was counting his money, he thought he heard a suspicious noise.

“Was that a thief I heard?” he asked himself.

“I don’t think my money is safe under my pillow,” Zhang San whispered into his bundle. He put the bundle in the bottom drawer of his wooden dresser. Then he leaned his whole body against the dresser. He spread both arms across it, as if protecting it from an invader.

And that’s when a cat meowed outside the window.

“Oh!” he gasped, startled. “This drawer is too obvious. I must find a better place for my money.

He removed the bundle from the drawer and hugged it against his chest.

“What should I do?” he wondered. “I don’t think anywhere in the house is safe.”

Suddenly, he had an idea.

“I will hide my money in the backyard!”

He dug a hole in his backyard. He buried the bag in the hole and covered it with dirt.

“Very good,” he said, breathing a sigh of relief. “My bundle of silver is safe here.”

“Heh, heh. I’m so clever. A real genius!” he complimented himself.

On his way back to the house, though, a wave of fear washed over Zhang San.

“What if someone finds it?” he worried. “What if they dig up my money?”

Zhang San thought hard. Then he had another idea.

“I really am a genius!” Zhang San told himself. “This is even more brilliant!”

He found a piece of coal and wrote on the stone wall next to the hole: “No 300 taels of silver buried here.”

“Oh, I am so clever!” he chuckled.

He went inside and slept soundly the whole night.

What the genius Zhang San did not consider was his neighbor, Wang Er. Wang Er had been woken up by a noise outside his window. He looked out and saw Zhang San bury the bundle. Wang Er waited until Zhang San went inside, then he sneaked out.

He walked over to where Zhang San had buried the bag. He read the message on the stone: “No 300 taels of silver buried here.”

“Ahh,” thought Wang Er.

He immediately dug into Zhang San’s hole.

He took the bundle of silver and tiptoed quietly back to his house. Wang Er felt very clever and proud of himself.

“I’m a genius!” he cheered.

But then a wave of fear washed over him.

“What if Zhang San finds his money gone?” Wang Er cried. “What if he suspects me?” he began to panic.

Wang Er thought long and hard. Then he had a clever idea!

“I really am a genius!” Wang Er told himself. “This is so brilliant!”

He ran back to the backyard with a piece of coal in his hand. He wrote under Zhang’s note: “Your neighbor Wang did not steal it.”

The End

The idiom, No 300 Taels of Silver Buried Here is commonly used to refer to someone who considers himself clever, but his attempt at cover-up only makes the situation more obvious.

Question: Do you think Zhang San or Wang Er were really geniuses? Why or why not?

核心词汇

mattress n. 床垫，褥垫

steel adj&n. 钢铁，钢制的

safe n. 保险箱

combination n.〔密码锁的〕号码组合，字码组合

tael n. 两，银两

bundle n. 捆，包裹，包袱

suspicious adj. 怀疑的

whisper v. 低语，私语

lean v. 依，靠

invader n. 入侵者

gasp v. 喘气，倒抽气

obvious adj. 明显的

chest n. 箱子

bury v. 埋，埋葬

genius n. 天才

compliment v. 赞扬

brilliant adj. 卓越的，英明的

chuckle v. 咯咯地轻声笑

soundly adv. 酣畅地

sneak sneaked v. 偷偷地走，溜

tiptoe v. 蹑手蹑脚地走

suspect v. 怀疑

But what if a thief breaks in and finds it? 但是如果一个贼闯进来并且找到它会怎么样？本句中what if 代指what will happen if.

What the genius Zhang San did not consider was his neighbor, Wang Er. Wang Er had been woken up by a noise outside his window. 天才张三没有想到的是，他的邻居王二被他窗外的一阵噪声吵醒了。What the genius Zhang San did not consider是本句的主语从句，his neighbor, Wang Er had been woken up by a noise outside his window是本句的表语从句，两个从句由系动词was相连。

以下翻译来自百度翻译：

你认为哪里是最好的地方来保管你的钱？在你的床垫下面安全吗？但是如果一个小偷破门而入发现了呢？也许你把它放在一个钢制保险箱里。但是如果你忘了密码怎么办？

很久以前，在中国古代，有人思考过这个问题——很多！他的名字叫张三。

张三为了钱而努力工作。每天结束时，他都会骄傲地说：“又一天，又一两两银子。”

张三把所有的钱都存了起来。三百天之后，他攒了三百两银子！

张三把钱放在枕头下的一个包裹里。每天晚上他都数他的钱。“看那些银器！”张三自言自语道。

一天晚上，当他数钱的时候，他觉得听到了可疑的声音。

“我听到的是小偷吗？”他问自己。

“我觉得我的钱放在枕头下不安全，”张三对着他的包小声说。他把包裹放在木制梳妆台最下面的抽屉里。然后他把全身靠在梳妆台上。他张开双臂，好像在保护它免受侵略者的袭击。

这时一只猫在窗外喵喵叫。

“哦！”他吃惊地喘息着。“这个抽屉太显眼了。我得找个更好的地方放我的钱。”

他把包裹从抽屉里拿出来，紧紧地抱在胸前。