Today, we’re reading the first chapter of a beloved 1958 children’s novel by 张天翼 (Zhāng Tiānyì), “The Secret of the Magic Gourd”.
我来给你们讲个故事。可是我先得介绍介绍我自己:我姓王,叫王葆。我要讲的,正是我自己的一件事情,是我和宝葫芦的故事。
你们也许要问:”什么?宝葫芦?就是传说故事里的那种宝葫芦么?”
不错,正是那种宝葫芦。
可是我要声明,我并不是什么神仙,也不是什么妖怪。我和你们一样,是一个平平常常的普通人。你们瞧瞧,我是一个少先队员,我也和你们一样,很爱听故事。
至于宝葫芦的故事,那我从小就知道了。那是我奶奶讲给我听的。奶奶每逢要求我干什么,她就得给我讲个故事。这是我们的规矩。
“乖小葆,来,奶奶给你洗个脚。”奶奶总是一面撵我,一面招手。
“我不干,我怕烫。”我总是一面溜开,一面摆手。
“不烫啊。冷了好一会了。”
“那,我怕冷。”
奶奶撵上了我,说洗脚水刚好不烫也不冷,非洗不可。
这我只好让步。不过我有一个条件:”你爱洗就让你洗。你可得讲个故事。”
就这么着,奶奶讲了个宝葫芦的故事。
“好小葆,别动!”奶奶刚给我洗了脚,忽然又提出一个新的要求来。”让我给你剪一剪……”
什么!剪脚趾甲呀?那不行!我光着脚丫,一下地就跑。可是胳膊给奶奶拽住了,没有办法。
不过我得提出我的条件:”那,非得讲故事。”
于是奶奶又讲了一个──又是宝葫芦的故事。
我就这么着,从很小的时候起,听奶奶讲故事,一直听到我十来岁。奶奶每次每次讲的都不一样。上次讲的是张三劈面撞见了一位神仙,得了一个宝葫芦。下次讲的是李四出去远足旅行,一游游到了龙宫,得到了一个宝葫芦。王五呢,他因为是一个好孩子,肯让奶奶给他换衣服,所以得到了一个宝葫芦。至于赵六得的一个宝葫芦──那是掘地掘来的。
不管张三也好,李四也好,一得到了这个宝葫芦,可就幸福极了,要什么有什么。张三想:”我要吃水蜜桃。”立刻就有一盘水蜜桃。李四希望有一条大花狗,马上就冒出了那么一条──冲着他摇尾巴,舔他的手。
后来呢?后来不用说,他们全都过上了好日子。
我听了这些故事,常常就联系到自己:”我要是有了一个宝葫芦,我该怎么办?我该要些什么?”
一直到我长大了,有时候还想起它来。我有几次对着一道算术题发楞,不知道要怎么样列式子,就由”8″字想到了宝葫芦──假如我有这么一个──
“那可就省心了。”
我和同学们比赛种向日葵,我家里的那几棵长得又瘦又长,上面顶着一个小脑袋,可怜巴巴的样儿,比谁的也比不上。我就又想到了那个宝贝:”那,我得要一棵最好最好的向日葵,长得再棒也没有的向日葵。”
可是那只不过是幻想罢了。
可是我总还是要想到它,那一天我和科学小组的同学闹翻了,我又想到了它。
“要是我有那么一个葫芦,那……”
嗯,还是从头说起吧。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 宝葫芦 | bǎo hú lu5 | magic gourd, treasure gourd |
| 传说 | chuán shuō | legend, folklore |
| 平平常常 | píng píng cháng cháng | ordinary, common, plain |
| 少先队员 | shào xiān duì yuán | Young Pioneer (member of youth organization) |
| 规矩 | guī ju5 | rule, custom, established practice |
| 让步 | ràng bù | to give in, to yield, to compromise |
| 幸福 | xìng fú | happiness, blessed, fortunate |
| 发愣 | fā lèng | to stare blankly, to be in a daze |
| 幻想 | huàn xiǎng | fantasy, illusion, to daydream |
| 闹翻 | nào fān | to have a falling out, to quarrel |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 来 | lái | to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来[hui2 lai5]); ever since (as in 自古以來|自古以来[zi4 gu3… |
| 给 | gěi | to; for; for the benefit of; to give; to allow; to do sth (for sb); (grammatical equivalent of 被); (grammatical equivalent of 把); (sentence intensifier) |
| 你 | nǐ | you (informal, as opposed to courteous 您[nin2]); you (Note: In Taiwan, 妳 is used to address females, but in mainland China, it is not commonly used. Instead, 你 is used to address both males and females.) |
| 们 | men | plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals |
| 讲 | jiǎng | to speak; to explain; to negotiate; to emphasize; to be particular about; as far as sth is concerned; speech; lecture |
| 个 | gě | used in 自個兒|自个儿[zi4 ge3 r5]; variant of 個|个[ge4] |
| 故事 | gù shì | old practice |
| 可是 | kě shì | but; however; (used for emphasis) indeed |
| 先 | xiān | beforehand; first; earlier; at first; originally; for the time being; for now; (prefix) my late (in referring to deceased relatives older than oneself) |
| 得 | dé | to obtain; to get; to gain; to catch (a disease); proper; suitable; proud; contented; to allow; to permit; ready; finished |
| 介 | jiè | to introduce; to lie between; between; shell; armor |
| 绍 | Shào | surname Shao |
| 自己 | zì jǐ | oneself; (attributive) one's own |
| 姓 | xìng | family name; surname; to be surnamed ... |
| 王 | Wáng | surname Wang |
| 叫 | jiào | to shout; to call; to order; to ask; to be called; by (indicates agent in the passive mood); variant of 叫[jiao4] |
| 葆 | ||
| 要 | yāo | (bound form) to demand; to coerce |
| 的 | de | of; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); (used after a noun, verb or adjective to… |
| 正是 | zhèng shì | is precisely |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out … |
| 件 | jiàn | item; component; classifier for events, things, clothes etc |
| 事情 | shì qing | affair; matter; thing; business; CL:件[jian4],樁|桩[zhuang1] |
| 是 | shì | to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion); variant of 是[shi4] |
| 和 | hé | old variant of 和[he2]; surname He; (literary) harmonious (variant of 和[he2]) |
| 也许 | yě xǔ | perhaps; maybe |
| 问 | wèn | to ask; to inquire |
| 什 | shén | what |
| 么 | má | exclamatory final particle; variant of 麼|么[me5] |
| 就是 | jìu shì | exactly; precisely; only; simply; just; (used correlatively with 也[ye3]) even; even if |
| 里 | lǐ | variant of 裡|里[li3]; lining; interior; inside; internal; also written 裏|里[li3]; surname Li |
| 那种 | nà zhǒng | that kind of |
| 不错 | bù cuò | correct; right; not bad; pretty good |
| 声明 | shēng míng | to state; to declare; statement; declaration; CL:項|项[xiang4],份[fen4] |
| 并 | bìng | and; furthermore; also; together with; (not) at all; simultaneously; to combine; to join; to merge; to combine; to amalgamate; short name for Taiyuan 太原[Tai4 yuan2]; variant of 並|并[bing4] |
| 不是 | bù shì | no; is not; not |
| 神 | Shén | God |
| 仙 | xian | immortal |
| 也 | Yě | surname Ye |
| 妖 | ||
| 怪 | guǎi | odd; strange; uncanny; to find strange; to regard as odd; (coll.) somewhat; rather |
| 样 | yàng | manner; pattern; way; appearance; shape; classifier: kind, type |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 普 | pú | general; everywhere |
| 通人 | tōng rén | learned person; person of wide knowledge and sound scholarship |
| 瞧 | qiáo | to look at; to see; to see (a doctor); to visit |
| 很 | hěn | very; quite; (also, often used before an adjective without intensifying its meaning, i.e. as a meaningless syntactic element) |
| 爱 | ài | to love; to be fond of; to like; affection; to be inclined (to do sth); to tend to (happen) |
| 听 | yǐn | smile (archaic); to listen to; to hear; to heed; to obey; a can (loanword from English "tin"); classifier for canned beverages; to let be; to allow (Taiwan pr. [ting4]); (literary) to administer; t… |
| 至于 | zhì yú | as for; as to; to go so far as to |
| 那 | Nā | surname Na |
| 从小 | cóng xiǎo | from childhood; from a young age |
| 就 | jìu | (after a suppositional clause) in that case; then; (after a clause of action) as soon as; immediately after; (same as 就是[jiu4 shi4]) merely; nothing else but; simply; just; precise… |
| 知道了 | zhī dào le | OK!; Got it! |
| 那是 | nà shi | (coll.) of course; naturally; indeed |
| 奶 | nǎi | breast; milk; to breastfeed; variant of 嬭|奶[nai3]; mother; variant of 奶[nai3] |
| 每逢 | měi féng | every time; on each occasion; whenever |
| 求 | qíu | to seek; to look for; to request; to demand; to beseech |
| 干 | gān | old variant of 乾|干[gan1]; surname Gan; variant of 乾|干[gan1]; tree trunk; main part of sth; to manage; to work; to do; capable; cadre; to kill (slang); to fuck (vulgar); (coll.) pissed off; annoyed |
| 她 | tā | she |
| 这 | zhè | (pronoun) this; these; (bound form) this; the (followed by a noun); (bound form) this; these (followed by a classifier) (in this sense, commonly pr. [zhei4], esp. in Beijing) |
| 乖 | guai | (of a child) obedient, well-behaved; shrewd; perverse; irregular |
| 小 | xiǎo | small; tiny; few; young |
| 洗 | xǐ | to wash; to bathe; to develop (photographs); to shuffle (cards etc); to erase (a recording) |
| 脚 | jiǎo | foot; leg (of an animal or an object); base (of an object); CL:雙|双[shuang1],隻|只[zhi1]; classifier for kicks |
| 总 | zǒng | (bound form) general; overall; to sum up; in every case; always; invariably; anyway; after all; eventually; sooner or later; surely; (after a person's name) abbr. for 總經理|总经理[zong3… |
| 一面 | yī miàn | one side; one aspect; simultaneously... (and...); one's whole face |
| 撵 | ||
| 招 | zhao | to recruit; to beckon; to infect; a move (chess); device; to confess |
| 手 | shǒu | hand; (formal) to hold; person engaged in certain types of work; person skilled in certain types of work; personal(ly); convenient; classifier for skill; CL:雙|双[shuang1],隻|只[zhi1] |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 怕 | Pà | surname Pa |
| 烫 | tǎng | to scald; to blanch (cooking); to perm; scalding hot |
| 溜 | liu | to slip away; to skate |
| 开 | kāi | to open (transitive or intransitive); (of ships, vehicles, troops etc) to start; to turn on; to put in operation; to operate; to run; to boil; to write out (a prescription, check, … |
| 摆 | bǎi | to arrange; to exhibit; to move to and fro; a pendulum; hem (at the bottom of a garment) |
| 啊 | ā | interjection of surprise; Ah!; Oh! |
| 冷 | Lěng | surname Leng |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (bound form) clear in one's mind; to understand clearly |
| 好 | hǎo | good; appropriate; proper; all right!; (before a verb) easy to; (before a verb) good to; (before an adjective for exclamatory effect) so; (verb complement indicating completion); (… |
| 一会 | yī huì | a moment; a while; in a moment; also pr. [yi1 hui3] |
| 上 | shǎng | used in 上聲|上声[shang3 sheng1] |
| 说 | shuì | to persuade; variant of 說|说[shuo1] |
| 水 | Shuǐ | surname Shui; Shui ethnic group |
| 刚好 | gāng hǎo | just; exactly; to happen to be |
| 非 | Fēi | abbr. for 非洲[Fei1 zhou1], Africa |
| 不可 | bù kě | cannot; should not; must not |
| 只好 | zhǐ hǎo | to have no other option but to ...; to have to; to be forced to |
| 不过 | bù guò | only; merely; no more than; but; however; anyway (to get back to a previous topic); cannot be more (after adjectival) |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 条 | tiáo | strip; item; article; clause (of law or treaty); classifier for long thin things (ribbon, river, road, trousers etc) |
| 让 | ràng | to yield; to permit; to let sb do sth; to have sb do sth; to make sb (feel sad etc); by (indicates the agent in a passive clause, like 被[bei4]) |
| 可 | kě | (prefix) can; may; able to; -able; to approve; to permit; to suit; (particle used for emphasis) certainly; very; but; however |
| 这么着 | zhè me zhe | thus; in this way; like this |
| 别 | Bié | surname Bie; to make sb change their ways, opinions etc |
| 动 | dòng | (of sth) to move; to set in movement; to displace; to touch; to make use of; to stir (emotions); to alter; abbr. for 動詞|动词[dong4 ci2], verb |
| 刚 | gāng | (literary) hard; firm; strong; exactly; precisely; barely; only just; just; only a short while ago |
| 忽然 | hū rán | suddenly; all of a sudden |
| 又 | yòu | (once) again; also; both... and...; and yet; (used for emphasis) anyway |
| 提出 | tí chū | to raise (an issue); to propose; to put forward; to suggest; to post (on a website); to withdraw (cash) |
| 新 | Xīn | abbr. for Xinjiang 新疆[Xin1 jiang1]; abbr. for Singapore 新加坡[Xin1 jia1 po1]; surname Xin |
| 剪 | Jiǎn | surname Jian |
| 趾 | ||
| 甲 | jiǎ | first of the ten Heavenly Stems 十天干[shi2 tian1 gan1]; (used for an unspecified person or thing); first (in a list, as a party to a contract etc); letter "A" or roman "I" in list "A… |
| 呀 | yā | ah (used to express surprise); (onom.) creaking |
| 不行 | bù xíng | won't do; be out of the question; be no good; not work; not be capable |
| 光 | guāng | light; ray (CL:道[dao4]); bright; shiny; only; merely; used up; finished; to leave (a part of the body) uncovered |
| 着 | zhāo | variant of 著|着[zhao1]; a move in chess (Taiwan pr. [zhuo2]); trick; tactic; (dialect) okay; all right; (dialect) to put in; to add |
| 丫 | ||
| 一下 | yī xià | (after a verb) a bit; a little (indicating brief duration, or softening the tone, or suggesting giving sth a try); all at once; suddenly |
| 地 | de | -ly; structural particle: used before a verb or adjective, linking it to preceding modifying adverbial adjunct |
| 跑 | páo | (of an animal) to paw (the ground) |
| 胳 | ge | arm (in 胳膊) |
| 膊 | bō | shoulder |
| 拽 | zhuai | to pull; to drag; to haul (zhuai4); to fling (zhuai1) |
| 住 | zhù | to live; to reside; to stay; to stop; to cease; (result complement indicating firmness or a stable achieved state) |
| 没有 | méi yǒu | haven't; hasn't; doesn't exist; to not have; to not be |
| 办 | bàn | to take care of (a matter); to deal with (a task, procedure etc); to organize (an event); to establish; to set up; to manage; to run (an enterprise); (law) to handle; to investigat… |
| 法 | fǎ | variant of 法[fa3]; France; French; abbr. for 法國|法国[Fa3 guo2]; Taiwan pr. [Fa4]; old variant of 法[fa3]; law |
| 非得 | fēi děi | (followed by a verb phrase, then – optionally – 不可, or 不行 etc) must |
| 于是 | yú shì | thereupon; as a result; consequently; thus; hence |
| 从 | cóng | variant of 從|从[cong2]; surname Cong |
| 小的 | xiǎo de | (coll.) young child; the little one(s) of the family; (old) (humble) I; me; my (used by a commoner when speaking to an official) |
| 时 | shí | old variant of 時|时[shi2]; surname Shi |
| 候 | hòu | to wait; to inquire after; to watch; season; climate; (old) period of five days |
| 起 | qǐ | to rise; to raise; to get up; to set out; to start; to appear; to launch; to initiate (action); to draft; to establish; to get (from a depot or counter); verb suffix, to start; sta… |
| 一直 | yī zhí | straight (in a straight line); continuously; always; all the way through |
| 听到 | tīng dào | to hear |
| 十 | shí | ten; 10 |
| 岁 | suì | variant of 歲|岁[sui4], year; years old; classifier for years (of age); year; year (of crop harvests) |
| 每次 | měi cì | every time |
| 都 | Dū | surname Du |
| 不一 | bù yī | to vary; to differ |
| 上次 | shàng cì | last time |
| 张三 | Zhāng Sān | Zhang San, name for an unspecified person, first of a series of three: 張三|张三[Zhang1 San1], 李四[Li3 Si4], 王五[Wang2 Wu3] Tom, Dick and Harry; (dialect) wolf |
| 劈 | pi | to hack; to split open |
| 面 | miàn | face; side; surface; aspect; top; classifier for objects with flat surfaces such as drums, mirrors, flags etc; variant of 麵|面[mian4]; flour; noodles; (of food) soft (not crunchy); (slang) (of a person) ineffectual; spineless |
| 撞 | zhuǎng | to knock against; to run into |
| 见 | jiàn | to see; to meet; to appear (to be sth); to interview; opinion; view |
| 位 | wèi | position; location; place; seat; classifier for people (honorific); classifier for binary bits (e.g. 十六位 16-bit or 2 bytes); (physics) potential |
| 得了 | dé le | all right!; that's enough! |
| 下次 | xià cì | next time |
| 李 | lí | plum; surname Li |
| 四 | sì | four; 4 |
| 出去 | chū qù | to go out |
| 远足 | yuǎn zú | excursion; hike; march |
| 旅行 | lu:3 xíng | to travel; journey; trip; CL:趟[tang4],次[ci4] |
| 游 | Yóu | surname You; to walk; to tour; to roam; to travel |
| 到了 | dào liǎo | at last; finally; in the end |
| 龙宫 | lóng gōng | palace of the Dragon King at the bottom of the Eastern Sea |
| 得到 | dé dào | to get; to obtain; to receive |
| 王五 | Wáng Wǔ | Wang Wu, name for an unspecified person, third of a series of three: 張三|张三[Zhang1 San1], 李四[Li3 Si4], 王五 Tom, Dick and Harry |
| 呢 | ne | (sentence-final particle) used in questions to link back to prior discourse or context ("what about...?", "and...?"); (sentence-final particle) indicating that a state or situation… |
| 他 | tā | (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his; (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2]) |
| 因为 | yīn wèi | because; owing to; on account of |
| 孩子 | hái zi | child |
| 肯 | kěn | old variant of 肯[ken3]; to agree; to consent; to be willing to |
| 换 | huàn | to exchange; to change (clothes etc); to substitute; to switch; to convert (currency) |
| 衣服 | yī fu | clothes; CL:件[jian4],套[tao4] |
| 所以 | suǒ yǐ | therefore; as a result; so; the reason why |
| 赵 | zhǎo | surname Zhao; the Former Zhao 前趙|前赵[Qian2 Zhao4] (304–329) and Later Zhao 後趙|后赵[Hou4 Zhao4] (319–350), states of the Sixteen Kingdoms |
| 六 | lìu | six; 6 |
| 掘 | juē | to dig |
| 不管 | bù guǎn | not to be concerned; regardless of; no matter |
| 也好 | yě hǎo | that's fine; may as well; (reduplicated) regardless of whether ... or ... |
| 这个 | zhè ge | (pronoun) this; (adjective) this |
| 可就 | kě jìu | certainly |
| 极 | jí | extremely; pole (geography, physics); utmost; top |
| 想 | xiǎng | to think (about); to think of; to devise; to think (that); to believe (that); to desire; to want (to); to miss (feel wistful about the absence of) |
| 吃水 | chī shuǐ | drinking water; to obtain water (for daily needs); to absorb water; draft (of ship) |
| 蜜桃 | mì táo | honey peach; juicy peach |
| 立刻 | lì kè | immediately; at once; right away |
| 盘 | pán | tray; plate; dish; (finance) (bound form) market prices; (computing) (bound form) disk; to coil (a rope, pigtail etc); to check; to examine; to investigate; to transfer; to sell (p… |
| 水蜜桃 | shuǐ mì táo | honey peach (juicy sweet peach variety) |
| 希 | xī | to hope; to admire; variant of 稀[xi1] |
| 望 | wàng | full moon; to hope; to expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); to look towards; towards; 15th day of month (lunar calendar); old variant of 望[wang4] |
| 大 | dà | big; large; great; older (than another person); eldest (as in 大姐[da4 jie3]); greatly; freely; fully; (dialect) father; (dialect) uncle (father's brother) |
| 花 | Huā | surname Hua; old variant of 花[hua1]; variant of 花[hua1]; flower; blossom; also pr. [wei3] |
| 狗 | gǒu | dog; CL:隻|只[zhi1],條|条[tiao2] |
| 马上 | mǎ shàng | at once; right away; immediately; on horseback (i.e. by military force) |
| 冒 | mào | old variant of 冒[mao4]; surname Mao |
| 出 | chū | to go out; to come out; to arise; to occur; to produce; to yield; to go beyond; to exceed; (used after a verb to indicate an outward direction or a positive result); classifier for…; variant of 出[chu1] (classifier for plays or chapters of classical novels) |
| 那么 | nà me | like that; in that way; to that extent; (before a number) ... or so; about ...; then; in that case |
| 冲 | chong | (of water) to dash against; to infuse; to flush; to rise in the air; to collide with |
| 摇 | yāo | to shake; to wave; to rock; to sway |
| 尾 | wěi | tail; remainder; remnant; extremity; sixth of the 28 constellations; classifier for fish |
| 巴 | Bā | Ba, a state during the Zhou dynasty (in present-day Chongqing and the eastern part of Sichuan); the east of Sichuan and Chongqing Municipality; surname Ba; (bound form) abbr. for 巴… |
| 舔 | tiǎn | to lick; to lap |
| 后 | Hòu | surname Hou; back; behind; rear; afterwards; after; later; post- |
| 不用说 | bù yòng shuō | needless to say; it goes without saying |
| 全都 | quán dōu | all; without exception |
| 过 | Guō | surname Guo |
| 好日子 | hǎo rì zi | auspicious day; good day; happy life |
| 这些 | zhè xiē | these |
| 常常 | cháng cháng | frequently; often |
| 联系 | lián xì | variant of 聯繫|联系[lian2 xi4] |
| 到 | dào | to reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoug… |
| 要是 | yào shi | (coll.) if |
| 有了 | yǒu le | I've got a solution!; to have a bun in the oven (abbr. for 有了胎[you3 le5 tai1]) |
| 该 | gāi | should; ought to; probably; must be; to deserve; to owe; to be sb's turn to do sth; that; the above-mentioned |
| 怎 | zěn | how |
| 些 | xiē | classifier indicating a small amount or small number greater than 1: some, a few, several |
| 长大 | zhǎng dà | to grow up |
| 有时 | yǒu shí | sometimes; now and then |
| 还 | Huán | surname Huan |
| 想起 | xiǎng qǐ | to recall; to think of; to call to mind |
| 它 | tā | it; it (pronoun for an animal) |
| 几次 | jǐ cì | several times |
| 对 | duì | right; correct; towards; at; for; concerning; regarding; to treat (sb a certain way); to face; (bound form) opposite; facing; matching; to match together; to adjust; to fit; to sui… |
| 一道 | yī dào | together |
| 算 | suàn | to calculate; to figure out; to include; to count in; to count; to be valid; to carry weight; to regard as; to consider (to be ...) |
| 术 | shù | method; technique |
| 题 | Tí | surname Ti |
| 发 | fā | to send out; to show (one's feeling); to issue; to develop; to make a bundle of money; classifier for gunshots (rounds); hair; Taiwan pr. [fa3] |
| 楞 | ||
| 不知 | bù zhī | not to know; unaware; unknowingly; fig. not to admit (defeat, hardships, tiredness etc) |
| 道 | dào | road; path (CL:條|条[tiao2],股[gu3]); (bound form) way; reason; principle; (bound form) a skill; an art; a specialization; (Daoism) the Way; the Dao; to say (introducing a direct quot… |
| 列 | liè | to arrange; to line up; file; series; (in data tables) column; (Tw) row |
| 式子 | shì zi | posture; (math.) expression; formula |
| 由 | yóu | to follow; from; because of; due to; by; via; through; (before a noun and a verb) it is for ... to ... |
| 字 | zì | letter; symbol; character; word; CL:個|个[ge4]; courtesy or style name traditionally given to males aged 20 in dynastic China |
| 想到 | xiǎng dào | to think of; to call to mind; to anticipate |
| 假 | gēi | used in 假掰[gei1 bai1]; to borrow (variant of 假[jia3]) |
| 如 | rú | as; as if; such as |
| 这么 | zhè me | so much; this much; how much?; this way; like this |
| 省 | shěng | to save; to economize; to be frugal; to omit; to delete; to leave out; province; provincial capital; a ministry (of the Japanese government) |
| 心 | xīn | heart; mind; intention; center; core; CL:顆|颗[ke1],個|个[ge4] |
| 同学 | tóng xué | to study at the same school; fellow student; classmate; CL:位[wei4],個|个[ge4] |
| 比赛 | bǐ sài | competition (sports etc); match; CL:場|场[chang3],次[ci4]; to compete |
| 种 | zhǒng | seed; species; kind; type; classifier for types, kinds, sorts |
| 向 | Xiàng | surname Xiang; to tend toward; to guide; variant of 向[xiang4]; variant of 向[xiang4]; direction; orientation; to face; to turn toward; to; towards; shortly before; formerly |
| 日 | rì | (bound form) sun; day; day of the month; (bound form) Japan (abbr. for 日本[Ri4 ben3]); (vulgar) to fuck; to have sex with |
| 葵 | ||
| 家里 | jiā lǐ | home |
| 几 | jī | small table; (literary) almost |
| 棵 | kē | classifier for trees, cabbages, plants etc |
| 长得 | zhǎng de | to look (pretty, the same etc) |
| 瘦 | shòu | thin; to lose weight; (of clothing) tight; (of meat) lean; (of land) unproductive |
| 长 | cháng | long; (bound form) length; (bound form) strong point; forte; (bound form) to be good at; (literary) surplus; spare (Taiwan pr. [zhang4]) |
| 上面 | shàng miàn | on top of; above-mentioned; also pr. [shang4 mian5] |
| 顶 | dǐng | apex; crown of the head; top; roof; most; to carry on the head; to push to the top; to go against; to replace; to substitute; to be subjected to (an aerial bombing, hailstorm etc);… |
| 小脑 | xiǎo nǎo | cerebellum (part of the brain) |
| 袋 | dài | pouch; bag; sack; pocket |
| 可怜 | kě lián | pitiful; pathetic; to have pity on |
| 儿 | ér | child; son |
| 比 | Bǐ | Belgium; Belgian; abbr. for 比利時|比利时[Bi3 li4 shi2] |
| 谁 | shéi | who; also pr. [shui2] |
| 比不上 | bǐ bù shàng | can't compare with |
| 那个 | nà ge | that one; that thing; that (as opposed to this); (used before a verb or adjective for emphasis); (used to humorously or indirectly refer to sth embarrassing, funny etc, or when one… |
| 宝贝 | bǎo bèi | treasured object; treasure; darling; baby; cowry; good-for-nothing or queer character |
| 得要 | děi yào | to need; must |
| 最好 | zuì hǎo | best; had better ...; it would be best to ... |
| 再 | zài | again; once more; re-; further; beyond this point of time; (before an adjective) more; then (after sth, and not until then); no matter how ... (followed by an adjective or verb, an… |
| 棒 | bǎng | excellent, amazing |
| 只不过 | zhǐ bu guò | only; merely; nothing but; no more than; it's just that ... |
| 罢了 | bà le | a modal particle indicating (that's all, only, nothing much) |
| 还是 | hái shi | still (as before); had better; unexpectedly; or |
| 天 | tiān | day; sky; heaven |
| 科学 | kē xué | science; scientific knowledge; scientific; rational; CL:門|门[men2],個|个[ge4],種|种[zhong3] |
| 小组 | xiǎo zǔ | group |
| 葫 | hū | used in 葫蘆|葫芦[hu2 lu5] |
| 芦 | lū | rush; Phragmites communis |
| 嗯 | ēn | (a groaning sound) |
| 头 | tóu | head; hair style; the top; end; beginning or end; a stub; remnant; chief; boss; side; aspect; first; leading; classifier for pigs or livestock; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 说起 | shuō qǐ | to mention; to bring up (a subject); with regard to; as for |
| 吧 | bā | bar (loanword) (serving drinks, or providing Internet access etc); to puff (on a pipe etc); (onom.) bang; abbr. for 貼吧|贴吧[tie1 ba1] |
Let me tell you a story. But first, I need to introduce myself: my surname is Wang, and my full name is Wang Bao. What I’m going to tell you is something that happened to me personally – it’s the story of me and the magic gourd.
You might ask: ‘What? A magic gourd? You mean the kind from fairy tales and legends?’
That’s right, exactly that kind of magic gourd.
But I must make it clear that I’m not some immortal being, nor am I any kind of monster. I’m an ordinary, plain, regular person just like you. Look at me – I’m a Young Pioneer, and just like you, I love listening to stories.
As for the story of the magic gourd, I’ve known about it since I was little. My grandmother told it to me. Whenever Grandma wanted me to do something, she had to tell me a story. That was our rule.
‘Good little Bao, come here, let Grandma wash your feet.’ Grandma would always chase after me while beckoning with her hand.
‘I don’t want to, I’m scared it’s too hot.’ I would always dodge away while waving my hands.
‘It’s not hot. It’s been cooling for quite a while now.’
‘Well then, I’m scared it’s too cold.’
Grandma caught up with me and said the water was just right – not too hot and not too cold – and I absolutely had to wash my feet.
So I had no choice but to give in. However, I had one condition: ‘If you want to wash them, fine. But you have to tell me a story.’
And just like that, Grandma told a story about the magic gourd.
‘Good little Bao, don’t move!’ Grandma had just finished washing my feet when she suddenly came up with a new request. ‘Let me trim your…’
What! Trim my toenails? No way! I jumped off with my bare feet and started running. But Grandma grabbed my arm, and there was nothing I could do.
However, I had to state my condition: ‘Well then, you absolutely must tell a story.’
So Grandma told another one – yet another story about the magic gourd.
That’s how it went. From when I was very young, I listened to Grandma’s stories, all the way until I was about ten years old. Each time Grandma told the story, it was different. One time it was about Zhang San who bumped right into an immortal and got a magic gourd. The next time it was about Li Si who went on a long journey and traveled all the way to the Dragon Palace, where he obtained a magic gourd. As for Wang Wu, he got a magic gourd because he was a good boy and let his grandma change his clothes. And Zhao Liu’s magic gourd? He dug it up from the ground.
Whether it was Zhang San or Li Si, once they got this magic gourd, they became extremely happy – they could have whatever they wanted. Zhang San would think: ‘I want to eat honey peaches.’ And immediately a plate of honey peaches would appear. Li Si wished for a big spotted dog, and right away one would pop up – wagging its tail at him and licking his hand.
And then what? After that, needless to say, they all lived happily ever after.
After hearing these stories, I often connected them to myself: ‘If I had a magic gourd, what would I do? What would I wish for?’
Even after I grew up, I would still think about it sometimes. A few times when I was staring blankly at a math problem, not knowing how to set up the equation, the number ‘8’ would make me think of the magic gourd – if I had one of those…
‘That would save me so much trouble.’
When my classmates and I had a competition to grow sunflowers, the ones at my house grew thin and tall, with tiny little heads on top, looking all pitiful – they couldn’t compare to anyone else’s. I thought of that treasure again: ‘Then I’d wish for the best, the very best sunflower – one that couldn’t possibly grow any better.’
But that was nothing more than a fantasy.
Yet I still kept thinking about it. The day I had a falling out with my friends in the science club, I thought about it again.
‘If I had such a gourd, then…’
Hmm, let me start from the beginning.