《能言馬與男孩》 第三章 到達塔什班城

CHAPTER THREE AT THE GATES OF TASHBAAN

第三章　到達塔什班城

"MY name," said the girl at once, "is Aravis Tarkheena and I am the only daughter of Kidrash Tarkaan, the son of Rishti Tarkaan, the son of Kidrash Tarkaan, the son of Ilsombreh Tisroc, the son of Ardeeb Tisroc who was descended in a right line from the god Tash. My father is the lord of the province of Calavar and is one who has the right of standing on his feet in his shoes before the face of Tisroc himself (may he live for ever). My mother (on whom be the peace of the gods) is dead and my father has married another wife. One of my brothers has fallen in battle against the rebels in the far west and the other is a child. Now it came to pass that my father' s wife, my stepmother, hated me, and the sun appeared dark in her eyes as long as I lived in my father' s house. And so she persuaded my father to promise me in marriage to Ahoshta Tarkaan. Now this Ahoshta is of base birth, though in these latter years he has won the favour of the Tisroc (may he live for ever) by flattery and evil counsels,and is now made a Tarkaan and the lord of many cities and is likely to be chosen as the Grand Vizier when the present Grand Vizier dies. Moreover he is at least sixty years old and has a hump on his back and his face resembles that of an ape. Nevertheless my father, because of the wealth and power of this Ahoshta, and being persuaded by his wife, sent messengers offering me in marriage, and the offer was favourably accepted and Ahoshta sent word that he would marry me this very year at the time of high summer.

“我的名字，”女孩立刻開口說，“叫做阿拉維斯泰坎希娜，我是齊拉希泰坎的獨生女。他的父親是李西堤泰坎，祖父是齊拉希泰坎，曾祖是艾索瑞太洛帝，而曾曾祖則是身為塔什神嫡系子裔的亞狄太洛帝。

我的父親是卡拉華省的領(lǐng)主，同時也是少數(shù)不用在太洛帝面前屈膝跪拜的重臣之一，愿吾皇萬壽無疆。我的母親早已過世，愿她在神的懷抱中安息，我的父親又娶了另一名女子為妻。

我有一個哥哥在遙遠的北方對抗叛軍時，不幸在戰(zhàn)場上為國捐軀，而我其他兄弟的年紀都還很小?，F(xiàn)在該提到我父親的新妻子了，我的后母痛恨我，只要我住在父親家中，在她眼中甚至連太陽都變得黯淡無光。

于是她勸我父親把我嫁給艾好大泰坎。這個艾好大出身卑微，但近幾年來靠拍馬屁和進讒言博得了太洛帝的寵愛，愿吾皇萬壽無疆，現(xiàn)在艾好大已受封為泰坎，也是名下?lián)碛斜姸喑鞘械拇箢I(lǐng)主，而且很可能在目前的首相去世之后接替他的位子。

可是他少說也有六十歲了，背上還有個丑陋的駝峰，臉孔長得活像是一只大猩猩。但我的父親卻看中艾好大的財富和權(quán)勢，再加上他的新妻子在一旁煽動，于是他派遣使者去向艾好大表示，想要將我許配給他，艾好大歡天喜地地答應(yīng)了這門婚事，并派使者告訴我父親，他將在今年仲夏時前來迎娶。

"When this news was brought to me the sun appeared dark in my eyes and I laid myself on my bed and wept for a day.But on the second day I rose up and washed my face and caused my mare Hwin to be saddled and took with me a sharp dagger which my brother had carried in the western wars and rode out alone. And when my father' s house was out of sight and I was come to a green open place in a certain wood where there were no dwellings of men,I dismounted from Hwin my mare and took out the dagger. Then I parted my clothes where I thought the readiest way lay to my heart and I prayed to all the gods that as soon as I was dead I might find myself with my brother. After that I shut my eyes and my teeth and prepared to drive the dagger into my heart.But before I had done so,this mare spoke with the voice of one of the daughters of men and said,"O my mistress,do not by any means destroy yourself,for if you live you may yet have good fortune but all the dead are dead alike."

這個消息傳到我耳中，對我來說簡直是晴天霹靂，我躺在床上哭了一整天。到了第二天，我就站起來，把臉洗干凈，替我的母馬赫溫套上鞍具，帶著一把我哥哥曾在西方戰(zhàn)場上使用過的鋒利匕首，獨自騎馬離開家門。

到了完全看不到我父親房子的地方，踏入一片寬敞碧綠的林中空地，我就從母馬赫溫身上跳下來，取出匕首。然后用刀鋒頂住我認為最接近心臟的部位，將我的衣衫割破，祈求天上所有神明，讓我在死去之后能與哥哥重逢。然后我就閉上眼睛，咬緊牙關(guān)，準備將匕首刺入心臟。就在我下手之前，這只母馬突然用人類少女的聲音開口說：‘喔，我的主人啊，你可千萬不要尋死啊，留得青山在，不怕沒柴燒，只要活著就有希望找到幸福，但如果死了就一切都完了。’”

"I didn't say it half so well as that," muttered the mare.

“我才沒說得那么好呢。”赫溫嘟囔著說。

"Hush,Ma'am,hush," said Bree,who was thoroughly enjoying the story. "She's telling it in the grand Calormene manner and no story-teller in a Tisroc' s court could do it better. Pray go on,Tarkheena."

“噓，夫人，別打岔，”布里說，這個故事讓他聽得十分入迷，“她是用華麗的卡樂門敘事風(fēng)格述說這個故事，就算是太洛帝宮中的御用說書人，也不會說得比她更好。拜托你快點講下去，泰坎希娜。”

"When I heard the language of men uttered by my mare," continued Aravis, "I said to myself the fear of death has disordered my reason and subjected me to delusions.And I became full of shame for none of my lineage ought to fear death more than the biting of a gnat. Therefore I addressed myself a second time to the stabbing,but Hwin came near to me and put her head in between me and the dagger and discoursed to me most excellent reasons and rebuked me as a mother rebukes her daughter. And now my wonder was so great that I forgot about killing myself and about Ahoshta and said, 'O my mare,how have you learned to speak like one of the daughters of men ? ' And Hwin told me what is known to all this company,that in Narnia there are beasts that talk,and how she herself was stolen from thence when she was a little foal.She told me also of the woods and waters of Narnia and the castles and the great ships,till I said, 'In the name of Tash and Azaroth and Zardeenah Lady of the Night,I have a great wish to be in that country of Narnia. 'O my mistress,' answered the mare, 'if you were in Narnia you would be happy,for in that land no maiden is forced to marry against her will.

“當我聽到我的母馬竟然口吐人言時，”阿拉維斯繼續(xù)說，“我告訴自己，死亡的恐懼已讓我失去理智，因而產(chǎn)生了錯覺。我感到萬分羞愧，因為我們家族向來都是把生死置之度外，死亡對我們來說就像蚊子叮咬一樣，沒人會放在心上。于是我又再度抓緊匕首，用力往下刺，但赫溫卻連忙趕過來，把頭塞到我胸前，擋住了匕首，苦口婆心地勸我不要尋死，并像母親責怪女兒般地罵我不懂事。我實在太驚訝，完全忘了要自殺，甚至把艾好大的事情都拋到九霄云外，只是急急追問她：‘喔，我的馬兒呀，你是怎么學(xué)會用人類少女的聲音說話的呢?’于是她對我透露你們都已經(jīng)知曉的事情，告訴我在納尼亞王國有許多會說話的動物，當她還是一匹小馬的時候，就不幸被人偷走，被迫離開了家鄉(xiāng)。她同時也給我描繪納尼亞王國的幽深樹林與湖泊河流，還有那里高聳的城堡與雄偉的大船，最后我忍不住說：‘我以塔什神、阿札羅神，以及夜之女神茶迪娜等諸神的圣名起誓，我極度渴望能生活在那個國家。’‘我的主人啊，’馬兒答道，‘你在納尼亞王國一定會過得十分幸?？鞓?，因為在那兒沒有人會強迫女孩子嫁給她們不愛的人。’”

"And when we had talked together for a great time hope returned to me and I rejoiced that I had not killed myself. Moreover it was agreed between Hwin and me that we should steal ourselves away together and we planned it in this fashion. We returned to my father s house and I put on my gayest clothes and sang and danced before my father and pretended to be delighted with the marriage which he had prepared for me. Also I said to him, 'O my father and O the delight of my eyes,give me your licence and permission to go with one of my maidens alone for three days into the woods to do secret sacrifices to Zardeenah,Lady of the Night and of Maidens,as is proper and customary for damsels when they must bid farewell to the service of Zardeenah and prepare themselves for marriage. ' And he answered, 'O my daughter and O the delight of my eyes,so shall it be.

“我們就這樣談了許久，我心中又再度燃起了希望，并暗自慶幸自己沒有自殺成功。然后我跟赫溫約好一起偷偷溜走，并擬定了一個計劃。我們先回到我父親家，換上我最鮮艷華麗的衣裳，在父親面前開心地歌唱舞蹈，假裝對他安排的這門親事感到十分滿意。同時我還對他說：‘喔，我最敬愛的父親啊，請允許我?guī)б幻膛氉缘缴掷锎先?，在那里舉行秘密祭典，祭拜夜之女神與少女的守護神茶迪娜。’按照習(xí)俗，這是每個少女在即將嫁為人婦，脫離茶迪娜庇護時所應(yīng)盡的禮節(jié)。而他答道：‘喔，我最心愛的女兒啊，該做的你就去做吧。’”

"But when I came out from the presence of my father I went immediately to the oldest of his slaves,his secretary,who had dandled me on his knees when I was a baby and loved me more than the air and the light. And I swore him to be secret and begged him to write a certain letter for me. And he wept and implored me to change my resolution but in the end he said, 'To hear is to obey,' and did all my will. And I sealed the letter and hid it in my bosom."

“但我一離開父親，就趕緊去找他最年老的一名奴隸，也就是他的秘書。當我還在襁褓中的時候，他常把我抱在膝上逗我玩耍，在他眼中，我甚至比空氣與陽光還要珍貴。我要他發(fā)誓替我保密，哀求他替我寫一封信。他聽了不禁老淚縱橫，苦苦哀求我改變心意，但最后還是拗不過我，只好說：‘屬下遵命’，并完全照我的意思去做。我把信封好，藏在懷中。”

"But what was in the letter ?" asked Shasta.

“信里寫了些什么啊?”沙斯塔問道。

"Be quiet, youngster," said Bree."You're spoiling the story. She'll tell us all about the letter in the right place. Go on, Tarkheena."

“安靜，小伙子，”布里說，“你這樣會破壞聽故事的樂趣。她待會兒就會在適當?shù)臅r候?qū)ξ覀兺嘎缎偶膬?nèi)容。趕快再繼續(xù)說下去吧，泰坎希娜。”

"Then I called the maid who was to go with me to the woods and perform the rites of Zardeenah and told her to wake me very early in the morning. And I became merry with her and gave her wine to drink;but I had mixed such things in her cup that I knew she must sleep for a night and a day. As soon as the household of my father had committed themselves to sleep I arose and put on an armour of my brother s which I always kept in my chamber in his memory. I put into my girdle all the money I had and certain choice jewels and provided myself also with food, and saddled the mare with my own hands and rode away in the second watch of the night. I directed my course not to the woods where my father supposed that I would go but north and east to Tashbaan.

“然后我把那名要跟我一起去祭拜茶迪娜的侍女召過來，吩咐她一大早就喚我起床。我故意在她面前強顏歡笑，并賞她酒喝;但我暗地里在她的杯子里下藥，這樣她就會昏睡一天一夜。等我父親家里的人全都入睡之后，我就立刻爬下床，穿上我哥哥留下的一副盔甲，他死后我一直把它留在房中作為紀念。我把自己的財產(chǎn)和一些高級珠寶塞進腰帶，另外也替自己準備了些食物，然后親手替馬兒套上鞍具，在午夜過后第二班守門人換崗時騎馬離開家門。我并未走向父親以為我會前往的樹林，而是朝東北方出發(fā)前往塔什班。

"Now for three days and more I knew that my father would not seek me, being deceived by the words I had said to him. And on the fourth day we arrived at the city of Azim Balda. Now Azim Balda stands at the meeting of many roads and from it the posts of the Tisroc (may he live for ever) ride on swift horses to every part of the empire: and it is one of the rights and privileges of the greater Tarkaans to send messages by them. I therefore went to the Chief of the Messengers in the House of Imperial Posts in Azim Balda and said, 'O dispatcher of messages, here is a letter from my uncle Ahoshta Tarkaan to Kidrash Tarkaan lord of Calavar. Take now these five crescents and cause it to be sent to him. ' And the Chief of the Messengers said, 'To hear is to obey.

我知道父親會相信我的謊言，因此他在三天之內(nèi)并不會來尋找我。而在第四天，我們到達了阿齊姆•巴爾達城。阿齊姆•巴爾達位于眾多道路的交會點，太洛帝，愿吾皇萬壽無疆，在此建了郵務(wù)中心，信差可以利用這個絕佳位置，快馬加鞭地將訊息傳送到帝國各個角落，而身份高貴的泰坎享有派遣他們送信的特權(quán)。因此我前往阿齊姆•巴爾達城的皇家郵局，直接去找郵務(wù)長，告訴他：‘喔，帝國的郵件總管啊，這里有一封我叔父艾好大泰坎，要寄給卡拉華省領(lǐng)主齊拉希泰坎的信函。收下這五枚克利申，將這封信安全送達他手中。’郵務(wù)局長答道：‘屬下遵命。’

"This letter was feigned to be written by Ahoshta and this was the signification of the writing:'Ahoshta Tarkaan to Kidrash Tarkaan, salutation and peace. In the name of Tash the irresistible, the inexorable. Be it known to you that as I made my journey towards your house to perform the contract of marriage between me and your daughter Aravis Tarkheena, it pleased

這封信是假冒艾好大的手筆，內(nèi)容大約如下：‘艾好大泰坎奉神威無敵且鐵面無私的塔什神之圣名，謹在此向齊拉希泰坎問候致意，并祝福閣下福壽安康。在此稟告閣下，在我前往閣下領(lǐng)土，履行我與閣下之女阿拉維斯泰坎希娜的婚約途中，由于諸神的眷顧，我有幸與她在樹林中巧遇，在此稟告閣下，在我前往閣下領(lǐng)土，履行我與閣下之女阿拉維斯泰坎希娜的婚約途中，由于諸神的眷顧，我有幸與她在樹林中巧遇，

fortune and the gods that I fell in with her in the forest when she had ended the rites and sacrifices of Zardeenah according to the custom of maidens. And when I learned who she was, being delighted with her beauty and discretion, I became inflamed with love and it appeared to me that the sun would be dark to me if I did not marry her at once. Accordingly I prepared the necessary sacrifices and married your daughter the same hour that I met her and have returned with her to my own house. And we both pray and charge you to come hither as speedily as you may that we may be delighted with your face and speech; and also that you may bring with you the dowry of my wife, which, by reason of my great charges and expenses, I require without delay. And because thou and I are brothers I assure myself that you will not be angered by the haste of my marriage which is wholly occasioned by the great love I bear your daughter.And I commit you to the care of all the gods. '

當時她依照少女婚嫁前的習(xí)俗，剛完成祭拜茶迪娜女神的儀式。當我知曉她的真實身份，而她的美貌端莊又令我大為傾倒，心中立刻燃起了熊熊愛火，我感到，若是不能立刻與她成婚，太陽將變得黯無光彩。因此在我巧遇閣下女兒的一個時辰之內(nèi)，就舉行了必要的儀式，將她迎娶過門，并帶她返回我的家鄉(xiāng)。我們夫妻倆都十分渴望閣下能盡快趕到此地，使我倆有幸親睹慈顏并聆聽教誨;同時也請閣下將我妻子的嫁妝一并帶過來，因為我必須負擔龐大的開銷，希望閣下切莫擱延推托。此外，基于我與閣下長久的兄弟情誼，我相信閣下并不會因我們倉促成婚而大發(fā)雷霆，因為這完全是出于我對貴千金的濃烈的愛。我在此誠心祈禱閣下能獲得諸神的眷顧。’

"As soon as I had done this I rode on in all haste from Azim Balda, fearing no pursuit and expecting that my father,having received such a letter, would send messages to Ahoshta or go to him himself, and that before the matter was discovered I should be beyond Tashbaan. And that is the pith of my story until this very night when I was chased by lions and met you at the swimming of the salt water.

我一處理完這件事，就立刻離開阿齊姆•巴爾達城，此時我已不再害怕會被人追捕，并暗自盼望我父親在收到這樣一封信以后，會派遣使者去找艾好大，或是親自跑一趟，這樣等事情敗露時，我早已通過塔什班遠走高飛了。以上就是我過去生活事跡的概略，然后我們就在慘遭獅子追逐，游過海水的那天晚上與你們相遇。”

"And what happened to the girl—the one you drugged ?" asked Shasta.

“但那個女孩子后來怎么樣了……就是那個被你下藥昏睡過去的女孩?”沙斯塔問道。

"Doubtless she was beaten for sleeping late," said Aravis coolly. "But she was a tool and spy of my stepmother's.I am very glad they should beat her."

“想必會因為睡過頭而被毒打一頓，”阿拉維斯冷酷地說，“不過她本來就是我后母派過來監(jiān)視我的奸細。她挨打是活該，打得越重我越高興。”

"I say, that was hardly fair," said Shasta.

“哎呀，我覺得那真的很不公平。”沙斯塔說。

"I did not do any of these things for the sake of pleasing you," said Aravis.

“哼，我才懶得管你怎么想呢。”阿拉維斯說。

"And there's another thing I don't understand about that story," said Shasta. "You're not grown up,I don't believe you're any older than I am.I don't believe you're as old.How could you be getting married at your age ?"

“而且這故事還有個讓我覺得完全說不通的地方，”沙斯塔說，“你還沒長大呢，我看你不會比我大多少。不對，我看你年紀根本比我還要小。你這么小怎么可以結(jié)婚呢?”

Aravis said nothing,but Bree at once said, "Shasta,don't display your ignorance.They' re always married at that age in the great Tarkaan families."

阿拉維斯什么也沒說，但布里卻立刻開口解釋：“沙斯塔，干嗎暴露你的無知呢，地位較高的泰坎家庭，本來就是在這種年紀結(jié)婚的啊。”

Shasta turned very red (though it was hardly light enough for the others to see this) and felt snubbed. Aravis asked Bree for his story.Bree told it,and Shasta thought that he put in a great deal more than he needed about the falls and the bad riding.Bree obviously thought it very funny,but Aravis did not laugh.When Bree had finished they all went to sleep.

沙斯塔的臉漲得通紅，幸好四周的光線非常黯淡，其他人都沒發(fā)現(xiàn)，他覺得自己受到奚落。阿拉維斯請布里述說他的故事。布里開始述說，而沙斯塔越聽越不自在，覺得布里實在花太多時間來描繪沙斯塔差勁的騎術(shù)和摔跤的慘狀。布里顯然是覺得這樣很好玩，但阿拉維斯卻依然板著一張臉，從頭到尾沒笑過一聲。等布里說完之后，他們?nèi)汲脸了チ恕?/p>

Next day all four of them ,two horses and two humans, continued their journey together.Shasta thought it had been much pleasanter when he and Bree were on their own.For now it was Bree and Aravis who did nearly all the talking.Bree had lived a long time in Calormen and had always been among Tarkaans and Tarkaans' horses, and so of course he knew a great many of the same people and places that Aravis knew. She would always be saying things like,"But if you were at the fight of Zulindreh you would have seen my cousin Alimash,"and Bree would answer,

第二天，他們四個，也就是兩匹馬兒和兩個人類，再度踏上了他們的旅程。沙斯塔感到，還是他和布里兩個一起走的時候比較愉快。因為現(xiàn)在主要都是布里和阿拉維斯在聊天，別人根本就插不上嘴。布里在卡樂門王國住了很長的一段日子，總是跟泰坎們和他們的戰(zhàn)馬們待在一塊兒，因此他自然跟阿拉維斯有許多共同認識的人和共同去過的地方。她每隔一陣子就會這么說：“要是你參加過祖林德戰(zhàn)役，那你一定見過我的艾立馬表哥。”而布里就會答道：

"Oh, yes, Alimash, he was only captain of the chariots, you know. I don' t quite hold with chariots or the kind of horses who draw chariots. That's not real cavalry. But he is a worthy nobleman. He filled my nosebag with sugar after the taking of Teebeth." Or else Bree would say, "I was down at the lake of Mezreel that summer," and Aravis would say, "Oh, Mezreel! I had a friend there, Lasaraleen Tarkheena. What a delightful place it is. Those gardens, and the Valley of the Thousand Perfumes !" Bree was not in the least trying to leave Shasta out of things, though Shasta sometimes nearly thought he was. People who know a lot of the same things can hardly help talking about them, and if you' re there you can hardly help feeling that you' re out of it.

“喔，沒錯，艾立馬，他是戰(zhàn)車部隊的隊長。但我對所謂的戰(zhàn)車部隊和那些拉戰(zhàn)車的馬兒，說實話并不是很贊同。他們根本就不能算是真正的騎兵隊。不過呢，他倒算是一位相當令人欽佩的貴族。在我們攻下踢北城以后，他在我的糧秣袋里裝滿了糖呢。”要不然就是布里提起：“那年夏天我待在梅蕊湖邊。”而阿拉維斯就會接口說：“喔，梅蕊!我有個朋友就住在那兒，她叫雷莎琳泰坎希娜。那真是個令人愉快的好地方。那些花園，還有那令人流連忘返的‘千香谷’!”布里完全無意要將沙斯塔排除在外，但沙斯塔有時還是會覺得，布里根本就是故意要冷落他。有共同話題的人總是會忍不住說個不停，而你若是在場的話，同樣也會感到自己受到了冷落。

Hwin the mare was rather shy before a great warhorse like Bree and said very little. And Aravis never spoke to Shasta at all if she could help it.

母馬赫溫在像布里這樣的戰(zhàn)馬面前是害羞沉默多了。至于阿拉維斯呢，她根本就不想跟沙斯塔說話。

Soon, however, they had more important things to think of. They were getting near Tashbaan. There were more, and larger, villages, and more people on the roads. They now did nearly all their travelling by night and hid as best they could during the day. And at every halt they argued and argued about what they were to do when they reached Tashbaan. Everyone had been putting off this difficulty, but now it could be put off no longer. During these discussions Aravis became a little, a very little, less unfriendly to Shasta;one usually gets on better with people when one is making plans than when one is talking about nothing in particular.

不過呢，他們很快就得考慮一些更重要的問題。他們越來越接近塔什班了。

途中經(jīng)過的村莊變得越來越多，規(guī)模也越來越大，而路上遇見人的概率也隨之大幅增加。于是，他們白天就盡量躲起來，等到天黑以后才繼續(xù)趕路。每次一停下來休息，他們就開始你一言我一語地說個不停，爭論到了塔什班以后究竟該怎么做。在這之前，每個人都刻意避開這個難題，但現(xiàn)在已沒辦法再逃避下去了。

大家在進行討論的時候，阿拉維斯對沙斯塔的態(tài)度會稍稍地好一些。人通常是在討論重要的事情時比漫無目的地閑聊時要容易相處。

Bree said the first thing now to do was to fix a place where they would all promise to meet on the far side of Tashbaan even if, by any ill luck, they got separated in passing the city. He said the best place would be the Tombs of the Ancient Kings on the very edge of the desert. "Things like great stone beehives”he said,

布里表示，他們現(xiàn)在的首要要務(wù)，就是約好一個地點，萬一大家不幸在通過城市時失散了的話，都可以各自按照約定到塔什班另一端去跟其他人會合。他認為最適當?shù)牡攸c，就是位于沙漠邊緣的“古帝王墓”。“那兒就像是巨大的石頭蜂窩，”他說，

"you can't possibly miss them. And the best of it is that none of the Calormenes will go near them because they think the place is haunted by ghouls and are afraid of it."Aravis asked if it wasn' t really haunted by ghouls. But Bree said he was a free Narnian horse and didn' t believe in these Calormene tales. And then Shasta said he wasn' t a Calormene either and didn' t care a straw about these old stories of ghouls. This wasn' t quite true. But it rather impressed Aravis (though at the moment it annoyed her too) and of course she said she didn' t mind any number of ghouls either. So it was settled that the Tombs should be their assembly place on the other side of Tashbaan, and everyone felt they were getting on very well till Hwin humbly pointed out that the real problem was not where they should go when they had got through Tashbaan but how they were to get through it.

“一眼就會注意到那兒。而那兒最大的優(yōu)點就是卡樂門王國的人絕對不敢靠近那兒，他們認為那兒有惡靈作祟，怕得要死呢。”

阿拉維斯問布里，那里是否真的鬧鬼。布里卻很了不起地表示，他可是自由的納尼亞馬兒，才不信卡樂門這一套呢。接著沙斯塔也表示，他也不是卡樂門王國的人，才不會相信什么惡靈作祟的無稽之談呢。這當然不是實話，但這句宣言讓阿拉維斯對沙斯塔感到相當佩服，但同時也覺得很不高興，所以只好硬著頭皮說，不管那兒有多少惡靈，她全都不放在心上。

于是事情就這么決定了，大家把“古帝王墓”定為到達塔什班另一端以后的會合地點，然后他們一下子全都覺得輕松了許多，感到事情幾乎全都解決了。但接著赫溫就用十分謙遜的態(tài)度指出，他們真正的問題，并不是他們通過塔什班以后該到哪里會合，而是該如何通過那個城市。

"We'll settle that tomorrow,Ma'am," said Bree. "Time for a little sleep now."

“這等明天再想辦法，夫人，”布里說，“現(xiàn)在該睡了。”

But it wasn' t easy to settle. Aravis' s first suggestion was that they should swim across the river below the city during the night and not go into Tashbaan at all. But Bree had two reasons against this. One was that the river-mouth was very wide and it would be far too long a swim for Hwin to do,especially with a rider on her back. (He thought it would be too long for himself too, but he said much less about that). The other was that it would be full of shipping and of course anyone on the deck of a ship who saw two horses swimming past would be almost certain to be inquisitive.

但這個辦法并不好想。阿拉維斯最初的提議是，他們干脆趁夜摸黑跳進河里，從城市下方游過去，這樣就根本不用踏入塔什班一步。但布里提出兩個理由反駁她。首先呢，河口實在太寬闊，赫溫本來就沒辦法游那么遠，而且背上還得載一個人。其實連他自己也沒辦法游那么遠，但他卻刻意避開這一點不提。還有呢，河面上到處都是船只，只要有人在甲板上看到，居然有兩匹馬游過河面，必定會起疑，非得追究個水落石出不可。

Shasta thought they should go up the river above Tashbaan and cross it where it was narrower. But Bree explained that there were gardens and pleasure houses on both banks of the river for miles and that there would be Tarkaans and Tarkheenas living in them and riding about the roads and having water parties on the river. In fact it would be the most likely place in the world for meeting someone who would recognize Aravis or even himself.

沙斯塔則認為，他們應(yīng)該沿著河流走到塔什班上方，找個河面較窄的地方游過去。但布里對他解釋，那兒的河流兩岸，有著長達數(shù)里的花園和游樂中心，有許多泰坎和泰坎希娜在那里尋歡作樂，他們常常會騎馬在道路上奔馳，要不然就是在河面上舉行水上宴會。事實上，那里可算是阿拉維斯和他最容易被人認出來的地方。

"We' ll have to have a disguise,"said Shasta. Hwin said it looked to her as if the safest thing was to go right through the city itself from gate to gate because one was less likely to be noticed in the crowd. But she approved of the idea of disguise as well. She said, "both the human will have to dress in rags and look like peasants or slaves And all Aravis' s armour and our saddles and things must be made into bundles and put on our backs, and the children must pretend to drive us and people will think we' re on pack-horses."

“那我們就得喬裝打扮了。”沙斯塔說。“那我們就得喬裝打扮了。”沙斯塔說。

赫溫表示，在她看來最安全的方法就是直接從城門走過去，因為擠在人群中，比較不容易引起注意。但她也覺得喬裝打扮是個好主意。

她說：“他們兩個人都得穿得破破爛爛的，打扮成鄉(xiāng)下人或是奴隸的模樣。而阿拉維斯的盔甲、我們的鞍具和其他配備，都得裝進包裹里，放在我們背上，這樣孩子們只要假裝牽著我們走，別人就會以為我們只是運貨的馱馬了。”

"My dear Hwin !" said Aravis rather scornfully. "As if anyone could mistake Bree for anything but a warhors however you disguised him !"

“我親愛的赫溫!”阿拉維斯用一種相當不屑的語氣說，“不管你怎么替布里喬裝改扮，大家還是一眼就可以看出他是一匹戰(zhàn)馬!”

"I should think not, indeed," said Bree, snorting an letting his ears go ever so little back.

“老實說，我也覺得這主意行不通，”布里噴著鼻息說，耳朵微微傾向后方。

"I know it's not a very good plan," said Hwin."But I think it' s our only chance. And we haven' t been groomed for ages and we' re not looking quite ourselves (at least, I' m sure I' m not). I do think if we get well plastered with mud and go along with our heads down as if we' re tired and lazy-and don' t lift our hooves hardly at all-we might not be noticed. And our tails ought to be cut shorter: not neatly, you know, but all ragged. "

“我也覺得，這并不是一個非常好的計劃，”赫溫說，“但我認為這是我們唯一的機會。況且，我們已經(jīng)有好久沒梳理皮毛了，我們的外表已不再像以前那么光鮮亮麗，至少我確定自己是如此。我真的認為，只要我們在身上涂滿污泥，走路時低著頭，裝出一副又累又懶的模樣，并且腳步放重一些，故意拖著腳走，大概就不會有人注意到我們。還有，我們的尾巴也得修短一點兒：不能剪得太整齊，你們懂吧，得把毛弄得參差不齊，像狗啃的才行。”

"My dear Madam," said Bree. "Have you pictured to yourself how very disagreeable it would be to arrive in Narnia in that condition ?"

“我親愛的夫人，”布里說，“你難道沒想過，要是以那副德行踏入納尼亞王國，那會有多狼狽、多丟人嗎?”

"Well/said Hwin humbly (she was a very sensible mare), "the main thing is to get there."

“這個嘛，”赫溫謙遜地表示，她是一匹非常明理的母馬，“最重要的還是先到達那里，其他的再說吧。”

Though nobody much liked it, it was Hwin' s plan which had to be adopted in the end. It was a troublesome one and involved a certain amount of what Shasta called stealing, and Bree called,raiding". One farm lost a few sacks that evening and another lost a coil of rope the next: but some tattered old boy' s clothes for Aravis to wear had to be fairly bought and paid for in a village. Shasta returned with them in triumph just as evening was closing in. The others were waiting for him among the trees at the foot of a low range of wooded hills which lay right across their path.Everyone was feeling excited because this was the last hill; when they reached the ridge at the top they would be looking down on Tashbaan.,I do wish we were safely past it,"muttered Shasta to Hwin.,Oh I do, I do,"said Hwin fervently.

雖然大家都不太喜歡這種做法，但最后還是不得不采用赫溫的計劃。這個計劃執(zhí)行起來相當麻煩，而且還牽涉到一種沙斯塔稱之為偷竊，而布里美其名為“突襲”的行動。今天晚上有個村莊掉了幾個袋子，明天又有另一個村莊不見了一捆繩索;但要給阿拉維斯穿的破爛舊男孩衣服，還是得到村子里花錢去買。沙斯塔在天黑時得意洋洋地抱著衣服凱旋。他途中必須穿越一連串林木叢生的低矮山丘，而其他人此時就躲在山腳下的樹林中等待沙斯塔。大家都感到非常興奮，因為現(xiàn)在只要再越過一座山丘，就可以到達目的地;等他們一登上這座山丘的峰頂，就可以低頭俯瞰塔什班了。“我真希望我們能安全通過那座城市。”沙斯塔輕聲跟赫溫說。“喔，我也是，我也是，”赫溫熱烈附和。

That night they wound their way through the woods up to the ridge by a wood—cutter' s track.And when they came out of the woods at the top they could see thousands of lights in the valley down below them. Shasta had had no notion of what a great city would be like and it frightened him. They had their supper and the children got some sleep. But the horses woke them very early in the morning.

那天晚上，他們沿著一條樵夫劈出的蜿蜒小徑，穿越樹林爬上山坡。他們一登上山頂走出樹林，就清楚看到下方谷地中的萬家燈火。沙斯塔對于城市究竟是什么模樣，完全沒有半點兒概念，而眼前的景象讓他不禁嚇了一跳。吃完晚餐后，兩個孩子睡了一會兒。但馬兒一大早就把他們叫醒了。

The stars were still out and the grass was terribly cold and wet, but daybreak was just beginning, far to their right across the sea. Aravis went a few steps away into the wood and came back looking odd in her new, ragged clothes and carrying her real ones in a bundle. These, and her armour and shield and scimitar and the two saddles and the rest of the horses' fine furnishings were put into the sacks. Bree and Hwin had already got themselves as dirty and bedraggled as they could and it remained to shorten their tails. As the only tool for doing this was Aravis' s scimitar, one of the packs had to be undone again in order to get it out. It was a longish job and rather hurt the horses.

星星依然高掛天空，草地又濕又冷，但在右邊遠處的大海盡頭，已開始露出一絲曙光。阿拉維斯走到附近的樹林中，然后穿著一身破衣裳走出來，看起來有些怪模怪樣。她把原來的衣服塞進包裹，而這些衣物，和她的盔甲、盾牌、偃月彎刀、兩副鞍具，以及馬兒其他所有精美的配備，全都裝進了袋子里。布里和赫溫已盡可能把自己弄得十分邋遢骯臟，就只剩下尾巴還沒修短。由于唯一能用的工具就是阿拉維斯的偃月彎刀，所以他們只好再重新打開袋子，把刀取出來。這件事做起來很費工夫，而且讓兩匹馬兒都痛得半死。

"My word !"said Bree,,if I wasn' t a Talking Horse what a lovely kick in the face I could give you !I thought you were going to cut it, not pull it out.That' s what it feels like."

“哎喲!”布里說，“我要不是一只能言馬的話，我真恨不得朝你臉上狠狠踹上一腳!你應(yīng)該是用刀去割，而不是像這樣胡拉亂扯。我覺得你簡直就是在用蠻力硬拔啊。”

But in spite of semi—darkness and cold fingers all was done in the end, the big packs bound on the horses, the rope halters (which they were now wearing instead of bridles and reins) in the children' s hands, and the journey began.

雖然四周光線昏暗，大家的手指又凍得發(fā)僵，最后總算把一切安排妥當：大袋子安安穩(wěn)穩(wěn)地捆在馬兒背上，用繩子胡亂綁成的韁繩緊緊握在孩子手中，他們又再度踏上旅程。

"Remember," said Bree. "Keep together if we possibly can. If not, meet at the Tombs of the Ancient Kings, and whoever gets there first must wait for the others."

“大家別忘了，”布里說，“盡量待在一塊兒不要分開。要是不幸失散的話，就到古帝王墓那兒會合，先到的人一定要待在那兒，等所有人到齊再走，大家不見不散。”

"And remember,"said Shasta.,Don' t you two horses forget yourselves and start talking, whatever happens."

“還有一點要特別注意，”沙斯塔說，“不管發(fā)生任何事，你們兩匹馬兒都千萬別急昏了頭，大喇喇地開口說話。”