抖森讀書第七期 I see you all drowning in blood

前情回顧：

奇幻表演三人組：擁有讀心術的神秘少年亞恩、矮人特圖和魔術師托普倫，受邀去為巴黎富有的卡爾洛夫斯基伯爵演出，地點在維爾杜瓦侯爵的新城堡。

在發現伯爵惡魔般的面目後，亞恩前去尋找逃離城堡的出路，竟遇到迷人的茜多。

隨著表演時間的臨近，三人組似乎已經難逃厄運……

chapter 7

Now, with the timing of a great actor, the marquis entered the room, accompanied by Sido.

He took his seat at the front of the makeshift stage. Sido sat down beside him.

隨著演出的進一步臨近，侯爵在茜多的陪同下走了進來。

他挑了一個位於舞台前的座位，茜多坐在他旁邊。

Her attention was caught by the Duchesse de Lamantes, with her fashionably tall coiffure.

On top, amongst an assortment of ribbons and flowers, sat a coach made out of gold thread, drawn by six dapple-gray horses of blown glass.

她的注意力都在拉曼提斯公爵夫人身上——她梳著時髦的高髮髻，髮髻上有各式的緞帶和花，坐在一輛用金線做的、由六匹玻璃制灰黑斑紋馬拉著的馬車上。

「Who,」inquired the duchess, lifting up her spyglass, 「is that plain-looking creature? Can it be the marquis』s daughter? What a disappointment for him.」

「那個長相平庸的東西，」公爵夫人抬起她的小型望遠鏡，問道，「是誰？難道是侯爵的女兒嗎？真為他感到失望。」

The marquis silenced the company.

「I hope I haven』t missed any of this intriguing little performance of yours, Count Kalliovski.」

侯爵的到來讓在場的賓客都安靜了下來。

「但願我沒有錯過您找來的這個有趣的小表演，卡爾洛夫斯基伯爵。」

「Not at all, my dear friend,」 said the count. 「As you can see, the curtain has not yet been drawn.」

He clapped his hands for silence.

「完全沒有，我親愛的朋友，」伯爵說道。「正如你所看到的，幕布還沒有拉開。」

他拍了拍手示意大家安靜。

「Messieurs et mesdames, to thank the marquis for this splendid evening I have brought him a show from the theater at the rue du Temple. I give you the People』s Pierrot.」

「先生們，女士們，為感謝侯爵給予我們這個美好的夜晚，下面我將帶來一場來自聖殿街劇院的表演。掌聲有請我們的小丑木偶。」

There was a round of applause as the curtain was pulled back and Topolain brought the Pierrot to the front of the stage.

幕布拉開，一陣掌聲響起。托普倫把木偶帶上舞台。

The magician started as always by demonstrating to the audience its lack of strings.

他一如既往地向觀眾展示這具沒有提線的木偶。

「Monsieur le Marquis, Count Kalliovski, my lords and ladies,」 he announced with a flourish, 「I have here the wonder of Paris. He can walk! He can talk! Moreover, he can look into the future, see into the depths of your hearts, and know your darkest secrets.」

「先生們，女士們，卡爾洛夫斯基伯爵，尊敬的各位老爺、夫人們，」他揮舞著手宣布，「這裡有巴黎的奇蹟。他會走路！他會說話！更重要的是，他可以預知未來，深入你們的內心，了解你們最陰暗的秘密。」

「Why would it want to do that?」 interrupted the marquis. 「It seems most impertinent.」

「它為什麼要這麼做？」侯爵插話道。「這似乎非常無禮。」

A titter of laughter echoed around the room.

房間里回蕩著一陣笑聲。

Topolain stopped, uncertain whether he should continue or wait.

托普倫停了下來，不確定他是否應該繼續或等待。

To his relief, the Pierrot stood up and opened its steely glass eyes. It stretched out its wooden fingers and moved its wooden limbs.

There was complete silence.

令他寬慰的是，木偶站了起來，睜開它那鋼鐵般的眼睛。它伸出木製的手指，移動著它的木製肢體。

台下鴉雀無聲。

Topolain recovered himself and began to work his audience.

He lifted up the Pierrot』s baggy blue top to show the carved wooden torso.

He tapped it with his hand; it made a pleasingly solid sound.

托普倫恢復了鎮靜，開始為他的觀眾表演。

他掀起木偶藍色的上衣，展示它木刻的身體，又用手輕拍它；它發出了悅耳而沉穩的聲音。

「Bravo! An artful mystery indeed,」 said the marquis.

Count Kalliovski stared fixedly at the wooden Pierrot; he too was intrigued to know how the strange doll worked.

「Ask the Pierrot a question,」 said Topolain. 「I promise you the answer will not disappoint.」

「精彩！確實是一個精妙的奧秘，」侯爵說。

卡爾洛夫斯基伯爵緊盯著木偶；他也很好奇這個奇異的玩具是怎麼運作的。

「隨意問木偶一個問題吧，」托普倫說。「我保證，答案不會讓你們失望。」

Yann, from his vantage point hidden in the shadows, could see the stage and the audience clearly.

Têtu, standing beside him, was working the Pierrot, though how he did it remained to Yann a profound mystery.

It was their combined talents that made the show the success it was.

亞恩藏在一個隱蔽的角落裡，從他的位置可以清楚地看到舞台和觀眾。

站在他旁邊的特圖正在控制木偶移動。亞恩仍然不明白特圖是怎麼做到的。

正是他們兩個的天賦異稟造就了這個節目的成功。

「Tell me then, what kind of dog have I got?」 said a lady with beauty marks and a painted fan.

「那麼，告訴我，我的狗是什麼品種？」一位有著美人痣、扇著彩繪扇子的女士說。

This was what Yann could do, read minds and throw his voice so that it sounded as if the Pierrot was talking.

於是亞恩開始了讀心術，然後向台下喊話，聽起來像木偶在說話一樣。

「A spaniel. She had puppies three days ago.」

The lady laughed. 「How charming, and how clever.」

「獵犬。三天前生了小狗。」

那位女士笑了：「真迷人，真聰明。」

Now it started just as it had done in the theater earlier that evening, a ribbon of silly questions neatly tied up and answered to everyone』s satisfaction.

就像當天晚上的前一場演出一樣，一連串愚蠢的問題得到了回答，每個觀眾都心滿意足。

Yann felt pleased that nothing more taxing had been asked of him.

Two shows a night was hard work, especially for Têtu.

沒有被問到更傷腦筋的問題，亞恩感到很高興。

一晚上表演兩次令他們十分疲累，尤其對特圖來說。

Just then Louis de Jonquières remarked, 「If the Pierrot is right about small things, then maybe he can inform us on the bigger questions of the day.」

就在這時，路易·德·約耶雷斯說：「如果木偶能說對小事，那麼也許他可以告訴我們一些當前更重大的事情。」

「Really, monsieur!」 said the Duchesse de Lamantes. 「Why do you insist on being so disagreeable?」

「真是的先生！」曼提斯公爵夫人說。「為什麼你非要如此令人討厭?」

「Forgive me,」 said Louis de Jonquières, 「but I am curious. Tell me, Pierrot, will the present regime fall?」

「請原諒我，」約耶雷斯說，「但我很好奇。告訴我，木偶，現在的政權會垮台嗎?」

With this question the room changed.

這個問題一出，房間里的氣氛都變了。

Yann saw in the slipstream of his mind an audience of headless people, blood running down their fine clothes.

He heard the Pierrot say, as if from many miles away, 「A thousand years of French kings are coming to an end.」

亞恩在他的腦海里看到了一群無頭的人，血液順著他們華美的衣服流下。

木偶的聲音彷彿是從千里之外傳來：「統治法國一千多年的王室即將走到盡頭。」

The audience began to shift on their chairs.

觀眾開始竊竊私語。

Topolain rushed toward the front of the stage. 「The doll jests,」 he cried. 「Please now ask him a question he can answer.」

托普倫衝到舞台前。「木偶是在說笑呢，」他喊道。「請問一個他能回答的問題吧。」

Louis de Jonquières pushed back his chair and stood up.

約耶雷斯把椅子往後一挪，站了起來。

「Perhaps he would care to give us his candid opinion as to whether France will evolve itself into a constitutional monarchy.」

「也許他想告訴我們他對法國會否成為一個君主立憲制國家的看法。」

「Please, monsieur,」 interrupted Topolain, 「my doll is no political fortune-teller.」

「先生，算了吧，」托普羅恩說，「我的木偶又不是政治算命師。」

「But you said, sir, that he can see into the future. I am merely asking what he sees.」

「但是你說過，先生，他能預見未來。我只是問他看到了什麼。」

「Watches, snuffboxes, trinkets, bonbons, and the like,」 said Topolain.

「他能看到的都是手錶、鼻煙盒、小飾品、糖果之類的東西。」托普倫說。

He felt he was losing his grip.

What on earth had come over Yann, that he would say something so dangerous?

他覺得自己快要控制不住局面了。

亞恩到底看到了什麼，讓他說出這麼危險的話？

「Humor me,」 the young man persisted.

「說出來讓我笑一笑嘛。」年輕人堅持道。

Yann looked out at all the fine ladies and gentlemen, at the emeralds, rubies, and diamonds that glittered on wilted flesh.

Louis de Jonquières appeared to be holding his blood-soaked head under his arm.

Yann heard the Pierrot say, 「I see you all drowning in blood.」

亞恩望向在座所有雍容華貴的男人女人們，他們穿金戴銀，各種綠寶石、紅寶石、鑽石閃閃發光。

亞恩看到約耶雷斯似乎把他那血淋淋的頭夾在手臂下。

木偶說：「我看見你們全都倒在血泊之中。」

本期的《抖森讀書》到此結束啦。如果同學們對欄目或譯文有任何看法，歡迎踴躍留言、參與討論哦。

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