13.4 七夕会 Cowboy Meets Weaver Girl

 

目录 Catalog: 1. 目的地香港九龙湾 Destination Nine-Dragon Bay Hong Kong；2. 牛郎的障眼法 Cowboy's Sleight of Hand；3. 赔不起龙宫的草 Can't Afford to Dragon Palace’s Grass；4. 牛郎为女婴抚平创伤 Cowboy Soothes Heroine's Wounds；5. 二郎神的开山弟子 Second Wolf God's First Disciple；6. 上部座和下部座 Upper Seats and Lower Seats；7. 佛门武功 Martial Arts of Buddhas；8. 女婴的恐水症 Heroine's Hydrophobia

1. 目的地香港九龙湾 Destination Nine-Dragon Bay Hong Kong

牛郎跟着佣人来到了龙王（熬钦）的家。龙王说：“他们来问我你和小龙女（即夏娃，舜王，织女，嫘祖）见面的地点。我觉着我在香港和我妹妹见面的那个地方挺好。那个海湾的地名已经被我妹妹，尧皇，改成九龙湾（注1）了。你觉着怎么样？”

Cowboy followed the servant to Dragon King's residence. Dragon King (Aoqin) said, “They came asking me where you and Little Dragoness (i.e., Eve, King Shun, Weaver Girl, and Lei Ancestor) should meet. I think the place where I met my sister in Hong Kong is quite suitable. My sister, White-king Yao, has already renamed that bay Nine-Dragon Bay. What do you think?”

注1，三皇五帝是七位神，加上南海龙王是八位神。有人认为可以封熬忖和熬钦的父亲熬达为第九位神，因为熬达没妨碍熬忖成为中华共和国的第一位皇帝。这种“没妨碍”契合了上帝虚空的本质。尧皇同意了这个说法，所以她命名香港的九龙地区为九龙湾。后来大禹觉着这说法可以接受，就封熬达成为了中华民族的第九位创世神：欣龙，亦作庆龙。

Note 1: Three White-kings and Five Creators constitute seven Gods, and adding Dragon King of the South Sea makes eight. Some argue that Aoda, the father of Aocun and Aoqin, could be appointed as the ninth God, since Aoda did not prevent Aocun from becoming the first White-king Creator (emperor) of the Republic of China. This "did not prevent" aligns with the abstract nature of God. Emperor Yao agreed to this view; hence she named the Kowloon (i.e., Nine Dragons) area of ​​Hong Kong Nine-Dragon (Kowloon) Bay. Later, Big Yu found this view acceptable and appointed Aoda as the ninth creator god of the Chinese Nationality.

牛郎回答：“我没钱去那么远的地方。”

龙王说：“你坐我的船去。这七夕会每年都有。如果你让她到咱这地方来，这么远的路，那她明年就不会来了。”

牛郎回答：“我听龙王的。”

龙王说：“我已经通知了我的船队，把我的游艇清理出来了。这几天你就出发去香港九龙吧！路远，到那儿你等她，别让她等你！”

Cowboy replied, “I can't afford to go that far.”

Dragon King said, “Take my boat. This July 7th Day happens every year. If you let her come all this way to our place, she won't come back next year.”

Cowboy replied, “I'll follow Dragon King's advice.”

Dragon King said, “I've already notified my fleet to prepare my yacht. Set off for Nine-Dragon Bay, Hong Kong, in the next few days! The journey is long—once you arrive, wait for her there. Don't make her wait for you!”

2. 牛郎的障眼法 Cowboy's Sleight of Hand

一天，牛郎从外面回来（注2），看见女婴正坐在船上，引诱一条大鱼咬钩。牛郎走过去在女婴旁边叨咕：“我从海南出来的时候，刺客威胁我：你若是不把他弄回去，他就举报你曾经去刺杀大禹！”

注2，这次七夕会是这样安排的。牛郎到香港九龙后，去住到了香港政府安排的住所。舜王（即小龙女，嫘祖）上了船，然后让牛郎回到船上，有回家的感觉。

One day, when Cowboy returned home, he saw Heroine sitting in the boat, baiting a hook to lure a large fish. He approached her and muttered, “When I left Hainan, Assassin threatened me: ‘If you don't bring him back, he'll expose your attempt to assassinate Big Yu!’”

Note 2: This is how it is arranged for the July 7^th Day. After arriving in Nine-Dragon (Kowloon), Hong Kong, Cowboy will stay in accommodations arranged by the Hong Kong government. King Shun (also known as Little Dragoness or Lei Ancestor) will board the boat and then let Cowboy return to the boat, giving him a feeling of coming home.

女婴惊叫着扔掉了鱼竿。

牛郎被吓了一跳，慌忙地把船舷上的一个花盆推到了海里。

女婴向牛郎比划着（屋里面的人会杀了我的），别让她知道。

Heroine screamed and dropped the fishing rod.

Startled, Cowboy hastily shoved a flowerpot from the boat's rail into the sea.

Heroine gestured to Cowboy, “The people inside will kill me.” Don't let her know.

小龙女听见了惊叫，跑了出来，问：“怎么啦！？”

牛郎回答：“我不小心把花盆碰掉水里了！”

小龙女盯着女婴看，她满脸通红。女婴尴尬地说：“牛郎逗我呢！”

Little Dragoness heard the cry and rushed out, asking, “What's wrong!?”

Cowboy replied, “I accidentally knocked the flowerpot into the water!”

Little Dragoness stared at Heroine, her face flushing crimson. Heroine said awkwardly, “Cowboy was just teasing me!”

小龙女转脸对牛郎说：“挺大个人，一点儿正行没有！我上船就看了龙王的花盆，都死贵死贵！我还得陪人家。你把鱼吓跑了，你去买饭吧！”

女婴正在脱衣服，准备下水捞花盆。牛郎回来了，说：“你们俩这么大的官，不会让我出钱买饭吧！”

女婴指着旁边和远处的两家饭店说：“钱我已经付过了。你到那儿随便点，让他们做好了，你拿回来就行了。”

Little Dragon Girl turned to Cowboy and said, "You're such a big man, yet you have no manners at all! I saw the Dragon King's flowerpots as soon as I got on the boat, and they were ridiculously expensive! I'll have to compensate him for them. You scared the fish away, so go buy some food!"

Heroine was taking off her clothes, preparing to go into the water to retrieve the flowerpot. Cowboy returned and said, "You two are such high-ranking officials, you wouldn't expect me to pay for your meal, would you?"

Heroine pointed to two restaurants nearby and in the distance and said, "I've already paid. Just go there and order whatever you like, have them prepare it, and then you can bring it back."

3. 赔不起龙宫的草 Can't Afford to Dragon Palace’s Grass

牛郎没去旁边的豪华饭店，选择了去远处的小饭店买饭（注3）。回来时，他看见女婴已经把花盆捞上来了，花盆里的植物蔫了，说：“这颗植物活不了了，你还栽它干嘛？”

Cowboy didn't go to the fancy restaurant nearby; instead, he chose to buy food from a small eatery farther away. When he returned, he saw Heroine had already salvage the flowerpot out of the water. The plant inside had wilted. “This plant won't survive,” he said, “Why did you plant it?”

注3，如图13.4，香港九龙地区有好多这第一次七夕会的传说，和《中华法典》描述的相同。但是后来的作者们考虑三千六百年来，中国的海岸陆地一直向外生长，香港的九龙地区是否是古代的地貌不确定，不承认香港九龙地区的传说。

Note 3, as shown in Figure 13.4, shows many legends about the first July 7^th Day in Kowloon (i.e., Nine Dragons), Hong Kong, which are the same as those described in the Chinese Codex. However, later authors considered that China's coastline and landmass have been growing outwards for 3,600 years, and it is uncertain whether Kowloon, Hong Kong, is an ancient landform, so they do not accept the legends of Kowloon, Hong Kong.

女婴回答：“龙宫里的植物也很贵！死是它自己的行为，咱管不了！”

牛郎走到了女婴的跟前，小声问：“你为什么去刺杀黄帝？”

女婴指着房间里面说：“她让我去的，我能怎么办！？”

Heroine replied, “Plants from the Dragon Palace are very expensive! Its death was its own doing—we can't be held responsible for that!”

Cowboy approached Heroine and whispered, “Why did you go to assassinate Yellow Creator?”

Heroine pointed into the room and said, "She made me go, what could I do?!"

牛郎问：“那这事还怎么办？”

女婴回答：“刺客是女娲和伏羲的手下，我惹不起！”

牛郎问：“你能把他弄回去吗？”

Cowboy asked, "Then what should we do?"

Heroine replied, "Assassin is an underling of Nuwa and Fuxi, I can't afford to offend him!"

Cowboy asked, "Can you take him back?"

女婴回答：“那也得把他弄回去，别让他在那里瞎说！”

牛郎指着屋里面的人问：“那你说我该不该跟她说，让她来解决。”

女婴回答：“说不说都行！我把刺客放回去，犯个小错误，问题不大！”

Heroine replied, "We still have to get him back, so he doesn't go around spouting nonsense!"

Cowboy pointed to the people inside the house and asked, "Then do you think I should tell her and let her handle it?"

Heroine replied, "It doesn't matter whether you tell her or not! I'll let the assassin go back; it's a small mistake, not a big deal!"

牛郎说：“我在路上考虑了这事。我觉得应该跟她说。原因是这件事让你产生心结了，说出来就没事了。”

这时，小龙女出来了，问：“你们俩在秘密策划什么？”

牛郎生气地转过头，说：“我和女婴几年没见面了，说几句话。那你总这么看着我们俩干啥！”

小龙女回答：“我饿呀！这已经下午了，还没吃早饭呢！我都出来看两次了！”

Cowboy said, "I thought about this on the way here. I think I should tell her. The reason is that this affair has caused you a trauma; exposing it will make everything alright."

At this moment, Little Dragoness came out and asked, "What are you two secretly plotting?"

Cowboy turned around angrily and said, "I haven't seen Heroine for years; we just wanted to exchange a few words. Why are you staring at us like that?"

Little Dragoness replied, "I'm hungry! It's already afternoon, and I haven't had breakfast yet! I've already come out to check twice!"

4. 牛郎为女婴抚平创伤Cowboy Soothes Heroine's Wounds

进屋后，小龙女就开始吃饭。牛郎坐在一边，女婴坐在窗台上没有吃饭的打算。小龙女问：“你们俩这是怎么了？都没吃早饭，怎么不饿呢！？”

牛郎回答：“我是一届草民，有些话不知道当讲不当讲？”

小龙女回答：“有话直说，由朕给你做主！”

Upon entering the room, Little Dragoness began eating. Cowboy sat to one side, while Heroine sat on the windowsill, showing no intention of eating.

Little Dragoness asked, “What's wrong with you two? You haven't eaten breakfast—aren't you hungry!?”

Cowboy replied, “I am but a commoner. There are some affairs I don't know if I should speak of.”

Little Dragoness answered, “Speak your mind freely. I shall decide for you!”

牛郎笑着说：“那你得先赦我无罪！”

小龙女也笑了，对女婴说：“老牛也学会讨价还价了！哎呀！看在你为我买饭的功劳上，我赦你无罪！”

牛郎说：“我在出发来香港之前，刺客去威胁我了。他说，‘如果我在回去之前，不告诉女婴把他弄回去，他就举报女婴曾经刺杀黄帝！’”

Cowboy chuckled, “Then you must first pardon me—I'm innocent!”

Little Dragoness smiled too and said to Heroine, “Old Cow has learned to haggle now! Oh dear! Considering the favor you did me by buying my meal, I'll pardon you!”

Cowboy said, "Before I left for Hong Kong, Assassin threatened me. He said, 'If I don't tell Heroine taking him back before I return, he'll report her for assassinating Yellow Creator!'"

小龙女恍然大悟地说：“啊！刚才你们俩在外面商量这事呢！我还在纳闷呢，你是怎么把那个花盆推到海里的！那是你在掩盖我的耳目！”

Little Dragoness exclaimed in sudden realization, “Ah! So, you two were discussing this outside a moment ago!  I was wondering how you managed to push that flowerpot into the sea! You were covering up my eyes and ears (distracting me all along)!”

牛郎继续说：“我发现女婴的反应过于强烈，她为这事有了心结！”

小龙女不笑了，重重地放下了碗筷，叨咕：“你发现了女婴有心结；我在你们俩的心里怎么那么坏呢！”

牛郎镇静地说：“怎么能那么说呢！故事不都这么讲嘛！国王派刺客去杀人，随后就让刺客喝毒药，杀人灭口。这都是正常的想法，谁不害怕呀！那不害怕才不正常呢！”

Cowboy continued, "I've noticed Heroine's reaction is too strong; she's got a knot in her heart about it!"

Little Dragoness stopped smiling, slammed down her bowl and chopsticks, and muttered, “You've discovered Heroine has a knot in her heart; why do I seem so wicked in both your hearts?”

他们三人都不说话了，陷入了冷寂。

忽然牛郎叨咕：“我最怕的是小龙女十八，九岁的时候就开始建造皇宫，还边设计边施工。她花费了120公斤黄金建了一顶当时世界上跨度最大的龙骨锁穹顶，但是还没建成就塌了。为这事，她妈，西王母，还为她举行庆功仪式！哎呀妈呀，那把小龙女羞臊得，一寸脸皮不剩！”

The three of them fell silent, a chilling stillness settling in.

Suddenly, Cowboy muttered, "What I fear most is that when Little Dragoness was eighteen or nineteen, she started building her palace, designing and constructing it simultaneously. She spent 120 kilograms of Gold to build what was then the world's largest dragon-spine dome, but it collapsed before it was even finished. For this, her mother, King Mother of the West, held a celebration ceremony for her! My goodness, Little Dragoness was so ashamed, only one inch of skin left on her face!”

小龙女笑得在床上打滚，把脸埋在了被子里。过了一会儿，她起来了，对女婴说：“我吓唬不住牛郎了，这可怎么办！？”

女婴回答：“牛郎变了，变得开朗了！”

小龙女回答：“我越来越喜欢龙王了，你帮我记着，回武汉后，我拨款给龙王在海南建一座龙王庙。”她又转脸对牛郎说：“你不知道，现在的中央政府可穷了。这建一座庙，我得和娥黄算计大半天。”

Little Dragoness rolled around laughing on the bed, burying her face in the quilt. After a moment, she sat up and said to Heroine, “I can't scare Cowboy anymore—what am I to do!?”

Heroine replied, “Cowboy has changed—he's become so cheerful!”

Little Dragoness responded, “I'm growing fonder of Dragon King. Mark my words: once we return to Wuhan, I'll allocate funds for him to build a Dragon King Temple in Hainan.” She then turned to Cowboy and added, “You wouldn't believe how strapped for cash the central government is these days. Building this temple will take me half a day just to crunch the numbers with Beauty-Yellow.”

牛郎问：“娥黄怎么没来？”

小龙女回答：“她的肚子又变大了，路远，不方便。”

Cowboy asked, “Why hasn't Beauty-Yellow come?”

Little Dragoness replied, “Her belly has grown again, and the journey is long and inconvenient.”

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