The Four Dragons

四條龍

Once upon a time， there were no rivers and lakes on earth， but only the Eastern Sea， in which lived four dragons： the Long Dragon， the Yellow Dragon， the Black Dragon and the Pearl Dragon。

從前，世界上沒有江河湖泊，只有東海，大海里住著四條龍：長龍、黃龍、黑龍和珠龍。

One day the four dragons flew from the sea into the sky。

一天，四條龍從海里飛向天空。

They soared and dived， playing at hide-and-seek in the clouds。

它們翱翔、俯衝，在雲層裡玩捉迷藏。

“Come over here quickly！” the Pearl Dragon cried out suddenly。

“快過來！”珠龍突然叫道。

“What‘s up？” asked the other three， looking down in the direction where the Pearl Dragon pointed。

“怎麼啦？”另外三條龍問道。他們朝珠龍所指的方向望去。

On the earth they saw many people putting out fruits and cakes， and burning incense sticks。

他們看見許多人在地上拿出水果和蛋糕在燒香。

They were praying！

他們在祈禱！

A white-haired woman， kneeling on the ground with a thin boy on her back， murmured，

一個滿頭白髮的女人跪在地上，揹著一個瘦弱的男孩，喃喃地說：

“Please send rain quickly， God of Heaven， to give our children rice to eat。”

“天神啊，請快降雨，給我們的孩子們米吃。”

For there had been no rain for a long time。

因為很久沒有下雨了。

The crops withered， the grass turned yellow and fields cracked under the scorching sun。

莊稼枯萎了，草變黃了，田野在烈日下龜裂了。

“How poor the people are！” said the Yellow Dragon。

黃龍說：“人民多可憐啊！”

“And they will die if it doesn’t rain soon。”

“如果不快點下雨，他們會死的。”

The Long Dragon nodded。

長龍點點頭。

Then he suggested， “Let‘s go and beg the Jade Emperor for rain。”

然後他建議說：“我們去求玉皇大帝下雨吧。”

So saying， he leapt into the clouds。

說著，他跳上了雲端。

The others followed closely and flew towards the Heavenly Palace。

其他龍緊跟著，朝天宮飛去。

Being in charge of all the affairs in heaven on earth and in the sea， the Jade Emperor was very powerful。

玉皇大帝掌管著天上、地上和海里的一切事務，非常強大。

He was not pleased to see the dragons rushing in。

看到四條龍衝了進來，他很不高興。

“Why do you come here instead of staying in the sea and behaving yourselves？”

“你們為什麼不待在海里好好表現呢？”

The Long Dragon stepped forward and said， “The crops on earth are withering and dying， Your Majesty。I beg you to send rain down quickly！”

長龍走上前去說：“地上的莊稼都枯死了，陛下。求求你趕快降點兒雨吧！”

“All right。You go back first， I’ll send some rain down tomorrow。”

“好吧。你們先回去，我明天給你下點雨。”

The Jade Emperor pretended to agree while listening to the songs of the fairies。

玉皇大帝一邊聽著仙女們的歌聲，一邊假裝同意。

The four dragons responded， “Thanks， Your Majesty！”

四條龍回答說：“謝謝陛下！”

The four dragons went happily back。

四條龍高高興興地回去了。

But ten days passed， and not a drop of rain came down。

但是十天過去了，沒有一滴雨落下來。

The people suffered more， some eating bark， some grass roots， some forced to eat white clay when they ran out of bark and grass roots。

人們遭受更多的痛苦，有些人吃樹皮，有些人吃草根，有些人在樹皮和草根耗盡後被迫吃白粘土。

Seeing all this， the four dragons felt very sorry， for they knew the Jade Emperor only cared about pleasure， and never took the people to heart。

看到這一切，四條龍感到非常難過，因為他們知道玉皇大帝只關心享樂，從不把人民放在心上。

They could only rely on themselves to relieve the people of their miseries。 But how to do it？

他們只能依靠自己來解除人民的苦難。但是該怎麼做呢？

Seeing the vast sea， the Long Dragon said that he had an idea。

看到浩瀚的大海，長龍說他有了一個主意。

“What is it？ Out with it， quickly！” the other three demanded。

“是什麼主意？ 快說出來！”另外三條龍要求道。

“Look， is there not plenty of water in the sea where we live？ We should scoop it up and spray it towards the sky。 The water will be like rain drops and come down to save the people and their crops，” said Long Dragon。

“你看，我們生活的海里不是有很多水嗎？我們應該把它舀起來，噴向天空。水會像雨滴一樣落下來，拯救人民和他們的莊稼。”長龍說。

“Good idea！” said the others as they clapped their hands。

“好主意！”其他龍拍著手說。

“But，” said the Long Dragon after thinking a bit， “we will be blamed if the Jade Emperor learns of this。”

“但是，”長龍想了一會兒說，“如果玉皇大帝知道了，我們就會受到責備的。”

“I will do anything to save the people，” the Yellow Dragon said resolutely。

黃龍堅決地說：“為了救人，我願意做任何事。”

“Then let‘s begin。 We will never regret it，” said Long Dragon。

“那麼讓我們開始吧。我們永遠不會後悔，”長龍說。

The Black Dragon and the Pearl Dragon were not to be outdone。

黑龍和珠龍也不甘示弱。

They flew to the sea， scooped up water in their mouths， and then flew back into the sky， where they sprayed the water out over the earth。

它們飛向大海，用口舀水，然後又飛回天空，在那裡把水噴灑到地面上。

The four dragons flew back and forth， making the sky dark all around。

四條龍飛來飛去，把周圍的天空都弄黑了。

Before long the sea water became rain pouring down from the sky。

不久，海水變成了大雨從天空傾灑下來。

“It’s raining！ It‘s raining！“

下雨了！ 下雨了！

The crops will be saved！” the people cried and leaped with joy。

莊稼得救了！”眾人歡呼跳躍。

On the ground the wheat stalks raised their heads and the sorghum stalks straightened up。

地上的麥稈抬起了頭，高粱稈直了起來。

The god of the sea discovered these events and reported to the Jade Emperor。

海神發現了這些事，就向玉皇大帝報告。

“How dare the four dragons bring rain without my permission！” said the Jade Emperor。

玉皇大帝說：“這四條龍竟敢未經我的允許就降雨！”

The Jade Emperor was enraged， and ordered the heavenly generals and their troops to arrest the four dragons。

玉皇大帝暴跳如雷，命令天將和他們的軍隊去逮捕四條龍。

Being far outnumbered， the four dragons could not defend themselves， and they were soon arrested and brought back to the heavenly palace。

由於寡不敵眾，四條龍無法自衛，很快就被抓了起來，帶回了天宮。

“Go and get four mountains to lay upon them so that they can never escape！”The Jade Emperor ordered the Mountain God。

“去拿四座山來壓住他們，使他們永遠無法逃脫！”玉皇大帝命令山神。

The Mountain God used his magic power to make four mountains fly there， whistling in the wind from afar， and pressed them down upon the four dragons。

山神用他的神力使四座山在呼嘯聲中從遠處飛向那裡，把它們壓在四條龍身上。

（end 完）