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Part 4
第4部分
Mr. White dropped it back in his pocket, and placing chairs, motioned his friend to the table. In the business of supper the talisman was partly forgotten, and afterward the three sat listening in an enthralled fashion to a second installment of the soldier's adventures in India.
怀特先生把它放回口袋,摆好椅子,示意朋友到桌边。在吃晚饭的过程中,护身符被部分遗忘了,之后,三个人坐着,全神贯注地听着士兵在印度冒险的第二部分。
"If the tale about the monkey's paw is not more truthful than those he has been telling us," said Herbert, as the door closed behind their guest, just in time to catch the last train, "we shan't make much out of it."
“如果关于猴爪的故事不比他给我们讲的那些更真实,”赫伯特说,当他们的客人关上门,刚好赶上最后一班火车时,“我们就不会从中得到太多东西。”
"Did you give anything for it, father?" inquired Mrs. White, regarding her husband closely.
“你为它付出了什么吗,爸爸?”怀特太太问道,紧紧地看着她的丈夫。
"A trifle," said he, colouring slightly, "He didn't want it, but I made him take it. And he pressed me again to throw it away."
“一点小事,”他说,脸色微微发红,“他不想要,但我让他收下了。他又催我把它扔掉。”
"Likely," said Herbert, with pretended horror. "Why, we're going to be rich, and famous, and happy. Wish to be an emperor, father, to begin with; then you can't be henpecked."
“有可能,”赫伯特假装惊恐地说。“为什么,我们会变得富有、出名、快乐。先许愿成为皇帝吧,爸爸,这样你就不会被老婆欺负了。”
He darted around the table, pursued by the maligned Mrs White armed with an antimacassar.
他在桌子周围飞奔,被被诽谤的怀特太太拿着一个防污罩追赶。
Mr. White took the paw from his pocket and eyed it dubiously. "I don't know what to wish for, and that's a fact," he said slowly. It seems to me I've got all I want."
怀特先生从口袋里掏出爪子,疑惑地看着它。“我不知道该许什么愿,这是事实,”他慢慢地说。在我看来,我已经得到了我想要的一切。”
"If you only cleared the house, you'd be quite happy, wouldn't you!" said Herbert, with his hand on his shoulder. "Well, wish for two hundred pounds, then; that'll just do it."
“如果你只把房子打扫干净,你就会很开心,不是吗!”赫伯特说,把手放在他的肩膀上。“好吧,那就许愿两百英镑吧;那就正好了。”
His father, smiling shamefacedly at his own credulity, held up the talisman, as his son, with a solemn face, somewhat marred by a wink at his mother, sat down and struck a few impressive chords.
他的父亲,对自己的轻信感到羞愧地微笑着,举起护身符,而他的儿子,一脸严肃,因为对母亲眨了眨眼而有点破坏了气氛,坐下来,敲了几下令人印象深刻的和弦。
"I wish for two hundred pounds," said the old man distinctly.
“我希望得到两百英镑,”老人清楚地说。
A fine crash from the piano greeted his words, interrupted by a shuddering cry from the old man. His wife and son ran toward him.
钢琴发出一声巨响,迎接他的话,被老人颤抖的哭声打断了。他的妻子和儿子向他跑去。
"It moved," he cried, with a glance of disgust at the object as it lay on the floor. "As I wished, it twisted in my hand like a snake."
“它动了,”他喊道,厌恶地看了一眼躺在地板上的东西。“当我许愿时,它在我手中像蛇一样扭动。”
"Well, I don't see the money," said his son, as he picked it up and placed it on the table, "and I bet I never shall."
“好吧,我没看到钱,”他的儿子说着,把它捡起来放在桌子上,“而且我打赌我永远也不会看到。”
"It must have been your fancy, father," said his wife, regarding him anxiously.
“一定是你的幻觉,父亲,”他的妻子焦急地看着他说。
He shook his head. "Never mind, though; there's no harm done, but it gave me a shock all the same."
他摇了摇头。“没关系,不过;没有造成伤害,但它还是让我吓了一跳。”
They sat down by the fire again while the two men finished their pipes.
他们再次坐在火炉旁,而两个男人抽完了烟斗。
Outside, the wind was higher than ever, an the old man started nervously at the sound of a door banging upstairs.
外面,风比以往任何时候都更大,老人听到楼上门砰地一声响,紧张地跳了起来。
A silence unusual and depressing settled on all three, which lasted until the old couple rose to retire for the rest of the night.
一种不寻常的、令人压抑的沉默笼罩着他们三人,一直持续到这对老夫妇起身退休休息。
"I expect you'll find the cash tied up in a big bag in the middle of your bed," said Herbert, as he bade them good night, " and something horrible squatting on top of your wardrobe watching you as you pocket your ill-gotten gains."
“我想你会发现现金被绑在一个大袋子里,放在你床的中间,”赫伯特在向他们道晚安时说,“还有什么可怕的东西蹲在你的衣柜顶上,看着你把不义之财装进你的口袋。”
He sat alone in the darkness, gazing at the dying fire, and seeing faces in it.
他独自坐在黑暗中,凝视着即将熄灭的炉火,在里面看到了面孔。
The last was so horrible and so simian that he gazed at it in amazement.
最后一张脸是如此可怕,如此像猴子,以至于他惊讶地盯着它。
It got so vivid that, with a little uneasy laugh, he felt on the table for a glass containing a little water to throw over it.
它变得如此生动,以至于他带着一点不安的笑声,在桌子上摸索着一个装有一点水的玻璃杯,想把它扔过去。
His hand grasped the monkey's paw, and with a little shiver he wiped his hand on his coat and went up to bed.
他的手抓住了猴子的爪子,他微微颤抖了一下,用外套擦了擦手,然后上床睡觉了。
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