小小说丨天堂·地狱

2016-09-08 15:11:41 [来源:新湖南客户端] [责编:吴名慧]
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天堂·地狱

Heaven · Hell

戴希

Dai Xi

 

来到天堂与地狱的交汇处,判官要某长慎重作出选择。

At the meeting-place between Heaven and Hell, the Judge required a certain big shot to make his decision seriously.

某长眼珠一转:如果上天堂,会是什么样子?

The big shot rolled his eyeballs. “What will it be like if I go up to Heaven?”

判官肃然道:你得象牛马一样辛勤劳作,象唐僧一样历经劫难,象腊梅一样傲霜斗雪,象荷花一样出污泥而不染,象蜡烛一样燃尽自己照亮别人……某长打了个寒战。

The Judge replied solemnly: “You must toil and moil like a working ox or horse, encounter all kinds of disasters and difficulties like the Tang priest in Journey to the West, brave against frost and fight snow like mume blossoms in the chilly winter, never be contaminated even though you grow out of the mud like a lotus flower, burn yourself out to lighten up the others like a candle …” The big shot shivered with coldness.

如果下地狱呢?某长小心试探。

“What if I go down to Hell?” the big shot probed gingerly.

判官微笑道:你可以贪得无厌 ,可以妻妾成群,可以豪赌狂掷,可以为非作歹,可以丧尽天良……某长窃喜。

The Judge replied with a smile: “You can take unlimited bribes, boast gangs of wives and concubines, play for high stakes and throw money about, commit all kinds of crimes, do anything without a conscience …” The big shot congratulated himself inwardly.

我是人民的公仆,我不下地狱谁下地狱?人民是我的上帝,人民不上天堂谁上天堂?某长义无反顾,我下地狱吧!

“I am the people’s servant. If I don’t go down to Hell, who will? The people are my God. If they don’t go up to Heaven, who can qualify?” The big shot was apparently pursuing justice and would never look back. “I will go down to Hell!”

判官正色道:君子一言,驷马难追,你再深思,决不反悔?

The Judge admonished him solemnly: “A gentleman’s words can’t be taken back even by a chariot drawn by four horses. Ponder over it. You will never go back on your words?”

某长义无反顾:心甘情愿,无怨无悔!

The big shot, it seemed, was honour-bound and would never turn back. “The decision is out of my own sweet will. I will never complain or regret!”

那好!判官于是慢慢打开地狱之门。某长定晴细看,里面尽是锋利的刀山、燎燃的火海、沸腾的油锅、腐臭的沼泽、血盆大口的猛兽、青面獠牙的恶魔……某长毛骨悚然。

“Good!” The Judge slowly opened the gate to Hell. The big shot gazed fixedly at it. Within it were mountains of sharp knives, seas of raging fire, woks of boiling hot oil, putrid marshes, ferocious beasts with basin-sized blood-dripping maws, fiendish devils with indigo faces and sabre-like fangs … The big shot felt his hair was standing on end and a chill was sent down his spine.

那天堂呢,能否开启天堂之门?某长近乎乞求。

“Then what about Heaven? Would you please open the gate to Heaven?” the big shot was almost begging.

判官于是訇然大开天堂之门。某长极目远眺, 但见里面晴空万里、春风和煦、繁花争艳、莺歌燕舞、泉水淙淙、山峦叠翠……某长向往不已。

The Judge opened the gate to Heaven with a loud squeak. The big shot cast his eyes as far as possible. What he saw was a sunny sky that stretched out for ten thousand miles in a warm spring breeze, profusions of flowers rivalling each other in beauty, singing orioles and dancing swallows, babbling springs, green overlapping mountains and ridges … The big shot stared longingly.

你说的天堂地狱与我看到的怎么判若两样、大相径庭呢?某长茫然不解。

“Why are the Heaven and Hell you speak about the diametrical opposite of what I have seen?” The big shot was puzzled.

我说的是通往天堂地狱的过程,你看的是迈进天堂地狱的结果。天地之事,源远流长,过程结果,绝然相反。这就叫公平,公平你懂吗?好了,天机都已泄露,你还是——下地狱吧!

“What I have described is the process that leads to Heaven and Hell and what you have seen is the outcome of having stepped into them. Things between the sky and the earth boast a distant source and run a long course. The process is always the polar opposite of the outcome. This is called fairness. Fairness, do you know? Well, since the heavenly secret has been divulged, you had better – go down to Hell!”

某长目瞪口呆、不知所措。

Stunned and dumbfounded, the big shot didn’t know what to do.


(原载《三湘风纪》2002第11期、《当代闪小说》(双月刊)2013年第1期、2016年1月29日《中国纪检监察报》,转载于《中学生读写》 2003年Z1期 、《微型小说选刊》2003年第4期,选入《2012年闪小说精选》《璀璨星空——闪小说的365夜》《聚焦文学新潮流——当代闪小说精选》)

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