Oliver began to recover and slowly regain his strength. The picture that had caused Mr Brownlow's excitement was taken down from the wall, and was not mentioned again. Oliver was disappointed at the disappearance of the picture, since he liked the woman's face, but he had many other things to think about now.
奥利弗逐渐恢复,慢慢又有了力气。墙上那幅引起布朗罗先生注意的照片已经被取下来了,也没人再提过。奥利弗喜欢看照片中女人的脸,看不到照片时就会感到失落,但现今他有很多其他事情需要思考。
They were happy days, while Oliver was getting better. He played cards with Mrs Bedwin and listened to stories about her family. The days were all so quiet and relaxing, after the hardships and poverty of his previous life. Mr Brownlow bought him a new suit and new shoes, and Oliver's dirty old clothes were given away.
当奥利弗逐渐好起来时,他们都很开心。奥利弗也和贝德温太太一起玩牌,听她讲家事。在度过他以前那段艰难和穷困的日子后,这段时间很安静也很放松。布朗罗先生拿给他套新衣服和新鞋,奥利弗的旧衣服就被送走了。
One day Mr Brownlow asked him to come to his study for a little talk. Oliver went in and sat down. He looked at Mr Brownlow's serious face in alarm. 'Don't tell me you're going to send me away, sir, please!' he exclaimed. 'Let me stay here! I could help with the housework...please, sir.'
一天,布朗罗先生把奥利弗叫去书房谈话。奥利弗走进书房,坐了下来。他忐忑地看着布朗罗先生严肃的脸。“请不要将我赶走,先生,求你了。”他不安地说。“请让我留在这儿,我能帮你做家务的…求你了,先生!”
'My dear child, don't be afraid!' said Mr Brownlow kindly. 'I won't desert you. I believe that you're a good boy, not a common thief. You told me you're an orphan - that seems to be the truth. But i want to hear now the whole story of your life, and how you came to be with the boys i saw you with that day.'
“我亲爱的孩子,别害怕!”布朗罗先生温和地说。“我没想赶你走,我信你是个好孩子,不是小偷。你跟我说过你是孤儿――这应该是真的,但我现在想听你遇见的所有事情,以及你为什么会和那些男孩呆在一块,就我那天看到的男孩。”
Oliver began his story but was soon interrupted by the arrival of Mr Grimwig, an old friend of Mr Brownlow's. Mr Grimwig was a fierce old gentleman and very fond of arguments. He clearly knew all about Oliver and inspected him closely. 'So this is the boy, is it?' he said at last.
奥利弗开始讲他的事,但不一会儿就被格雷姆威格先生的到来打断了,他是布朗罗先生的一位老朋友。格雷姆威格先生是位粗犷的老绅士,喜爱辩论。他很清楚奥利弗的情况,又仔细打量一番。“就是这孩子,对吗?”他最终问。
Oliver bower politely and was introduced by Mr Brownlow. Tea was then bought in, and during the meal Mr Grimwig stared so hard at Oliver that the boy felt rather confused. Eventually, Mr Grimwig whispered to Mr Brownlow, 'He may be a good-looking boy, but i think he's deceiving you, my good friend.'
奥利弗礼貌地鞠了一躬,布朗罗先生再做了介绍。这时,茶端进了书房。品茶期间,格雷姆威格先生一直盯着奥利弗,这让奥利弗很困惑。最终,格雷姆威格先生低声对布朗罗先生说:“他是个长相清丽的孩子,但我觉得他在骗你的,我的好朋友。”
'Nonsense!' said Mr Brownlow, becoming angry.
“没有的事。”布朗罗先生生气地说。
'Well, we'll see,' answered his friend, 'we'll see.'
“好,边走边看”他朋友回,“边走边看啊。”
Later that afternoon Mr Brownlow wanted to return some books to a bookseller, and to send some money for new books that he had already collected. Mr Grimwig suggested that Oliver should go. 'He'll be sure to delivery everything safely,' he said with a smile.
当天下午晚些时候,布朗罗先生想还些书到书店和给他收集的新书付一笔钱。格雷姆威格先生推荐让奥利弗去送。“他一定会把东西安全送达的”他笑着说。
'Yes, please let me take them,' said Oliver, delighted to be of use.
“是的,让我送吧!”奥利弗说,很开心有用得到他的地方。
Mr Brownlow hesitated, but Mr Grimwing smile had annoyed him. 'Very well,' he said. 'Here are the books, Oliver, and a five-pound note. The bookseller will give you ten shillings change.'
布朗罗先生有些犹豫,但格雷姆威格先生的笑声激怒了他。“好吧”他说。“书在这儿,奥利弗,这是5英镑纸币,书店店主会给你找零10先令。”
'I won't be ten minutes,' replied Oliver eagerly, and he ran out into the street.
“我花不了10分钟就会回来的。”奥利弗说完,转身就跑到街上去了。
'So you expect him to come back, do you?' enquired Mr Grimwig.
“你希望他还能回来,对吗?”格雷姆威格先生问。
'Yes, i do,' said Mr Brownlow, smiling confidently, 'Don't you?'
“是的,他会回来的,”布朗罗先生自信满满地说,“难道你不是吗?”
'No, he has a new suit of clothes, some valuable books, and a five-pound note in his pocket. He'll join his old friends the thieves, and laugh at you. If he comes back, i'll eat my hat.'
“不是,他穿着新衣服,几本好书,口袋里还有5英镑。他会回到他老朋友的贼窝,再笑话你。他要是会回来,我就吃了我的帽子。”
The two men sat by the window with a pocket-watch between them, and waited for Oliver's return.
两个人坐在窗边,中间放着块怀表,等奥利弗回来。
Oliver hurried through the streets to the bookshop, thinking how lucky he was. Suddenly there was a loud scream behind him. 'Oh, my dear brother!' before he could look round, a pair of arms was thrown tightly around his neck.
奥利弗飞快地跑过街道去书店,心想他是有多幸运啊!突然身后传来一阵哭声,“哦,我可伶的弟弟,”在他转身回头前,一双健臂紧紧地圈住了他的脖子。
'Don't!' he cried, struggling. 'Let go! Why are you stopping me? Who is it?'
“别抓着我”他挣扎着大喊。“放开我,为什么要抓住我?你是谁?”
The young woman holding him started to cry loudly. 'I've found him! Oh! Oliver! You naughty boy, to make me suffer so much! Come home immediately, you cruel boy!' she brust into tears and several people stopped to stare at what was happening.
年轻的女子抓着他就放声大哭。“我找到他了,哦,奥利弗!你个顽劣的孩子,让我找得好苦啊!快点回家去,你个残忍的孩子!”她泪眼朦胧,有行人停下脚步来看戏。
'What's the matter?' asked one of the watching woman.
“这是怎么回事?”其中一个女人问。
'He ran away from his parents a month ago,' the young woman said. 'They're hard-working, respectable people, and he left them to join a gang of thieves and bad characters, and almost broke his mother's heart.'
“他上个月离开父母、离家出走了,”年轻的女子说。“他父母都是辛勤劳动、倍受尊敬的人,但他离家出走却加入了盗窃团伙,学了坏,差点就伤碎了他母亲的心。”
'Go home, you horrible boy,' another woman said.
“回家去,你个坏孩子。”另一个女人说。
'Yes - go back to your parents.' said a third.
“就是――回你父母那去。”第三个人说。
更多译文:
《雾都孤儿》(更新中)
《多里安·格雷的画像》(完)
《秘密花园》(完)
PS:本书为牛津系列简易读物,由著名作家查理德·罗杰根据英国作家查尔斯·狄更斯的同名小说改写。英文为书虫系列原文,译文是笔者翻译。
本文仅因个人兴趣而译,故本文谢绝转载和各种商业用途,同时承诺若出现任何责任由作者承担,必要时可删除文章。