Beside the well there was the ruin of an old stone wall. When I came back from my work, the next evening, I saw from some distance away my little price sitting on top of a wall, with his feet dangling¹. And I heard him say:

在井旁边有一堵残缺的石墙。第二天晚上我工作回来的时候，我远远地看见了小王子耷拉着双腿坐在墙上。我听见他在说话：

 

"Then you don't remember. This is not the exact spot."

“你怎么不记得了呢？”他说，“绝不是在这儿。”

 

Another voice must have answered him, for he replied to it:

大概还有另一个声音在回答他，因为他答着腔说道：

 

"Yes, yes! It is the right day, but this is not the place."

“没错，没错，日子是对的；但地点不是这里……”

 

I continued my walk toward the wall. At no time did I see or hear anyone. The little prince, however, replied once again:

我继续朝墙走去。我还是看不到，也听不见任何别人。可是小王子又回答道：

 

"--Exactly. You will see where my track begins, in the sand. You have nothing to do but wait for me there. I shall be there tonight."

“……那当然。你会在沙上看到我的脚印是从什么地方开始的。你在那里等着我就行了。今天夜里我去那里。”

 

I was only twenty metres from the wall, and I still saw nothing.

我离墙约有二十米远，可我依然什么也没有看见。

 

After a silence the little prince spoke² again:

小王子沉默了一会又说：

 

"You have good poison? You are sure that it will not make me suffer too long?"

“你的毒液管用吗？你保证不会使我长时间地痛苦吗？”

 

I stopped in my tracks, my heart torn asunder³; but still I did not understand.

我焦虑地赶上前去，但我仍然不明白是怎么回事。

 

"Now go away," said the little prince. "I want to get down from the wall."

“现在你去吧，我要下来了！……”小王子说。

 

I dropped my eyes, then, to the foot of the wall-- and I leaped into the air. There before me, facing the little prince, was one of those yellow snakes that take just thirty seconds to bring your life to an end. Even as I was digging into my pocked to get out my revolver I made a running step back. But, at the noise I made, the snake let himself flow easily across the sand like the dying spray of a fountain, and, in no apparent⁴ hurry, disappeared, with a light metallic⁵ sound, among the stones.

于是，我也朝墙脚下看去，我吓了一跳。就在那里，一条黄蛇直起身子冲着小王子。这种黄蛇半分钟就能结果你的性命。我一面赶紧掏口袋，拔出手枪，一面跑过去。可是一听到我的脚步声，蛇却像一股干涸了的水柱一样，慢慢钻进沙里去。它不慌不忙地在石头的缝隙中钻动着，发出轻轻的金属般的响声。

 

I reached the wall just in time to catch my little man in my arms; his face was white as snow.

我到达墙边的时候，正好把我的这位小王子接在我的怀抱中。他的脸色雪一样惨白。

 

"What does this mean?" I demanded. "Why are you talking with snakes?"

“这是搞的什么名堂！你怎么竟然和蛇也谈起心来了！”

 

I had loosened⁶ the golden muffler that he always wore. I had moistened his temples, and had given him some water to drink. And now I did not dare ask him any more questions. He looked at me very gravely, and put his arms around my neck. I felt his heart beating like the heart of a dying bird, shot with someone's rifle…

我解开了他一直戴着的金黄色的围脖。我用水渍湿了他的太阳穴，让他喝了点水。这时，我什么也不敢再问他。他严肃地看着我，用双臂搂着我的脖子。我感到他的心就象一只被枪弹击中而濒于死亡的鸟的心脏一样在跳动着。

 

"I am glad that you have found what was the matter with your engine," he said. "Now you can go back home--"

他对我说：“我很高兴，你找到了你的机器所缺少的东西。你不久就可以回家去了……”

 

"How do you know about that?"

“你怎么知道的？”

 

I was just coming to tell him that my work had been successful, beyond anything that I had dared to hope.

我正是来告诉他，在没有任何希望的情况下，我成功地完成了修理工作。

 

He made no answer to my question, but he added:

他不回答我的问题，却接着说道：

 

"I, too, am going back home today…"

“我也一样，今天，要回家去了……”

 

Then, sadly--

然后，他忧伤地说：

 

"It is much farther… it is much more difficult…"

“我回家要远得多……要难得多……”

 

I realised clearly that something extraordinary was happening. I was holding him close in my arms as if he were a little child; and yet it seemed to me that he was rushing headlong toward an abyss from which I could do nothing to restrain him…

我清楚地感到发生了某种不寻常的事。我把他当作小孩一样紧紧抱在怀里，可是我感觉到他径直地向着一个无底深渊沉陷下去，我想法拉住他，却怎么也办不到……

 

His look was very serious, like some one lost far away.

他的眼神很严肃，望着遥远的地方。

 

"I have your sheep. And I have the sheep's box. And I have the muzzle…"

“我有你画的羊，羊的箱子和羊的嘴套子……”

 

And he gave me a sad smile.

他带着忧伤的神情微笑了。

 

I waited a long time. I could see that he was reviving⁷ little by little.

我等了很长时间，才觉得他身子渐渐暖和起来。

 

"Dear little man," I said to him, "you are afraid…"

“小家伙，你受惊了……”

 

He was afraid, there was no doubt about that. But he laughed lightly.

他害怕了，这是无疑的！他却温柔地笑着说：

 

"I shall be much more afraid this evening…"

“今天晚上，我会怕得更厉害……”

 

Once again I felt myself frozen⁸ by the sense of something irreparable. And I knew that I could not bear the thought of never hearing that laughter any more. For me, it was like a spring of fresh water in the desert.

我再度意识到要发生一件不可弥补的事。我觉得我的心一下子就凉了。这时我才明白：一想到再也不能听到这笑声，我就不能忍受。这笑声对我来说，就好像是沙漠中的甘泉一样。

 

"Little man," I said, "I want to hear you laugh again."

“小家伙，我还想听你笑……”

 

But he said to me:

但他对我说：

 

"Tonight, it will be a year… my star, then, can be found right above the place where I came to the Earth, a year ago…"

“到今天夜里，正好是一年了。我的星球将正好处于我去年降落的那个地方的上空……”

 

"Little man," I said, "tell me that it is only a bad dream-- this affair of the snake, and the meeting-place, and the star…"

“小家伙，这蛇的事，约会的事，还有星星，这全是一场噩梦吧？”

 

But he did not answer my plea⁹. He said to me, instead: "The thing that is important is the thing that is not seen…"

但他并不回答我的问题。他对我说：“重要的事，是看不见的……”

 

"Yes, I know…"

“当然……”

 

"It is just as it is with the flower. If you love a flower that lives on a star, it is sweet to look at the sky at night. All the stars are a-bloom with flowers…"

“这就像花一样。如果你爱上了一朵生长在一颗星星上的花，那么夜间，你看着天空就感到甜蜜愉快。所有的星星上都好像开着花。”

 

"Yes, I know…"

“当然……”

 

"It is just as it is with the water. Because of the pulley, and the rope, what you gave me to drink was like music. You remember-- how good it was."

“这也就像水一样，由于那辘轳和绳子的缘故，你给我喝的井水好像音乐一样……你记得吗？……这水非常好喝……”

 

"Yes, I know…"

“当然……”

 

"And at night you will look up at the stars. Where I live everything is so small that I cannot show you where my star is to be found. It is better, like that. My star will just be one of the stars, for you. And so you will love to watch all the stars in the heavens… they will all be your friends. And, besides, I am going to make you a present…"

“夜晚，你抬头望着星星，我的那颗太小了，我无法给你指出我的那颗星星是在哪里。这样倒更好。你可以认为我的那颗星星就在这些星星之中。那么，所有的星星，你都会喜欢看的……这些星星都将成为你的朋友。而且，我还要给你一件礼物……”

 

He laughed again.

他又笑了。

 

"Ah, little prince, dear little prince! I love to hear that laughter!"

“啊！小家伙，小家伙，我喜欢听你这笑声！”

 

"That is my present. Just that. It will be as it was when we drank the water…"

“这正好是我给你的礼物，……这就好像水那样。”

 

"What are you trying to say?"

“你说的是什么？”

 

"All men have the stars," he answered, "but they are not the same things for different people. For some, who are travelers, the stars are guides. For others they are no more than little lights in the sky. For others, who are scholars, they are problems. For my businessman they were wealth. But all these stars are silent. You-- you alone-- will have the stars as no one else has them--"

“人们眼里的星星并不都一样。对旅行的人来说，星星是向导。对别的人来说，星星只是些小亮光。对另外一些学者来说，星星就是他们探讨的学问。对我所遇见的那个实业家来说，星星是金钱。但是，所有这些星星都不会说话。你呢，你的那些星星将是任何人都不曾有过的……”

 

"What are you trying to say?"

“你说的是什么？”

 

"In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night… you-- only you-- will have stars that can laugh!"

“夜晚，当你望着天空的时候，既然我就住在其中一颗星星上，既然我在其中一颗星星上笑着，那么对你来说，就好像所有的星星都在笑，那么你将看到的星星就是会笑的星星！”

 

And he laughed again.

这时，他又笑了。

 

"And when your sorrow is comforted (time soothes¹⁰ all sorrows) you will be content that you have known me. You will always be my friend. You will want to laugh with me. And you will sometimes open your window, so, for that pleasure… and your friends will be properly astonished to see you laughing as you look up at the sky! Then you will say to them, 'Yes, the stars always make me laugh！' And they will think you are crazy. It will be a very shabby trick that I shall have played on you…"

“那么，在你的悲伤平息之后（时间会缓和所有的悲伤）你就会因为认识了我而感到高兴。你将永远是我的朋友。你就会想要同我一起笑。有时，你会为了快乐而不知不觉地打开窗户。你的朋友们会奇怪地看着你笑着仰望天空。那时，你就可以对他们说：‘是的，星星总是引我欢笑！’他们会以为你发疯了。我的恶作剧将使你难堪……”

 

And he laughed again.

这时，他又笑了。

 

"It will be as if, in place of the stars, I had given you a great number of little bells that knew how to laugh…"

“这就好像我并没有给你星星，而是给你一大堆会笑出声来的小铃铛……”

 

And he laughed again. Then he quickly became serious:

他仍然笑着。随后他变得严肃起来：

 

"Tonight-- you know… do not come," said the little prince.

“今天夜里……你知道……不要来了。”

 

"I shall not leave you," I said.

“我不离开你。”

 

"I shall look as if I were suffering. I shall look a little as if I were dying. It is like that. Do not come to see that. It is not worth the trouble…"

“我将会像是很痛苦的样子……我有点像要死去似的。就是这么回事，你就别来看这些了，没有必要。”

 

"I shall not leave you."

“我不离开你。”

 

But he was worried.

可是他担心起来。

 

"I tell you-- it is also because of the snake. He must not bite you. Snakes-- they are malicious¹¹ creatures. This one might bite you just for fun…"

“我对你说这些……这也是因为蛇的缘故。别让它咬了你……蛇是很坏的，它随意咬人……”

 

"I shall not leave you."

“我不应该离开你的。”

 

But a thought came to reassure¹² him:

这时，他似乎有点放心了：

 

"It is true that they have no more poison for a second bite."

“对了，它咬第二口的时候就没有毒液了……”

 

That night I did not see him set out on his way. He got away from me without making a sound. When I succeeded in catching¹³ up with him he was walking along with a quick and resolute¹⁴ step. He said to me merely:

这天夜里，我没有看到他起程。他不声不响地跑了。当我终于赶上他的时候，他坚定地快步走着。他只是对我说道：

 

"Ah! You are there…"

“啊，你在这儿……”

 

And he took me by the hand. But he was still worrying.

于是他拉着我的手。但是他仍然很担心：

 

"It was wrong of you to come. You will suffer. I shall look as if I were dead; and that will not be true…"

“你不该这样。你会难受的。我会像是死去的样子，但这不会是真的……”

 

I said nothing.

我默默无言。

 

"You understand… it is too far. I cannot carry this body with me. It is too heavy."

“你明白，路很远。我不能带着这付身躯走。它太重了。”

 

I said nothing.

我依然沉默不语。

 

"But it will be like an old abandoned shell. There is nothing sad about old shells…"

“但是，这就好像剥落的旧树皮一样。旧树皮，并没有什么可悲的。”

 

I said nothing.

我还是沉默不语。

 

He was a little discouraged. But he made one more effort:

他有些泄气了。但是他又振作起来：

 

"You know, it will be very nice. I, too, shall look at the stars. All the stars will be wells with a rusty¹⁵ pulley. All the stars will pour out fresh water for me to drink…"

“这将是蛮好的，你知道。我也一定会看星星的。所有的星星都将是带有生了锈的辘轳的井。所有的星星都会倒水给我喝……”

 

I said nothing.

我还是沉默不语。

 

"That will be so amusing¹⁶! You will have five hundred million little bells, and I shall have five hundred million springs of fresh water…"

“这将是多么好玩啊！你将有五亿个铃铛，我将有五亿口水井……”

 

And he too said nothing more, because he was crying…

这时，他也沉默了，因为他在哭。

 

"Here it is. Let me go on by myself."

“就是这儿。让我自个儿走一步吧。”

 

And he sat down, because he was afraid. Then he said, again:

他这时坐下来，因为他害怕了。他却仍然说道：

 

"You know-- my flower… I am responsible for her. And she is so weak! She is so nae! She has four thorns¹⁷, of no use at all, to protect herself against all the world…"

“你知道……我的花……我是要对她负责的！而她又是那么弱小！她又是那么天真。她只有四根微不足道的刺，保护自己，抵抗外敌……”

 

I too sat down, because I was not able to stand up any longer.

我也坐了下来，因为我再也站立不住了。他说道：

 

"There now-- that is all…"

“就是这些……全都说啦……”

 

He still hesitated a little; then he got up. He took one step. I could not move.

他犹豫了一下，然后站起来。他迈出了一步。而我却动弹不得。

 

There was nothing but a flash of yellow close to his ankle. He remained motionless for an instant. He did not cry out. He fell as gently as a tree falls. There was not even any sound, because of the sand.

在他的脚踝子骨附近，一道黄光闪了一下。刹那间他一动也不动了。他没有叫喊。他轻轻地像一棵树一样倒在地上，大概由于沙地的缘故，连一点响声都没有。

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