Chapter 9
第九章
See Pinocchio hurrying off to school with his new A-B-C book under his arm!
皮诺乔急不可待地夹着他的新识字课本去上学,
As he walked along, his brain was busy planning hundreds of wonderful things, building hundreds of castles in the air.
他一路走,他的小脑袋瓜里浮现出成千个幻想,成千座空中楼阁,越来越美。
Talking to himself, he said:
他自言自语说:
"In school today, I'll learn to read, tomorrow to write, and the day after tomorrow I'll do arithmetic.
“我在学校里,今天就要学会读书,明天就要学会写字,后天就要学会计算。
Then, clever as I am, I can earn a lot of money.
以后凭着我的本领,我要挣许许多多钱。
With the very first pennies I make, I'll buy Father a new cloth coat.
我第一次拿到钱就马上给爸爸买一件漂亮的布上衣。
Cloth, did I say? No, it shall be of gold and silver with diamond buttons.
可我干吗买布的呢?我要买件金丝银线织的,钮扣是钻石做的。
That poor man certainly deserves it; for,
这位可怜人实在该穿这样的衣服,为什么,
after all, isn't he in his shirt sleeves because he was good enough to buy a book for me?
一句话,他为了给我买书,为了让我能够给我买书,竟把上衣也给卖了,光穿件衬衫……
On this cold day, too! Fathers are indeed good to their children!"
可天又这么冷!父亲对他们的孩子简直太好了!……”
As he talked to himself, he thought he heard sounds of pipes and drums coming from a distance: pi-pi-pi, pi-pi-pi. . .zum, zum, zum, zum.
他正在这样自言自语,忽然听见远处有音乐声,又是吹笛子,又是敲鼓:的的的,的的的……咚,咚,咚,咚。
He stopped to listen.
他停下来竖起耳朵听。
Those sounds came from a little street that led to a small village along the shore.
这声音是打岔道那边尽头传过来的,这条岔道很长很长,一直通到海边一个小村子。
"What can that noise be? What a nuisance that I have to go to school! Otherwise. . ."
“这音乐声是怎么回事?可惜我得去上学,要不……”
There he stopped, very much puzzled.
他站在那里拿不定主意。
He felt he had to make up his mind for either one thing or another.
可他无论如何得在两者之间作出决定:
Should he go to school, or should he follow the pipes?
去上学?还是去听吹笛子?
"Today I'll follow the pipes, and tomorrow I'll go to school.
“今天就去听吹笛子,明天再去上学吧。
There's always plenty of time to go to school," decided the little rascal at last, shrugging his shoulders.
反正去上学的日子长着呐,”这个小淘气最后耸耸肩膀决定了。
No sooner said than done. He started down the street, going like the wind.
说干就干,他走到那条岔道上,撒腿就跑。