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When he was finally able to concentrate on what he was reading, he liked the book better;
他渐渐将精力集中在读书上。这书读起来很舒服，
the burial was on a snowy day, and he welcomed the feeling of being cold.
因为讲的是一场在冰天雪地里举行的葬扎。虽然坐在烈日下，竟也感到有些凉意。
As he read on, an old man sat down at his side and tried to strike up a conversation.
这时，一位老人在男孩身旁坐下来，开口与他搭讪。
"What are they doing?" the old man asked, pointing at the people in the plaza.
“那些人在做什么？”老人用手指着广场上的人，问道。
"Working," the boy answered dryly, making it look as if he wanted to concentrate on his reading.
“在工作。”男孩冷淡地回答，装作专心读书的样子。
Actually, he was thinking about shearing his sheep in front of the merchant's daughter,
实际上，他脑子里想的是，如何在那商人的女儿面前剪羊毛，
so that she could see that he was someone who was capable of doing difficult things.
好让她亲眼目睹自己有多么能干。
He had already imagined the scene many times;
这情景他想象过若干次了，
every time, the girl became fascinated when he explained that the sheep had to be sheared from back to front.
每次都是他向女孩解释，剪羊毛要从羊屁股往前剪，女孩听了，佩服得要命。
He also tried to remember some good stories to relate as he sheared the sheep.
他还准备了好几个有趣的故事，好在剪羊毛的时候讲给女孩听。
Most of them he had read in books, but he would tell them as if they were from his personal experience.
大部分故事都是从书上读来的，不过，他讲起来仿佛都是亲身经历。
She would never know the difference, because she didn't know how to read.
反正她不会知道真相，因为她不识字。
Meanwhile, the old man persisted in his attempt to strike up a conversation.
但那老人不肯罢休，
He said that he was tired and thirsty, and asked if he might have a sip of the boy's wine.
称他疲惫不堪，口千舌燥，请求男孩给他一口酒喝。
The boy offered his bottle, hoping that the old man would leave him alone.
男孩把酒囊递给了他，心想，也许这样一来，老人就会消停了。
But the old man wanted to talk, and he asked the boy what book he was reading.
然而，老人似乎打定主意要跟男孩聊天。他问男孩看的是什么书。
The boy was tempted to be rude, and move to another bench, but his father had taught him to be respectful of the elderly.
男孩本想离开，不理睬老人，但是父亲曾教育他要尊敬老者。
So he held out the book to the man—for two reasons:
于是，他把书伸到老人面前。这么做有两个原因：
first, that he, himself, wasn't sure how to pronounce the title; and second, that if the old man didn't know how to read,
—是他不会念那书名；二是如果那老人也不会念，
he would probably feel ashamed and decide of his own accord to change benches.
就会自动走开，以免尴尬。
"Hmm ..." said the old man, looking at all sides of the book, as if it were some strange object.
“嗯……”老人颠过来倒过去地看着书，仿佛书是个奇怪的东西。
"This is an important book, but it's really irritating."
然后他说：“这是本很重要的书，但是读起来很乏味。”
The boy was shocked. The old man knew how to read, and had already read the book.
男孩有点惊讶。老人也识字，而且读过这本书。
And if the book was irritating, as the old man had said, the boy still had time to change it for another.
如果书真像他说的那样乏味，拿去换另外一本还来得及。
