田水哗啦

The Irrigation Water Came Gurgling

姚景文

Yao Jinwen

三十守寡起，十多年了，“招白眼”又一夜失眠：自家种的“责任田”搁开了鸡爪裂，大还是晴得不肯挂一根云线线。要是减产，全家四张嘴巴，还不吊了起来?

Black-brewed Zhao, widowed over ten years ago when she was thirty, was having another sleepless night. Her family's contracted land had cracked because of drought, but there was still not a cloud in the bright sky. If production dropped this year, what should her family of four do except go hungry?

唉，17岁的女儿到底不知深浅，刚才还对娘嚷：“好愁勿愁!后半夜大水库放水，还怕那雪癫子不将水上足?”现在却挂着笑篇熟睡了。对推广“责任田”，“招白眼”是白着眼睛反对的。因为她小时候亲眼看到爷爷跟雪癫子的大爹，争田水打得血肉横飞，田缺流红。如今回想起来，还寒毛碜碜，心惊肉跳呢。雪癫子当了队里的管水员，能担保他不包藏祸心？

It was a pity that her seventeen-year-old daughter didn't yet know what worry was. Just a few minutes ago she was shouting to her mother, "Don't you worry! late at night the reservoir will let out water. Scabby-headed Xue will certainly give us our full share of water, won’t he?" But now she was asleep with a smile still on her lips. Black-browed Zhao didn't see eye to eye with the implementation of contracted land policy, because she had seen with her own eyes when she was still very young how her grandfather and Scabby-headed Xue's uncle had fought tooth and nail over irrigation water. She would shudder even at the thought of it. Now Scabby-headed Xue was in charge of the irrigation water in the brigade; who could say for sure that he bore no grudge against her?

“招白眼”心神不宁，翻身起床，就提着锄头出门去。

Black-Mowed Dian became so agitated at the thought that she got off the bed, took a hoe and went out to the field.

“招白眼”叫阿招，自从死了男人，脸上从未挂笑，逢人见众，老是翻着白眼，惹得那老光棍雪癫子心里痒痒，有口难张。于是村里留着一个“话把”：雪癫子不哭，“招白眼”不笑。

Black-browed Zhao used to be called Ah Zhao. After her husband's death, she never smiled and always scowled at others. The old bachelor Scabby-headed Xue could only bury his longings for her in his heart. Thus there spread in the village a popular saying: "Scabby-headed Xue never wept; Black-browed Zhao never smiled."

“招白眼”转过岙口，隐隐传来吱呀吱呀的水车声，圆月下，车着池塘水的雪癫子，那铜勺样的后脑和起油的光背，在闪着银光。他雪瘫子要不是当了管水员，还不一样要等后半夜灌水？早一铺水，多一捧米，谁不望自家的饭碗满?

As she approached the field, Black-browed Zhao heard the faint creaking of a waterwheel and saw Scabby-headed Xue pedalling water under the full moon. His bald head and his greasy bare back were glistening like silver. Wouldn't he have to wait for the water to come late at night like the rest of us if he had not been in charge of the irrigation water? The earlier one got water, the more rice one would reap-who wouldn't like to see his own bowl full of rice?

然而，“招白眼”傻了!她来到自家的“责任田”边，破天荒开了笑颜：怎么，田水哗啦哗啦地跳跃着，喧笑着，闪着粼粼的银光。这“甜水”像是流进了她的心窝。而她上坎雪滚子的“责任田”里，依然唇焦口燥。她不解地瞧着雪癫子，眼里噙着泪，终于鼓足了勇气，第一遭喊了声：“阿雪哥!’

However, when she came to her own contracted land, she got such a pleasant surprise that for the first time she beamed with joy. Why, water came gurgling happily over her land, glittering like silver. The sweet water seemed to be flowing into her heart. Yet Scabby-headed Xue's own land above hers was still parched with thirst. She looked at Scabby-headed Xue with incomprehension. Tears welled up in her eyes. She plucked up her courage to call him "Brother Ali Xue" for the first tithe.

水车“吱格”地停住，雪癫子转过身来，只见“招白眼”傻乎乎地笑，雪癫子也懵了，好像眼前不是日日开门相见的“招白眼”，而是从月亮上飘下来的嫦娥。瞧那一双乌黑的眸子，真还有点儿含情脉脉哩!

The waterwheel came to a stop with a creak and Scabby-headed Xue saw Black-browed Zhao gazing at him with a foolish smile. He felt dazed as if she were not the Black-browed Zhao he met day in and day out, but rather Chang Er, the Moon Fairy coming down from the moon. Those black eyes of Black-browed Zhao seemed to be exuding tenderness and love.

“嘿呀，是你，阿招妹妹，我，我是想，你的责任田，裂，裂得厉害，怕，伯后半夜灌水，来不及……”雪癫子有点语无伦次了。

"Why, it's you, Sister Ah Zhao? I, I thought your contracted land must have become parched and l was afraid it would be too late if water came at midnight." Scabby-headed Xue became tongue-tied.

“招白眼”觉得耳热，她也慌难择辞：“你的责任田也……”

Black browed Zhao blushed to her ears and was lost for words, "Your own contracted land also. . ."

“找是负责田水的，谁的田受旱，都是我的贵任。你，你不要放在心上……”雪癫子也感到浑身火热，连忙又回过头去，踩动水车。田水又哗啦地笑了。

"Never mind, I'm in charge of the irrigation water. It would be my fault if anyone's land got ruined because of drought. It's my pleasure to do my job well." Xue felt hot all over his body and hastily resumed pedalling. Irrigation water came gurgling again.

“招白眼”悄悄地捡起田埂边的一件白小布衫，走过去披在雪液子的身上，一面也登上水车。雪癫子投过感激的一瞥。“招白眼”温存而体贴地说：“半夜露重，当心着凉。”

Black-browed Zhao gently picked up the white shirt at the ridge of the field and put it on Xue's bare back, while joining him in the pedalling. Xue threw her a glance of gratitude. Black-browed Zhao said with affection and consideration, "It's midnight, take care not to catch cold."

月光下，他俩挨得很近，她见白小布衫的领口破了，她想：“明天该给他补一补。”

In the moonlight, the two kept close to each other. She saw the collar of his white shirt was worn out and said to herself, "I must mend it for him tomorrow."

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