The Naked King
国王的新衣
Long, long time ago, there lived a very fancy king.
在很久很久以前,有一个非常奇特的国王。
The king changed his clothes 12 times a day.
他每天要换12次衣服。
He really liked to show off to his subjects.
他热衷于向臣民炫耀自己的新衣。
"My clothes are the best in the world."One day, two tailors planned a trick.
"我的衣服是世界上最好的。"有一天,两个裁缝计划着骗点钱。
"Why don't we teach that stupid and extravagant king a lesson. He doesn't even worry about his starving people."
"我们为什么不给那个毫不关心民生疾苦的国王一点教训!"
"That's right! He thinks he's the best."The two men went to see the king.
"对,他只考虑他自己。"两人随后便面见国王。
Oh, the world's most marvelous king! We have brought the most beautiful cloth in the whole world.
哦,世界上最伟大的国王!我们为您带来了全世界最漂亮的布料。
However, not everyone is able to see the cloth.
但是,不是每个人都能看见布。
Those that tell lies and have bad hearts are not able to see this fine cloth.
那些说谎和有坏心眼的人都看不到这种精细的布料。
After the king heard those words, he became very interested.
国王听罢非常感兴趣。
Could there really be such a cloth?
真的有这样一块布吗?
If I can make clothes out of those cloths, my clothes will be the best in the whole world. Hurry and show me the cloth.
如果能用这些布制成衣服,那我的衣服不就是世界上最好的衣服。赶紧把布给我瞧瞧。
The king began to get more and more greedy.
国王变得越来越贪婪了。
The tailors pretended that the cloth was real, as they showed it to the king.
给国王看的时候,裁缝便假装布是真实存在的。
The king and the fine-spoken subjects could not see anything before them.
其实,国王和大臣们什么也看不到。
But, none of them could show that they could not see it.
但是,他们谁也没有说出来。
The king and his fine-spoken subjects just looked at each other.
国王和大臣只是互相看了看。
Then, the tailor quickly spoke in a arrogant manner."Well, is there no honest man here? How can you look at this beautiful cloth and not praise it."
然后裁缝说到"难道这里没有诚实的人吗?怎么看到这么美丽的布而不赞美呢?"
Among the subjects, one of them made a flattering comment out loud. "Wow! This is the first time that I have seen such a wonderful cloth."
话音刚落,有一位大臣开始出声赞美:"这是我第一次看到这么神奇的布料!"
All the subjects tried to be the first to praise the cloth.
所有的大臣接连不断地称赞开来。
Then, the king was amazed with the beauty of the cloth, too.
然后,国王也表现出对布料的惊讶。
The king gave the money and ordered them to make his clothes.
随后,国王付钱并命令他们开始做衣服。
For several days, the tailors pretended to be making the clothes.
接下来的几天,裁缝假装在做衣服。
The king became worried and told one of his subjects to go and see how the clothes was coming along.
国王不放心就派遣一位大臣去看看衣服做的怎么样了。
The subject could not say how much the clothes had been completed. As hard as he looked, he could not see it.
这个大臣当然说不出衣服已经完工多少,因为他根本就看不见。
But, he could not say that he was unable to see it.
他也不能跟国王实话实说,这让他左右为难。
Instead, he pretended to be amazed at how beautiful it was coming along.
再三考虑后,他向国王报告说衣服的做工非常精细。
A few days later, the tailors came back with the King's clothes.
过了几天,裁缝将衣服呈给国王。
"Here you are, try on this clothes." The king was not able to honestly say that he could not see the clothes.
"给您陛下,您穿上试试,"国王也不敢说实话。
He, too, pretended to look over it.
他也假装看了看。
One man said, "Your majesty, let's go and show off this finest clothes in the world."
一位大臣说道:"陛下,为什么不穿上它让您的臣民都瞻仰一下这件世界上最华丽的衣服呢?"
The subjects all agreed at the same time. "Yes, that is a good idea."
大臣都一致附和:"对啊,这是一个好主意。"
The king walked out to the street very proudly and walked with pride.
于是,国王很骄傲地在街上游行。
All the people in the land came out to see the king's new clothes.
所有的百姓都出来目睹新衣的风采。
They were all surprised, though.
到处都是一片称赞声。
Just then, a little girl shouted out, "Our king is naked!"
然而,就在这时一个小女孩喊道:"我们的国王什么都没穿!"
Then everyone said," He's naked, he's naked!"
然后其他人都开始起哄说:"是没穿衣服,什么都没穿!"
The king now realized the truth.
国王现在才意识到真相。
However, with only his undergarments on, he still walked in a dignified manner.
但是,他只能穿着内衣继续维护着一位国王的尊严。
Even though he was embarrassed, he could not stop walking.
即使他觉得尴尬得要命,他也必须走完这段路。
Why not? Because he was the king.
为什么呢?因为他是国王。
译文为可可英语翻译,未经授权请勿转载!