章节一

一九七五年二、三月间，一个平平常常的日子，细蒙蒙的雨丝夹着一星半点的雪花，正纷纷淋淋地向大地飘洒着。

In the early months of March 1975, on an ordinary day, light rain mingled with a few snowflakes, gently falling to the ground.

时令已快到惊蛰，雪当然再不会存留，往往还没等落地，就已经消失得无踪无影了。

The season was nearing the time of awakening of insects, and the snow obviously would not linger; often, it vanished without a trace before even hitting the ground.

黄土高原严寒而漫长的冬天看来就要过去，但那真正温暖的春天还远远地没有到来。

The harsh and lengthy winter of the Loess Plateau seemed to be coming to an end, but the truly warm spring was still a long way off.

在这样雨雪交加的日子里，如果没有什么紧要事，人们宁愿一整天足不出户。

On such rainy and snowy days, if there weren't any pressing matters, people would rather stay indoors all day.

因此，县城的大街小巷倒也比平时少了许多嘈杂。街巷背阴的地方。

Thus, the streets and alleys of the county town were quieter than usual. In the shaded parts of the alleys.

冬天残留的积雪和冰溜子正在雨点的敲击下蚀化，石板街上到处都漫流着肮脏的污水。风依然是寒冷的。

The leftover snow and icicles from winter were dissolving under the tapping of raindrops, and dirty wastewater was flowing all over the stone-paved streets. The wind remained cold.

空荡荡的街道上，有时会偶尔走过来一个乡下人，破毡帽护着脑门，胳膊上挽一筐子土豆或萝卜，有气无力地呼唤着买主。

On the empty streets, occasionally, a rural person would pass by, a tattered felt hat protecting their forehead, one arm carrying basked potatoes or radishes, weakly calling out for buyers.

唉，城市在这样的日子里完全丧失了生气，变得没有一点可爱之处了。

Alas, in such weather, the city completely lost its vitality and became utterly unlovable.

只有在半山腰县立高中的大院坝里，此刻却自有一番热闹景象。午饭铃声刚刚响过，从一排排高低错落的石窑洞里，就跑出来了一群一伙的男男女女。

Only in the courtyard of the county high school halfway up the hill was there a lively scene. As soon as the lunch bell rang, groups of boys and girls rushed out from the rows of stone cave dwellings.

他们把碗筷敲得震天价响，踏泥带水、叫叫嚷嚷地跑过院坝，向南面总务处那一排窑洞的墙根下蜂涌而去。

They clattered their bowls and chopsticks, trampling through the muddy and watery courtyard, chattering and rushing towards the wall at the base of the General Affairs Office on the south end.

偌大一个院子，霎时就被这纷乱的人群踩踏成了一片烂泥滩。

In an instant, the large courtyard was trampled into a muddy swamp by the chaotic crowd.

与此同时，那些家在本城的走读生们，也正三三两两涌出东面学校的大门。他们撑着雨伞，一路说说笑笑，通过一段早年间用横石片插起的长长的下坡路，不多时便纷纷消失在城市的大街小巷中。

Meanwhile, the day students who lived in the city also began to trickle out from the eastern school gate, holding umbrellas and laughing, chatting as they made their way down a long slope that had once been lined with stones. Before long, they disappeared into the streets and alleys of the city.

在校园内的南墙根下，现在已经按班级排起了十几路纵队。各班的值日生正在忙碌地给众人分饭菜。

At the southern wall of the campus, several lines had formed according to class for lunch distribution. The duty students were busy dishing out meals to everyone.

每个人的饭菜都是昨天登记好并付了饭票的，因此程序并不复杂，现在值日生只是按饭表付给每人预订的一份。

Each person had pre-registered and paid for their meal yesterday, so the process was not complicated; the duty students were simply handing out the pre-ordered portions based on the meal schedule.

菜分甲、乙、丙三等。甲菜以土豆、白菜、粉条为主，里面有些叫人嘴馋的大肉片，每份三毛钱；乙菜其它内容和甲菜一样，只是没有肉，每份一毛五分钱。丙菜可就差远了，清水煮白萝卜——似乎只是为了掩饰这过分的清淡，才在里面象征性地漂了几点辣子油花。

The dishes were divided into three grades: Grade A consisted mainly of potatoes, cabbage, and vermicelli, with some tantalizing chunks of meat, costing thirty cents per portion; Grade B had similar contents but no meat, costing fifteen cents. Grade C, however, was much poorer, featuring boiled white radishes—perhaps just to cover up the extreme blandness, a few drops of chili oil had been symbolically added.

不过，这菜价钱倒也便宜，每份五分钱。

Though the prices were indeed cheap, each portion costing only five cents.

各班的甲菜只是在小脸盆里盛一点，看来吃得起肉菜的学生没有几个。

Each class of Grade A dishes was only served in small basins; it appeared that not many students could afford meat dishes.

丙菜也用小脸盆盛一点，说明吃这种下等伙食的人也没有多少。

Grade C dishes were also served in small basins, indicating that not many people were consuming such inferior food.

只有乙菜各班都用烧瓷大脚盆盛着，海海漫漫的，显然大部分人都吃这种既不奢侈也不寒酸的菜。

Only Grade B dishes were generously served in large ceramic basins, indicating that most students opted for this neither luxurious nor too shabby meal.

主食也分三等：白面馍，玉米面馍，高粱面馍；白、黄、黑，颜色就表明了一种差别；学生们戏称欧洲、亚洲、非洲。

The staple foods were also divided into three grades: white flour buns, cornmeal buns, and sorghum buns; the colors—white, yellow, and black—indicated a difference in quality. The students humorously referred to them as European, Asian, and African.

从排队的这一片黑鸦鸦的人群看来，他们大部分都来自农村，脸上和身上或多或少都留有体力劳动的痕迹。

From this sea of dark-clothed people in line, most appeared to come from rural backgrounds, with traces of physical labor evident on their faces and bodies.

除过个把人的衣装和他们的农民家长一样土气外，这些已被自己的父辈看作是“先生”的人，穿戴都还算体面。

Except for a couple of individuals whose outfits were as dowdy as their peasant parents', these individuals, regarded as "teachers" by their own families, were reasonably well-dressed.

贫困山区的农民尽管眼下大都少吃缺穿，但孩子既然到大地方去念书，家长们就是咬着牙关省吃节用，也要给他们做几件见人衣裳。

Despite the poverty and lack of proper clothing in the mountainous areas, the parents made sacrifices to send their children to study in the big town, even if it meant wearing second-hand or home-made clothes to save money.

当然，这队伍里看来也有个把光景好的农家子弟，那穿戴已经和城里干部们的子弟没什么差别，而且胳膊腕上往往还撑一块明晃晃的手表。

Of course, among this group, there were a few well-off farm youths who dressed similarly to the children of city officials, often sporting a glaring watch on their wrists.

有些这样的“洋人”就站在大众之间，如同鹤立鸡群，毫不掩饰自己的优越感。他们排在非凡的甲菜盆后面，虽然人数寥寥无几，但却特别惹眼。

Some of these "foreigners" stood among the crowd like cranes among a flock of chickens, unabashedly displaying their sense of superiority. They stood behind the extraordinary Grade A dish basins; though few in number, they were particularly conspicuous.

在整个荒凉而贫瘠的黄土高原，一个县的县立高中，就算是本县的最高学府吧，也无论如何不可能给学生们盖一座餐厅。

In the entire desolate and barren Loess Plateau, a county high school might be regarded as the highest educational institution in the area, yet it was impossible for the school to build a dining hall for the students.

天好天坏，大家都是露天就餐。好在这些青年都来自山乡圪，谁没在野山野地里吃过饭呢？因此大家也并不在乎这种事。

Rain or shine, everyone ate outdoors. Fortunately, these youths came from rural areas; who hadn’t eaten in the wilderness before? Therefore, everyone seemed unbothered by the situation.

通常天气好的时候，大家都各自和要好的同学蹲成一圈，说着笑着就把饭吃完了。

Usually, on clear days, students would huddle in circles with their close friends, laughing as they finished their meals.

今天可不行。所有打了饭菜的人。都用草帽或胳膊肘护着碗，趔趔趄趄穿过烂泥塘般的院坝，跑回自己的宿舍去了。

But today was different. Everyone who had received their meals clutched their bowls with straw hats or elbows, unsteadily navigating through the muddy courtyard back to their dorms.

不大一会功夫，饭场上就稀稀落落的没有几个人了。大部分班级的值日生也都先后走了。

Before long, the dining area was sparse with very few people left. The duty students from most classes had already left one by one.

现在，只有高一（1）班的值日生一个人留在空无人迹的饭场上。这是一位矮矮胖胖的女生，大概是小时候得过小儿麻痹一类的病，留下了痼疾，因此行走有点瘸跛。

Now, only a duty student from Class One of the first year remained alone in the deserted dining area. She was a short and plump girl, presumably afflicted with polio in her childhood, leaving her with a limp.

她面前的三个菜盆里已经没有了菜，馍筐里也只剩了四个焦黑的高粱面馍。

In front of her were three empty dish basins, and the basket of buns only had four charred sorghum buns left.

看来这几个黑家伙不是值日生本人的，因为她自己手里拿着一个白面馍和一个玉米面馍，碗里也像是乙菜。

It seemed that those black buns did not belong to the duty student, as she was holding a white bun and a cornmeal bun, and her bowl appeared to contain a Grade B dish.

这说明跛女子算得上中等人家。她端着自己的饭菜，满脸不高兴地立在房檐下，显然是等待最后一个姗姗来迟者——我们可以想来这必定是一个穷小子，他不仅吃这最差的主食，而且连五分钱的丙菜也买不起一份啊！

This indicated that the limping girl was of moderate means. She stood under the eaves with a displeased expression, clearly waiting for the last latecomer—one could assume he must be an impoverished boy who could not afford a portion of Grade C dishes for five cents!

雨中的雪花陡然间增多了，远远近近愈加变得模模糊糊。城市寂静无声。

The snowflakes in the rain suddenly increased, blurring the surroundings even more. The city was quiet and still.

隐约地听见很远的地方传来一声公鸡的啼鸣，给这灰蒙蒙的天地间平添了一丝睡梦般的阴郁。

Faintly, a rooster's crow could be heard from a distance, adding a touch of dream-like gloom to the gray sky.

就在这时候，在空旷的院坝的北头，走过来一个瘦高个的青年人。他胳膊窝里夹着一只碗，缩着脖子在泥地里蹒跚而行。

At that moment, from the northern end of the empty courtyard, a tall and thin young man walked over. He held a bowl tucked under his arm, shivering as he trudged through the muddy ground.

小伙子脸色黄瘦，而且两颊有点塌陷，显得鼻子像希腊人一样又高又直。

The young man's face was sallow and thin, with slightly sunken cheeks, making his nose appear sharp and straight like a Greek's.

脸上看来才刚刚褪掉少年的稚气——显然由于营养不良，还没有焕发出他这种年龄所特有的那种青春光彩。

His face seemed to have just shed its youthful innocence—clearly malnourished, it lacked the youthful glow typical for his age.

他蹽开两条瘦长的腿，扑踏扑踏地踩着泥水走着。

He waddled along, stepping through the muddy water with his long, thin legs.

这也许就是那几个黑面馍的主人？看他那一身可怜的穿戴想必也只能吃这种伙食。

Could he be the owner of those black buns? Judging by his pitiful attire, he must be able to afford only such meals.

瞧吧，他那身衣服尽管式样裁剪得勉强还算是学生装，但分明是自家织出的那种老土粗布，而且黑颜料染得很不均匀，给人一种肮肮脏脏的感觉。

Look at him; despite the cut of his clothes being barely reminiscent of student attire, they were clearly made from coarse, homemade fabric and dyed unevenly with black, giving a dirty feeling.

脚上的一双旧黄胶鞋已经没有了鞋带，凑合着系两根白线绳；一只鞋帮上甚至还缀补着一块蓝布补丁。

His old yellow rubber shoes had no shoelaces, merely tied together with two strings; one shoe even had a patch of blue cloth sewn on.

裤子显然是前两年缝的，人长布缩，现在已经短窄得吊在了半腿把上；幸亏袜腰高，否则就要露肉了。

His pants were evidently sewn two years ago, shrunk with wear, now hanging halfway up his calves; thankfully, the waistband was high enough to prevent any skin from showing.

（可是除过他自己，谁又能知道，他那两只线袜子早已经没有了后跟，只是由于鞋的遮掩，才使人觉得那袜子是完好无缺的）。

(Except for him, who would know that his two socks had already lost their heels, and it was only the shoes that concealed the fact that the socks were essentially in tatters.)

他径直向饭场走过来了。现在可以断定，他就是来拿这几个黑面馍的。

He made his way directly to the dining area. It became clear he was there to collect those black buns.

跛女子在他未到馍筐之前，就早已经迫不及待地端着自己的饭碗一瘸一跛地离开了。

The limping girl had already left with her bowl before he reached the basket.

他独个儿来到馍筐前，先怔了一下，然后便弯腰拾了两个高粱面馍。筐里还剩两个，不知他为什么没有拿。

He approached the basket alone, momentarily stunned, then bent down to pick up two sorghum buns. There were still two left in the basket, but he didn't take them.

他直起身子来，眼睛不由地朝三只空荡荡的菜盆里瞥了一眼。他瞧见乙菜盆的底子上还有一点残汤剩水。

As he straightened up, his eyes involuntarily darted over to the three empty dish basins. He noticed there was still a bit of leftover soup in the Grade B basin.

房上的檐水滴答下来，盆底上的菜汤四处飞溅。他扭头瞧了瞧：雨雪迷蒙的大院坝里空无一人。

Water dripped from the eaves, splashing the remnants of the soup all over the basin. He turned to look—the courtyard, veiled in rain and snow, was completely empty.

他很快蹲下来，慌得如同偷窃一般，用勺子把盆底上混合着雨水的剩菜汤往自己的碗里舀。

He quickly crouched down, flustered like a thief, using a spoon to scoop the leftover soup mixed with rainwater into his bowl.

铁勺刮盆底的嘶啦声像炸弹的爆炸声一样令人惊心。血涌上了他黄瘦的脸。

The scraping sound of the iron spoon against the bottom of the basin shocked like an explosion. Blood rushed to his sallow face.

一滴很大的檐水落在盆底，溅了他一脸菜汤。他闭住眼，紧接着，就见两颗泪珠慢慢地从脸颊上滑落了下来——唉，我们姑且就认为这是他眼中溅进了辣子汤吧！

A large drop of eave water fell into the basin, splattering his face with soup. He closed his eyes, and at that moment, two tears slowly rolled down his cheeks—let's just assume it was the spicy soup that splashed into his eyes!

他站起来，用手抹了一把脸，端着半碗剩菜汤，来到西南拐角处的开水房前，在水房后墙上伸出来的管子上给菜汤里搀了一些开水，然后把高粱面馍掰碎泡进去，就蹲在房檐下狼吞虎咽地吃起来。

He stood up, wiped his face with his hand, and with half a bowl of leftover soup, hurried over to the corner of the courtyard where the hot water room was located. He added some hot water from the pipe sticking out of the back wall into the soup, then tore up the sorghum buns to soak them in, squatting under the eaves and wolfing them down.

他突然停止了咀嚼，然后看着一位女生来到馍筐前，把剩下的那两个黑面馍拿走了。

Suddenly, he stopped chewing, watching as a girl approached the bun basket and took the last two black sorghum buns.

是的，她也来了。他望着她离去的、穿破衣裳的背影，怔了好一会。

Yes, she had also come. He stared at her tattered clothing as she walked away, dazed for a while.

这几乎成了一个惯例：自从开学以来，每次吃饭的时候，班上总是他两个最后来，默默地各自拿走自己的两个黑高粱面馍。

This had almost become a routine: since the beginning of the semester, each meal, they were always the last two to arrive, silently taking their two black sorghum buns.

这并不是约定的，他们实际上还并不熟悉，甚至连一句话也没说过。他们都是刚刚从各公社中学毕业后，被推荐来县城上高中的。

This was not an agreement; in reality, they were not familiar with each other; they had not even exchanged a word. Both had just graduated from different commune middle schools and were recommended to attend high school in the county town.

开学没有多少天，班上大部分同学相互之间除过和同村同校来的同学熟悉外，生人之间还没有什么交往。

It had not been long since school started, and other than classmates from the same village and school, the majority were still strangers with no interaction.

他蹲在房檐下，一边往嘴里扒拉饭，一边在心里猜测：她之所以也常常最后来取饭，原因大概和他一样。

He squatted under the eaves, shoving food into his mouth while guessing in his heart: perhaps she often came last to get her food for the same reason as him.

是的，正是因为贫穷，因为吃不起好饭，因为年轻而敏感的自尊心，才使他们躲避公众的目光来悄然地取走自己那两个不体面的黑家伙，以免遭受许多无言的耻笑！

Yes, it was precisely because of poverty, unable to afford better meals, and their sensitive youthful pride that led them to avoid public scrutiny while quietly taking their two undignified black buns, so as to escape unspoken ridicule!

但他对她的一切毫无所知。因为班上一天点一次名，他现在只知道她的名字叫郝红梅。

But he knew nothing about her. Because attendance was only taken once a day, all he knew was her name—Hao Hongmei.

她大概也只知道他的名字叫孙少平吧？

She probably only knew his name was Sun Shaoping, right?