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When he was finally able to concentrate on what he was reading, he liked the book better;
他漸漸將精力集中在讀書上。這書讀起來很舒服，
the burial was on a snowy day, and he welcomed the feeling of being cold.
因為講的是一場在冰天雪地里舉行的葬扎。雖然坐在烈日下，竟也感到有些涼意。
As he read on, an old man sat down at his side and tried to strike up a conversation.
這時，一位老人在男孩身旁坐下來，開口與他搭訕。
"What are they doing?" the old man asked, pointing at the people in the plaza.
“那些人在做什么？”老人用手指著廣場上的人，問道。
"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，裝作專心讀書的樣子。
Actually, he was thinking about shearing his sheep in front of the merchant's daughter,
實際上，他腦子里想的是，如何在那商人的女兒面前剪羊毛，
so that she could see that he was someone who was capable of doing difficult things.
好讓她親眼目睹自己有多么能干。
He had already imagined the scene many times;
這情景他想象過若干次了，
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釋，剪羊毛要從羊屁股往前剪，女孩聽了，佩服得要命。
He also tried to remember some good stories to relate as he sheared the sheep.
他還準備了好幾個有趣的故事，好在剪羊毛的時候講給女孩聽。
Most of them he had read in books, but he would tell them as if they were from his personal experience.
大部分故事都是從書上讀來的，不過，他講起來仿佛都是親身經歷。
She would never know the difference, because she didn't know how to read.
反正她不會知道真相，因為她不識字。
Meanwhile, the old man persisted in his attempt to strike up a conversation.
但那老人不肯罷休，
He said that he was tired and thirsty, and asked if he might have a sip of the boy's wine.
稱他疲憊不堪，口千舌燥，請求男孩給他一口酒喝。
The boy offered his bottle, hoping that the old man would leave him alone.
男孩把酒囊遞給了他，心想，也許這樣一來，老人就會消停了。
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。他問男孩看的是什么書。
The boy was tempted to be rude, and move to another bench, but his father had taught him to be respectful of the elderly.
男孩本想離開，不理睬老人，但是父親曾教育他要尊敬老者。
So he held out the book to the man—for two reasons:
于是，他把書伸到老人面前。這么做有兩個原因：
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,
—是他不會念那書名；二是如果那老人也不會念，
he would probably feel ashamed and decide of his own accord to change benches.
就會自動走開，以免尷尬。
"Hmm ..." said the old man, looking at all sides of the book, as if it were some strange object.
“嗯……”老人顛過來倒過去地看著書，仿佛書是個奇怪的東西。
"This is an important book, but it's really irritating."
然后他說：“這是本很重要的書，但是讀起來很乏味。”
The boy was shocked. The old man knew how to read, and had already read the book.
男孩有點驚訝。老人也識字，而且讀過這本書。
And if the book was irritating, as the old man had said, the boy still had time to change it for another.
如果書真像他說的那樣乏味，拿去換另外一本還來得及。
