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The next day, the boy returned to the well, hoping to see the girl.
第二天，男孩又到井邊去等那位少女。
To his surprise, the Englishman was there, looking out at the desert,
令他意外的是，他在那兒遇見了英國人。英國人正望著沙漠發呆，男孩第一次看到他這樣。
"I waited all afternoon and evening," he said. "He appeared with the first stars of evening.
英國人說：“我從下午等到晚上，直到星星開始眨眼的時候，他才露面。
I told him what I was seeking, and he asked me if I had ever transformed lead into gold.
我對他講了我的事，他問我是否已經把鉛塊變成了黃金。
I told him that was what I had come here to learn."
我回答說，這正是我想學會的本事。”
"He told me I should try to do so. That's all he said: 'Go and try.'"
“他讓我去試一試。他只對我說：去試試看吧。”
The boy didn't say anything.
男孩沉默不語。
The poor Englishman had traveled all this way, only to be told that he should repeat what he had already done so many times.
英國人長途跋涉來到此地，聽到的卻是毫無意義的東西。
"So, then try," he said to the Englishman.
“那就試試吧。”圣地亞哥對英國人說。
"That's what I'm going to do. I'm going to start now."
“我正要這么做呢。現在就開始。”
As the Englishman left, Fatima arrived and filled her vessel with water.
英國人剛走一會兒，法蒂瑪便拿著陶罐前來汲水了。
"I came to tell you just one thing," the boy said.
“我來這兒就想告訴你一件事，”男孩說，
"I want you to be my wife. I love you."
“我想娶你。我愛你。”
The girl dropped the container, and the water spilled.
少女陶罐里的水灑了出來。
"I'm going to wait here for you every day. I have crossed the desert in search of a treasure that is somewhere near the Pyramids, and for me, the war seemed a curse.
“我每天都會在這里等你。我穿越沙漠來金字塔附近尋找一筆財寶。戰爭一度是一場災難，
But now it's a blessing, because it brought me to you."
可現在它卻成了我的福音，因為是戰爭使我有機會認識你。”
"The war is going to end someday," the girl said.
“遲早有一天，戰爭會結束。”少女說。
The boy looked around him at the date palms.
男孩看了看那些椰棗樹。
He reminded himself that he had been a shepherd, and that he could be a shepherd again.
他曾經是牧羊人，而綠洲里有許多羊。
Fatima was more important than his treasure.
法蒂瑪比寶藏更重要。
"The tribesmen are always in search of treasure," the girl said, as if she had guessed what he was thinking.
“士兵們也在尋找他們的寶藏。”少女仿佛猜到了男孩的想法，說道，
"And the women of the desert are proud of their tribesmen."
“沙漠里的女人為她們的勇士感到驕傲。”
She refilled her vessel and left.
說完，她重新將陶罐裝滿水，翩然離去。
The boy went to the well every day to meet with Fatima.
男孩每天都去井邊等候法蒂瑪，
He told her about his life as a shepherd, about the king, and about the crystal shop.
把自己以前放羊、遇見國王和在水晶店打工的經歷全講給她聽。
They became friends, and except for the fifteen minutes he spent with her, each day seemed that it would never pass.
他們成了朋友。一天之中，除去跟法蒂瑪一起度過的一刻鐘，其余的時間都過得很慢，似乎沒有盡頭。
When he had been at the oasis for almost a month, the leader of the caravan called a meeting of all of the people traveling with him.
在綠洲停留了將近一個月的時候，商隊首領召集所有人開了個會。
