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Next morning, there were two thousand armed men scattered throughout the palm trees at Al-Fayoum.
第二天早晨，法尤姆綠洲的椰棗林中埋伏了兩千名武裝起來的男人。
Before the sun had reached its high point, five hundred tribesmen appeared on the horizon.
日上三竿之時，五百名騎兵出現在地平線上。
The mounted troops entered the oasis from the north; it appeared to be a peaceful expedition, but they all carried arms hidden in their robes.
他們從綠洲北面開來，表面上是和平進軍，但在白色披風下隱藏著武器。
When they reached the white tent at the center of Al-Fayoum, they withdrew their scimitars and rifles. And they attacked an empty tent.
當他們靠近法尤姆綠洲中心的大帳篷時，便抽出彎刀和長槍，向那座空帳篷發起攻擊。
The men of the oasis surrounded the horsemen from the desert and within half an hour all but one of the intruders were dead.
綠洲的人包圍了入侵的沙漠騎兵。不到半個時辰，四百九十九個騎兵便尸橫遍野，命喪黃泉。
The children had been kept at the other side of a grove of palm trees, and saw nothing of what had happened.
孩子們待在樹林的另一邊，什么都沒看見。
The women had remained in their tents, praying for the safekeeping of their husbands, and saw nothing of the battle, either.
女人們在帳篷里為丈夫祈禱，也什么都沒看見。
Were it not for the bodies there on the ground, it would have appeared to be a normal day at the oasis.
如果不是那些橫七豎八的尸體，綠洲和往日一樣平靜。
The only tribesman spared was the commander of the battalion.
只有一人逃過一劫，他就是那支隊伍的指揮官。
That afternoon, he was brought before the tribal chieftains, who asked him why he had violated the Tradition.
下午，他被帶到部落頭領面前。頭領們質問他為什么破壞傳統。
The commander said that his men had been starving and thirsty, exhausted from many days of battle, and had decided to take the oasis so as to be able to return to the war.
那名指揮官說，他們的人又饑又渴，曠日持久的戰斗搞得他們疲憊不堪，于是決定攻占一塊綠地，以便重整旗鼓。
The tribal chieftain said that he felt sorry for the tribesmen, but that the Tradition was sacred.
部落的最高頭領說，他為那些死去的士兵感到痛心，但是傳統絕不能隨意改變。
He condemned the commander to death without honor.
然后，他宣布對那位指揮官執行死刑。
Rather than being killed by a blade or a bullet, he was hanged from a dead palm tree, where his body twisted in the desert wind.
既不用刀，也不用槍，他被絞死在一棵已經枯掉的椰棗樹上，尸體被沙漠的風吹得晃來蕩去。
The tribal chieftain called for the boy, and presented him with fifty pieces of gold.
最高頭領把圣地亞哥叫到跟前，給了他五十枚金幣。
He repeated his story about Joseph of Egypt, and asked the boy to become the counselor of the oasis.
之后，他再次提起約瑟在埃及的經歷，并請圣地亞哥做綠洲的顧問。
