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pronouncement - provoke Greedy heirs
貪婪的繼承人
The provenance of the book of prose was clear;
那本散文集的歷史 由來很清楚：
it had belonged to aristocrats, a provincial Duke and even a King.
它曾經屬于幾位貴族， 一位外省伯爵， 甚至一位國王。
Now, however, it was the property of a common man.
但現在，它是一個普通 人的財產，
And he wanted to keep it to himself.
而且他還不想把 它轉讓給別人。
The heirs of the former owners,
先前那些主人的 繼承者們
who had already received the much larger proportion of the inheritance,
雖然已經得到了 絕大部分遺產，
were proponents of having it published so that they could make even more money.
但為了得到更多的錢， 他們成了出版這本書 的建議者。
But the new owner had obtained the book as a provision of the will of the former owner.
但新主人是根據舊主人 遺囑中的一項條文 得到此書的，
He refused each of their propositions.
因此他們的建議他 一概沒有接受。
Their prospects were looking bleak
他們的前景看起來 十分渺茫
when they discovered that the new owner
他們發現新主人
was letting a professor's assistant proofread the book as part of her research.
正讓一名教授的助手校 對這本書，因為她的研 究就包含了這方面的內 容，
This assistant thought the book was the prototype of a whole literary genre.
這名助手認為此書 乃是整個一種文學 體裁的原型。
She had even written a grant proposal to conduct research
她甚至寫了一份資助建 議書，以便進行相關研 究，
that she was sure would propel her to academic acclaim.
她相信這項研究將 激勵她贏得學術界 的贊揚。
The heirs saw this assistant
那些繼承人把這名 助手看成
as an opportunity to increase their prosperity by getting access to the book.
是接近那本書從而 變得更加富有的機會。
They found her proposal
他們找到了她的 建議書，
and agreed to fund her research provided she share a photocopy of the book.
同意為她的研究提供 資金，條件是她讓 他們復印這本書。
The assistant did not protest and was ecstatic about her prospective supporters
那位助手沒有反對， 并為她即將有贊助商 欣喜若狂。
But the strange names that the heirs had written
但那些繼承人寫的 一些奇怪的名字
provoked the curiosity of the new owner.
引起了新主人的好奇。
He discovered what was happening and made the pronouncement
他弄清楚了是 怎么一回事，聲明
that he would take his prosperous opponents to court.
他要把那些富有的 對手送上法庭。
He was sad to find the assistant the next day dead,
第二天，他傷心地發現 那名助手已經死了，
lying on a floor with an ax protruding from her head.
她躺在地板上，一把 斧頭從她頭上突出來。
All evidence of the proposal had disappeared! As had the book!
所有關于建議書的證據 都消失了! 那本書也不見了!
