Welcome to read an advanced short reading from a Taiwanese novel. This reading includes story background in English, the Chinese text reading — just below the Chinese text is a breakdown of the text by paragraph, with pinyin, audio, and vocabulary.
This short reading introduces us to the Chinese worldview of Yin Yang and the traditional Chinese view of how the Yin world of spirits intersects with the Yang mortal world.
The excerpt comes from a book called, 《阴阳判官【贰】:生死簿》.
Title: The Yin Yang Judge [2] 阴阳判官【贰】 (yīn yáng pàn guān) : The Book Of Life And Death 生死簿 (shēng sǐ bù)
Background information: The story takes place in present-day Taiwan. The two main characters in the story are 凌月 (líng yuè) and 十三零 (shí sān líng). 凌月 is a Yin Yang Judge. He traverses the spaces of Yin and Yang — life and death. In the book, he attempts to find the 亡魂 (wáng hún), wandering souls — the souls of people who have lost their lives. 十三零 is his protector spirit. She is an old spirit and does not understand the modern-day world. She is only visible to others of the Yin world.
Recently, there was an explosion at a Taizhong City 电联车站 (diàn lián chē zhàn) EMU Stop.
凌月 has a sense that other-world players caused the explosion. The following day, he went to the site to look around and see if he could uncover anything that may lead him to the perpetrator.
While standing on the platform, he noticed a police officer across the tracks on another platform. The police officer stared intently at 凌月. 凌月 became concerned that the police officer may mistake him as having been involved with the explosion — returning to the scene of the crime.
十三零 was just behind him. He asked her if she noticed anything strange about the police officer. She didn’t feel there was anything odd about him.
Text breakdown by paragraph with audio and vocabulary
移动 = 动; to move, moving
房子 = a house
啧 = (interjection of admiration or disgust)
臭凌月 = “Stinky Ling Yue” (Here, 臭 (stinky) emphasises a close and playful relationship.)
还好 = it’s a good thing
发现 = a discovery
我有发现 = 我发现了
面前 = in front of (him)
气呼呼说 = said in a huff
怪房子 = weird house
竟然 = surprisingly, actually
到底 = after all, in the end
丢下 = to lose
跑去 = to run to
来得及 = to have enough time to
回应 = 回答; to reply
播放 = to broadcast, to play
启动 = 离开; to set in motion
轻快音乐 = lively music, a jingle
一名员警 = a policeman
千钧一发 = 危机; a perilous situation (lit. one thousand pounds hanging on a hair)
之际 = 的时候; at the time, when
恰巧 = 正好; in the nick of time
夹缝 = narrow space between two things, a predicament
一节车厢 = a train car, a train carriage
难不成 = 难道; is it possible that
阴阳眼 = yin yang eyes, can see in both realms
思忖 = 反复思考; to contemplate
盯 = 注视; to stare
前进 = 往前走;to get nearer
似乎 = 好像; as if, seemingly
攀谈 = 谈论;to converse
停留 = to pause
人鬼所属的空间 = the space that humans and ghosts belong to
阳界 = the mortal world
仅有 = 只有
人与物 = the people and things
伴随 = to follow along with, accompany
属于 = to belong to
阴界 = the spirit world
被留在原地 = was left where she was originally
Let’s take a closer look.
【啊呀,这方子怎么一回事——】 (”Yikes 啊呀, what’s with 怎么一回事 this house 这房子…”)
十三零惊叫一声,(Shi-san-ling 十三零 hollered out in surprise 惊叫一声)
原来早已停留在凌月的身旁, (having already 原来早已 stopped at 停留在 the side 身旁 of Ling-yue 凌月的)
却因为电联车的启动及人鬼所属的空间不同,(however 却, since 因为 the movement 启动 of 的 the EMU 电联车 and 及 the spaces 空间 that humans 人 and ghosts 鬼 belong to 所属的 are different 不同)
仅有阳界的【人】与【物】会伴随电联车前行,(only 仅有 the humans 人 and 与 objects 物 of the mortal world 阳界的 will 会 accompany 伴随 the forward movement 前行 of the EMU 电联车)
而属于阴界的十三零则被留在原地,(and 而 Shi-san-ling 十三零, who belongs 属于 to the spirit world 阴界的, rather 则 was left at 被留在 the original location 原地)
只能看着凌月等人慢慢离去。(could only 只能 watch 看着 as Ling-yue and the others 领域等人 slowly 慢慢 departed 离去)
原本 = 本来
讶异 = 吃惊
想通 = 明白
道别 = 说再见
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