The fox and Siberian Weasel spotted the mouse at the same time. They started to have a showdown to see who would take the prize.
Suddenly, a big old snake perked up from within the fallen autumn leaves. It was looking for the last meal to carry it through winter hibernation.
Now, the mouse, frozen in fear, had no choice but to watch as the three began the challenge to see who would come out alive.
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《野外遭遇战》
狐狸的一只眼球盯着黄鼠狼,另一只眼球盯着老蛇。黄鼠狼的一只眼珠瞪着狐狸,另一只眼球瞪着黄鼠狼。老蛇很聪明,它用它那可以左右旋转包络270度角视野的眼睛同时注视着狐狸、黄鼠狼和小老鼠。
这变成了一场三角形对峙阵势的遭遇战。任何一方都不敢轻举妄动,唯恐遭到其他两方的夹击。 一旦均势被打破,逃生也就不可能。 这成为了一场生死攸关的遭遇战。
在这个时刻,动物都凭着自己的本能进行反应。
如果对手不动,自己也不动。这是动物最基本的本能。
袁博著
Story breakdown by paragraph with Pinyin, vocabulary, and audio
野外= wilderness, the wild
遭遇战 = a skirmish
眼球 = 眼珠;eyeball
盯 = to stare at
黄鼠狼 = Siberian Weasel
眼珠 = 眼球;eyeball
旋转 = to rotate, revolve
包络 = 包罗 (bāo luó);to include, cover
度角 = angle
视野 = range of vision
注视 = to watch closely
三角形 = triangle, triangular
对峙 = to confront
阵势 = battle formation
任何一方 = either side
轻举妄动 (成语)= to act rashly
唯恐 = for fear of/that
夹击 = to attack on a flank; a converging attack
一旦 = once, in case
均势 = balance of power
逃生 = to escape with one’s life
生死攸关 (成语)= a matter of life or death
Let’s take a closer look.
The English translation shows the characters following English, arranged by meaning.
这变成了一场三角形对峙阵势的遭遇战。(This turned into 这变成了 a triangular 一场三角形 confrontational 阵势的 formation 对峙 skirmish 遭遇战.)
任何一方都不敢轻举妄动,唯恐遭到其他两方的夹击。(No one side 任何一方都不 dared 敢 to act rashly 轻举妄动, for fear of 唯恐 being attacked on a flank 遭到夹击 by the other two 其他两方的.)
一旦均势被打破,逃生也就不可能。(Once 一旦 the balance of power 均势 is broken 被打破, escaping alive 逃生 is just 也就 impossible 不可能.)
这成为了一场生死攸关的遭遇战。(This became 这成为了 a life and death 一场生死攸关的 skirmish 遭遇战.)
时刻 = specific moment
凭 = to rely on
本能 = instinct, innate skill
进行 = to execute (a plan)
反应 = to respond
对手 = opponent, competitor
基本 = basic, foundational
Character Radical:
犭 = This is the “dog” side radical, 反犬旁 (fǎn quǎn páng.) This radical is used for animal characters and characters that describe animal charactaristics. Consider “狐狸“ in the story.
Yin-yang Character Groups:
左右 zuǒ yòu = left-right; about, around
生死 shēng sǐ = life-death; life and death
反正 fǎn zhèng = reverse-upright; either way, since
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这个故事比较更难!
The English breakdown really helped to clarify the meaning of the sentences. Thank you!