Beauty

Translated by Xia Yuzhu

Snowflakes are light, each having six tiny silver needles. Last night, they worked together to weave a well-fitted crystal outfit for the campus of S University. However, nothing is perfect, not even in a fairyland. The young dragon cypress at the north wall of the Humanities Building was bent over at a 30 degree angle after the night's snowstorm.
Several students came from a distance, each carrying a camera. Among them was a girl in a black wool overcoat. She was a real beauty, her almond-shaped eyes like pools of clear water or bright stars in the sky. It was hard to tell which they resembled more, but she herself was certainly eye-catching!

These members of the town's College Photographers Society had come out to capture the beautiful scenery endowed by nature. Laughing and talking merrily, they were approaching the leaning cypress .
"Let's take a shot just in front of the Building!" a rich baritone voice suggested.
"No, this cypress is bent by the storm and lacks natural beauty," the girl responded. Pointing to a place nearby, she proposed, "Why don't we go to the small garden of Biology Department, and they have not only cypresses there, but silver pines."
Her voice drifted in the crisp air like sweet, crystal sugar melting, slowly. So to the small garden they went, leaving their carefree laughter behind.
Another slim young man appeared at the Building, his coat stained with paint somewhere down the right corner in appreciation of the snow scene he suddenly caught sight of the bent cypress. He grumbled to himself, "The gardeners were indeed the campus in such a heavy snow as last night's. They should be held partially responsible for the ruin of the harmonious beauty of nature. "The amateur artist was staring at the bent cypress when inspiration flashed into his mind. He quickly opened his sketch book and drew an outline of the cypress with his charcoal pen. He planned to develop the sketch into a cartoon, when he got back to the dormitory. He had even figured out a title for it, "A Cypress Complains". He left with a sigh of sympathy for the bent tree and a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.

In the dim sunlight, a young worker, with a worn bag on his shoulder, was hurrying to the Chinese Department to audit a selective course. All of a sudden a gust of wind blew over the bent cypress, shaking the overlaying snowflakes down onto the young man's head and shoulders. He looked up and noticed the tree. Then he slowed his steps, took a glance at his watch and hurried away.

In a short while, he came back with a spade, an old bamboo stick and apiece of rubber band. He worked with his deft hands on the bent cypress until it was straight again. The bell for cLASS was ringing and he dashed to the cLASSroom.

Silence reigned. Faint bluish footprints, of all shapes and sizes, formed in the snow lines of illegible words with subtle implications. That cypress was quietly gazing at the snow, as if meditating on the mystery of beauty.

媲 美

一朵雪花的體態是輕盈的，宛如六枚小銀針，針萬線，給S大學校園繡出了合身的水晶外套、但是，正如童話世界也有缺陷一樣，文史樓北牆畔一株年輕的龍柏，由於一一夜風摧雪 ，已經傾側成三十度斜角了。 遠處走來幾個身背照相機的年輕人。其中那位穿黑呢大衣的姑娘真美，一雙亮晶晶杏核兒大眼，似湖？似星？誰也說不清，只惹得路人不時朝她張望。這群市大學生攝影協會會員準備捕捉大自然思賜的美妙鏡頭，”心情舒暢的說笑著，漸漸地走近這棵傾斜的龍柏。
“在文史樓前拍張雪景吧！”一個渾厚的男中音提議。
“不，這棵龍柏彼風雪壓斜了，缺乏目然美。”姑娘那雙纖手朝不遠處一指：“喏，到生物系的小植物園去，那兒不僅有龍柏，還有雪松、扁柏呢。”
她的聲波在清冽的空間擴散，像清甜的冰糖漸漸融化。年輕人留下了一，串無邪的笑聲。
又一個竹骨梅肌的青年出現在文史樓前，衣服右下襬隱約可見斑駁的油畫顏料汙跡。他在欣賞雪景之餘，猛然發現傾斜的龍柏，不滿地輕聲嘀咕：“搞環境保護的同志真馬虎，昨晚下那麼大的雪，竟沒未校園巡視，他們對美的統一性的被破壞負有間接的責任！”這位美術愛好者凝視片刻，靈感的火花映亮心窗，他立刻開啟速寫本，捉著炭精棒，勾勒這棵龍柏的體態輪廓，準備回宿舍精心畫一。幅漫畫，連畫名他想好了，就叫做：《一株龍柏的控訴》。當他離去時，遺憾地搖頭嘆息，眼波里顫動著一絲失望的情緒。
微弱的陽光下，急匆匆地走來一個肩挎舊書包的青年工人，他是來旁聽中文系選修課的。突然，一陣風吹拂龍柏樹，”揚起無數雪沫，灑在他頭上、身上。青年工人仰臉看看那株龍柏，腳步放慢卞，他一看千表立刻加快步伐走去。
一會，他帶來一把鐵鍬，一截舊茅竹、橡皮帶，手腳麻利地不停地勞作，那株傾斜的龍柏終於挺直了脊樑，牢牢地屹立在校園。
上課鈴聲響了。他疾步如飛地向教室奔人。
靜謐。點點不同的淺藍色腳印留在雪地裡。組合成一行行無人辨識的文字，蘊藏著精緻微妙的內涵。那株龍柏靜靜注視著面前的雪地，彷彿苦心思索關於美的神祕的定義。

Translated by Xia Yuzhu

Snowflakes are light, each having six tiny silver needles. Last night, they worked together to weave a well-fitted crystal outfit for the campus of S University. However, nothing is perfect, not even in a fairyland. The young dragon cypress at the north wall of the Humanities Building was bent over at a 30 degree angle after the night's snowstorm.
Several students came from a distance, each carrying a camera. Among them was a girl in a black wool overcoat. She was a real beauty, her almond-shaped eyes like pools of clear water or bright stars in the sky. It was hard to tell which they resembled more, but she herself was certainly eye-catching!

These members of the town's College Photographers Society had come out to capture the beautiful scenery endowed by nature. Laughing and talking merrily, they were approaching the leaning cypress .
"Let's take a shot just in front of the Building!" a rich baritone voice suggested.
"No, this cypress is bent by the storm and lacks natural beauty," the girl responded. Pointing to a place nearby, she proposed, "Why don't we go to the small garden of Biology Department, and they have not only cypresses there, but silver pines."
Her voice drifted in the crisp air like sweet, crystal sugar melting, slowly. So to the small garden they went, leaving their carefree laughter behind.
Another slim young man appeared at the Building, his coat stained with paint somewhere down the right corner in appreciation of the snow scene he suddenly caught sight of the bent cypress. He grumbled to himself, "The gardeners were indeed the campus in such a heavy snow as last night's. They should be held partially responsible for the ruin of the harmonious beauty of nature. "The amateur artist was staring at the bent cypress when inspiration flashed into his mind. He quickly opened his sketch book and drew an outline of the cypress with his charcoal pen. He planned to develop the sketch into a cartoon, when he got back to the dormitory. He had even figured out a title for it, "A Cypress Complains". He left with a sigh of sympathy for the bent tree and a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.

In the dim sunlight, a young worker, with a worn bag on his shoulder, was hurrying to the Chinese Department to audit a selective course. All of a sudden a gust of wind blew over the bent cypress, shaking the overlaying snowflakes down onto the young man's head and shoulders. He looked up and noticed the tree. Then he slowed his steps, took a glance at his watch and hurried away.

In a short while, he came back with a spade, an old bamboo stick and apiece of rubber band. He worked with his deft hands on the bent cypress until it was straight again. The bell for cLASS was ringing and he dashed to the cLASSroom.

Silence reigned. Faint bluish footprints, of all shapes and sizes, formed in the snow lines of illegible words with subtle implications. That cypress was quietly gazing at the snow, as if meditating on the mystery of beauty.

媲 美

一朵雪花的體態是輕盈的，宛如六枚小銀針，針萬線，給S大學校園繡出了合身的水晶外套、但是，正如童話世界也有缺陷一樣，文史樓北牆畔一株年輕的龍柏，由於一一夜風摧雪 ，已經傾側成三十度斜角了。 遠處走來幾個身背照相機的年輕人。其中那位穿黑呢大衣的姑娘真美，一雙亮晶晶杏核兒大眼，似湖？似星？誰也說不清，只惹得路人不時朝她張望。這群市大學生攝影協會會員準備捕捉大自然思賜的美妙鏡頭，”心情舒暢的說笑著，漸漸地走近這棵傾斜的龍柏。