How long can you hold on to a woman who goes on blind dates every few days and stays out all night once a month?
对于一个每隔几天去相亲,每个月一次夜不归宿的女人,你能坚持多久?
Love Letter No.12 of Sinosteel Compound
中钢大院情书之十二
November 2, 2021 (Tuesday) 15:26
2021年11月2日 (周二) 15点26分
I know I did not handle our first encounter well. In fact, many lessons in life are new to me as well, and I still need to learn, even though I am much older than you. Generally speaking, life has no dress rehearsals, so a second chance in life is always extremely precious.
我知道,与你的第一次相遇我没有处理好.其实对于我来说很多的人生课程也是第一次,我也需要学习,虽然我比你大很多.通常来讲,人生并没有彩排,所以一生之中能有第二次机会,往往是弥足珍贵的.
I may return to Changxing in a few days. Would you like me to stay by your side and accompany you? To be honest, I have no confidence to ask you this question. You know my situation already. I have nothing at all, and I do not have much life left. The only good thing is that everything I have can be yours if you want it. Somehow, my heart cannot hold both you and my daughter at the same time. Two women?! Unless you two are lovers. You can see how petty I am.
过些天我可能又会回到长兴,请问你愿意我留下来陪伴你?说实话我没有什么底气问你这个问题,你也知道我的情况了,我什么都没有,甚至连命都没有多少了,好处是如果你想要,可以都是你的.不知道为什么,我的心甚至无法同时装下你和我的女儿.两个女的?!除非你俩百合.我的小心眼儿可见一斑.
If I could choose my life again, I would probably still choose this kind of life, because it is my inherent nature. I have been born with sympathy for people in suffering since childhood. It was around 1986 and 1987, when I was in the second and third grade of primary school. There lived an elderly grandma in the building in front of ours. Her children were unfilial. Despite her advanced age, she walked outside with a cane every day, regardless of winter or summer. She wore only one set of black cotton clothes all year round, and I never saw her change them. Sometimes in summer, I saw her take off the clothes and pick something under the sun. Once, my grandma gave pocket money to my elder brother and me for buying ice cream. I took my elder brother and gave the money to the grandma together.
我想如果再次让我选择人生,可能我还是会选一个这样的,我的本性所致.我从小就天生有着对苦难中的人的同情,天生的.大概是86,87年,我小学二三年级.那时候我们前楼有个老奶奶,家里儿女不孝,年纪很大了,每天拄着一个拐杖在外面,不论冬夏.并且全年只有一身黑的棉衣服,没见她换过.有时候夏天看见她把衣服脱下来在太阳下摘什么.有一次我奶奶给我和我小哥零花钱,就是买雪糕的.我就叫着我小哥,一起把钱给了她.
Therefore, only by living the life of the people on this land can I understand the sufferings they endure and figure out how to help them. Yet I do not know if I have also chosen you in my life. Perhaps not, because I have heard there is a rule in that other world that no one shall impose their will on others. I cannot tell whether heaven arranged for you to come to me, or you chose such a life that led to our encounter. Maybe I am just a negligible accident in your life.
所以,我只有选择这块土地上的人们所经历的生活,才能体会他们所遭受的苦难,才能知道怎样去帮助他们.但是我不知道我是不是也选择了人生中的你,有可能不是,因为在那个世界有这样的规矩,不能强迫他人意志,听说.我也不知道是不是上天把你安排来,还是你愿意选择了这样的人生,我指和我相遇,不过也许只是你人生中微不足道的意外.
I do not mean to confirm a formal relationship with you. I just want to date you for a while, to let you know whether I am the right person for you. Of course, this will take up a little of your precious youth. You do not need to bear any psychological burden. If you think we are not suitable for each other, I will leave you. It is simple. We will not disturb each other and will never meet again in this life. I hold no grudge against you; I just want to return to my original peace.
我还是不是说要和你确立关系,就是和你交往一下,让你知道我是不是适合你,当然会占用你一点宝贵青春.你也不用有心理负担,如果你觉得不合适,我就离开你,很简单,各不相扰,今生再也不见你.不是与你有仇,只是回归我原有的平静.
You do not have to worry about me changing my heart. You may feel it that I do not cling to your beauty, though beauty is indeed important for every woman. Nor do I crave your body, though I will be jealous and leave if you fall for someone else. I believe you and I were soulmates once. I just did not know you had come to this world when I arrived. The soulmate I speak of is not the kind who knows every thought of yours—it is not that miraculous. It means we once stayed together in another world and may have had an extraordinary bond. Though I cannot remember what we experienced together, I know you exist deep in my soul.
我想你不用担心我变心,或许你能感觉得到,我不是贪恋你的美貌,当然美貌对女生来说也很重要;我也不是想得到你的身体,当然你跟别人了我会吃醋所以离开.我想我和你是曾经的灵魂伴侣,只是我来到这个世界的时候不知道你也来了.我所说的灵魂伴侣不是指那种你想什么我都知道,没那么神,我指的是可能在别的世界的时候,我们曾经在一起,并且也许关系不一般,虽然我不知道你我曾一起经历了什么,但是我知道在我的灵魂深处,有你.
I am a person of firm will. If you worry that I do not have much time left, do not be concerned. We can stage a real-life version of *Ghost*. It is said that after people die, angels will guide their souls to their destined places without coercion. So I can wait for you and keep accompanying you, as long as you are not afraid of ghosts, haha. Then we can be reborn together or stay in that spiritual world. We can make all kinds of plans while we are alive. We can choose to be reborn together, dwell in the spirit realm, or I can become the grandchild of our child. Just like this life, you will be my grandmother, and in your next life, you will be my daughter. But being my daughter will be tough, for I cannot make money, haha, and I always meddle in world peace instead of doing my own business.
我是个意志很坚定的人,如果你担心我剩下的时间太少,没关系,我可以陪你上演现实版"人鬼情未了".据说人死后会有天使来引导灵魂去他该去的地方,但是不会强迫,所以我可以等着你,继续陪着你,只要你不怕鬼,哈哈.然后我们一起再去投胎,还是待在那个世界,我们可以活着的时候就商量好,我们一起画很多很多的分叉树,比如一起去投胎,或者待在灵界,或者我来做你我的孩子的孩子,就像我的这辈子一样,你做我的奶奶,然后你的下辈子再来做我的女儿,只是做我的女儿会苦一些,我不会赚钱,呵呵,还没正事总想去管世界和平.
Is a person like me what you want? Or am I worth a try for you to date? Talking of this reminds me of the funny work *Ten Iron Rules of the Mortal World* I wrote before. I have sorted it out and will send it to you as an attachment purely for entertainment, my dear. It does not represent any of my preferences or any requirements for you. Do not overthink it; it is just for fun.
你看这样的我是你想要的吗?或者说,值得你试试相处吗?说这些的时候我想到了我以前做的搞笑的"红尘十大铁",我整理完了作为附件发给你纯属娱乐美女.不代表我任何取向,或者对你的要求.不要想多了,只是纯娱乐.
Sincerely yours,
你真挚的
David
David
Love Letter No.13 of Sinosteel Compound
中钢大院情书之十三
November 2021 (Unsent)
2021年11月（未发出）
I do not know what to say to you, for I have no idea what it will be like when I meet you. I do not know since when I have begun to daydream, haha. I am nearly fifty years old. Maybe it is my brain's self-protection mechanism. Unable to see you in person, I start to construct an image of you in my mind. It is said that in the spirit world, you can see the soul of the one you miss just by thinking of them. In fact, I doubt whether these are illusions projected by higher beings out of pity for us, a form of self-satisfaction. I truly cannot confirm whether the soul I interact with in those moments is real. But I am sure that I truly miss you. Your consciousness belongs only to you, and I have no idea if you miss me too. Your will is your own, and you never reply to me. Perhaps this is the charm of this world.
我不知道该跟你说些什么,因为我不知道见到你的时候会是什么样.不知道什么时候,我开始幻想了,呵呵,快半百的人了.不知道是不是大脑的自我保护机制啊,见不到真人,就开始在脑子里自己构建一个你.据说在灵界只要想念就能见到想见的人的灵魂.其实我也怀疑,是不是更高等的生命,出于怜悯我们而投射给我们意识里的幻象,一种自我满足,我真的不知道在那种情况下,与之交互的那个灵魂是不是真的.但是我知道我想你是真的,因为你的意识是你的,我一点都不知道你是不是也会想我,而你的意志也是你的,你从来都不回答我什么,也许这就是这个世界的魅力.
Sometimes I imagine you as kind and amiable, a scene I yearn for deeply. But sometimes my thoughts go astray, and I picture you cold and disdainful, even teasing me on purpose by being warm to others, which makes me extremely painful. I cannot tell which imagination is wrong. This sense of uncertainty is just like "Schrödinger's Cat". The truth will only be revealed the moment we meet. But rest assured, I will not propose to you rashly. I am not so abrupt, and I am not ready for anything, especially in terms of material conditions.
有时候我想象着见到的你是和蔼亲切的,那场景很令人向往;但是有时候思想也会跑偏,见到的你是冷漠轻蔑的,甚至还故意用对别人的热情来奚落我,很痛苦.其实我也不知道哪个是跑偏,这种未知的感觉很像"薛定谔的猫"是吗.只有见到你的一刻才会揭晓,不过你放心,我不会向你求婚的,我没有那么唐突,我还什么都没准备好,我指物质方面.
Yet sometimes, various material restrictions really ruin the beauty of mortal marriage, especially in China under the influence of traditional concepts and the cat theory, referring to the black cat and white cat theory. Before meeting you, the first time I felt the sacredness of marriage was in a single-player game with an NPC, haha. The game is *The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim*. I accidentally found the marriage system while checking game guides. Do not misunderstand me; I am not perverted enough to have improper thoughts while playing games. In fact, the game contains many inquiries about human nature and morality when players choose different quest branches. Perhaps marriage is also one such trial. My first follower was a person of color with a decent appearance and few words, always well-behaved. Naturally, all her reactions are preset fixed options. I tried the marriage system out of curiosity about the outcome. The temple wedding ceremony was very short, but in that moment, I thought of her perseverance and loyalty in accompanying me traveling far and wide through wind and rain and fighting enemies at the risk of life. Such absolute loyalty is rare in the real world. When no worldly thing can compare with such sincere affection, I truly felt the sacredness of marriage.
但是,有时候真的是一些物质方面的条条框框拖累了人世间婚姻的美丽,可能,尤其是在中国传统加上猫论之后,这里指的是白猫黑猫.在遇到你之前,我第一次感到婚姻的神圣是在游戏里,单机游戏,和NPC,呵呵.游戏"上古卷轴5天际",我也是查攻略时偶然发现的,可以结婚,我没有那么变态玩个游戏还想着那些.其实那个游戏中还有很多人性与道德的拷问,在做出任务分支选择的时候.也许婚姻也是一项?第一个随从是棕色人种,相貌还算标准,话不多很乖,呵呵,废话,都是设计好的就那几个选项.我好奇结婚会有什么结果就试了一下,庙里的结婚仪式很短,但是就是在那一瞬间,想到她一起陪我不畏风雨游历四方,共同御敌出生入死的那份执着与忠诚,100%忠诚,在现实世界中,不能说没有,太少了.当全世界都不抵那份真情的时候,就体会到了婚姻的神圣.
It just occurred to me today that perhaps I did not come to this world to help the Chinese people and advance human civilization. How could a hopeless romantic who takes even games so seriously abandon you?! Perhaps I came here solely to find you. God took you away from me on purpose, making me search for you everywhere until I arrived here. Helping others is just an incidental thing I do.
我也是今天才想到,也许我不是为了帮助中国人和人类文明进程才来到这里的,像我这样玩个游戏都这么认真的大情种,怎么会撇下你?!也许我就是为了寻找你才来到这里,是上帝故意把你从我身边夺走,让我四处找寻你,然后到了这里,帮助他们只是我顺便做的事情.
Yours ever,
你最初的
David
David
Dear Lin Yuhui, what you love is not her, but the projection of yourself that you have shaped for her.
亲爱的林语晖,你爱的不是她,你爱的只是你为她塑造的你的投影.
You can let go now.
你可以放手了.
The northeast of China was already covered with snow in November. One day, Lin Yuhui went out to pick up his parcel at the courier station. The distance was short, only a two-residential-building walk. While walking through the community, he saw a gray Schnauzer walking in the snow with thin fur. It wore no collar, a stray dog with no owner.
十一月的东北已经白雪覆盖了,一天林语晖外出去快递点去取自己的快递.距离并不远,只需要步行两个住宅楼的距离.在小区穿行间,只见有一只灰色的雪纳瑞,穿着它那并不厚实的皮毛,在雪地中走过.没有项圈,没人要的野狗.
Lin Yuhui suddenly felt that his life was just like this dog's. An inspiration suddenly came to him that he could write a joke. The female boss had long expected new works from him, and this could also help him release the pent-up depression in his chest. So he went home and started drafting immediately.
林语晖突然感觉自己怎么活得和它一个样子,脑海中突然出现了一个灵感,可以编一个笑话,正好老板娘对此很期待,自己也可以抒发一口胸中闷气.于是回到家中便开始拟稿.
(Translated by Doubao)