A Shanghai Woman's First Impression of an Indian Woman in Eileen Chang's "Love in a Fallen City"

The scene is at a cocktail party at a Hong Kong hotel during the 1930's.

迎面遇見一群洋紳士，眾星捧月一般簇擁著一個女人。流蘇先就注意到那人的漆黑的長髮，結成雙股大辮，高高盤在頭上。那印度女人，這一次雖然是西式裝束，依舊帶著濃厚的東方色彩。玄色輕紗氅底下，她穿著金魚黃緊身長衣，蓋住了手，只露出晶亮的指甲。領口挖成極狹的Ｖ形，直開到腰際，那是巴黎最新的款式，有個名式，喚做"一線天"。她的臉色黃而油潤，像飛了金的觀音菩薩，然而她的影沉沉的大眼睛裡躲著妖魔。古典型的直鼻子，只是太尖，太薄一點。粉紅的厚重的小嘴唇，彷彿腫著似的。柳原站住了腳，向她微微鞠了一躬。流蘇在那裡看她，她也昂然望著流蘇，那一雙驕矜的眼睛，如同隔著幾千里地，遠遠的向人望過來。柳原便介紹道："這是白小姐。這是薩黑荑妮公主。"

Directly inside they encountered a group of gentleman, the group of stars gathered around the moon as the commoners gathered around the woman.  Liu Su first noticed the person's pitch black hair braided into a high disk on her head.  This Indian woman, although is currently dressed in Western attire, wears a deep rich Eastern color.  At the bottom of her black fine gauze overcoat, she wore a goldfish yellow cassock, covering her hands, only showing her shiny crystal fingers.  Her neckline closed a narrow V-shape, which ran down towards her waistline.  This is Paris' newest trend called "A Line of Heaven."  Her face was yellow and glossy, like the floating gold Bodhisattva Guanyin, and her deep within her dark eyes hides a demon.  Only her classical style straight nose was a little too sharp, a little too flat.  Her pink thick little lips look as if they were swollen.  Liu Yuan stopped his tracks, faced her with a subtle bow.  Liu Su was there looking at her, and she boldly a looked at Liu Su.  Those conceited eyes, as if separated by a few thousand miles of earth, distantly facing back.  Liu Yuan then made an introduction, "This is Miss Bai.  And this is Lady Sahaini."

I failed Eileen Cheng

Eileen Cheng will rise from her grave and slap me for not finishing the translation of "Love in a Fallen City."  Instead, I will read "Sex, Lust."  No, it's not porno!  It's another work by Eileen Cheng.

I shall instead announce a new project!  I will re-read "An Anthology of Chinese Literature" in chronological order and review one out of every ten pieces or so.  I will occasionally jump to another dynasty if I feel like it.

Love in a Fallen City 傾城之戀 Part 3

http://www.rain8.com/article/class10/1512.htm

by Eileen Chang 張愛玲

Translated by Yoyo  幽柚

Part 2

流蘇氣得渾身亂顫，把一隻繡了一半的拖鞋面子抵住了下頜，下頜抖得彷彿要落下來。

Liu Su shook uncontrollably with anger, took a half-sewn sandal and pressed it hard on her cheek, her jaw trembled as if it were about to fall.

三爺又道：「想當初你哭哭啼啼回家來，鬧著要離婚，怪只怪我是個血性漢 子，眼見你給他打成那個樣子，心有不忍，一拍胸脯子站出來說：好！我白老三雖窮，我家裡短不了我妹子這一碗飯！我知道你們少年夫妻，誰沒有個脾氣？大不了 回娘家來住個三年五載的，兩下里也就回心轉意了。我若知道你們認真是一刀兩斷，我會幫著你辦離婚麼？拆散人家夫妻，這是絕子絕孫的事。我白老三是有兒子的 人，我還指望他們養老呢！」

3rd Brother said, "I remember at the time you were weeping when you came back home, venting that you wanted a divorce, blaming me for being man to the blood.  Seeing him I have a beating, my heart couldn't stop, I stood up beating my chest saying, ' Although I Bai the third am poor, my family isn't short of a bowl of food my my little sister!  I know you both are a young couple, who doesn't have tatrums?  When worst comes to worst coming back home living for 3, 5 years,  in two shakes you change your mind again.  If I knew you both were serious about cutting the cord, would I help you arrange a divorce?  Splitting up a husband and wife ends children and grandchildren.  I Bai the third is a person who has sons, hoping they would live long!"

流蘇氣到了極點，反倒放聲笑了起來道：「好，好，都是我的不是！你們窮了，是我把你們吃窮了。你們虧了本，是我帶累了你們。你 們死了兒子，也是我害了你們傷了陰騭！」

Liu Su was angry to the extreme, yet she laughed out loud and said, "Fine, fine, this is all my fault.  You're all poor because of me.  You all lost money because I was a burden.  Your son is dead because I harmed your good intentions!"

四奶奶一把揪住了她兒子的衣領，把他的頭去撞流蘇，叫道：「赤口白舌的咒起孩子來了！就憑你這句話，我兒子死了， 我就得找你！」

4th wife grabbed her son by the collar and threw her son's head towards Liu Su shouting, "Your red lips and white tongue cursing the children!  If my sons dies for what you said, I'll come after you!"

流蘇連忙一閃身躲過了，抓住四爺道：「四哥你瞧，你瞧——你——你倒是評評理看！」

Liu Su with a quick dodge grabbed 4th Brother and said, " Look 4th brother, look---you----you judge for yourself!"

四爺道：「你別急呀，有話好說，我們從長計議。三哥這都 是為你打算——」流蘇賭氣摔開了手，一徑進裡屋去了。

4th Brother said, "Calm down, speak slowly, let's slow down and think.  3rd Brother is all your fault---"  Liu Su resentfully threw down her arms, and went straight into the inner room.

裡屋沒點燈，影影綽綽的只看見珠羅紗帳子裡，她母親躺在紅木大床上，緩緩揮動白團扇。流蘇走到床跟前，雙膝一軟，就跪了下來，伏在床沿上，哽 咽道：「媽。」白老太太耳朵還好，外間屋裡說的話，她全聽見了。她咳嗽了一聲，伸手在枕邊摸索到了小痰罐子，吐了一口痰，方才說道：

The inner room had no lights, shadowy and charred she stared into the pearl collection and muslin canopy.  Her mother was laying down on the big wooden bed, brandishing her big circular fan.  Liu Su walked to the front of the bed, with her pair of weakening knees she knelt down, leaned along the bed half choked said, "Mom."  Mother Bai's ears were still good, she heard everything in the outer rooms.  She lightly coughed, reached beside her pillow with her hands searching for her spit bucket, spat her phlegm and said,

「你四嫂就是這麼碎嘴 子！你可不能跟她一樣的見識。你知道，各人有各人的難處。你四嫂天生的要強性兒，一向管著家，偏生你四哥不爭氣，狂嫖濫賭的，玩出一身病來不算，不該挪用 了公帳上的錢，害得你四嫂面上無光，只好讓你三嫂當家，心裡嚥不下這口氣，著實不舒坦。你三嫂精神又不濟，支持這份家，可不容易！種種地方，你得體諒他們 一點。」

"Your 4th wife always lashes her tongue like so.  Your life experience can't compare to her's.  You should know, everyone has their problems.  4th wife naturally wants a strong boy to run the family.  Your 4th Brother can't live up to his standards, crazy gambling and too many whores, let's forget him playing 'til he's sick, he shouldn't embezzle public money, scaring the color off 4th wife's face, forcing 3rd Wife to manage the house.  3rd wife can't swallow this, truly discomforting.  3rd Wife's attitude isn't that great either.  Supporting this family is not easy!  At all kinds of places, just show a bit of understanding."

流蘇聽她母親這話風，一味的避重就輕，自己覺得好沒意思，只得一言不發。白老太太翻身朝裡睡了，又道：「先兩年，東拼西湊的，賣一次田，還夠兩年 吃的。現在可不行了。我年紀大了，說聲走，一撒手就走了，可顧不得你們。天下沒有不散的筵席，你跟著我，總不是長久之計。倒是回去是正經。領個孩子過活， 熬個十幾年，總有你出頭之日。」

Liu Su hearing wind of her mother's words, tuning her  cheek to the major problems at hand made Liu Su feel ashamed.   She had no choice but not utter a single word.  Mother Bai turned her body inwards to sleep and said, "These past two years, chaos on top of chaos, selling the farm could feed us for two years.  Now it won't do.  I'm already old, if I say I'll go, one flip of my hand and I'll leave, I can't take care of you all anymore.  All good things must come to an end,  you leaving with me wasn't a plan I had for a long time.  Going back was actually the honorable thing to do.  Taking care of a child and living your days, enduring another 10 years there would have been a way out."

Part 4