五块银元

邓小平从小就受到好的教育。爸爸妈妈为人都很正直，乐于助人，是村里有名的好心人。

Since Deng Xiaoping was little, he was taught well. His parents were both very upright and enjoyed helping people, and were famous in their village for their kindness.

在爸爸妈妈的影响下，邓小平从小就立志要做个好人。长大后要为穷人谋幸福。有一句话邓小平一辈子都没有忘，那就是爸爸妈妈教诲他的：“后人须学好的人。”正是这句话，使邓小平懂得了做人的道理。

Under the influence of his parents, Deng Xiaoping became determined to become a good person. After he grew up he would help poor people become rich. There is a saying that Deng Xiaoping remembered his whole life, which is his parents' instruction to him: "the younger generation should learn from good people." It is this very saying that made Deng Xiaoping understand how to become a good man.

那还是邓小平读私塾时发生的一件事。有一天，在放学的路上，邓小平看到一个同学哭得很伤心，像是什么心事。这个同学平时是最爱笑的，今天肯定是遇到了什么难事。邓小平这样想着，便急忙上前问道：

Once, when Deng Xiaoping was studying at a private school, there was an incident. One day, on the way home after classes, Deng Xiaoping saw a classmate crying, apparently with some heavy matter on his mind. This classmate was always the most inclined to smile, today something bad happened to him. Deng Xiaoping thought this, and then hurriedly went over to him and asked:

“你怎么哭得这么伤心？”

"Why are you crying so grievously?"

这位同学用手背擦去眼泪，看了看邓小平，刚想说话却又摇了摇头，叹了一口气。

The classmate used the back of his hand to wipe his tears, looked at Deng Xiaoping, thought of saying something, but just shaked his head and sighed.

“说吧，我说不定能帮上忙呢？”看到这种情况，邓小平鼓励地摇了摇这位同学的肩膀。

"Tell me, maybe I can help you?" Seeing this situation, Deng Xiaoping encouragingly shook the shoulder of his classmate.

这位同学抬起头，呜呜咽咽地说：“我妹妹病了，发高烧，躺在床上快要死了！”

The classmate raised his head, sobbed and said: "My little sister is sick with a high fever, she's in bed and is going to die soon!"

“那快去请医生呀！”邓小平说道。

"Then you should see the doctor, quickly!" said Deng Xiaoping.

听到这话，这位同学哭得更伤心了，“大夫说要五块银元，可你知道，我家哪有...”说到这儿，这位同学说不下去了。

When he heard this, the classmate cried even harder. "The doctor says we need five silver dollars. But you know, where would my family get..." Having said this, he could not speak any further.

邓小平听了，想了一会儿，对这位同学说：“你在这等我一会儿，我马上回来。”还没等这位同学回答，邓小平就朝家里跑去。很快，他汗流满面地跑了回来，边跑边喊道：“有钱了，有钱了！”

Deng Xiaoping heard this, thought for a bit, and said to his classmate: "Wait here a little, I'll be right back." Without waiting for the classmate to reply, Deng Xiaoping raced towards home. With sweat streaming down his face, he was running and shouting "I got the money! I got the money!"

当这位同学从邓小平手中接过带着汗渍的五块银元时，激动地握着邓小平的手，什么话也说不出来。

When the classmate received the sweat-soaked five silver dollars from Deng Xiaoping's hand, he excitedly grabbed his hand, unable to say a word.

邓小平帮完小伙伴后，高兴地回家了。可一迈进家门，他就发现家里的气氛不对，爸爸正在发火，嗓门大得吓人。

After Deng Xiaoping helped his friend, he returned home in a good mood. But after taking one step through the doors, he immediately discovered that there was something wrong with the atmosphere in the house. His father was in a furor, yelling with a frightening voice.

“你们谁做的好事，快点承认！”

"Who of you did this, confess quickly!"

原来，邓小平回家拿钱时，爸爸妈妈都不在家，他就先拿钱出去给了那位同学。现在，爸爸在查账时，发现少了五块银元。在当时，五块银元足足可以买五担谷子了，爸爸怎么能不急呢？

Originally, when Deng Xiaoping returned home to get the money, none of his parents were at home, so he went ahead to get the money to give to his classmate. Now, when his father checked the family accounts, he discovered that they were five silver dollars short. At that time, five silver dollars was enough to buy a hundred pounds of millet, so how could his father not worry about it?

邓小平默默地拿起一跟竹片，递到爸爸手里，说：“爸，钱是我拿的...”

Deng Xiaoping silently grabbed a bamboo stick, put it in his father's hands, and said: "Dad, I was the one who took the money..."

“什么”，爸爸气得脸都变了颜色。他没想到，平时那么乖的儿子会干出这种事来。

"What?" His father's face turned red with anger. He never thought that Deng Xiaoping, who was normally such a well-behaved child, would do such a thing.

不待邓小平分辨，他挥起竹片朝着邓小平就打了下去，一下，两下，三下...

Without waiting for Deng Xiaoping's explanation, he raised the bamboo stick against Deng Xiaopin and hit him one time, two times, three times...

妈妈想要拦住，可一看那铁青的脸欲言又止。

His mother wanted to stop it, but one look at the ash grey face stopped her.

爸爸打了一会儿，看到儿子站在那里一动也不动，泪水在眼眶里打转，一声也不吭。爸爸犹豫了，一个念头在心里闪过：这娃儿平时连零用钱都舍不得花，怎么会拿这么多钱呢？

His father beat him for a while, and looked at his son standing there motionless, with tears in his eyes, without making a sound. His father hesitated, and a thought flashed through his mind: since this child didn't even spend his allowance, then how could he take such a large amount?

经过追问，邓小平讲出了事情的缘由，爸爸终于明白了。他先是呆呆地站在那里，而后突然把邓小平紧紧抱在怀里，心痛地说：“娃儿，打你时，怎么不说清楚呢？”

After some further questioning, Deng Xiaoping explained the reason, and his father finally understood. He stood there astounded, and then suddenly held Deng Xiaoping tightly to his chest, and said with his heart aching: "Child, why didn't you explain this while I was beating you?"

邓小平一边擦眼泪，一边轻声对爸爸说：“拿钱没经过爸爸允许，挨打是应该的。”

Deng Xiaoping told his father while he was wiping his tears: "I took the money without daddy's consent, so I should be beaten."

参加革命以后，当邓小平跟同志们说起这件事时，他曾欣慰地说：“为救人一命挨几下打，值得。”

After he took part in the revolution, when Deng Xiaoping was telling this story to his comrades, he said: "To save the one life of a man, is worth several beatings."

Vocabulary

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