Hemingway's Novel: The Old Man and the Sea (7)

（7）

The first stars have appeared. He didn't know what the Orion β was called, but as soon as he saw it, he knew that other stars would soon come out. With stars, it is equivalent to seeing friends from afar.

　　"This big fish is also my friend!" he exclaimed, "I have never seen or heard of such a fish. But I had to kill it. Luckily, I didn't have to go up to the sky to hunt the stars. Imagine if someone wanted to hunt the moon every day, what would happen if the moon would run away without a trace. Think about it, what if there were people who wanted to hunt the sun every day? ”

　　He felt sad that the big fish had nothing to eat, but his sadness did not weaken his determination to kill the fish.

　　"This fish is enough for many people. "But do those diners deserve it?" he thought to himself. It behaves elegantly and gracefully, and no one deserves to eat it. The truth in this is really unpredictable. Fortunately, we humans don't have to be forced to hunt the sun, moon or stars. It is tragic enough to make a living at sea and hunt down our troubled brothers. Now, I have to concentrate on thinking about this big fish dragging the boat. This guy is dangerous, but he's also a commendable fish. If it dragged as hard as it could, and the two oars tied together created some resistance, the boat would not be very light, and I would probably have to let go of the line and eventually let it run away. Keeping the boat light would prolong the pain for both of us, but it's safer because the fish swims fast, and so far it hasn't let go. Whatever it is, I'm going to have to disembowel that mahi mahi so that it doesn't taste bad. Eat some fish and grow your strength. I'll take another hour's rest. As soon as I felt that the big fish had stopped, I went back to the stern of the boat to clean up the mahi mahi and decide on a countermeasure. During this time, I can observe the performance of the big fish and see if it changes. Tying those two oars together to increase drag is a good idea, but safety should be a priority for now. Big fish are still very powerful. I saw that the guy had a fishing hook hanging from the corner of his mouth, and his mouth was tightly closed. The torture of the fishing hook was nothing to it. The torment of hunger and the struggle with an unknowable fate are the ones that make it most painful. Alright, rest and rest, old fellow. Let it toss, and you just wait for the time to do your part. ”

　　He felt like he had a two-hour break. The moon rose late that night, so he couldn't tell the time. In fact, he didn't rest much, just took a breath. He still had the pull of the big fish on his shoulders, but he pressed his left hand on the side of the bow of the boat, and gradually handed over the work of reducing the pull of the big fish to the small boat.

　　"If you can tie the line to death, it will be much easier. "But if a big fish earns a little, it might tear the line off." I have to use my body to cushion the pull of the line, ready to release it with both hands. ”

　　"But you haven't closed your eyes yet, old man. "It's been half a day and an all-nighter, and now it's another day, and you haven't slept." You'll have to find a way to sleep while the big fish is quiet and stable. If you don't sleep, your head will get muddy. ”

　　"My head is clear enough now," he thought to himself, "it's so clear, as clear as my star brothers." But I still had to sleep. The stars sleep, the moon and the sun sleep, and even the oceans sometimes sleep – the oceans sleep on days when there are no waves and calm waves. You have to remember to sleep, you have to force yourself to sleep. As for these fishing lines, you can think of a simple and safe way to arrange them. You should go back to the stern of the boat and pack up the mahi mahi. If you have to sleep, it's too dangerous to tie the oars like that to increase the drag. ”

　　"I can do it without sleeping," he said to himself, "but it's too dangerous." ”

　　He crawled back to the stern of the boat on his hands and knees, cautiously on the way, for fear of disturbing the big fish.

　　"At this point, it may be in a half-asleep state. "But I don't want it to rest, I want it to keep dragging the boat until it dies." ”

　　Back at the stern, he turned and let his left hand grasp the fishing line tightly on his shoulder, and with his right hand pulled the knife from its scabbard. The starlight was bright, and he could see the mahi mahi clearly, and with a thud he plunged the blade into the fish's head and pulled it out from under the stern. Then he put one foot on the fish and sliced it open with a sharp stroke, from the anus to the end of the jaw. Then he put down the knife, took out the entrails with his right hand, cleaned the belly of the fish, and ripped off the gills. He felt that the stomach of the fish was heavy and slippery in his hand, so he cut it open with a knife - there were two flying fish inside. The flying fish is still fresh, hard and firm. He lowered them side by side and threw the mahi mahi entrails and gills from the stern into the sea. When they sank, they left a phosphorescent glow in the water. The mahi mahi was cold, and in the starlight it looked as pale as a leper's face. The old man stepped on the head of the fish with his right foot, peeled off the skin on one side of the fish's body, then turned the fish over and peeled off the skin on the other side, and then cut off the flesh on both sides of the fish's body from head to tail.

　　As soon as he let go, he threw the fish skeleton overboard and watched to see if there was a whirlpool in the water. There is no whirlpool, but only phosphorescent glittering as the fish skeleton slowly sinks. Then he turned around, sandwiched the two flying fish between the two pieces of mahi mahi meat, inserted the knife into the scabbard, and slowly rubbed himself towards the bow of the boat. Due to the pull of the fishing line, he had to hunch his waist and carry the mahi mahi meat in his right hand.

　　When he returned to the bow of the boat, he spread two pieces of mahi mahi meat on the board of the boat, and placed the two flying fish next to him. Then he changed the line that was on his shoulder, grabbed the line with his left hand, and put his hand on the side of the boat. Then he leaned over the side of the boat and washed the flying fish in the sea, keeping an eye for the speed of the current hitting his hands. His hands glowed phosphorrescent from the skinning of the fish, and he observed how the water was hitting his hands, and found that the impact was not as strong as before. He rubbed the side of his palm against the plank, and the scales of the fish that were stuck to his hand fell off and slowly drifted towards the stern.

　　"The big fish is tired, or rather it's resting. The old man said to himself, "Now I will fill my stomach with this mahi mahi and rest and sleep for a while." ”

　　By starlight, braving the colder and colder of the night, he ate half a slice of mahi mahi meat, and also ate a flying fish that had been gutted and its head removed.

　　"How good it tastes when the mahi mahi is cooked. He said to himself, "Raw fish is hard to eat." After that, without salt or lime, I will never go on board again. ”

　　"If I had a bit of a brain, I would have poured sea water on the bow of the boat all day long, and when the sea dried, there would be salt. "But I didn't catch this mahi mahi until the sun was setting," he thought to himself. But in other words, the preparation is still insufficient. Luckily, I chewed the fish slowly and didn't feel nauseous. ”

　　The clouds in the eastern sky were getting thicker and thicker, and the stars he knew were disappearing one by one. It was as if he was driving into a cloud-covered canyon. The wind has stopped.

　　"In three or four days, the sky will change. "But it doesn't matter today or tomorrow." Now, while the big fish is quiet, get some sleep, old man. ”

　　He held the line tightly in his right hand, then pressed his thigh against his right hand and pressed his weight against the plank at the bow of the boat. Then, he moved the line slightly down from his shoulder and held it with his left hand.

　　"With your left hand to hold it, your right hand can hold the fishing line. He thought to himself, "If my right hand loosens when I sleep, the line slips away, and my left hand wakes me up." The right hand is a difficult task, but it has become accustomed to suffering. Even if you can sleep for 20 minutes or half an hour, it's good. ”

　　He leaned forward, pressed his whole body against the fishing line, pressed his whole weight on his right hand, and fell asleep. He did not dream of lions, but of a large flock of mahi mahi that stretched out for eight to ten miles. This is the mating season when they jump high into the air and fall back into the vortex that forms in the water when they jump. Then he dreamed that he was in the village, lying on his bed, and the north wind was howling outside, and the cold air was blowing. Because his head rested on his right arm, not on the pillow, his right arm was numb. Then he saw the long golden beach in his dream, and he saw a lion coming to the beach at dusk, followed by several more lions. The evening breeze was blowing on the shore, and the boat was moored in the water, and he rested his chin on the plank of the bow of the boat, waiting to see if more lions would appear, and his heart was full of joy.

　　By this time the moon had already risen, and he could not wake up from his sleep. The big fish dragged the boat on its way into the Grand Canyon formed by the clouds. Suddenly, his clenched right hand hit his face, waking him up from his dream, only to feel the fishing line slip out of his hand, and there was a hot feeling. His left hand was unconscious, so he used his right hand to pull the fishing line desperately, and the fishing line still slipped outward. Eventually, his left hand finally caught the line, and he leaned back and pulled the line, burning his back and left hand. The left hand was under full strain, and it hurt hotly. He looked back at the reels of the line and saw that they were steadily releasing the line little by little. At that moment, the great fish leaped into the air, causing the surface of the sea to crack with a bang, and then plunged into the sea. It jumped up again and again, the boat was flying fast, and the line was still fast outward. The old man held on to the fishing line, and it was about to be torn off—he pulled it again and again, and the line was almost torn again and again. He was pulled against the bow of the boat, his face resting on the slice of mahi mahi meat, unable to move.

　　"I've been waiting for a long time, and this moment has finally come. He thought to himself, "Then let's fight it out." It's dragging around, and now it's going to pay for it. Gotta make it pay!"

　　He could not see the leaps of the big fish, only the cracking of the sea and the splashing of water as the big fish fell from the sky. The line slipped outwards as fast as it could, strangling his hand painfully. However, he knew this was going to happen, so he tried to keep the line on the calloused area so that it didn't slip into his palm or on his fingers.

　　"If the boy was in front of him, he would have drenched the reels with water. He thought to himself, "yes, if only that kid were there." If only that kid were in front of him!"

　　The line slipped outwards and slipped outward, but then it slipped slower and slower. Every inch of fishing line dragged away by a big fish, the old man had to make it take a lot of effort. At this moment he lifted his head from the plank of the wooden boat and left the piece of fish that had been crushed by his face. Then, he slowly stood up from his kneeling position. At the same time, he was still releasing the fishing line, but the more he let it go, the slower it became. He rubbed back to where he was—there he couldn't see the reel, but he could touch it with his feet. There's still a lot of fishing line. With so many new lines dragging in the water, there will be a lot of resistance, which is enough for the big fish.

　　"And," he thought to himself, "this creature has jumped out of the water more than a dozen times, and the air sacs on the spine of the fish are so full of air that I can't dive into the depths—there's no way I'm going to get it up there." It's going to go around in circles soon, and I'm going to have to figure out how to clean it up. What is it that makes it agitated? Is it the hunger that makes it desperate? Or maybe something scares it at night? Perhaps, it suddenly becomes frightened. However, it is a calm and strong fish, and it seems to be fearless and full of confidence. It's weird. ”

　　"You yourself should be fearless and confident, old fellow. "You're slowing it down again, but you can't retract the line," he said to himself. It's going to go around in circles, though. ”

　　The old man held the fishing line in place with his left hand and on his shoulder, and the cat bent down and washed the crushed mahi mahi off his face with his right hand. He was afraid that the rotten meat would make him nauseous, make him vomit, and lose his strength. Having wiped his face, he stretched his right hand out of the side of the boat, washed it in the seawater, and then let it soak in the salty water, while watching the first rays of light rise before sunrise.

　　"This big fish swims almost due east. He thought to himself, "Swimming with the currents is a sign that it's tired." It's going to have to go around in circles right away. That's when we really started fighting. ”

　　When he felt that his right hand had been soaked in the sea water long enough, he took it out of the water, looked at it with his eyes, and said something in his mouth: "The effect is not bad." A sore hand is not too difficult for a man. ”

　　He carefully held the line so that it did not penetrate the newly broken wound, and at the same time moved to the other side of the boat, so that he could reach into the water with his left hand.

　　"You're useless, you're acting okay. He said to his left hand, "However, you do have times when you don't perform well, and you are used, but you cannot be relied on." ”

　　"Why wasn't I born with two good hands?" he thought to himself, "maybe it's my fault for not training this hand well." But God knows that it has the opportunity to learn, and it should learn something on its own. It did pretty well that night, only having one tendon twitch. If it dares to cramp again, let the fishing line cut it. ”