Once, twice, thrice upon a time, long long ago, there was a country on this earth with nothing. This country with nothing had a sultan3 and the sultan had a treasury. The nation's most valuable legacy4 was preserved in the treasury5. The nation boasted6 about this legacy which was left them by their forefathers. They consoled7 themselves: “Even though we have nothing, at least this legacy was left us by our forefathers,” and thus they tried to forget their poverty and sadness.
As the legacy from their forefathers belonged not to one or two persons but to the entire nation, everyone took a share in the boasting of this precious relic8. They made every effort to protect it.
In order to protect this relic, which belonged to the entire nation, the sultan's treasury being the most suitable place, it remained hidden there. Armed soldiers guarded the treasury day and night. They couldn't even allow a bird to fly over the treasury site.
The sultan, grand vizier9, viziers, and all the officials of the palace, swore10 on their honor, one day every year, to protect this holy relic left by their ancestors.
Time came and went. Then one day the desire came into the sultan's heart to learn what this relic was that the nation defended with their lives and blood. The sultan burned with great passion11 to see what was inside the relic box. Finally he could control this desire no longer and he entered the treasury building. After all, the soldiers weren't about to tell the sultan it was forbidden... The sultan, grand vizier, and viziers always freely entered the palace treasury and saw to it12 that the relic was in its proper place. So that's what the sultan did. After passing through forty rooms, one inside the other, the relic rested inside the forty-first room. And in that room in forty boxes, one inside the other, it was in the forty-first box.
The sultan opened the doors of forty rooms and entered the forty-first room. Then he opened forty boxes. When he held the forty-first box, his heart was beating madly in excitement. He was burning with curiosity13, wondering,“ What will this relic be that we have preserved all these years?”
He opened the forty-first box, looked, and what should he see: a jewel never before seen on the face of the earth. It burned like an eternal flame14. If you said gold, it wasn't gold; if you said platinum15, it wasn't platinum; if you said silver, it wasn't silver either. The sultan couldn't contain himself and said, “I'll take this holy relic left by the forefathers for myself. It will be mine. How would anyone know?”
He took the holy relic—that was burning brightly like a piece torn from the sun—from its box and put it into his pocket. He put it in but was shaken by fear: “But what if it's learned that I stole it?” Then he thought: “I'll take this shiny thing and put in its place a platinum piece decorated16 with rubies17, mother-of-pearl, emeralds18, pearls, and diamonds. If one day they open the box, in view of no one's ever having seen this relic, they can't know that the holy19 relic was stolen.”
He did as he said. Then he put the forty-first box inside each of the others, locked the forty-first and each of the other rooms, one on the other, and left the treasury. But he was terrified that the trick he had pulled would be discovered. So, though until that time they had been taking an annual oath20, the sultan changed it to semi-annual21, so no one could know that he had stolen the holy relic. Two times each year they gathered in the square, the sultan, and others, the entire nation, and swore that they would defend the holy relic left by their forefathers with their blood and lives.
The grand vizier was a clever man. A suspicion22 came into the grand vizier's heart: “While in the old days the oath to defend the relic was taken once a year, why has the sultan changed it to twice now?” One day, saying, “What will this relic that we have preserved these many years be?” he entered the treasury. He went into the forty-one rooms, opened the forty-one boxes and saw the relic. The grand vizier was surprised when he saw this great splendid platinum jewel, decorated with the most precious stones, that the sultan had left in place of the relic, so his trick wouldn't be discovered. He thought, “I'll take this relic and replace it with a gold jewel decorated with colored shiny stones. Anyway , no one knowing what the relic is, if they open the box some day, they will think that is the holy relic...” He did as he said; but fearing in his heart that the trick he had pulled would be discovered, he increased the oath ceremony23, which the sultan had changed to twice a year, to four times: spring, summer, fall and winter.
Unfortunately, one of the lesser24 viziers was also a clever person. A suspicion entered his heart: “How come the semi-annual oath is being increased to quarterly25?” Being able to enter the treasury without informing anyone, he, too, one day went in, passed through the forty-one rooms and opened the forty-one boxes. His eyes shone with pleasure when he saw the gold jewel decorated with bright stones. “I'll take this one and put silver in its place. How will anyone know?” he thought. So he did as he thought. He did it, but in his heart he had such fear that in order to hide his theft26 and to show the nation how well he had protected the holy relic, he started to have the quarterly oath ceremony held monthly. The populace27 gathered each month in the square and everyone swore to defend the holy relic to their last drop of blood.
The palace attendant28 was suspicious about the oath's being changed to monthly. “There must be something up29, so I'll go take a look at that relic,” he said. He went through forty-one rooms, opened forty-one boxes and saw the relic. He liked the holy relic left by the forefathers so much he thought, “if I take this and replace it with copper30, how will anyone know?” And he did as he thought. He did it; but there being such fear in his heart that his theft would be discovered, in order to show the public with what fastidiousness31 he had protected the relic, he changed the monthly oath ceremony to weekly.
Unfortunately, the guard officer who protected the treasury was also a sly32 man. He said to himself, “What's going on here? We're taking the oath once a week! I'll go take a look at this holy relic...” Like the others, he too passed through forty-one rooms and opened forty-one boxes. When he saw the shiny copper he was very pleased. “I'll take this, put iron in its place, and who will know?” he said. And he did as he said. But not feeling at ease about the trick he had pulled, he started to make a big show in order to prove to everyone how hard he had tried with body and soul to defend the relic. Every day he swore that he would even take his life in his hands to protect the holy relic left by the forefathers.
Time came, time went, and a man came forth33 from the populace.
“Every day the entire nation swears that we will defend with our blood and lives the relic left to us by our forefathers. In truth, we preserve this relic in the treasury and defend it very well. But what is this relic? After all, we're not the custodians34. Let us open these rooms and boxes and learn what this holy relic, left by our forefathers, is and why we preserve it!” he said.
These words had the effect of a bombshell35. With the sultan at the head, in fear that their theft would be discovered, all those who had done treachery36 against the relic rose as one and threw themselves at the man who had made this request. They were afraid that their theft would be found out because each one thought that only he had stolen the genuine37 relic and left a false one in its place. They didn't know the others had pulled the same trick.
They accused38 the man who had said “Let's see what this relic is that we preserved” of denigrating39 and slandering40 the holy relic: “Shame traitor! Who are you that you should see such a priceless, holy relic left by our forefathers!” The whole nation, fooled by them, united and fell on the man who said this. The poor fellow was nearly killed.
Then the sultan said,“ If we're going to kill this fellow, let's do it legally41!”
First a law to kill this person was written, then they executed42 him under the judgement of a special court.
Unfortunately, the business didn't end with his death because the words of the man who died spread from mouth to mouth. That thought gradually grew, like an avalanche43. One day a citizen thought, “Why don't we take our lives in our hands and go and see what this relic is that we risk our lives to defend?” Because he knew what happened to those before him, he didn't tell his idea to anyone. He decided to enter the treasury secretly and look at the holy relic.
But the sultan, grand vizier, and viziers, all the relic thieves, in order to hide their thefts so that no one would know, had tightened44 security45 on the holy relic left by their forefathers, more truthfully the thing they had left in its place. It was for this reason that the person who succeeded in getting into the treasury and taking the holy relic to show to all the people, fell into the hands of the treasury guards as he appeared. In the man's hand was a rusty tin can left as a replacement by the last one to steal the relic. When the guard officer saw the can in the man's hand, he shouted:
“This is not the holy relic!”
The palace attendant said:
“That's not it!”
The vizier also said:
“That's not it!”
Then in turn all the way to the sultan they said:
“That's not it. That's not it!”
Then the man who held the rusty tin can in his hand asked:
“How do you know this isn't the holy relic? If this isn't it, what is it?”
No one there could answer this question because they all knew that the thing they left to replace the stolen relic had also been stolen later.
After hanging the man on the spot and finishing the business, they put the rusty tin can in the box. They hid it inside the forty-one boxes and forty-one rooms. But because they were really not at ease, they passed another law for the protection of the holy relic. According to this law, morning, noon, and night, at three meals a day, the entire populace was required to take the oath that they would preserve the holy relic left by their forefathers. Not one of those who took the oath ever knew that the holy relic they preserved had been stolen and stolen until finally it had become a rusty tin can.
1. rusty adj．生锈的
2． Aziz Nesin 阿齐兹·列辛 土耳其著名作家，生于1915年。他的作品有世界影响，已被译成24种文字在全世界出版。
3． sultan n．苏丹
4． legacy n．遗产
5． treasury n．宝库，国库
6． boast v．夸耀，以……为自豪
7． console v．安慰
8． relic n．遗物，纪念物
9． grand vizier 伊斯兰国家的首相 vizier
n．伊斯兰国家的大臣
10． swore 为swear 的过去时，意思是“发誓，赌咒”
11． passion n．激情
12． see to it that．．． 务必，对……负责
13． curiosity n．好奇心
14． eternal flame 不灭的火焰
15． platinum n．铂，白金
16． decorate v．装饰
17． ruby n．红宝石
18． emerald n．绿宝石
19． holy adj．神圣的
20． oath n．宣誓，誓言
21． semi－annual adj．每半年一次
22． suspicion n．怀疑，猜疑
23． ceremony n．仪式
24． lesser adj．次要的，职位较低的
25． quarterly ] adj．每年四次
26． theft n．盗窃行为
27． populace n．平民，老百姓
28． palace attendant 宫廷侍卫
29． There must be something up． 一定是出了什么事情。up在口语中可指 “发生不愉快的事情”。
30． copper n．铜
31． fastidiousness n．严格，一丝不苟
32． sly [slai] adj．狡猾的
33． forth adv．向前，向外
34． custodian n．管理人
35． bombshell n．炸弹， 爆炸效应，突发惊人事件
36． treachery n．背叛，叛逆行为
37． genuine adj．真正的
38． accuse v．控告，指控
39． denigrate v．毁誉，诬蔑
40． slander v．诽谤
41． legally adv．合法地
42． execute v．执行，执行死刑
43． avalanche n．雪崩
44． tighten v．变紧, 绷紧
45． security n．安全