Ⅲ 冰雨的風(fēng)暴 Chapter7 瓊恩

JON

世界一片灰暗，松木和苔蘚的味道和著一絲寒意，飄蕩在風(fēng)中。黑土地上升起蒼白的迷霧，騎手們在碎石和亂木中費力地穿行，直下河谷，朝如珍珠般散落的溫暖火堆奔去?；鸲押芏?，多得讓瓊恩無法計算，數(shù)百數(shù)千的篝火組成一條搖曳的光帶，伴隨著冰凍的白色乳河，看起來就成了兩條河。此情此景，讓他右手五指不自禁地開開合合。

The world was grey darkness, smelling of pine and moss and cold. Pale mists rose from the black earth as the riders threaded their way through the scatter of stones and scraggly trees, down toward the welcoming fires strewn like jewels across the floor of the river valley below. There were more fires than Jon Snow could count, hundreds of fires, thousands, a second river of flickery lights along the banks of the icy white Milkwater. The fingers of his sword hand opened and closed.

他們騎下山脊，沒有舉旗也沒有吹奏，一片死寂中，只聽遠方河水的潺潺流動，馬蹄的得得聲，以及叮當(dāng)衫身上骨甲的碰撞。頭頂某處，老鷹展開灰藍的巨翅，俯瞰著下方的人、狗、馬和白色冰原狼。

They descended the ridge without banners or trumpets, the quiet broken only by the distant murmur of the river, the clop of hooves, and the clacking of Rattleshirt’s bone armor. Somewhere above an eagle soared on great blue-grey wings, while below came men and dogs and horses and one white direwolf.

馬蹄踢動碎石，石塊滾下斜坡，瓊恩看見白靈扭頭過去搜尋這突兀的聲響。他一整天都遠遠跟著他們，這是他的習(xí)慣，而當(dāng)月亮在哨兵樹梢升起時，他就會睜大血紅的眼睛跑開了。一如既往，叮當(dāng)衫的獵狗們朝他齊聲哮吼狂吠，但冰原狼漠不關(guān)心。六天前的晚上，他們扎營后，最大的那條獵狗試圖從后方偷襲他，不料白靈比它更快，打得那狗滿身傷痕、落荒而逃。從此以后，狗群始終和他保持距離。

A stone bounced down the slope, disturbed by a passing hoof, and Jon saw Ghost turn his head at the sudden sound. He had followed the riders at a distance all day, as was his custom, but when the moon rose over the soldier pines he’d come bounding up, red eyes aglow. Rattleshirt’s dogs greeted him with a chorus of snarls and growls and wild barking, as ever, but the direwolf paid them no mind. Six days ago, the largest hound had attacked him from behind as the wildlings camped for the night, but Ghost had turned and lunged, sending the dog fleeing with a bloody haunch. The rest of the pack maintained a healthy distance after that.

瓊恩·雪諾的馬輕聲嘶鳴起來，但撫摩和軟語很快讓它恢復(fù)了平靜。我自己的恐懼能這么輕易地平復(fù)就好了。他一身漆黑，這是守夜人軍團的黑衣，可他卻騎行在敵人之中。我跟著他們，跟著這些野人。耶哥蕊特穿著“斷掌”科林的斗篷，朗爾要了他的鎖甲，他的手套被大個子矛婦芮溫勒拿走，而某個弓箭手得到了他的靴子。相貌平庸的矮個子“長矛”里克贏得了科林的頭盔，但這頭盔并不適合他那顆窄頭顱，所以他把它送給耶哥蕊特。叮當(dāng)衫將科林的骨頭裝進口袋里，放在伊本那顆血跡斑斑的頭旁邊，瓊恩正是跟隨這幾位游騎兵來到風(fēng)聲峽的。死了，他們都死了，而全世界都知道我也完了。

Jon Snow’s garron whickered softly, but a touch and a soft word soon quieted the animal. Would that his own fears could be calmed so easily. He was all in black, the black of the Night’s Watch, but the enemy rode before and behind. Wildlings, and I am with them. Ygritte wore the cloak of Qhorin Halfhand. Lenyl had his hauberk, the big spearwife Ragwyle his gloves, one of the bowmen his boots. Qhorin’s helm had been won by the short homely man called Longspear Ryk, but it fit poorly on his narrow head, so he’d given that to Ygritte as well. And Rattleshirt had Qhorin’s bones in his bag, along with the bloody head of Ebben, who set out with Jon to scout the Skirling Pass. Dead, all dead but me, and I am dead to the world.

耶哥蕊特騎行在他身后，他前面的是長矛里克。骸骨之王讓這兩人看住他?！叭绻尀貘f飛走，我就把你們的骨頭給煮了，”出發(fā)時他告誡兩名守衛(wèi)，透過用作頭盔的巨人頭骨，歪曲的牙齒下露出得意的笑。

Ygritte rode just behind him. In front was Longspear Ryk. The Lord of Bones had made the two of them his guards. “If the crow flies, I’ll boil your bones as well,” he warned them when they had set out, smiling through the crooked teeth of the giant’s skull he wore for a helm.

耶哥蕊特斥罵他：“你到底要不要這個人？如果要，就少廢話，我們自己知道怎么做?！?/p>

Ygritte hooted at him. “You want to guard him? If you want us to do it, leave us be and we’ll do it.”

他們是真正的自由民，瓊恩發(fā)現(xiàn)，叮當(dāng)衫可以領(lǐng)導(dǎo)他們，卻無法凌駕于他們之上。

These are a free folk indeed, Jon saw. Rattleshirt might lead them, but none of them were shy in talking back to him.

野人頭目轉(zhuǎn)而惡狠狠地瞪著他，“烏鴉，你騙得了其他人，騙不了曼斯。他一眼就能拆穿你的偽裝。然后呢，我會把你那只狼的皮拿來做斗篷，接著劃開你柔軟的肚腹，縫只黃鼠狼進去?！?/p>

The wildling leader fixed him with an unfriendly stare. “Might be you fooled these others, crow, but don’t think you’ll be fooling Mance. He’ll take one look a’ you and know you’re false. And when he does, I’ll make a cloak o’ your wolf there, and open your soft boy’s belly and sew a weasel up inside.”

瓊恩用劍的手開開合合，手套下灼燒的指頭蠢蠢欲動。長矛里克在旁笑道：“這么大雪，你上那兒去找黃鼠狼呀？”

Jon’s sword hand opened and closed, flexing the burned fingers beneath the glove, but Longspear Ryk only laughed. “And where would you find a weasel in the snow?”

頭天晚上，經(jīng)過整日騎行之后，他們在一座無名的高山頂上找到一處碗狀的淺石灘，就地扎營。雪花飄飛，人們蜷縮在火堆旁，瓊恩看著吹雪降落到篝火上空，迅速融化消解。盡管他穿著層層羊毛衣、毛皮和皮甲，仍舊感覺寒冷徹骨。用餐以后，耶哥蕊特一直坐在他身旁，她拉起風(fēng)帽，手掌縮進袖子里以求溫暖，“等曼斯聽到你對斷掌的所為，會立刻接受你的。”

That first night, after a long day ahorse, they made camp in a shallow stone bowl atop a nameless mountain, huddling close to the fire while the snow began to fall. Jon watched the flakes melt as they drifted over the flames. Despite his layers of wool and fur and leather, he’d felt cold to the bone. Ygritte sat beside him after she had eaten, her hood pulled up and her hands tucked into her sleeves for warmth. “When Mance hears how you did for Halfhand, he’ll take you quick enough,” she told him.

“接受我？”

“Take me for what?”

女孩輕笑道：“接受你成為我們中的一員。你以為自己是頭一個飛離長城的烏鴉？我知道，你從心底渴望自由飛翔?！?/p>

The girl laughed scornfully. “For one o’ us. D’ya think you’re the first crow ever flew down off the Wall? In your hearts you all want to fly free.”

“我可以自由加入，”他緩緩地說，“也可以自由離開嗎？”

“And when I’m free,” he said slowly, “will I be free to go?”

“當(dāng)然可以，”她的笑很溫馨，惟獨牙齒有些歪斜，“而我們也有獵殺你的自由。自由是危險的事物，但人人都渴求它的滋味?！彼颜种渥拥氖终品旁谒ドw上?！澳闶裁炊疾欢??！?/p>

“Sure you will.” She had a warm smile, despite her crooked teeth. “And we’ll be free to kill you. It’s dangerous being free, but most come to like the taste o’ it.” She put her gloved hand on his leg, just above the knee. “You’ll see.”

是的，我還不懂，瓊恩心想，但我會去看、去聽、去學(xué)，探明底細就奔回長城。野人們把他當(dāng)背誓者，可他在心底仍是守夜人的漢子，執(zhí)行著斷掌科林交給他的最后使命。在我殺他之前，他的最后托付。

I will, thought Jon. I will see, and hear, and learn, and when I have I will carry the word back to the Wall. The wildlings had taken him for an oathbreaker, but in his heart he was still a man of the Night’s Watch, doing the last duty that Qhorin Halfhand had laid on him. Before I killed him.

他們下到斜坡底部，面前是一條流下山巒注入乳河的小溪，看似紋絲不動，反射光芒，但堅冰下傳來水流的響聲。叮當(dāng)衫帶他們渡過溪流，踏碎水面的薄冰。

At the bottom of the slope they came upon a little stream flowing down from the foothills to join the Milkwater. It looked all stones and glass, though they could hear the sound of water running beneath the frozen surface. Rattleshirt led them across, shattering the thin crust of ice.

接近營地時，曼斯·雷德的斥候靠過來。瓊恩瞥了他們一眼：八個騎兵，有男有女，全穿著毛皮和皮衣，手執(zhí)長矛或用火淬過的槍，但只裝備了幾頂頭盔和幾幅破爛的盔甲。對方首領(lǐng)有些特別，胖呼呼的，水汪汪的眼睛，滿頭金發(fā)，提一柄巨大而鋒利的鋼鐵鐮刀。這是哭泣者，他立時反應(yīng)過來。黑衣兄弟們經(jīng)常談?wù)撍?。和叮?dāng)衫、“狗頭”哈犸和“獵鴉”阿夫因一樣，他是出了名的掠襲者。

Mance Rayder’s outriders closed in as they emerged. Jon took their measure with a glance: eight riders, men and women both, clad in fur and boiled leather, with here and there a helm or bit of mail. They were armed with spears and fire-hardened lances, all but their leader, a fleshy blond man with watery eyes who bore a great curved scythe of sharpened steel. The Weeper, he knew at once. The black brothers told tales of this one. Like Rattleshirt and Harma Dogshead and Alfyn Crowkiller, he was a known raider.

“骸骨之王，”哭泣者招呼道，一邊打量著瓊恩和他的狼，“那是誰，就那個？”

“The Lord o’ Bones,” the Weeper said when he saw them. He eyed Jon and his wolf. “Who’s this, then?”

“一只逃來的烏鴉，”叮當(dāng)衫說，他喜歡被人稱為骸骨之王，那件叮當(dāng)作響的骨甲是他的驕傲，“他怕我像趴斷掌的骨頭一樣趴了他?！彼崞鹉谴鼞?zhàn)利品，在野人斥候們面前搖晃。

“A crow come over,” said Rattleshirt, who preferred to be called the Lord of Bones, for the clattering armor he wore. “He was afraid I’d take his bones as well as Halfhand’s.” He shook his sack of trophies at the other wildlings.

“是這小子殺了斷掌科林，”長矛里克說，“他和他的狼?！?/p>

“He slew Qhorin Halfhand,” said Longspear Ryk. “Him and that wolf o’ his.”

“他把歐瑞爾干掉了，”叮當(dāng)衫說。

“And did for Orell too,” said Rattleshirt.

“這小子是個狼靈?！贝髠€子矛婦芮溫勒插進來，“他的狼咬下斷掌一截小腿呢。”

“The lad’s a warg, or close enough,” put in Ragwyle, the big spearwife. “His wolf took a piece o’ Halfhand’s leg.”

哭泣者用那對紅潤潮濕的眼睛又瞄了瓊恩一眼，“是嗎？哦，他有狼的特質(zhì)，我瞧見了。帶他到曼斯那兒去！由他發(fā)落?！彼{(diào)轉(zhuǎn)馬頭，決塵而去，他的手下緊跟著他。

The Weeper’s red rheumy eyes gave Jon another look. “Aye? Well, he has a wolfish cast to him, now as I look close. Bring him to Mance, might be he’ll keep him.” He wheeled his horse around and galloped off, his riders hard behind him.

他們排成單列，在乳河河谷的營地里穿行，寒風(fēng)又濕又重。白靈緊隨瓊恩，他的氣味如同傳令官，宣告了他們的到來。不一會兒，野人們的狗全部聚集而至，咆哮、吠叫。朗爾嚷著讓它們安靜，但不起作用?！八麄儾幌矚g你的伙伴呢，”長矛里克對瓊恩說。

The wind was blowing wet and heavy as they crossed the valley of the Milkwater and rode singlefile through the river camp. Ghost kept close to Jon, but the scent of him went before them like a herald, and soon there were wildling dogs all around them, growling and barking. Lenyl screamed at them to be quiet, but they paid him no heed. “They don’t much care for that beast o’ yours,” Longspear Ryk said to Jon.

“一邊是狗，一邊是狼，”瓊恩說，“它們不是同類?！本拖裎也皇悄銈兊耐?。但我必須暫時拋開這些，去履行責(zé)任，最后一次和斷掌分享營火時科林交給他的責(zé)任——偽裝成背誓者，去找出野人們在陰冷荒蕪的霜雪之牙挖掘的秘密?！澳撤N力量，”斷掌科林對熊老斷言，可他在找出真相之前就死了，甚至不知道曼斯·雷德是否挖到了“它”。

“They’re dogs and he’s a wolf,” said Jon. “They know he’s not their kind.” No more than I am yours. But he had his duty to be mindful of, the task Qhorin Halfhand had laid upon him as they shared that final fire—to play the part of turncloak, and find whatever it was that the wildlings had been seeking in the bleak cold wilderness of the Frostfangs. “Some power,” Qhorin had named it to the Old Bear, but he had died before learning what it was, or whether Mance Rayder had found it with his digging.

沿河都是篝火，點綴在板車、推車和雪橇旁。野人們用獸皮和羊氈匆匆搭起無數(shù)帳篷，也有些人就著大巖石建個窩，或睡在車子下面。瓊恩看見男人在火堆旁淬著長木矛的尖頭，一邊還擲矛試手；另兩位穿皮甲留胡須的少年用棍棒互相擊打，跳過篝火追逐對方，口中呼喝不斷；十來個女人坐成圓圈，給弓箭上羽毛。

There were cookfires all along the river, amongst wayns and carts and sleds. Many of the wildlings had thrown up tents, of hide and skin and felted wool. Others sheltered behind rocks in crude lean-tos, or slept beneath their wagons. At one fire Jon saw a man hardening the points of long wooden spears and tossing them in a pile. Elsewhere two bearded youths in boiled leather were sparring with staffs, leaping at each other over the flames, grunting each time one landed a blow. A dozen women sat nearby in a circle, fletching arrows.

這是為我的弟兄們準備的箭，瓊恩心想，為我父親的人民準備的箭，為臨冬城、深林堡和最后壁爐城準備的箭，為北境而準備的箭。

Arrows for my brothers, Jon thought. Arrows for my father’s folk, for the people of Winterfell and Deepwood Motte and the Last Hearth. Arrows for the north.

可眼前并不都是戰(zhàn)爭氣象。他也看見跳舞的姑娘，聽到嬰孩的哭鬧，一個裹著毛皮的小男孩從馬前跑過，因為嬉鬧而氣喘吁吁。綿羊和山羊自由漫步，牛群在河岸邊搜尋青草，羊肉的香味自營火處四溢開來，一整頭公豬串在木叉上熏烤。

But not all he saw was warlike. He saw women dancing as well, and heard a baby crying, and a little boy ran in front of his garron, all bundled up in fur and breathless from play. Sheep and goats wandered freely, while oxen plodded along the riverbank in search of grass. The smell of roast mutton drifted from one cookfire, and at another he saw a boar turning on a wooden spit.

騎到一處由高大蔥綠的士卒松圍成的空地時，叮當(dāng)衫下了馬?！熬驮谶@兒扎營，”他告訴朗爾、芮溫勒和其他人，“將馬、狗、還有你們自己都喂飽。耶哥蕊特、長矛，把烏鴉帶走，讓曼斯好好瞧瞧，接著我們來剝他?！?/p>

In an open space surrounded by tall green soldier pines, Rattleshirt dismounted. “We’ll make camp here,” he told Lenyl and Ragwyle and the others. “Feed the horses, then the dogs, then yourself. Ygritte, Longspear, bring the crow so Mance can have his look. We’ll gut him after.”

剩下的路他們步行，經(jīng)過更多的篝火和更多的帳篷，白靈依然在后緊跟。瓊恩沒見過這么多野人。他甚至懷疑是否有人曾見過這么多野人。這片營地?zé)o邊無際，不，不是一片營地，而是上百處，每一處都易受攻擊。由于分散在好幾里格的空間里，因此根本談不上防備，沒有陷坑，沒有削尖木樁，只有幾小隊斥候在四周巡邏。各個團隊、氏族和村落看中什么地方，就直接扎營下來，絲毫不管別人。這就是自由民。如果他的弟兄們抓住機會，這里的很多人就得為自由而付出生命的代價。他們雖人多勢眾，可缺乏守夜人軍團的紀律。紀律嚴明，十戰(zhàn)九勝，父親曾教導(dǎo)過他。

They walked the rest of the way, past more cookfires and more tents, with Ghost following at their heels. Jon had never seen so many wildlings. He wondered if anyone ever had. The camp goes on forever, he reflected, but it’s more a hundred camps than one, and each more vulnerable than the last. Stretched out over long leagues, the wildlings had no defenses to speak of, no pits nor sharpened stakes, only small groups of outriders patrolling their perimeters. Each group or clan or village had simply stopped where they wanted, as soon as they saw others stopping or found a likely spot. The free folk. If his brothers were to catch them in such disarray, many of them would pay for that freedom with their life’s blood. They had numbers, but the Night’s Watch had discipline, and in battle discipline beats numbers nine times of every ten, his father had once told him.

國王的帳篷十分醒目，比他剛才所見最大的帳篷還要大出兩倍，音樂聲從帳內(nèi)傳出。它雖和別的帳篷一樣是用獸皮縫制，但材料是雪熊的純白毛絨。帳篷頂圍一圈巨鹿角，想必是從先民時代曾奔放于七大王國的巨駝鹿頭上采到的。

There was no doubting which tent was the king’s. It was thrice the size of the next largest he’d seen, and he could hear music drifting from within. Like many of the lesser tents it was made of sewn hides with the fur still on, but Mance Rayder’s hides were the shaggy white pelts of snow bears. The peaked roof was crowned with a huge set of antlers from one of the giant elks that had once roamed freely throughout the Seven Kingdoms, in the times of the First Men.

直走到這里，他們才碰到守衛(wèi)；兩名衛(wèi)兵站在帳篷門口，拄著長矛，手臂上捆了圓皮盾?？吹桨嘴`，其中一名守衛(wèi)放低長矛，“野獸不能進?！?/p>

Here at least they found defenders; two guards at the flap of the tent, leaning on tall spears with round leather shields strapped to their arms. When they caught sight of Ghost, one of them lowered his spearpoint and said, “That beast stays here.”

“白靈，停下，”瓊恩命令。冰原狼聽話坐下來。

“Ghost, stay,” Jon commanded. The direwolf sat.

“長矛，看好這家伙?！倍．?dāng)衫掀開帳門，打手勢讓瓊恩和耶哥蕊特進去。

“Longspear, watch the beast.” Rattleshirt yanked open the tent and gestured Jon and Ygritte inside.

帳內(nèi)酷熱，充滿煙霧。四角都擱著裝燒炭的籃子，放射出暗淡的紅光，地面則鋪了厚厚的獸皮作地毯。一身黑衣的來此地，靜待那個自稱塞外之王的變色龍?zhí)幹米约?，瓊恩感到無比孤單。眼睛適應(yīng)這團彌漫的紅色煙霧后，他發(fā)現(xiàn)里面共有六人，但沒人關(guān)注他。一個黝黑的青年男子正與一位漂亮的金發(fā)女郎分享一角蜜酒；一個懷孕的女人站在火盆旁燒烤一串小雞；一位穿著襤褸的紅黑斗篷的灰發(fā)男子盤腿坐在枕墊上，邊彈豎琴邊唱：

The tent was hot and smoky. Baskets of burning peat stood in all four corners, filling the air with a dim reddish light. More skins carpeted the ground. Jon felt utterly alone as he stood there in his blacks, awaiting the pleasure of the turncloak who called himself King-beyond-the-Wall. When his eyes had adjusted to the smoky red gloom, he saw six people, none of whom paid him any mind. A dark young man and a pretty blonde woman were sharing a horn of mead. A pregnant woman stood over a brazier cooking a brace of hens, while a grey-haired man in a tattered cloak of black and red sat crosslegged on a pillow, playing a lute and singing:

多恩人的妻子像艷陽一樣美麗，

The Dornishman’s wife was as fair as the sun,

她的親吻比陽春還暖意；

and her kisses were warmer than spring.

多恩人的刀劍卻是由黑鐵制成，

But the Dornishman’s blade was made of black steel,

它們的親吻則恐怖無比。

and its kiss was a terrible thing.

瓊恩聽過這首歌謠，不過在這里——在長城以外的獸皮帳篷中，在離赤紅山巒和溫暖煦風(fēng)的多恩十萬八千里的地方——聽著它有些異樣。

Jon knew the song, though it was strange to hear it here, in a shaggy hide tent beyond the Wall, ten thousand leagues from the red mountains and warm winds of Dorne.

叮當(dāng)衫拉下發(fā)黃的頭骨盔，等待歌唱結(jié)束。脫掉骨甲和皮甲之后，他其實很瘦小，容貌平凡，下巴多節(jié)，短胡須，面頰扁平而灰黃，眼睛則是一條細線，眉毛橫貫前額，尖的禿頭上有幾叢稀薄的黑發(fā)。

Rattleshirt took off his yellowed helm as he waited for the song to end. Beneath his bone-and-leather armor he was a small man, and the face under the giant’s skull was ordinary, with a knobby chin, thin mustache, and sallow, pinched cheeks. His eyes were close-set, one eyebrow creeping all the way across his forehead, dark hair thinning back from a sharp widow’s peak.

多恩人的妻子洗浴之際會唱歌，

The Dornishman’s wife would sing as she bathed,

像蜜桃一樣甜美的聲調(diào)；

in a voice that was sweet as a peach,

多恩人的刀劍卻有自己的歌謠，

But the Dornishman’s blade had a song of its own,

如水蛭一般鋒利和冷傲。

and a bite sharp and cold as a leech.

火盆邊的凳子上坐了一個矮小卻非常粗胖的男人，正津津有味地吃著一串烤雞。熱騰騰的油脂流過下巴，淌進雪白的胡子里，而他歡快地嘻笑著。他粗壯的胳膊上，帶著雕刻符文的厚重金箍，身上穿的則是沉重的黑色環(huán)甲——那只能得自于死去的游騎兵。幾尺之外，另一名高瘦男子正對著地圖皺眉，穿著縫青銅鱗片的皮衫，背上橫跨一把皮制劍鞘的雙手巨劍。此人像矛一樣筆直，長條的肌腱，胡子刮得很干凈，頭卻禿了，有硬朗的直鼻子和深陷的灰色眼眸。若有耳朵的話他的樣子算得上瀟灑，可惜他一只也沒有。瓊恩不知是霜凍還是戰(zhàn)爭造成的，總而言之，缺了它們，男人的頭有些失衡，顯得又窄又尖。

Beside the brazier, a short but immensely broad man sat on a stool, eating a hen off a skewer. Hot grease was running down his chin and into his snow-white beard, but he smiled happily all the same. Thick gold bands graven with runes bound his massive arms, and he wore a heavy shirt of black ringmail that could only have come from a dead ranger. A few feet away, a taller, leaner man in a leather shirt sewn with bronze scales stood frowning over a map, a two-handed greatsword slung across his back in a leather sheath. He was straight as a spear, all long wiry muscle, clean-shaved, bald, with a strong straight nose and deepset grey eyes. He might even have been comely if he’d had ears, but he had lost both along the way, whether to frostbite or some enemy’s knife Jon could not tell. Their lack made the man’s head seem narrow and pointed.

白胡子和禿頭都是戰(zhàn)士，瓊恩只消一眼就清楚，而且都比叮當(dāng)衫厲害得多。他不知他們中誰是曼斯·雷德。

Both the white-bearded man and the bald one were warriors, that was plain to Jon at a glance. These two are more dangerous than Rattleshirt by far. He wondered which was Mance Rayder.

他倒在地上黑暗在回蕩，

As he lay on the ground with the darkness around,

鮮血的滋味舌頭品嘗。

and the taste of his blood on his tongue,

他的兄弟跪下為他而祈禱，

His brothers knelt by him and prayed him a prayer,

而他笑著笑著放聲歌唱：

and he smiled and he laughed and he sung,

“兄弟啊，兄弟，我的末日臨降，

“Brothers, oh brothers, my days here are done,

多恩人奪走了我的身子，

the Dornishman’s taken my life,

沒有關(guān)系，凡人終有一死亡，

But what does it matter, for all men must die,

我卻嘗過多恩人的妻子！”

and I’ve tasted the Dornishman’s wife!”

當(dāng)《多恩人的妻子》的最后一個曲調(diào)緩緩消逝后，禿頂無耳的男子從地圖上抬起頭來，惡狠狠地瞪著叮當(dāng)衫、耶哥蕊特及夾在他們中間的瓊恩?！斑@是誰？”他說，“一只烏鴉？”

As the last strains of “The Dornishman’s Wife” faded, the bald earless man glanced up from his map and scowled ferociously at Rattleshirt and Ygritte, with Jon between them. “What’s this?” he said. “A crow?”

“沒錯，這雜種殺了歐瑞爾，”叮當(dāng)衫說，“他還是個該死的狼靈。”

“The black bastard what gutted Orell,” said Rattleshirt, “and a bloody warg as well.”

“那你帶來做什么？砍了就是。”

“You were to kill them all.”

“他已經(jīng)倒戈了，”耶哥蕊特解釋，“他親手宰了斷掌科林?！?/p>

“This one come over,” explained Ygritte. “He slew Qhorin Halfhand with his own hand.”

“就憑這小子？”聽罷此言，無耳的男人有些惱怒，“斷掌是我的獵物。烏鴉，你有名字嗎？”

“This boy?” The earless man was angered by the news. “The Halfhand should have been mine. Do you have a name, crow?”

“我叫瓊恩·雪諾，陛下?！辈恢摬辉撛凇叭庵酢泵媲肮蛳隆?/p>

“Jon Snow, Your Grace.” He wondered whether he was expected to bend the knee as well.

“陛下？”無耳的男人望向粗胖的白胡子，“你瞧，他以為我是國王咧。”

“Your Grace?” The earless man looked at the big white-bearded one. “You see. He takes me for a king.”

滿臉胡子的胖子哈哈大笑，笑得雞塊到處飛濺，他用那只巨手擦擦嘴?！八隙ㄊ莻€不長眼睛的小子！難道有缺耳朵的國王嗎？見鬼，那樣王冠會直直地掉進脖子里！哈哈！”他邊朝瓊恩咧嘴大笑，邊在馬褲上擦拭手指?！伴]上臭嘴，烏鴉。轉(zhuǎn)過頭去，你要找的人在后面?！?/p>

The bearded man laughed so hard he sprayed bits of chicken everywhere. He rubbed the grease from his mouth with the back of a huge hand. “A blind boy, must be. Who ever heard of a king without ears? Why, his crown would fall straight down to his neck! Har!” He grinned at Jon, wiping his fingers clean on his breeches. “Close your beak, crow. Spin yourself around, might be you’d find who you’re looking for.”

瓊恩轉(zhuǎn)過頭去。

Jon turned.

歌手站起身來?！拔沂锹埂だ椎?，”他邊說邊放下豎琴，“而你是奈德·史塔克的私生子，臨冬城的雪諾。”

The singer rose to his feet. “I’m Mance Rayder,” he said as he put aside the lute. “And you are Ned Stark’s bastard, the Snow of Winterfell.”

瓊恩驚得半晌說不出話，良久之后方才勉強恢復(fù)鎮(zhèn)靜：“您……您怎么知道……”

Stunned, Jon stood speechless for a moment, before he recovered enough to say, “How … how could you know …”

“這個故事待會兒再講，”曼斯·雷德說，“你喜歡我唱的歌嗎，小子？”

“That’s a tale for later,” said Mance Rayder. “How did you like the song, lad?”

“您唱得很不錯。此外，這首歌我以前也聽過。”

“Well enough. I’d heard it before.”

“‘沒有關(guān)系，凡人終有一死亡’，”塞外之王輕聲道，“‘我卻嘗過多恩人的妻子’。告訴我，我們的骸骨之王說的可是實話？你殺了我的老朋友斷掌？”

“But what does it matter, for all men must die,” the King-beyond-the-Wall said lightly, “and I’ve tasted the Dornishman’s wife. Tell me, does my Lord of Bones speak truly? Did you slay my old friend the Halfhand?”

“是的?！彪m然不是由我獨自完成。

“I did.” Though it was his doing more than mine.

“影子塔不會再如以前那般可畏了，”國王語帶悲傷，“科林雖為我的對手，但也曾是我的弟兄，因此……我應(yīng)該感激你呢，瓊恩·雪諾？還是應(yīng)該詛咒你？”他給了瓊恩一個嘲弄的笑。

“The Shadow Tower will never again seem as fearsome,” the king said with sadness in his voice. “Qhorin was my enemy. But also my brother, once. So … shall I thank you for killing him, Jon Snow? Or curse you?” He gave Jon a mocking smile.

塞外之王沒有國王的樣子，甚至不像個野人。他中等身材，苗條，尖臉，一雙精明的棕色眼睛，還有棕色長發(fā)——只不過此時已經(jīng)泰半灰白了。他頭頂沒有王冠，手臂沒有金環(huán)，頸項沒有寶鏈，總而言之，一點裝飾也無。他穿的是羊毛衫和皮衣，全身上下惟一引人注目是襤褸的黑羊毛斗篷，其上有幾個長長的裂口被褪色的紅絲線縫補起來。

The King-beyond-the-Wall looked nothing like a king, nor even much a wildling. He was of middling height, slender, sharp-faced, with shrewd brown eyes and long brown hair that had gone mostly to grey. There was no crown on his head, no gold rings on his arms, no jewels at his throat, not even a gleam of silver. He wore wool and leather, and his only garment of note was his ragged black wool cloak, its long tears patched with faded red silk.

“你應(yīng)該感激我除掉了你的對手，”最后瓊恩說，“同時詛咒我害死了你的朋友?！?/p>

“You ought to thank me for killing your enemy,” Jon said finally, “and curse me for killing your friend.”

“哈哈！”白胡子的男子叫道，“說得好！”

“Har!” boomed the white-bearded man. “Well answered!”

“同意?！甭埂だ椎率疽猸偠骺拷?，“你想加入，就得先了解我們。那個你誤以為是我的人叫斯迪，為瑟恩的馬格拿——馬格拿在古語中意思是‘領(lǐng)主大人’”曼斯轉(zhuǎn)向白胡子，無耳的男人冷冷地瞪著瓊恩，“這位兇猛的小雞吞食者是我忠誠的托蒙德，那位女人——”

“Agreed.” Mance Rayder beckoned Jon closer. “If you would join us, you’d best know us. The man you took for me is Styr, Magnar of Thenn. Magnar means ‘lord’ in the Old Tongue.” The earless man stared at Jon coldly as Mance turned to the white-bearded one. “Our ferocious chicken-eater here is my loyal Tormund. The woman—”

托蒙德不依，“等等，你報了斯迪的頭銜，也該說說我的。”

Tormund rose to his feet. “Hold. You gave Styr his style, give me mine.”

曼斯·雷德微笑?！叭缒闼?。瓊恩·雪諾，在你面前是巨人克星托蒙德，吹牛大王，吹號者，以及破冰人。他也是雷拳托蒙德，雪熊之夫，紅廳的蜜酒之王，生靈之父和諸神的代言人?！?/p>

Mance Rayder laughed. “As you wish. Jon Snow, before you stands Tormund Giantsbane, Tall-talker, Horn-blower, and Breaker of Ice. And here also Tormund Thunderfist, Husband to Bears, the Mead-king of Ruddy Hall, Speaker to Gods and Father of Hosts.”

“這還差不多?！蓖忻傻碌?，“幸會，瓊恩·雪諾，我雖瞧不起什么史塔克，卻對狼靈感興趣?！?/p>

“That sounds more like me,” said Tormund. “Well met, Jon Snow. I am fond o’ wargs, as it happens, though not o’ Starks.”

“火盆邊那位好女人，”曼斯·雷德續(xù)道，“是妲娜?！睉言械呐诵邼匦π?。“你務(wù)必像待王后一般地待她，她懷著我的孩子。”他轉(zhuǎn)向剩下的兩人。“這位美人是她妹妹瓦邇，瓦邇身邊的年青人賈爾則是她的新寵物?！?/p>

“The good woman at the brazier,” Mance Rayder went on, “is Dalla.” The pregnant woman smiled shyly. “Treat her like you would any queen, she is carrying my child.” He turned to the last two. “This beauty is her sister Val. Young Jarl beside her is her latest pet.”

“我不是別人的寵物，”賈爾兇猛而陰沉地說。

“I am no man’s pet,” said Jarl, dark and fierce.

“瓦邇又不是男人①，”白胡子托蒙德嗤之以鼻，“你給我搞清楚，小子，曼斯可沒說錯?！?/p>

“And Val’s no man,” white-bearded Tormund snorted. “You ought to have noticed that by now, lad.”

“你已經(jīng)認識我們了，瓊恩·雪諾，”曼斯·雷德道，“這就是塞外之王和他的宮廷。現(xiàn)在輪到你說。你從哪兒來？”

“So there you have us, Jon Snow,” said Mance Rayder. “The King-beyond-the-Wall and his court, such as it is. And now some words from you, I think. Where did you come from?”

“我來自臨冬城，”他說，“這次是從黑城堡出發(fā)。”

“Winterfell,” he said, “by way of Castle Black.”

“你為何背井離鄉(xiāng)，來到乳河上游？”他不待瓊恩回答，望向叮當(dāng)衫，“他們有多少人？”

“And what brings you up the Milkwater, so far from the fires of home?” He did not wait for Jon’s answer, but looked at once to Rattleshirt. “How many were they?”

“五個。宰了三個，抓到這小子，還有一個上了山，騎馬無法追蹤?！?/p>

“Five. Three’s dead and the boy’s here. T’other went up a mountainside where no horse could follow.”

雷德的目光再次與瓊恩交匯?！澳銈冎挥形鍌€？藏了沒的人沒有？”

Rayder’s eyes met Jon’s again. “Was it only the five of you? Or are more of your brothers skulking about?”

“不，我們是四個加上斷掌，科林一個能頂二十個?！?/p>

“We were four and the Halfhand. Qhorin was worth twenty common men.”

塞外之王哈哈大笑，“不錯，大家都這么說。還有一個問題……黑城堡里的新手跟著一群影子塔的游騎兵，這又是為何？”

The King-beyond-the-Wall smiled at that. “Some thought so. Still … a boy from Castle Black with rangers from the Shadow Tower? How did that come to be?”

瓊恩早就備妥說辭：“司令大人把我派到斷掌手下鍛煉，因此我參加了巡邏?！?/p>

Jon had his lie all ready. “The Lord Commander sent me to the Halfhand for seasoning, so he took me on his ranging.”

斯迪馬格拿皺眉道，“你是說，巡邏……烏鴉會到風(fēng)聲峽來巡邏？”

Styr the Magnar frowned at that. “Ranging, you call it … why would crows come ranging up the Skirling Pass?”

“村莊紛紛被遺棄，”瓊恩實話實說，“好象所有的自由民都突然消失了?！?/p>

“The villages were deserted,” Jon said, truthfully. “It was as if all the free folk had vanished.”

“啊……消失了，”曼斯·雷德道，“消失的可不止是自由民而已。誰告訴你我們在這兒，瓊恩·雪諾？”

“Vanished, aye,” said Mance Rayder. “And not just the free folk. Who told you where we were, Jon Snow?”

托蒙德噴噴鼻息，“那還用問，肯定是卡斯特唄，否則就當(dāng)我是靦腆少女好了。我跟你說過，曼斯，該砍下那東西的腦袋?！?/p>

Tormund snorted. “It were Craster, or I’m a blushing maid. I told you, Mance, that creature needs to be shorter by a head.”

國王生氣地掃了這位長者一眼?！巴忻傻拢傆幸惶炷愕脤W(xué)會在說話前動動腦子。我當(dāng)然知道是卡斯特。我的目的是考察瓊恩?！?/p>

The king gave the older man an irritated look. “Tormund, some day try thinking before you speak. I know it was Craster. I asked Jon to see if he would tell it true.”

“哈哈，”托蒙德吐口唾沫，“好，我閉嘴！”他朝瓊恩咧嘴笑道，“看啊，小子，這就是為啥他能當(dāng)國王而我不行。我喝得多，打仗強，歌也比他唱得響，塊頭更是他的三倍，可曼斯比我狡猾。你知道，他從前是個烏鴉，哈哈，詭計多端的鳥兒。”

“Har.” Tormund spat. “Well, I stepped in that!” He grinned at Jon. “See, lad, that’s why he’s king and I’m not. I can outdrink, outfight, and outsing him, and my member’s thrice the size o’ his, but Mance has cunning. He was raised a crow, you know, and the crow’s a tricksy bird.”

“我想和這小子單獨談?wù)?，骸骨之王，”曼斯·雷德對叮?dāng)衫說，“還有其他人，都走吧?！?/p>

“I would speak with the lad alone, my Lord of Bones,” Mance Rayder said to Rattleshirt. “Leave us, all of you.”

“什么，我也要走？”托蒙德道。

“What, me as well?” said Tormund.

“不，你例外?！甭拐f。

“No, you especially,” said Mance.

“才怪！我才不會在不受歡迎的地方吃東西咧，”托蒙德站起身，“我和我的小雞還是離開吧。”他抓起另一串雞肉，塞進斗篷襯里縫的口袋，說一聲“哈！”算是道別，然后舔著手指走出帳門。大家跟著他離開，除了女人妲娜。

“I eat in no hall where I’m not welcome.” Tormund got to his feet. “Me and the hens are leaving.” He snatched another chicken off the brazier, shoved it into a pocket sewn in the lining of his cloak, said “Har,” and left licking his fingers. The others followed him out, all but the woman Dalla.

“隨便坐?！钡热藗冸x開后雷德說，“餓嗎？托蒙德還留了兩只鳥?！?/p>

“Sit, if you like,” Rayder said when they were gone. “Are you hungry? Tormund left us two birds at least.”

“我很榮幸能吃您的東西，陛下，謝謝您?！?/p>

“I would be pleased to eat, Your Grace. And thank you.”

“陛下？”國王笑了，“沒人能從自由民嘴里聽到這個頭銜。他們多半直接叫我曼斯，少數(shù)人稱我為曼斯頭領(lǐng)。來角蜜酒？”

“Your Grace?” The king smiled. “That’s not a style one often hears from the lips of free folk. I’m Mance to most, The Mance to some. Will you take a horn of mead?”

“樂意之至。”瓊恩說。

“Gladly,” said Jon.

妲娜切割著烤脆的小雞，給了他倆一人一半，國王則豪飲蜜酒。瓊恩摘下手套，用手指幫助進食，他餓得厲害，吮吸著骨頭上每片肉丁。

The king poured himself as Dalla cut the well-crisped hens apart and brought them each a half. Jon peeled off his gloves and ate with his fingers, sucking every morsel of meat off the bones.

“托蒙德說得沒錯，”曼斯·雷德邊撕面包邊講，“黑烏鴉確實是種詭計多端的鳥兒……而我在你出生之前就是烏鴉了，瓊恩·雪諾，所以當(dāng)心喲，千萬別對我?；ㄕ??！?/p>

“Tormund spoke truly,” said Mance Rayder as he ripped apart a loaf of bread. “The black crow is a tricksy bird, that’s so … but I was a crow when you were no bigger than the babe in Dalla’s belly, Jon Snow. So take care not to play tricksy with me.”

“如您所說，陛——曼斯?！?/p>

“As you say, Your—Mance.”

國王忍俊不禁，“曼斯陛下！有何不可？好啦，我答應(yīng)要講故事，講講我為什么認識你。你想明白了嗎？”

The king laughed. “Your Mance! Why not? I promised you a tale before, of how I knew you. Have you puzzled it out yet?”

瓊恩搖搖頭，“叮當(dāng)衫預(yù)先通報過？”

Jon shook his head. “Did Rattleshirt send word ahead?”

“用鳥？我們沒有訓(xùn)練有素的烏鴉。不，我記得你的臉，因為以前見過。見過兩次。”

“By wing? We have no trained ravens. No, I knew your face. I’ve seen it before. Twice.”

這沒道理。瓊恩使勁想想，終于弄明白了?！爱?dāng)您還是守夜人的兄弟時……”

It made no sense at first, but as Jon turned it over in his mind, dawn broke. “When you were a brother of the Watch …”

“非常正確！是的，那是第一次。當(dāng)年的你還是個小孩，我則全身黑衣，作為前任司令官科格爾的十二名護衛(wèi)之一，護送他前來臨冬城拜訪你父親。我在庭院周圍的內(nèi)城墻上漫步，撞見你和你哥哥羅柏。前天夜里下過雪，你倆個在城門上堆了一大堆，等著某個倒霉鬼從下面經(jīng)過?！?/p>

“Very good! Yes, that was the first time. You were just a boy, and I was all in black, one of a dozen riding escort to old Lord Commander Qorgyle when he came down to see your father at Winterfell. I was walking the wall around the yard when I came on you and your brother Robb. It had snowed the night before, and the two of you had built a great mountain above the gate and were waiting for someone likely to pass underneath.”

“我記起來了！”瓊恩帶著驚訝的笑容說。一個在城墻上漫步的年輕黑衣兄弟，是的……“你發(fā)誓不會暴露我們的?！?/p>

“I remember,” said Jon with a startled laugh. A young black brother on the wallwalk, yes … “You swore not to tell.”

“而我守住了誓言。至少，守住了這個。”

“And kept my vow. That one, at least.”

“我們把雪倒在胖湯姆頭上，他是我父親手下最遲鈍的侍衛(wèi)?！焙髞硭麄z被湯姆追得滿院子跑，直到三人的臉頰都變得像熟透的蘋果一般紅?！翱赡阏f見過我兩次，另一次是什么時候呢？”

“We dumped the snow on Fat Tom. He was Father’s slowest guardsman.” Tom had chased them around the yard afterward, until all three were red as autumn apples. “But you said you saw me twice. When was the other time?”

“當(dāng)勞勃國王前來臨冬城任命你父親為御前首相的時候，”塞外之王輕聲道。

“When King Robert came to Winterfell to make your father Hand,” the King-beyond-the-Wall said lightly.

瓊恩的眼睛由于難以置信而瞪得老大，“那怎么可能？”

Jon’s eyes widened in disbelief. “That can’t be so.”

“那是事實。你父親知道國王已在途中后，便給長城上的弟弟班揚寫信，讓他趕來參加宴會。黑衣兄弟和自由民之間的交易來往比你所了解的要深得多，所以消息很快也傳到了我耳中。這個誘惑我無法抗拒。你叔叔沒見過我，所以我不擔(dān)心他，我也不認為你父親會記得多年以前匆匆飛過的一只小烏鴉。我打算親眼看看勞勃，國王對國王，同時也想多了解一下你叔叔班揚。那時他是首席游騎兵，是我子民的災(zāi)星。所以我騎上最快的馬，說走就走?！?/p>

“It was. When your father learned the king was coming, he sent word to his brother Benjen on the Wall, so he might come down for the feast. There is more commerce between the black brothers and the free folk than you know, and soon enough word came to my ears as well. It was too choice a chance to resist. Your uncle did not know me by sight, so I had no fear from that quarter, and I did not think your father was like to remember a young crow he’d met briefly years before. I wanted to see this Robert with my own eyes, king to king, and get the measure of your uncle Benjen as well. He was First Ranger by then, and the bane of all my people. So I saddled my fleetest horse, and rode.”

“可是，”瓊恩提出異議，“長城……”

“But,” Jon objected, “the Wall …”

“長城能夠阻止軍隊，卻不能擋住獨身的漢子。我?guī)吓煤鸵话y鹿，在長車樓附近攀過冰墻，越過新贈地，再南行數(shù)里格后買馬。我日夜兼程，而勞勃帶著沉重的大輪宮以便他的王后能舒服地旅行，因此在臨冬城以南約一天騎程的地方終于被我趕上，我隨即加入到王家隊伍中。你知道，自由騎手和雇傭騎士常湊到王族身邊，希望能留在御前服務(wù)，而我的琵琶使我很容易被接納，”他笑意不減，“我會長城內(nèi)外所有淫曲小調(diào)咧。晚宴時你也在，當(dāng)晚你父親招待勞勃，我在大廳末端的長凳上和一幫自由騎手對飲，邊聽舊鎮(zhèn)的奧蘭多彈長豎琴，歌唱長眠于海底的君王，邊吃你父親的烤肉和蜜酒。我好好瞧了瞧弒君者和小惡魔……也瞄到過艾德公爵的孩子們和他們腳邊的小狼?！?/p>

“The Wall can stop an army, but not a man alone. I took a lute and a bag of silver, scaled the ice near Long Barrow, walked a few leagues south of the New Gift, and bought a horse. All in all I made much better time than Robert, who was traveling with a ponderous great wheelhouse to keep his queen in comfort. A day south of Winterfell I came up on him and fell in with his company. Freeriders and hedge knights are always attaching themselves to royal processions, in hopes of finding service with the king, and my lute gained me easy acceptance.” He laughed. “I know every bawdy song that’s ever been made, north or south of the Wall. So there you are. The night your father feasted Robert, I sat in the back of his hall on a bench with the other freeriders, listening to Orland of Oldtown play the high harp and sing of dead kings beneath the sea. I betook of your lord father’s meat and mead, had a look at Kingslayer and Imp … and made passing note of Lord Eddard’s children and the wolf pups that ran at their heels.”

“您就像呤游詩人貝爾，”瓊恩說，他憶起耶哥蕊特在霜雪之牙上給他講的故事，那天晚上他差點殺了她。

“Bael the Bard,” said Jon, remembering the tale that Ygritte had told him in the Frostfangs, the night he’d almost killed her.

“我像他就好了。啊，貝爾的事績很讓人激動……我卻沒膽子偷走你某位妹妹。貝爾寫下自己的歌謠，并永世流傳，而我只會翻唱比我出色的人編的曲子。還要蜜酒嗎？”

“Would that I were. I will not deny that Bael’s exploit inspired mine own … but I did not steal either of your sisters that I recall. Bael wrote his own songs, and lived them. I only sing the songs that better men have made. More mead?”

“不了，”瓊恩說，“假如您被發(fā)現(xiàn)……被抓住……”

“No,” said Jon. “If you had been discovered … taken …”

“你父親不會砍我的頭，”國王聳聳肩，“因為我在他的廳堂吃飯，受賓客權(quán)利的保護。有關(guān)賓客的法則同先民一樣古老，如心樹一般神圣?！彼紳M碎面包渣和雞骨頭的桌板比了比，“所以啰，在這里你也是賓客，有我的保護，不會受傷害……至少，今夜如此。說實話，瓊恩·雪諾，你是個因恐懼而變節(jié)的懦夫呢，還是別有原因？”

“Your father would have had my head off.” The king gave a shrug. “Though once I had eaten at his board I was protected by guest right. The laws of hospitality are as old as the First Men, and sacred as a heart tree.” He gestured at the board between them, the broken bread and chicken bones. “Here you are the guest, and safe from harm at my hands … this night, at least. So tell me truly, Jon Snow. Are you a craven who turned your cloak from fear, or is there another reason that brings you to my tent?”

不管有沒有賓客權(quán)利，瓊恩·雪諾知道自己正如履薄冰，稍有失足，便會萬劫不復(fù)，死無葬身之地。每個詞都得仔細掂量，他告誡自己，一邊喝下一大口蜜酒拖延攤牌時間。放下角杯時，他道：“您先告訴我您的理由，然后我就說?！?/p>

Guest right or no, Jon Snow knew he walked on rotten ice here. One false step and he might plunge through, into water cold enough to stop his heart. Weigh every word before you speak it, he told himself. He took a long draught of mead to buy time for his answer. When he set the horn aside he said, “Tell me why you turned your cloak, and I’ll tell you why I turned mine.”

正如瓊恩所預(yù)期，曼斯·雷德笑了，這位國王很明顯是個自信滿滿的人?！拔視嬖V你我棄職的經(jīng)過，我會的?！?/p>

Mance Rayder smiled, as Jon had hoped he would. The king was plainly a man who liked the sound of his own voice. “You will have heard stories of my desertion, I have no doubt.”

“有人說您為頂王冠，有人說您為個女人，還有人說您天生有野人的血統(tǒng)?！?/p>

“Some say it was for a crown. Some say for a woman. Others that you had the wildling blood.”

“野人的血統(tǒng)是先民的血統(tǒng)，先民的血統(tǒng)也就是史塔克家的血統(tǒng)。至于王冠，你在這兒看到了嗎？”

“The wildling blood is the blood of the First Men, the same blood that flows in the veins of the Starks. As to a crown, do you see one?”

“我看到了一個女人?！彼诚蜴?。

“I see a woman.” He glanced at Dalla.

曼斯抱攏她，“不，我夫人是清白的。從你父親的城堡回歸途中，我遇見了她，斷掌是朽木做的雕塑，我可是有血有肉的人，著迷于女性的魅力……和四分之三的黑衣兄弟一樣。說真的，黑衣人中有的家伙干過的女人是那可憐國王的十倍。你得再猜，瓊恩*雪諾?！?/p>

Mance took her by the hand and pulled her close. “My lady is blameless. I met her on my return from your father’s castle. The Halfhand was carved of old oak, but I am made of flesh, and I have a great fondness for the charms of women … which makes me no different from three-quarters of the Watch. There are men still wearing black who have had ten times as many women as this poor king. You must guess again, Jon Snow.”

瓊恩考慮了一會，“斷掌說您喜歡野人的音樂?！?/p>

Jon considered a moment. “The Halfhand said you had a passion for wildling music.”

“這沒錯，已經(jīng)接近答案了，但還不準確。”曼斯·雷德站起來，松開斗篷的搭扣，將其鋪在桌面上。“我是為這個?！?/p>

“I did. I do. That’s closer to the mark, yes. But not a hit.” Mance Rayder rose, unfastened the clasp that held his cloak, and swept it over the bench. “It was for this.”

“為一頂斗篷？”

“A cloak?”

“一頂誓言效命的守夜人兄弟的黑羊毛斗篷，”塞外之王說?！坝幸淮危覀兂鲅策墪r打死了一只美麗的巨鹿，正忙著剝皮呢，不料血腥味引來了附近巢穴里的影子山貓。是我把它趕走的，可斗篷在打斗中被撕成了碎條。你看到了嗎？這里，這里，還有這里？”他咯咯笑道，“那畜生還撕爛了我的手臂和脊背，我比那頭鹿流的血還要多。弟兄們害怕我在返回影子塔讓穆林學(xué)士診治以前就死掉，所以把我抬到一個野人村莊，因為據(jù)說那里有個老女巫懂些醫(yī)術(shù)。不巧的是，她已經(jīng)死了，只留下一個女兒。是她，替我清洗傷痕，縫好創(chuàng)口，還喂我粥和藥水，直到我康復(fù)。她用亞夏產(chǎn)的鮮紅絲線縫好我破碎的斗篷，絲線是她祖母從一只被沖到冰封海岸的遇難小船上發(fā)現(xiàn)的。這是她最大的財寶，是她給我的禮物?！彼讯放衽丶缟??！盎氐接白铀麄儚膫}庫里給了我一件新的羊毛斗篷，一件全黑的斗篷，整潔清爽，配上黑色的馬褲和黑色的靴子，黑色的上衣和黑色的鎖甲。這件新斗篷沒有磨損、沒有劃痕、沒有裂口……也沒有紅色。守夜人必須穿著黑衣，丹尼斯·梅利斯特爵士嚴厲地提醒我，當(dāng)我是健忘者。他還說，你的舊斗篷可以燒掉了?！?/p>

“The black wool cloak of a Sworn Brother of the Night’s Watch,” said the King-beyond-the-Wall. “One day on a ranging we brought down a fine big elk. We were skinning it when the smell of blood drew a shadow-cat out of its lair. I drove it off, but not before it shredded my cloak to ribbons. Do you see? Here, here, and here?” He chuckled. “It shredded my arm and back as well, and I bled worse than the elk. My brothers feared I might die before they got me back to Maester Mullin at the Shadow Tower, so they carried me to a wildling village where we knew an old wisewoman did some healing. She was dead, as it happened, but her daughter saw to me. Cleaned my wounds, sewed me up, and fed me porridge and potions until I was strong enough to ride again. And she sewed up the rents in my cloak as well, with some scarlet silk from Asshai that her grandmother had pulled from the wreck of a cog washed up on the Frozen Shore. It was the greatest treasure she had, and her gift to me.” He swept the cloak back over his shoulders. “But at the Shadow Tower, I was given a new wool cloak from stores, black and black, and trimmed with black, to go with my black breeches and black boots, my black doublet and black mail. The new cloak had no frays nor rips nor tears … and most of all, no red. The men of the Night’s Watch dressed in black, Ser Denys Mallister reminded me sternly, as if I had forgotten. My old cloak was fit for burning now, he said.

“第二天早上我就離開……去了一個親吻不再是罪惡，人們可以自由選擇斗篷的地方?！彼劬o搭扣，重新坐下。“你呢，瓊恩·雪諾？”

“I left the next morning … for a place where a kiss was not a crime, and a man could wear any cloak he chose.” He closed the clasp and sat back down again. “And you, Jon Snow?”

瓊恩又吮下一口蜜酒?？磥?，只有一個說法能讓他信服?！澳f您去過臨冬城，參加過我父親招待勞勃國王的晚宴?！?/p>

Jon took another swallow of mead. There is only one tale that he might believe. “You say you were at Winterfell, the night my father feasted King Robert.”

“是的，我的確在那里?！?/p>

“I did say it, for I was.”

“那您應(yīng)當(dāng)一清二楚才對。喬佛里王子和托曼王子，彌塞菈公主，我兄弟羅柏、布蘭和瑞肯，我妹妹艾莉亞與珊莎，他們走過中央的通道，萬眾矚目，而落座的地方也僅比國王和公爵的高臺低一席。”

“Then you saw us all. Prince Joffrey and Prince Tommen, Princess Myrcella, my brothers Robb and Bran and Rickon, my sisters Arya and Sansa. You saw them walk the center aisle with every eye upon them and take their seats at the table just below the dais where the king and queen were seated.”

“如何？”

“I remember.”

“您看見我坐哪兒了嗎，曼斯？”他向前靠了靠，“您看見他們把私生子扔哪兒了嗎？”

“And did you see where I was seated, Mance?” He leaned forward. “Did you see where they put the bastard?”

曼斯·雷德長久審視著瓊恩的臉孔?！拔蚁朐摓槟阏壹露放?，”國王邊說，邊伸出手。

Mance Rayder looked at Jon’s face for a long moment. “I think we had best find you a new cloak,” the king said, holding out his hand.