我头一次坐往南的火车，是一九九八年。
Wǒ tóu yī cì zuò wǎng nán de huǒchē, shì yī jiǔ jiǔ bā nián.
The first time I took a train south was in 1998.
那年我考上了南方的一所大学。
Nà nián wǒ kǎo shàng le nánfāng de yī suǒ dàxué.
That year I was admitted to a university in the south.
从家到学校，要坐二十三个小时的慢车。
Cóng jiā dào xuéxiào, yào zuò èr shí sān gè xiǎoshí de màn chē.
From home to school took twenty three hours on a slow train.
母亲送我到车站，给我煮了十个鸡蛋。
Mǔqīn sòng wǒ dào chēzhàn, gěi wǒ zhǔ le shí gè jīdàn.
Mother saw me to the station and boiled me ten eggs.
她说，路上省着吃。
Tā shuō, lùshang shěng zhe chī.
She said, eat them sparingly on the way.
那时候的火车是绿色的。
Nà shíhou de huǒchē shì lǜsè de.
Trains in those days were green.
窗子可以推开，风一直往里吹。
Chuāng zi kěyǐ tuī kāi, fēng yìzhí wǎng lǐ chuī.
The windows could be pushed open, and the wind blew right in.
我买的是最便宜的那种座位。
Wǒ mǎi de shì zuì piányi de nà zhǒng zuòwèi.
I bought the cheapest kind of seat.
一节车厢里坐着一百多个人。
Yī jié chēxiāng lǐ zuò zhe yī bǎi duō gèrén.
One carriage held more than a hundred people.
还有人买不到座位，就站在过道里。
Hái yǒu rén mǎi bù dào zuòwèi, jiù zhàn zài guòdào lǐ.
Those who could not get a seat stood in the aisle.
过道里也坐满了人，走路要侧着身子。
Guòdào lǐ yě zuò mǎn le rén, zǒulù yào cè zhe shēnzi.
The aisle was full too, so you walked sideways.
到了夜里，座位底下也躺了人。
Dào le yè lǐ, zuòwèi dǐxia yě tǎng le rén.
By night, people were even lying under the seats.
空气里是面的味道，是汗的味道。
Kōngqì lǐ shì miàn de wèidào, shì hàn de wèidào.
The air smelled of noodles and of sweat.
还有母亲煮的那十个鸡蛋的味道。
Hái yǒu mǔqīn zhǔ de nà shí gè jīdàn de wèidào.
And the smell of the ten eggs my mother had boiled.
天黑下来，车厢里的声音反而多了。
Tiān hēi xiàlái, chēxiāng lǐ de shēngyīn fǎn’ér duō le.
When the sky darkened, the carriage grew noisier.
打牌的，讲自己事情的，做什么的都有。
Dǎ pái de, jiǎng zìjǐ shìqing de, zuò shénme de dōu yǒu.
Card players, storytellers, every kind was there.
谁也不认识谁，可是没有人把自己当外人。
Shéi/shuí yě bù rènshi shéi/shuí, kěshì méiyǒu rén bǎ zìjǐ dāng wài rén.
Nobody knew anybody, yet no one acted like a stranger.
我的对面坐着一位老人，去南方看儿子。
Wǒ de duìmiàn zuò zhe yī wèi lǎorén, qù nánfāng kàn érzi.
Across from me sat an old man going south to see his son.
他把座位让出一半，让我躺着睡。
Tā bǎ zuòwèi ràng chū yíbàn, ràng wǒ tǎng zhe shuì.
He gave up half his seat so I could lie down and sleep.
我说不用，他说他老了，睡得少。
Wǒ shuō búyòng, tā shuō tā lǎo le, shuì de shǎo.
I said no need; he said he was old and slept little.
后半夜我睡着了，身上多了一件衣服。
Hòu bànyè wǒ shuì zhe le, shēn shàng duō le yī jiàn yīfu.
In the small hours I fell asleep, with an extra coat on me.
是那位老人的衣服。
Shì nà wèi lǎorén de yīfu.
It was the old man's coat.
早上我想还他，他摆了摆手。
Zǎoshang wǒ xiǎng hái tā, tā bǎi le bǎi shǒu.
In the morning I tried to return it; he waved it off.
他说，出门在外，都是一家人。
Tā shuō, chūmén zài wài, dōu shì yī jiārén.
He said, away from home, we are all one family.
我当时不懂，出门在外这四个字有多重。
Wǒ dāngshí bù dǒng, chūmén zài wài zhè sì gè zì yǒu duō chóng.
I did not understand then how heavy the words away from home can be.
那件衣服，我一直没有还成。
Nà jiàn yīfu, wǒ yìzhí méiyǒu hái chéng.
That coat, I never managed to give back.
老人在前面的小站就下车了。
Lǎorén zài qiánmiàn de xiǎo zhàn jiù xià chē le.
The old man got off at a small station ahead.
我连他的名字都没有来得及问。
Wǒ lián tā de míngzi dōu méiyǒu láidejí wèn.
I never even got to ask his name.
二十多年过去，火车早就变了。
Èr shí duō nián guòqù, huǒchē zǎo jiù biàn le.
More than twenty years on, trains have long changed.
绿色的慢车没有了，换成了白色的快车。
Lǜsè de màn chē méiyǒu le, huàn chéng le báisè de kuài chē.
The green slow trains are gone, replaced by white fast ones.
从家到那座城，现在只要五个小时。
Cóng jiā dào nà zuò chéng, xiànzài zhǐyào wǔ gè xiǎoshí.
From home to that city now takes only five hours.
座位干净了，空气好了，窗子打不开了。
Zuòwèi gānjìng le, kōngqì hǎo le, chuāng zi dǎ bù kāi le.
The seats are clean, the air is good, and the windows no longer open.
车厢里很安静，只听得见轮子的声音。
Chēxiāng lǐ hěn ānjìng, zhī tīng de jiàn lúnzi de shēngyīn.
The carriage is quiet; only the wheels can be heard.
人人低头看手机，没有人说话。
Rén rén dītóu kàn shǒujī, méiyǒu rén shuōhuà.
Everyone looks down at a phone; no one talks.
五个小时里，对面的人可以不看你一眼。
Wǔ gè xiǎoshí lǐ, duìmiàn de rén kěyǐ bù kàn nǐ yī yǎn.
In five hours, the person across may not look at you once.
快是快了，可是路上没有了人。
Kuài shì kuài le, kěshì lùshang méiyǒu le rén.
It is fast, all right, but the road has lost its people.
从前二十三个小时的路，能装下很多陌生人。
Cóngqián èr shí sān gè xiǎoshí de lù, néng zhuāng xià hěn duō mòshēng rén.
The old twenty three hour road could hold many strangers.
现在五个小时的路，只装得下沉默。
Xiànzài wǔ gè xiǎoshí de lù, zhī zhuāng de xià chénmò.
The five hour road of today holds only silence.
去年冬天，我故意找了一趟慢车。
Qùnián dōngtiān, wǒ gùyì zhǎo le yī tàng màn chē.
Last winter, I deliberately found a slow train.
是那种还在小站停的绿色火车。
Shì nà zhǒng hái zài xiǎo zhàn tíng de lǜsè huǒchē.
The green kind that still stops at small stations.
从北边到南边，要开整整一天。
Cóng běi biān dào nán biān, yào kāi zhěngzhěng yī tiān.
From north to south it runs a whole day.
车上的人不多，空着一半的座位。
Chē shàng de rén bù duō, kōng zhe yíbàn de zuòwèi.
There were few passengers, and half the seats were empty.
我买了水，坐在窗边。
Wǒ mǎi le shuǐ, zuò zài chuāng biān.
I bought some water and sat by the window.
火车慢慢开，田野慢慢往后退。
Huǒchē màn màn kāi, tiányě màn màn wǎnghòu tuì.
The train ran slowly, and the fields slowly slid back.
太阳照在刚收过庄稼的田里，土地是黄的。
Tàiyáng zhào zài gāng shōu guò zhuāngjia de tián lǐ, tǔdì shì huáng de.
The sun shone on the newly harvested fields, and the earth was yellow.
一个村庄过去了，又一个村庄过来了。
Yī gè cūnzhuāng guòqù le, yòu yī gè cūnzhuāng guòlái le.
One village passed, and another village came.
有孩子站在田边，看火车开过去。
Yǒu háizi zhàn zài tián biān, kàn huǒchē kāi guòqù.
Children stood by the fields watching the train go by.
对面坐下一个小伙子，是去南方上学的。
Duìmiàn zuò xià yī gè xiǎohuǒzi, shì qù nánfāng shàngxué de.
A young man sat down across from me, headed south for school.
他戴着耳机，眼睛一直看手机。
Tā dài zhe ěrjī, yǎnjing yìzhí kàn shǒujī.
He wore earphones, his eyes fixed on his phone.
看了一会儿，他放下了手机。
Kàn le yíhuìr, tā fàng xià le shǒujī.
After a while, he put down his phone.
他说，这车怎么这么慢。
Tā shuō, zhè chē zěnme zhème màn.
He said, how can this train be so slow?
我说，慢有慢的好处。
Wǒ shuō, màn yǒu màn de hǎochù.
I said, slow has its own good.
你往窗外看。
Nǐ wǎng chuāng wài kàn.
Look out of the window.
他看了一会儿，说，原来冬天也有绿色。
Tā kàn le yíhuìr, shuō, yuánlái dōngtiān yě yǒu lǜsè.
He watched for a while and said, so winter has green too.
我们谈了三个小时。
Wǒmen tán le sān gè xiǎoshí.
We talked for three hours.
下车的时候，他要了我的电话。
Xià chē de shíhou, tā yào le wǒ de diànhuà.
When he got off, he asked for my phone number.
后来我们再也没有联系过。
Hòulái wǒmen zài yě méiyǒu liánxì guò.
We never contacted each other after that.
就像我和那位老人，没有再见过。
Jiù xiàng wǒ hé nà wèi lǎorén, méiyǒu zàijiàn guò.
Just as the old man and I never met again.
慢车上遇到的人，就是这样。
Màn chē shàng yùdào de rén, jiùshì zhèyàng.
People you meet on a slow train are like that.
陪你一段路，然后就散了。
Péi nǐ yī duàn lù, ránhòu jiù sǎn le.
They keep you company for a stretch, then part.
散了就散了，谁也不欠谁。
Sǎn le jiù sǎn le, shéi/shuí yě bù qiàn shéi/shuí.
Once parted, neither owes the other anything.
可是很多年以后，你还会记得他。
Kěshì hěn duō nián yǐhòu, nǐ hái huì jìde tā.
Yet many years later, you still remember him.
记得他让给你的那半个座位。
Jìde tā ràng gěi nǐ de nà bàn gè zuòwèi.
You remember the half seat he gave you.
记得他盖在你身上的那件衣服。
Jìde tā gài zài nǐ shēn shàng de nà jiàn yīfu.
You remember the coat he laid over you.
火车还在往南开。
Huǒchē hái zài wǎng nán kāi.
The train kept going south.
天一点一点暗下来。
Tiān yī diǎn yī diǎn àn xiàlái.
The sky darkened little by little.
田野看不见了，窗子上有了我自己的脸。
Tiányě kàn bújiàn le, chuāng zi shàng yǒu le wǒ zìjǐ de liǎn.
The fields vanished, and my own face appeared on the window.
那张脸老了，眼睛还是亮的。
Nà zhāng liǎn lǎo le, yǎnjing háishi liàng de.
That face had aged, but the eyes were still bright.
像一九九八年那个年轻人。
Xiàng yī jiǔ jiǔ bā nián nàge niánqīng rén.
Like that young man of 1998.
火车一摇一摇的，像一只手。
Huǒchē yī yáo yī yáo de, xiàng yī zhī shǒu.
The train rocked back and forth, like a hand.
把我摇回了二十多年前。
Bǎ wǒ yáo huí le èr shí duō nián qián.
It rocked me back twenty odd years.
也把那个年轻人，摇到了现在。
Yě bǎ nàge niánqīng rén, yáo dào le xiànzài.
And it rocked that young man into the present.