中英文本

23 Man's Best Friend
人类最好的朋友
Mr. Rich was a wealthy man and a great benefactor to the community.
瑞奇先生是个有钱人，也是这个社区的一大行善者。
During his lifetime, he bestowed many gifts upon the poor and disabled.
他一生中为穷人和残疾人捐赠了许多礼物。
His sudden death bereaved us all of his unique wisdom and benign sense of humor.
他的猝死让我们所有人再也无法拥有他那独特的智慧和亲切的幽默。
He would always be remembered for being a kind and benevolent man.
我们将永远铭记他的善良和慷慨。
Besides that, he would also be remembered for trying to keep peace among his relatives.
除此之外，我们还将记住他为维持亲属间和睦关系所作出的努力。
However, it wasn't long before Mr. Rich relatives began to bicker over who should inherit his money.
然而，瑞奇先生死后不久，他的诸多亲属就开始为分财产而争吵不休。
The fighting was not beneficial to anyone.
争吵对任何人都没有好处。
They berated each other for being selfish and beseeched the court to grant a reading of the will.
他们责骂彼此的自私，并恳求法院准许他们阅读一次遗嘱。
The bicameral court assigned the reading of the will to its superior branch and scheduled the reading for Monday.
两院制法院将这一事宜交给了两院中的最高级法院处理，并定于周一读遗嘱。
On Monday morning, the horde of people besieged the superior courthouse.
周一上午，一大堆人将高级法院挤了个水泄不通。
The relatives who believed they would be beneficiaries gathered in front of the judge's bench.
那些自认为会是遗产受益人的亲友们聚集在法官席前，
They were anxious to hear what benefits of bequest they would receive.
他们急着想知道自己将得到的好处或者说遗产。
Beverages were served to keep everyone cool and comfortable.
法庭上还端来了饮料，让他们凉爽些、舒服些。
Finally, the judge entered the room and sat down.
最后，法官终于走出法院，坐下身来，
The will, which had been sealed, lay beneath him.
那份密封了的遗嘱就躺在他眼皮子底下。
Reaching down, he picked up the will and unsealed it.
他伸出手，拿起遗嘱，将它拆开。
The he read it along.
然后，大声念道：
“Greeting to everyone.
“大家好。
I know that all of you are probably arguing over how much money you should receive from me.
我知道你们大家可能会正在为分我的遗产吵得不可开交。
Please don't feel betrayed when I say, among you, there isn't a single selfless person without a bias.
请不要感觉受到背叛，如果我说你们中间没有一个既无偏见又无私心的人。
For this reason, I have decided to bequeath my entire fortune to the only loyal friend that I have, Ralph.
正因为这样，我已决定将我的所有财产留给我唯一拥有的忠实朋友——拉尔夫。
Ralph, you're the finest friend and pet dog a man could ever have!”
拉尔夫，你是一个人有生以来可能拥有的最好的朋友和最好的爱犬。”

词语解释

beneath prep./adv. 在……之下
benefactor n. 行善者，捐助者
beneficial adj. 有益的，有利的
beneficiary n. （礼物、馈赠等的）受益者，（遗产的）受益人
benefit n. 利益，好处；vt. 得意，得到好处
benevolent adj. 慈善的，仁义的
benign adj. （人）亲切和蔼的；（病）良性的
bequeath n. 遗赠，遗留
bequest n. 遗产，遗物
berate v. 猛烈责骂
bereave v. 剥夺，夺去
beseech v. 恳求，祈求
besides adv. 除了…..还有
besiege vt. 围攻；拥在…周围；围住；困扰
bestow vt. 给予，赐赠（祝福、奖励、荣誉等）
betray vt. 背叛；（非故意地）暴露，显露
beverage n. (除水之外的)饮料
bias n. 偏见，偏好
bicameral adj. 两院制的，有两个议院的
bicker vi. 口角，斗嘴