He was using the last of the year’s salted meat. It was a little past its best now, but still the rich savour of Perfectly Normal Beast meat was something unsurpassed in any of the Sandwich Maker’s previous experience. Next week it was anticipated that the Perfectly Normal Beasts would appear again for their regular migration, whereupon the whole village would once again be plunged into frenetic action: hunting the Beasts, killing perhaps six, maybe even seven dozen of the thousands that thundered past. Then the Beasts must be rapidly butchered and cleaned, with most of the meat salted to keep it through the winter months until the return migration in the spring, which would replenish their supplies.

他正用今年剩下的最后一点腌肉做三明治。现在已经稍微超过了它味道最鲜美的时段，但绝对正常兽那种丰厚的滋味还在，强过三明治大师以往尝过的任何一种肉类。根据预测，下一周绝对正常兽就会开始他们惯常的迁徙，那时整个村子都将再次陷入狂热：大家狩猎，在几千头隆隆而过的野兽中杀掉大约六打甚至七打。然后必须赶紧把它们切割，洗净；绝大部分的肉都要腌制起来，好让它们能坚持过整个冬天，直到春天绝对正常兽原路返回，补足村民们的储备。

The very best of the meat would be roasted straight away for the feast that marked the Autumn Passage. The celebrations would last for three days of sheer exuberance, dancing and stories that Old Thrashbarg would tell of how the hunt had gone, stories that he would have been busy sitting making up in his hut while the rest of the village was out doing the actual hunting.

最好的肉会立刻烧烤，用于庆祝秋天逝去的盛宴。活动会持续三天，大家尽情吃喝跳舞，听老刷希巴讲这次打猎的故事。村子里的其他人都会出去打猎，只有老刷希巴忙着坐在自己的茅屋里动脑筋，打猎的故事就是这么造出来的。

And then the very, very best of the meat would be saved from the feast and delivered cold to the Sandwich Maker. And the Sandwich Maker would exercise on it the skills that he had brought to them from the gods, and make the exquisite Sandwiches of the Third Season, of which the whole village would partake before beginning, the next day, to prepare themselves for the rigours of the coming winter.

最最好的肉会从宴会上留下来，凉了以后送到三明治大师家里，三明治大师会施展他从天神那儿带来的技艺，做出绝妙的第三季三明治。整个村子都会一起分享，然后，在第二天，准备好对抗即将到来的严冬。

Today he was just making ordinary sandwiches, if such delicacies, so lovingly crafted, could ever be called ordinary. Today his assistant was away so the Sandwich Maker was applying his own garnish, which he was happy to do. He was happy with just about everything in fact.

今天他做的只是普通的三明治——假如“普通”这个词真能用在如此可爱的美食身上。今天他的助手不在，所以三明治大师自己来搞修饰，这活儿他干得很高兴。事实上，他好像对一切都高兴得很。

He sliced, he sang. He flipped each slice of meat neatly on to a slice of bread, trimmed it and assembled all the trimmings into their jigsaw. A little salad, a little sauce, another slice of bread, another sandwich, another verse of Yellow Submarine.

他切，他唱。他把每一片腌肉灵巧地抛在面包上，修饰整齐，再把切下来的碎屑填进空缺的部位。一点点沙拉，一点点酱料，再一片面包，有一个三明治，又是一首《黄色潜水艇》

‘Hello, Arthur.’

“哈喽，阿瑟。”

The Sandwich Maker almost sliced his thumb off.

三明治大师差点没把自己的拇指切下来。

The villagers had watched in consternation as the woman had marched boldly to the hut of the Sandwich Maker. The Sandwich Maker had been sent to them by Almighty Bob in a burning fiery chariot. This, at least, was what Thrashbarg said, and Thrashbarg was the authority on these things. So, at least, Thrashbarg claimed, and Thrashbarg was… and so on and so on. It was hardly worth arguing about.

那女人已经厚着脸皮大步走进了三明治大师的茅屋，村民们全都一脸愕然地望着她。三明治大师乘着熊熊烈火的战车来到他们中间，是万能的鲍伯赐给他们的礼物。至少老刷希巴是这么说的，而老刷希巴可是这方面的权威。没错，至少刷希巴声称自己是这方面的权威，而刷希巴可是……诸如此类等等等等。这些个事真没什么争头。