‘Explain to me again,’ said Random.

“再跟我解释解释。”兰登说。

‘There’s nothing really to it,’ said Arthur. ‘Clockwork was something that developed over hundreds of years…’

“真没什么可讲的。”阿瑟说，“发条装置有好几百年历史……”

‘Earth years.’

“地球年。”

‘Yes. It became finer and finer and more and more intricate. It was highly skilled and delicate work. It had to be made very small, and it had to carry on working accurately however much you waved it around or dropped it.’

“对。它越来越精密，越来越复杂。这是很考验技术的细活。你得把它造得很小巧，而且不论你是使劲又摇又晃还是把它摔在地上，它都必须能继续工作。”

‘But only on one planet?’

“但只能在一个星球上？”

‘Well, that was where it was made, you see. It was never expected to go anywhere else and deal with different suns and moons and magnetic fields and things. I mean the thing still goes perfectly well, but it doesn’t really mean much this far from Switzerland.’

“唔，它就是在那儿造的。人家从没想过它会去别的地方，应付不同的太阳，月亮，磁场什么的。我是说这东西到现在还一点没坏，可其实派不上什么用场了，毕竟这儿离瑞士很远。”

‘From where?’

“离哪儿？”

‘Switzerland. That’s where these were made. Small hilly country. Tiresomely neat. The people who made them didn’t really know there were other worlds.’

“瑞士。就是制造这些东西的地方。一个丘陵小国，整洁得累人。制造这些手表的人，他们不知道宇宙中还有其他的世界。”

‘Quite a big thing not to know.’

“这个不知道也太大了。”

‘Well, yes.’

“唔，没错。”

‘So where did they come from?’

“那他们是从哪儿来的？”

‘They, that is we… we just sort of grew there. We evolved on the Earth. From, I don’t know, some kind of sludge or something.’

“他们，我是说我们……我们就是在那儿土生土长的。我们在地球上进化。从，我不知道，从烂泥还是从别的什么东西里头。”

‘Like this watch.’

“就好像这块表。”

‘Um. I don’t think the watch grew out of sludge.’

“呃，我不知道手表能不能从烂泥里长出来。”

‘You don’t understand!’

“你根本没理解！”

Random suddenly leaped to her feet, shouting. ‘You don’t understand! You don’t understand me, you don’t understand anything! I hate you for being so stupid!’

兰登忽然一跃而起，开始大声嚷嚷：“你根本不明白！你不明白如何理解我，你什么都不明白！我恨你！你怎么这么蠢！”

She started to run hectically down the hill, still clutching the watch and shouting that she hated him.

她紧紧攥住手表，疯了似的往山下跑，嘴里不住地喊着她恨他。

Arthur jumped up, startled and at a loss. He started to run after her through the stringy and clumpy grass. It was hard and painful for him. When he had broken his leg in the crash, it had not been a clean break, and it had not healed cleanly. He was stumbling and wincing as he ran.

阿瑟大吃一惊，呆呆地跳起来。他想追上去，但地上长满密密麻麻的长草，对他来说在上头跑太难太痛。飞船坠落时折断的那条腿，伤口并不齐整，后来也没能好好愈合。他跌跌撞撞地跑着，疼得咬牙咧嘴。