Chapter 第五章 提利昂

TYRION

他們由日出大門離開潘托斯，可提利昂根本沒瞧見什么日出。“就像你從未到過潘托斯一樣，我的小朋友，”伊利里歐·摩帕提斯一邊拉上紫色天鵝絨的轎簾，一邊保證道，“如同沒人知道你的到來，一定也不能讓人看到你離開這座城市。”

They departed Pentos by the Sunrise Gate, though Tyrion Lannister never glimpsed the sunrise. “It will be as if you had never come to Pentos, my little friend,” promised Magister Illyrio, as he drew shut the litter’s purple velvet drapes. “No man must see you leave the city, as no man saw you enter.”

“沒人知道啦，除了把我塞進酒桶的那些水手，那個為我打掃船艙的侍童，你送來給我暖床的那個女孩，還有那個會騙人的長著雀斑的洗衣婦。哦，還有你的護衛。除非你已經把他們的腦子和蛋蛋一起摘掉了，他們知道這里不光就你一個人。”轎子懸掛在八匹帶著沉重挽具的高頭大馬中間，四個太監分在兩邊跟隨，更多的跟在后面，保護著行李。

“No man except the sailors who stuffed me in that barrel, the cabin boy who cleaned up after me, the girl you sent to warm my bed, and that treacherous freckled washerwoman. Oh, and your guards. Unless you removed their wits along with their balls, they know you’re not alone in here.” The litter was suspended between eight mammoth draft horses on heavy leather straps. Four eunuchs paced beside the horses, two to either side, and more were trudging along behind to guard the baggage train.

“清者自清，”伊利里歐向他保證。“送你到這來的那艘船已經在去往亞夏的路上了。若大海慈悲的話，它也要兩年之后才能回來。至于我的仆人，他們愛戴我。不會有人背叛我的。”

“Unsullied tell no tales,” Illyrio assured him. “And the galley that delivered you is on her way to Asshai even now. It will be two years before she returns, if the seas are kind. As for my household, they love me well. None would betray me.”

好好留著這想法吧，我的胖朋友。終有一天我們會把這些話雕刻在你的墳墓上。“我們該坐那艘船走，”侏儒說。“去瓦蘭提斯最快的路就是從海上過去啦。”

Cherish that thought, my fat friend. One day we will carve those words upon your crypt. “We should be aboard that galley,” the dwarf said. “The fastest way to Volantis is by sea.”

“走海路太冒險了，”伊利里歐回答。“秋天是風暴的季節，而且海盜們仍盤踞在石階列島并冒險外出去掠奪那些老實人。可不能讓我的小朋友落入那些人手里。”

“The sea is hazardous,” replied Illyrio. “Autumn is a season rife with storms, and pirates still make their dens upon the Stepstones and venture forth to prey on honest men. It would never do for my little friend to fall into such hands.”

“洛恩也有海盜。”

“There are pirates on the Rhoyne as well.”

“是河盜。”奶酪販子用手背遮著嘴打了個哈欠。“不過是些追逐面包屑的蟑螂船長。”

“River pirates.” The cheesemonger gave a yawn, covering his mouth with the back of his hand. “Cockroach captains scurrying after crumbs.”

“無稽之談。”

“One hears talk of stone men as well.”

“是真的，那些該死的窮鬼。這么好天氣下我們為什么要談論這些呢？我們很快就能看到洛恩了，到了那里你就能擺脫伊利里歐和他的的大肚子了。在那之前，我們還是痛飲和夢想吧。我們有著美酒和佳肴可供享受。為什么偏要去討論什么疾病和死亡呢？”

“They are real enough, poor damned things. But why speak of such things? The day is too fine for such talk. We shall see the Rhoyne soon, and there you shall be rid of Illyrio and his big belly. Till then, let us drink and dream. We have sweet wine and savories to enjoy. Why dwell upon disease and death?”

提利昂又聽到一把十字弓弓弦的顫動聲。他問自己，為什么要糾結這些呢？轎子搖晃著，令人安慰的晃動讓他感覺自己仿佛是呆在母親臂彎的嬰兒。我該清楚事情不像我所想那樣。鵝毛填充的絲質枕頭墊著他的臉頰。紫色天鵝絨壁墻在頭上匯成拱頂，瑟瑟的秋風中轎內卻溫暖宜人。

Why indeed? Tyrion heard the thrum of a crossbow once again, and wondered. The litter swayed side to side, a soothing movement that made him feel as if he were a child being rocked to sleep in his mother’s arms. Not that I would know what that was like. Silk pillows stuffed with goose down cushioned his cheeks. The purple velvet walls curved overhead to form a roof, making it pleasantly warm within despite the autumn chill outside.

一隊騾子跟在他們后面，馱著箱子、酒桶和裝著美食的盒子，以保證奶酪領主旺盛的食欲。他們早上就著辣味香腸，喝下一些煙莓棕酒。鰻魚凍和多恩的紅酒伴著他們度過了午后時光。到了晚上，在淡啤酒和密爾烈酒的幫助下，他們消化了薄火腿、煮蛋和填滿洋蔥大蒜的烤云雀。轎子還是慢悠悠地前行，保證著乘坐者的舒適，但是侏儒很快就發現自己被不耐煩弄的坐立不安了。

A train of mules trailed behind them, carrying chests and casks and barrels, and hampers of delectables to keep the lord of cheese from growing peckish. They nibbled on spiced sausage that morning, washed down with a dark smokeberry brown. Jellied eels and Dornish reds filled their afternoon. Come evening there were sliced hams, boiled eggs, and roasted larks stuffed with garlic and onions, with pale ales and Myrish fire wines to help in their digestion. The litter was as slow as it was comfortable, however, and the dwarf soon found himself itching with impatience.

“我們走到那條河還有多少天？”那天晚上提利昂問伊利里歐。“照這個走法，等我看到你那龍母的龍時，它們恐怕長的比伊耿當年那三條龍還要大啦。”

“How many days until we reach the river?” he asked Illyrio that evening. “At this pace, your queen’s dragons will be larger than Aegon’s three before I can lay eyes upon them.”

“果真如此的話，一頭巨龍比小的更加可怕。”總督聳了聳肩。“我會很高興地歡迎丹妮莉絲女王光臨瓦蘭提斯，為此我必須依靠你和格里夫。我會在潘托斯好好招待她，為她回歸鋪平道路，我會陪伴著你的，只是……嗯，一個又老又胖的人需要他的安逸，對吧？來，喝杯葡萄酒吧。”

“Would it were so. A large dragon is more fearsome than a small one.” The magister shrugged. “Much as it would please me to welcome Queen Daenerys to Volantis, I must rely on you and Griff for that. I can serve her best in Pentos, smoothing the way for her return. So long as I am with you, though … well, an old fat man must have his comforts, yes? Come, drink a cup of wine.”

“告訴我，”提利昂邊喝邊說，“一個潘托斯的總督為什么要在乎誰在維斯特洛帶上皇冠呢？這場投機能給你帶來什么好處，我的大人？”

“Tell me,” Tyrion said as he drank, “why should a magister of Pentos give three figs who wears the crown in Westeros? Where is the gain for you in this venture, my lord?”

這個胖家伙舔掉嘴唇上的油脂。“我老了，厭倦了這個充斥著背信棄義的世界。在我剩下的日子里，做些好事，去幫助一個可愛的姑娘拿回她與生俱來的權利，這有那么奇怪么？”

The fat man dabbed grease from his lips. “I am an old man, grown weary of this world and its treacheries. Is it so strange that I should wish to do some good before my days are done, to help a sweet young girl regain her birthright?”

那你就該送我一套魔法盔甲和在瓦雷利亞的一座宮殿了。“如果丹妮莉絲只是個可愛的年輕姑娘，鐵王座就會把她割成可愛的碎片了。”

Next you will be offering me a suit of magic armor and a palace in Valyria. “If Daenerys is no more than a sweet young girl, the Iron Throne will cut her into sweet young pieces.”

“別擔心，我的小朋友。她有著伊耿留下的真龍血脈。”

“Fear not, my little friend. The blood of Aegon the Dragon flows in her veins.”

庸王伊耿，殘酷的梅葛，還有醉鬼貝勒留下的血脈。“再給我講些她的事。”

Along with the blood of Aegon the Unworthy, Maegor the Cruel, and Baelor the Befuddled. “Tell me more of her.”

這個胖家伙陷入深思。“丹妮莉絲來到我這時還是半大孩子，但已經比我的繼室更加動人，害得我我差點動心要把她納入房中。但她那么驚恐害怕，我知道和她做伴得不到什么樂子。為了擺脫這個瘋念頭，我找個了暖床的好好地泄了泄火。說實話，我不認為丹妮莉絲能在那些馬王之間堅持太久。”

The fat man grew pensive. “Daenerys was half a child when she came to me, yet fairer even than my second wife, so lovely I was tempted to claim her for myself. Such a fearful, furtive thing, however, I knew I should get no joy from coupling with her. Instead I summoned a bedwarmer and fucked her vigorously until the madness passed. If truth be told, I did not think Daenerys would survive for long amongst the horselords.”

“那也沒能阻止你把她賣給卡奧·卓戈 …”

“That did not stop you selling her to Khal Drogo …”

“多斯拉克人不做買賣。還是這么說吧，她哥哥韋賽里斯把她送給卓戈來贏得卡奧的友誼。一個自負而且貪婪的年輕人。韋賽里斯渴望他父王的王座，但又垂涎丹妮莉絲，不情愿放棄她。公主出嫁的前夜，他曾試圖溜上她的床，堅持認為如果他不能和她攜手，那就奪取她的童貞。要不是我派出護衛守著她的房門，韋賽里斯可就真的遂了他多年的愿望。”

“Dothraki neither buy nor sell. Say rather that her brother Viserys gave her to Drogo to win the khal’s friendship. A vain young man, and greedy. Viserys lusted for his father’s throne, but he lusted for Daenerys too, and was loath to give her up. The night before the princess wed he tried to steal into her bed, insisting that if he could not have her hand, he would claim her maidenhead. Had I not taken the precaution of posting guards upon her door, Viserys might have undone years of planning.”

“他聽起來像個徹頭徹尾的傻瓜。”

“He sounds an utter fool.”

“韋賽里斯是瘋王伊利斯的兒子，正是如此。丹妮莉絲……丹妮莉絲卻很不同。”他把一個烤云雀扔進嘴，連骨帶肉嘎吱嘎吱地咀嚼著。“那個曾在我宅邸庇護下驚恐的孩子死在多斯拉克草海中，在血與火中重生了。這個龍后沒有辜負她的名字，是個真正的坦格利安。當我派出船要帶她回家時，她轉身去了奴隸灣。沒用多久，她征服了阿斯塔波，令淵凱屈服，并洗劫了彌林。如果她沿著古老的瓦雷利安道路西進的話，下一個就輪到曼塔雷斯了。如果她來到海邊，那么……她的艦隊必須在瓦蘭提斯取得補給。”

“Viserys was Mad Aerys’s son, just so. Daenerys … Daenerys is quite different.” He popped a roasted lark into his mouth and crunched it noisily, bones and all. “The frightened child who sheltered in my manse died on the Dothraki sea, and was reborn in blood and fire. This dragon queen who wears her name is a true Targaryen. When I sent ships to bring her home, she turned toward Slaver’s Bay. In a short span of days she conquered Astapor, made Yunkai bend the knee, and sacked Meereen. Mantarys will be next, if she marches west along the old Valyrian roads. If she comes by sea, well … her fleet must take on food and water at Volantis.”

“不管是陸地還是海上，彌林和瓦蘭提斯都離得挺遠，”提利昂評論道。

“By land or by sea, there are long leagues between Meereen and Volantis,” Tyrion observed.

“如果是龍直飛過來的話，五百五十里格，要穿過沙漠，高山，草地和魔鬼出沒的廢墟。很多人會死掉，但是那些活著到達瓦蘭提斯的都會變得更強壯……在那里他們會發現你和格里夫，帶著生力軍和足夠載著他們跨海到維斯特洛的船只等著他們。”

“Five hundred fifty, as the dragon flies, through deserts, mountains, swamps, and demon-haunted ruins. Many and more will perish, but those who survive will be stronger by the time they reach Volantis … where they shall find you and Griff awaiting them, with fresh forces and sufficient ships to carry them all across the sea to Westeros.”

提利昂努力回憶他對瓦蘭提斯的所有了解，九個自由城邦中最古老和最驕傲的。有些事不對頭，就算只有半個鼻子，他也嗅的出來。“據說在瓦蘭提斯每個自由人都有五個奴隸。祭司們為什么會幫助一個要結束奴隸交易的女王？”他指著伊利里歐。“就此而言，你又為了什么呢？奴隸制可能是被潘托斯的法律所禁止，但你還是在這貿易中插了一手，或許還不止。你仍然密謀支持龍后，而不是反對她，為什么？你打算從丹妮莉絲女王那撈到什么好處？”

Tyrion pondered all he knew of Volantis, oldest and proudest of the Nine Free Cities. Something was awry here. Even with half a nose, he could smell it. “It’s said there are five slaves for every free man in Volantis. Why would the triarchs assist a queen who smashed the slave trade?” He pointed at Illyrio. “For that matter, why would you? Slavery may be forbidden by the laws of Pentos, yet you have a finger in that trade as well, and maybe a whole hand. And yet you conspire for the dragon queen, and not against her. Why? What do you hope to gain from Queen Daenerys?”

“我們又說回去了嗎？你個頑固的小家伙。”伊利里歐拍著肚皮笑了一聲，“如你所愿，乞丐王曾許愿讓我當他的財政大臣，成為一個高貴的領主。一旦他戴上金皇冠，我就有機會選擇我的封地……甚至凱巖城，如果我想要的話。”

“Are we back to that again? You are a persistent little man.” Illyrio gave a laugh and slapped his belly. “As you will. The Beggar King swore that I should be his master of coin, and a lordly lord as well. Once he wore his golden crown, I should have my choice of castles … even Casterly Rock, if I desired.”

提利昂把葡萄酒拿到他殘留的鼻子下面嗅嗅，“我父親會很高興聽到這些話的。”

Tyrion snorted wine back up the scarred stump that had been his nose. “My father would have loved to hear that.”

“你的父親大人沒必要擔心。我為什么會要塊石頭？我自己的宅邸對任何人來說都夠大了，而且比起你們那些四處漏風的維斯特洛城堡舒服多了。財政大臣嘛……”這個胖家伙督又剝開一個雞蛋，“我喜愛錢幣。還有什么比金子碰撞的聲音更動聽？”

“Your lord father had no cause for concern. Why would I want a rock? My manse is large enough for any man, and more comfortable than your drafty Westerosi castles. Master of coin, though …” The fat man peeled another egg. “I am fond of coins. Is there any sound as sweet as the clink of gold on gold?”

老姐的尖叫聲。“你就那么確定丹妮莉絲會兌現她哥哥的諾言？”

A sister’s screams. “Are you quite certain that Daenerys will make good her brother’s promises?”

“她會，或許不會。”伊利里歐一口咬掉半個雞蛋。“我告訴過你，我的小朋友，不是每個人做事都要回報的。不管你信不信，就像我這樣的有老又胖的傻瓜也是有朋友的，也有人情債要去還。”

“She will, or she will not.” Illyrio bit the egg in half. “I told you, my little friend, not all that a man does is done for gain. Believe as you wish, but even fat old fools like me have friends, and debts of affection to repay.”

騙子，提利昂想。在這投機當中，一定有比錢和城堡對你更有價值的東西。“這些天你沒怎么碰上把友誼看的比金子更貴重的人吧。”

Liar, thought Tyrion. There is something in this venture worth more to you than coin or castles. “You meet so few men who value friendship over gold these days.”

“的確，”胖家伙說，對諷刺裝聾作啞。“八爪蜘蛛是怎么和你變得如此親密的？”

“Too true,” the fat man said, deaf to the irony.“How is it that the Spider became so dear to you?”

“我們還年輕時就在一起，兩個潘托斯的青澀男孩。”

“We were young together, two green boys in Pentos.”

“瓦利斯來自密爾。”

“Varys came from Myr.”

“沒錯，他到這不久我就遇見了他，剛巧趕在那些奴隸販子之前。白天他睡在下水道里，夜晚他就像貓一樣在房頂上游走。我身無分文，是個穿著臟綢衣的刺客，靠著我的刀謀生。你大概瞧見過我水池里的那個雕像吧，皮托·馬拉農在我十六歲時雕的它。一個可愛的東西，盡管現在我看到它就難過的要流淚。”

“So he did. I met him not long after he arrived, one step ahead of the slavers. By day he slept in the sewers, by night he prowled the rooftops like a cat. I was near as poor, a bravo in soiled silks, living by my blade. Perhaps you chanced to glimpse the statue by my pool? Pytho Malanon carved that when I was six-and-ten. A lovely thing, though now I weep to see it.”

“歲月毀掉了我們大家。我仍然在為我的鼻子哀痛。但是瓦利斯……”

“Age makes ruins of us all. I am still in mourning for my nose. But Varys …”

“在密爾他是小偷王子，直到一個對手告發了他。在潘托斯他口音令他引人注目，而大家知道他是個太監之后，全都鄙視和打擊他。我可能永遠不會知道為什么他選擇我來保護他，但我們達成了協議。瓦利斯監視那些差勁的小偷并拿走他們的贓物，而我為那些失主提供幫助，收取酬金保證拿回他們的財物。很快每個遭受損失的人都知道來找我求助，同時城里的攔路賊和扒手都在找瓦利斯……一半想割開他的喉嚨，另一半想跟他銷贓。我們都發達了，并且當瓦利斯訓練出他的老鼠之后就更加富有了。”

“In Myr he was a prince of thieves, until a rival thief informed on him. In Pentos his accent marked him, and once he was known for a eunuch he was despised and beaten. Why he chose me to protect him I may never know, but we came to an arrangement. Varys spied on lesser thieves and took their takings. I offered my help to their victims, promising to recover their valuables for a fee. Soon every man who had suffered a loss knew to come to me, whilst city’s footpads and cutpurses sought out Varys … half to slit his throat, the other half to sell him what they’d stolen. We both grew rich, and richer still when Varys trained his mice.”

“在君臨城他有小小鳥。”

“In King’s Landing he kept little birds.”

“我們這里叫老鼠。老一輩的小偷都是些傻瓜，想到的無非是把一晚偷盜的財物全都換成美酒。瓦利斯喜好孤兒和年輕女孩。他挑出那些最小的、靈活而且安靜的家伙，并教會他們爬墻和滑下煙囪。他也教他們識字。我們把金銀珠寶留給那些平凡的小偷們，而我們的老鼠竊取信件，賬簿，圖表……讀過之后再放回原處。瓦利斯聲稱秘密比銀子和藍寶石更有價值。就這樣，我變的越來越高貴，以至于一個潘托斯王子的表兄把他還是處女的女兒嫁給了我。同時，關于某個太監天賦的傳聞也跨越狹海傳到了某位國王的耳中。這個焦慮的國王既不信賴他的兒子，不信任他的妻子，也不信任他的首相——那個年輕時的朋友現在變得傲慢自大。我相信這個故事的其他部分你一定都了解吧，不是嗎？”

“Mice, we called them then. The older thieves were fools who thought no further than turning a night’s plunder into wine. Varys preferred orphan boys and young girls. He chose the smallest, the ones who were quick and quiet, and taught them to climb walls and slip down chimneys. He taught them to read as well. We left the gold and gems for common thieves. Instead our mice stole letters, ledgers, charts … later, they would read them and leave them where they lay. Secrets are worth more than silver or sapphires, Varys claimed. Just so. I grew so respectable that a cousin of the Prince of Pentos let me wed his maiden daughter, whilst whispers of a certain eunuch’s talents crossed the narrow sea and reached the ears of a certain king. A very anxious king, who did not wholly trust his son, nor his wife, nor his Hand, a friend of his youth who had grown arrogant and overproud. I do believe that you know the rest of this tale, is that not so?”

“差不多，”提利昂承認。“我發現你遠不止一個奶酪販子那么簡單。”

“Much of it,” Tyrion admitted. “I see that you are somewhat more than a cheesemonger after all.”

伊利里歐歪了歪頭。“你能如此評價真是好心，我的小朋友。對我來說，我發現你還真像瓦利斯大人說的那樣機靈呢。”他笑道，露出他雜亂的黃牙，又叫了一罐密爾烈酒。

Illyrio inclined his head. “You are kind to say so, my little friend. And for my part, I see that you are just as quick as Lord Varys claimed.” He smiled, showing all his crooked yellow teeth, and shouted for another jar of Myrish fire wine.

當總督懷抱著酒罐睡著時，提利昂一瘸一拐的跨過那些枕頭，在那堆肥肉中拔出酒罐，給自己斟了一杯。他一口喝掉，打了個哈欠，又斟滿一杯。如果我喝了足夠多的烈酒，他告訴自己，或許我就能夢到龍了。

When the magister drifted off to sleep with the wine jar at his elbow, Tyrion crept across the pillows to work it loose from its fleshy prison and pour himself a cup. He drained it down, and yawned, and filled it once again. If I drink enough fire wine, he told himself, perhaps I’ll dream of dragons.

當他仍是個深居在凱巖城孤單的小孩時，他常常整晚騎在那些龍像上，幻想他是某位流離的坦格利安小王子，或者一個在大地和山脈之上高高翱翔的瓦雷利安龍王。有一次，當他的叔叔們問他想要什么作為命名日的禮物時，他求他們給條龍。“不用多大的一條，小的就行，就像我這么小的。”他叔叔吉利安認為這是他聽過的最好笑的事，但他的另一位叔叔提蓋特說，“最后的巨龍一個世紀前就死了，小家伙。”這對那個男孩太不公平了，那晚他哭著睡著的。

When he was still a lonely child in the depths of Casterly Rock, he oft rode dragons through the nights, pretending he was some lost Targaryen princeling, or a Valyrian dragonlord soaring high o’er fields and mountains. Once, when his uncles asked him what gift he wanted for his nameday, he begged them for a dragon. “It wouldn’t need to be a big one. It could be little, like I am.” His uncle Gerion thought that was the funniest thing he had ever heard, but his uncle Tygett said, “The last dragon died a century ago, lad.” That had seemed so monstrously unfair that the boy had cried himself to sleep that night.

若奶酪領主可信的話，瘋王的女兒孵出了三條活生生的龍。對于一位坦格利安來說一條就足夠了。提利昂幾乎有點為殺掉他的父親感到遺憾了。他想看看泰溫大人的臉，如果當他得知有一位坦格利安女王，在一個玩弄陰謀的太監和胖得有半個凱巖城大的奶酪販子的支持下，帶著她的三條龍前往維斯特洛時會有什么表情。

Yet if the lord of cheese could be believed, the Mad King’s daughter had hatched three living dragons. Two more than even a Targaryen should require. Tyrion was almost sorry that he had killed his father. He would have enjoyed seeing Lord Tywin’s face when he learned that there was a Targaryen queen on her way to Westeros with three dragons, backed by a scheming eunuch and a cheesemonger half the size of Casterly Rock.

侏儒吃得實在太撐了，他不得不松開腰帶和褲帶。穿在身上的小孩的衣服讓他覺的自己像一只硬塞進五磅腸衣中的十磅香腸。如果我們照這么個吃法，在見龍后之前，我就和伊利里歐一個體型了。轎外夜幕已經降臨，轎內也一片漆黑。提利昂聽著伊利里歐的鼾聲、皮帶的吱嘎聲、車隊的鐵馬掌慢慢地敲擊在堅硬的瓦雷利安大道上，但他心里卻回蕩著龍翼拍打的聲音。

The dwarf was so stuffed that he had to undo his belt and the topmost laces on his breeches. The boy’s clothes his host had dressed him in made him feel like ten pounds of sausage in a five-pound skin. If we eat this way every day I will be the size of Illyrio before I meet this dragon queen. Outside the litter night had fallen. Inside all was dark. Tyrion listened to Illyrio’s snores, the creak of the leather straps, the slow clop clop of the team’s ironshod hooves on the hard Valyrian road, but his heart was listening for the beat of leathern wings.

當他蘇醒時，黎明已至。馬兒們還在緩緩前行，轎子在它們中間搖晃、吱嘎作響。提利昂把窗簾掀開一點向外觀瞧，可是除了赭色的大地、光禿禿棕色的榆木，還有大道——像根筆直指向地平線的長矛一樣的寬闊的石路外，就沒有什么可看的了。他曾經讀過關于瓦雷利安大道的書，但這是他第一次親眼見到它們。自由城邦邊疆最遠止于龍石島，從來沒有延伸到維斯特洛大陸之上。這有點奇怪。龍石島不過是塊石頭，財富是在遙遠的西邊，但是他們有龍。無疑他們知道它就在那兒。

When he woke, dawn had come. The horses plodded on, the litter creaking and swaying between them. Tyrion pulled the curtain back an inch to peer outside, but there was little to see but ochre fields, bare brown elms, and the road itself, a broad stone highway that ran straight as a spear to the horizon. He had read about Valyrian roads, but this was the first he had seen. The Freehold’s grasp had reached as far as Dragonstone, but never to the mainland of Westeros itself. Odd, that. Dragonstone is no more than a rock. The wealth was farther west, but they had dragons. Surely they knew that it was there.

昨晚他喝得太多了，即便轎子輕微的晃動也足以讓他作嘔。盡管他沒抱怨一句，伊利里歐也很容易明白他的苦惱了。“來，一起喝點，”那個胖家伙說。“以毒攻毒。”他用酒壺為他倆斟滿了黑莓酒，這酒實在太甜了，比蜂蜜還招蒼蠅。提利昂用手背趕走了蒼蠅一飲而盡。甜得發膩的味道讓他不得不竭盡全力才咽了下去。但第二杯就不那么難以下咽了。即便如此，他還是沒什么胃口，當伊利里歐請他吃一碗奶油浸泡的黑莓時他擺手拒絕了。“我夢到了女王，”他說。“我在她面前下跪，宣誓效忠，但是她把我誤認成我的哥哥，詹姆，把我喂了她的龍。”

He had drunk too much last night. His head was pounding, and even the gentle swaying of the litter was enough to make his gorge rise in his throat. Though he said no word of complaint, his distress must have been plain to Illyrio Mopatis. “Come, drink with me,” the fat man said. “A scale from the dragon that burned you, as they say.” He poured for them from a flagon of blackberry wine so sweet that it drew more flies than honey. Tyrion shooed them off with the back of his hand and drank deep. The taste was so cloying that it was all he could do to keep it down. The second cup went down easier, however. Even so, he had no appetite, and when Illyrio offered him a bowl of blackberries in cream he waved it off. “I dreamed about the queen,” he said. “I was on my knees before her, swearing my allegiance, but she mistook me for my brother, Jaime, and fed me to her dragons.”

“讓我們希望這夢不是個預言。你是個聰明的小惡魔，就像瓦利斯所說的，而丹妮莉絲需要一個聰明的人陪伴。巴利斯坦爵士是個英勇的騎士而且忠誠，但我想沒有人稱他狡猾過。”

“Let us hope this dream was not prophetic. You are a clever imp, just as Varys said, and Daenerys will have need of clever men about her. Ser Barristan is a valiant knight and true; but none, I think, has ever called him cunning.”

“騎士只知道一種解決問題的方法，他們端著長矛沖鋒。一個侏儒則會從一個不同的角度觀察這個世界。可你又是如何呢？你本來就是個聰明人。”

“Knights know only one way to solve a problem. They couch their lances and charge. A dwarf has a different way of looking at the world. What of you, though? You are a clever man yourself.”

“你在恭維我。”伊利里歐擺擺手。“哎呀，我真不適合旅行，所以我才會送你替我去丹妮莉絲那里。你宰掉老爸可是幫了女王陛下一個大忙，我希望你還能做得更多。丹妮莉絲不是她哥哥那樣的傻瓜。她會讓你盡展所能的。”

“You flatter me.” Illyrio waggled his hand. “Alas, I am not made for travel, so I will send you to Daenerys in my stead. You did Her Grace a great service when you slew your father, and it is my hope that you will do her many more. Daenerys is not the fool her brother was. She will make good use of you.”

去挑起戰端？提利昂想，愉快的笑著。

As kindling? Tyrion thought, smiling pleasantly.

他們那天只換了三次隊伍，但停了兩次，每次差不多要花一小時等伊利里歐爬下轎子去撒尿。侏儒心想，我們的奶酪領主有著一頭大象般的身材，可他的膀胱去像枚花生那么小一點。在一次停下來的時候，他用那段時間仔細地看了看那條路。提利昂知道他會找到什么：不是堅實的地面，不是磚塊，也不是鵝卵石，而是一條帶狀的熔巖石，高于路面半尺以便雨水和融雪流下路肩。不像在七大王國曾走過的那些泥濘小路，瓦雷利安大道寬的可以讓三輛馬車并排行駛，而且歲月和車輛都沒能侵蝕它。瓦雷利亞遭受末日浩劫已經過去四百年了，可這些大道依舊一如往常的堅固。他試圖尋找車轍和裂縫，但只發現了那群馬中某匹馬剛拉出來的熱騰騰的馬糞。

They changed out teams only thrice that day but seemed to halt twice an hour at the least so Illyrio could climb down from the litter and have himself a piss. Our lord of cheese is the size of an elephant, but he has a bladder like a peanut, the dwarf mused. During one stop, he used the time to have a closer look at the road. Tyrion knew what he would find: not packed earth, nor bricks, nor cobbles, but a ribbon of fused stone raised a half foot above the ground to allow rainfall and snowmelt to run off its shoulders. Unlike the muddy tracks that passed for roads in the Seven Kingdoms, the Valyrian roads were wide enough for three wagons to pass abreast, and neither time nor traffic marred them. They still endured, unchanging, four centuries after Valyria itself had met its Doom. He looked for ruts and cracks but found only a pile of warm dung deposited by one of the horses.

那坨馬糞讓他想起了父親大人。是不是下地獄了，父親？一個美妙的冰封地獄，在那里你可以抬頭看著我幫助瘋王的女兒重新奪回鐵王座？

The dung made him think of his lord father. Are you down in some hell, Father? A nice cold hell where you can look up and see me help restore Mad Aerys’s daughter to the Iron Throne?

當他們繼續他們旅程時，伊利里歐講了一堆乏味的老掉牙的笑話，然后又提起了龍后。“恐怕我們關于丹妮莉絲女王最后的傳聞已經完全過時了。我們現在必須假設她已經離開彌林了。她終于能做主了，一個衣衫襤褸領導著傭兵、多斯拉克人和無垢者的主人，而她無疑將會領著他們向西前行，去奪回她父親留下的王座。”伊利里歐總督擰開一罐大蒜蝸牛，嗅了嗅它們然后笑道。“我們希望在瓦蘭提斯，你能得到關于丹妮莉絲的新消息，”他邊說邊從殼里摳出一只蝸牛。“龍和年輕姑娘都很任性，或許你會要調整你的計劃。格里夫知道該怎么做。你來個蝸牛嗎？這大蒜是從我花園里摘的。”

As they resumed their journey, Illyrio produced a bag of roasted chestnuts and began to speak once more of the dragon queen. “Our last news of Queen Daenerys is old and stale, I fear. By now she will have left Meereen, we must assume. She has her host at last, a ragged host of sellswords, Dothraki horselords, and Unsullied infantry, and she will no doubt lead them west, to take back her father’s throne.” Magister Illyrio twisted open a pot of garlic snails, sniffed at them, and smiled. “At Volantis, you will have fresh tidings of Daenerys, we must hope,” he said, as he sucked one from its shell. “Dragons and young girls are both capricious, and it may be that you will need to adjust your plans. Griff will know what to do. Will you have a snail? The garlic is from my own gardens.”

我騎著蝸牛都能比你這轎子走得快。提利昂擺手拒絕了這道菜。“你那么信賴這個叫格里夫的人。又一個你童年的伙伴？”

I could ride a snail and make a better pace than this litter of yours. Tyrion waved the dish away. “You place a deal of trust in this man Griff. Another friend of your childhood?”

“不，用你的話說，是個傭兵，維斯特洛人。丹妮莉絲的事業需要人才。”伊利里歐抬起一只手。“我知道！‘雇傭劍士視金錢高于榮譽，’你是這么想的。‘這個叫格里夫的家伙會把我賣給我老姐。’不是那樣的。我像信任兄弟一般信賴格里夫。”

“No. A sellsword, you would call him, but Westerosi born. Daenerys needs men worthy of her cause.” Illyrio raised a hand. “I know! ‘Sellswords put gold before honor,’ you are thinking. ‘This man Griff will sell me to my sister.’ Not so. I trust Griff as I would trust a brother.”

又一個致命的錯誤。“那么我也跟著相信他吧。”

Another mortal error. “Then I shall do likewise.”

“在我們談話的時候，黃金團正向瓦蘭提斯進軍，在那等待我們的女王從東邊趕來。”

“The Golden Company marches toward Volantis as we speak, there to await the coming of our queen out of the east.”

金子的下面是冰冷的刀劍。“我曾聽說黃金團正與某個自由城邦有合約。”

Beneath the gold, the bitter steel. “I had heard the Golden Company was under contract with one of the Free Cities.”

“是密爾，”伊利里歐得意地笑道。“合約可以取消。”

“Myr.” Illyrio smirked. “Contracts can be broken.”

“看來奶酪生意遠比我知道的賺錢啊，”提利昂說。“你是怎么做到的？”

“There is more coin in cheese than I knew,” said Tyrion. “How did you accomplish that?”

總督搖搖他胖指頭。“有些合約是用墨水寫下的，而有些是用血。我不再多說了。”

The magister waggled his fat fingers. “Some contracts are writ in ink, and some in blood. I say no more.”

侏儒琢磨了這件事。黃金團據說是最好的傭兵團，一世紀前由“寒鐵”，庸王伊耿的一個私生子創建的。當其他高貴出身的私生子們試圖與嫡子們爭奪王座時，寒鐵加入了叛亂。但是戴蒙·黑火及其叛軍在血紅草地被摧毀。那場戰役之后，追隨黑龍的幸存者依舊拒絕臣服，他們渡過了狹海，其中就包括戴蒙年幼的兒子們，寒鐵，和成百的失去封地的領主和騎士，很快他們就發現不得不靠出賣他們的劍來謀生。有些加入了“碎旗團”的行列，有些加入了“次子團”和“處女之夫”。寒鐵看見黑火家族的力量要四散分裂，因此創建了黃金團來使流亡者團結起來。

The dwarf pondered that. The Golden Company was reputedly the finest of the free companies, founded a century ago by Bittersteel, a bastard son of Aegon the Unworthy. When another of Aegon’s Great Bastards tried to seize the Iron Throne from his trueborn half-brother, Bittersteel joined the revolt. Daemon Blackfyre had perished on the Redgrass Field, however, and his rebellion with him. Those followers of the Black Dragon who survived the battle yet refused to bend the knee fled across the narrow sea, among them Daemon’s younger sons, Bittersteel, and hundreds of landless lords and knights who soon found themselves forced to sell their swords to eat. Some joined the Ragged Standard, some the Second Sons or Maiden’s Men. Bittersteel saw the strength of House Blackfyre scattering to the four winds, so he formed the Golden Company to bind the exiles together.

從那至今，黃金團的人一直在爭議之地繁衍生息，為密爾，里斯或泰洛西在一些無關痛癢的小沖突中戰斗，夢想著當年其父輩失掉的領地。他們是流亡者和流亡者的子孫，無依無靠和不可饒恕……但始終是令人畏懼的斗士。

From that day to this, the men of the Golden Company had lived and died in the Disputed Lands, fighting for Myr or Lys or Tyrosh in their pointless little wars, and dreaming of the land their fathers had lost. They were exiles and sons of exiles, dispossessed and unforgiven … yet formidable fighters still.

“我得稱贊你的說服力，”提利昂告訴伊利里歐，“你是如何服黃金團投入到我們可愛的女王的事業中來的呢，他們歷史上可沒少花力氣來反抗坦格利安們的。”

“I admire your powers of persuasion,” Tyrion told Illyrio. “How did you convince the Golden Company to take up the cause of our sweet queen when they have spent so much of their history fighting against the Targaryens?”

伊利里歐沒把這個問題當回事。“不管黑還是紅，龍就是龍。當“兇暴的”馬里斯死在石階列島上時，黑火家族就已經絕嗣了。”奶酪販子透過他分叉的胡子微笑著。“而丹妮莉絲將帶給那些流亡者們寒鐵和黑火所無法給予的東西——她會帶他們回家。”

Illyrio brushed away the objection as if it were a fly. “Black or red, a dragon is still a dragon. When Maelys the Monstrous died upon the Stepstones, it was the end of the male line of House Blackfyre.” The cheesemonger smiled through his forked beard. “And Daenerys will give the exiles what Bittersteel and the Blackfyres never could. She will take them home.”

伴著火與劍。那也是提利昂所希望返鄉的方式。“萬把利劍作為我送個你晉見女王的禮物，她肯定會非常高興。”

With fire and sword. It was the kind of homecoming that Tyrion wished for as well. “Ten thousand swords makes for a princely gift, I grant you. Her Grace should be most pleased.”

總督稍稍點了下頭。“我還是不要妄加揣測什么會令女王感到高興。”

The magister gave a modest bob of his head, chins jiggling. “I would never presume to say what might please Her Grace.”

你還真有先見之明。對與國王的感激，提利昂了解的夠多了，女王難道會有什么不同？

Prudent of you. Tyrion knew much and more about the gratitude of kings. Why should queens be any different?

不久總督就打起盹了，留下提利昂獨自沉思。他猜想當巴利斯坦·賽爾彌黃金團并肩作戰時會有什么想法。在九銅板王之戰中，賽爾彌在他們隊伍中殺出一條血路干掉了末代黑火。叛亂撮合了同床異夢者的古怪組合。但沒誰能比這個胖家伙和我的組合更古怪了。

Soon enough the magister was fast asleep, leaving Tyrion to brood alone. He wondered what Barristan Selmy would think of riding into battle with the Golden Company. During the War of the Ninepenny Kings, Selmy had cut a bloody path through their ranks to slay the last of the Blackfyre Pretenders. Rebellion makes for queer bedfellows. And none more queer than this fat man and me.

當他們停下來更換馬匹和派人去取一籃新食物時，奶酪販子醒了。“我們走了多遠了？”在他們往肚子里填和蘸著用胡蘿卜、葡萄干和一點酸橙和桔子做的醬汁的冷閹雞時，侏儒問道。

The cheesemonger woke when they stopped to change the horses and sent for a fresh hamper. “How far have we come?” the dwarf asked him as they stuffed themselves with cold capon and a relish made of carrots, raisins, and bits of lime and orange.

這里是安達洛斯，我的朋友。你們的安達爾人就是來自這里。他們從原來居住在這里的多毛人手中奪取了這片土地，那些伊班港多毛人的表親。哈格爾的古王國的心臟地帶就坐落在我們北方，但我們正在其南面穿行。在潘托斯，這里被稱作平坦之地。再遠些的東邊屹立著絲絨山脈，那就是我們的邊界了。

“This is Andalos, my friend. The land your Andals came from. They took it from the hairy men who were here before them, cousins to the hairy men of Ib. The heart of Hugor’s ancient realm lies north of us, but we are passing through its southern marches. In Pentos, these are called the Flatlands. Farther east stand the Velvet Hills, whence we are bound.”

安達洛斯。傳說中七神曾以凡人的形態走過安達洛斯的山脈。“天父把手伸進天穹，摘下了七顆星，”提利昂從記憶中引述，“然后一顆顆放置在‘高山的’哈格爾的額頭上，鑄成了一頂閃耀的王冠。”

Andalos. The Faith taught that the Seven themselves had once walked the hills of Andalos in human form. “The Father reached his hand into the heavens and pulled down seven stars,” Tyrion recited from memory, “and one by one he set them on the brow of Hugor of the Hill to make a glowing crown.”

伊利里歐總督好奇地瞥了一眼提利昂。“我沒想到我的小朋友這么虔誠。”

Magister Illyrio gave him a curious look. “I did not dream my little friend was so devout.”

侏儒聳聳肩。“我童年時代的紀念品，我知道自己成不了騎士，所以就決定成為總主教。那個水晶冠能讓人高上一尺。我研讀經書并祈禱到兩膝都結了繭子，但我的努力去落得個悲慘的結局。我到了某個年紀時就墜入了愛河。”

The dwarf shrugged. “A relic of my boyhood. I knew I would not make a knight, so I decided to be High Septon. That crystal crown adds a foot to a man’s height. I studied the holy books and prayed until I had scabs on both my knees, but my quest came to a tragic end. I reached that certain age and fell in love.”

“一位少女？我知道那是怎么回事。”伊利里歐把他的右手擠進左袖里拉出一個銀匣。里面有一幅栩栩如生的女人畫像，一個有藍色大眼睛和淡金色頭發的女人。“塞拉，我在一個里斯人開的妓院里發現了她并把她帶回家為我暖床，但最終我娶了她。我的第一個妻子是潘托斯王子的表親。自那以后，王室的大門對我緊閉了，但我不在乎。為了塞拉付出這個代價不算什么。”

“A maiden? I know the way of that.” Illyrio thrust his right hand up his left sleeve and drew out a silver locket. Inside was a painted likeness of a woman with big blue eyes and pale golden hair streaked by silver. “Serra. I found her in a Lysene pillow house and brought her home to warm my bed, but in the end I wed her. Me, whose first wife had been a cousin of the Prince of Pentos. The palace gates were closed to me thereafter, but I did not care. The price was small enough, for Serra.”

“她是怎么去世的？”提利昂知道她已經死了，不會有男人如此深情地談論一個拋棄自己的女人。

“How did she die?” Tyrion knew that she was dead; no man spoke so fondly of a woman who had abandoned him.

“一艘布拉佛斯商船從玉海的返回的途中在潘托斯停靠。它運載的寶藏有丁香和藏紅花，黑玉與翡翠，猩紅色的錦繡和綠色的絲綢……還有灰色的死亡。在她的槳手們上岸時，我們殺掉了他們，在錨地燒掉了船，但老鼠們還是爬下船槳，邁著冰冷沉重的腳步爬上了碼頭。那場瘟疫帶走了兩千多人的性命才告平息。”伊利里歐總督合上了匣子。“我把她的手保留在我的臥房。她的手是那么的柔軟……”

“A Braavosi trading galley called at Pentos on her way back from the Jade Sea. The Treasure carried cloves and saffron, jet and jade, scarlet samite, green silk … and the grey death. We slew her oarsmen as they came ashore and burned the ship at anchor, but the rats crept down the oars and paddled to the quay on cold stone feet. The plague took two thousand before it ran its course.” Magister Illyrio closed the locket. “I keep her hands in my bedchamber. Her hands that were so soft …”

提利昂想到了泰莎。他望向那神靈曾經行走過的大地。“什么樣的神才會造出老鼠、瘟疫和侏儒呢？”另一段《七星圣經》的章節被他回憶起來。“少女把一個嫩柳般嬌柔，碧潭般湛藍眼睛的女孩帶到他面前，哈格爾宣稱他要這個女孩成為他的新娘。圣母賜予她多產，老嫗預言她會有四十四個強壯的兒子。戰士將力量賦給他們的臂膀，同時鐵匠為他們每人鍛造了一套鋼甲。”

Tyrion thought of Tysha. He glanced out at the fields where once the gods had walked. “What sort of gods make rats and plagues and dwarfs?” Another passage from The Seven-Pointed Star came back to him. “The Maid brought him forth a girl as supple as a willow with eyes like deep blue pools, and Hugor declared that he would have her for his bride. So the Mother made her fertile, and the Crone foretold that she would bear the king four-and-forty mighty sons. The Warrior gave strength to their arms, whilst the Smith wrought for each a suit of iron plates.”

“你們的鐵匠一定是洛恩人，”伊利里歐打趣道。“安達爾人從居住在河岸的洛恩人那里學到的鍛造本領，這是眾所周知的。”

“Your Smith must have been Rhoynish,” Illyrio quipped. “The Andals learned the art of working iron from the Rhoynar who dwelt along the river. This is known.”

“我們的修士們可不認同，”提利昂指著那塊平原問。“誰居住在你們的這塊平坦之地上？”

“Not by our septons.” Tyrion gestured at the fields. “Who dwells in these Flatlands of yours?”

“該侍弄土地的農夫和苦工。那里有果園、農場、礦場……有些在我名下，但我很少光顧它們。當近在身邊的潘托斯有著無盡的樂趣陪伴我時，我為什么要在這里虛度時光？”

“Tillers and toilers, bound to the land. There are orchards, farms, mines … I own some such myself, though I seldom visit them. Why should I spend my days out here, with the myriad delights of Pentos close at hand?”

“無盡的樂趣。”還有超厚的院墻。提利昂搖晃著他杯中的葡萄酒。“離開潘托斯之后我們就沒見到過城鎮。”

“Myriad delights.” And huge thick walls. Tyrion swirled his wine in his cup. “We have seen no towns since Pentos.”

“那邊有些廢墟。”伊利里歐揮動著一支雞腿指向轎簾。“什么時候某個卡奧想要看看海了，多斯拉克人就會從那個方向過來。你在維斯特洛也該知道多斯拉克人不怎么喜歡城鎮。”

“There are ruins.” Illyrio waved a chicken leg toward the curtains. “The horselords come this way, whenever some khal takes it into his head to gaze upon the sea. The Dothraki are not fond of towns, you will know this even in Westeros.”

“攻打一個卡拉薩并消滅它，之后你就會發現多斯拉克人不再那么愛穿越洛恩了。”

“Fall upon one of these khalasars and destroy it, and you may find that the Dothraki are not so quick to cross the Rhoyne.”

“用食物和禮品收買敵人更要便宜。”

“It is cheaper to buy off foes with food and gifts.”

但愿我當時能想到帶著一塊美味的奶酪去黑水河上的戰場，或許就能留住我完整的鼻子呢。泰溫大人總是藐視自由城邦，他常說他們用錢代替劍來作戰。錢有它的用途，但戰爭還是要靠鐵來贏得。“給一個家伙金子，然后他會回來索求更多，我父親常這么說。”

If only I had thought to bring a nice cheese to the battle on the Blackwater, I might still have all my nose. Lord Tywin had always held the Free Cities in contempt. They fight with coins instead of swords, he used to say. Gold has its uses, but wars are won with iron. “Give gold to a foe and he will just come back for more, my father always said.”

“是那個被你干掉的父親嗎？”伊利里歐把雞骨頭扔出轎外。“傭兵不敢面對多斯拉克人的吼叫，這在科霍已經被證實了。”

“Is this the selfsame father that you murdered?” Illyrio tossed his chicken bone from the litter. “Sellswords will not stand against Dothraki screamers. That was proved at Qohor.”

“你勇敢的格里夫也不行？”提利昂嘲笑道。“格里夫不同。他有個十分鐘愛的兒子，叫做小格里夫的男孩，那可從沒有紈绔子弟。”

“Not even your brave Griff?” mocked Tyrion. “Griff is different. He has a son he dotes on. Young Griff, the boy is called. There never was a nobler lad.”

美酒、佳肴、烈日、轎子的晃動、蒼蠅嗡嗡聲，這些加起來使得提利昂昏昏欲睡。所以他睡著了，醒來，喝酒。伊利里歐和他一杯接一杯的拼酒，當天空變成了暗紫色的時候，這個胖家伙打起了呼嚕。

The wine, the food, the sun, the sway of the litter, the buzzing of the flies, all conspired to make Tyrion sleepy. So he slept, woke, drank. Illyrio matched him cup for cup. And as the sky turned a dusky purple, the fat man began to snore.

那晚提利昂·蘭尼斯特夢見了一場將維斯特洛的山脈變得血紅的戰役。他也身在其中，用一把和他自己一般大的斧頭與死亡奮戰，他的身邊是禿頂的巴利斯坦和寒鐵，巨龍在他們頭頂盤旋。夢中他長了兩個都沒鼻子的腦袋，他的父親率領著敵軍，于是他又一次干掉了他。接著他殺了他的哥哥，詹姆，劈著他的臉直到那變成了一灘紅色的爛泥，每一下敲打都令他大笑一聲。直到戰斗結束時他才發現他的另一個頭一直在哭泣。

That night Tyrion Lannister dreamed of a battle that turned the hills of Westeros as red as blood. He was in the midst of it, dealing death with an axe as big as he was, fighting side by side with Barristan the Bold and Bittersteel as dragons wheeled across the sky above them. In the dream he had two heads, both noseless. His father led the enemy, so he slew him once again. Then he killed his brother, Jaime, hacking at his face until it was a red ruin, laughing every time he struck a blow. Only when the fight was finished did he realize that his second head was weeping.

當他醒來時他發育不良的雙腿像鐵一樣僵硬得。伊利里歐正在吃著橄欖。“我們到哪兒了？提利昂問他。

When he woke his stunted legs were stiff as iron. Illyrio was eating olives. “Where are we?” Tyrion asked him.

“我們還沒有離開平坦之地呢，我急性子的朋友。馬上我們就進入絲絨山脈了。從那開始我們將順著小洛恩河逆流而上，一直爬到格霍安·卓赫。

“We have not yet left the Flatlands, my hasty friend. Soon our road shall pass into the Velvet Hills. There we begin our climb toward Ghoyan Drohe, upon the Little Rhoyne.”

格霍安·卓赫曾是個洛恩的城市，直到瓦雷利亞的龍們把它燒成一片冒煙的廢墟。我正在歷史中穿行，提利昂回想，思緒回到了龍統治大地的日子。

Ghoyan Drohe had been a Rhoynar city, until the dragons of Valyria had reduced it to a smoldering desolation. I am traveling through years as well as leagues, Tyrion reflected, back through history to the days when dragons ruled the earth.

提利昂睡著，醒來又再睡過去，白天還是黑夜看起來已經沒什么關系了。絲絨山脈令人失望。“蘭尼斯特港一半妓女的胸脯都要比這些山大，”他告訴伊利里歐。“你該稱他們為絲絨奶頭。”他們看見了一個立起石頭擺成的圓圈，伊利里歐聲稱那是巨人搭建的，接著是一個深湖。“這里曾住著一窩強盜，洗劫所有經過這里的人，”伊利里歐說。“據說他們仍然潛在水下，那些在這里捕魚的人都被拉下水吞吃掉了。”隔天晚上他們來到一個巨大的蹲在路邊的瓦雷利亞的龍身人面獸跟前。它有一個龍的軀干和一張女人的面孔。

Tyrion slept and woke and slept again, and day and night seemed not to matter. The Velvet Hills proved a disappointment. “Half the whores in Lannisport have breasts bigger than these hills,” he told Illyrio. “You ought to call them the Velvet Teats.” They saw a circle of standing stones that Illyrio claimed had been raised by giants, and later a deep lake. “Here lived a den of robbers who preyed on all who passed this way,” Illyrio said. “It is said they still dwell beneath the water. Those who fish the lake are pulled under and devoured.” The next evening they came upon a huge Valyrian sphinx crouched beside the road. It had a dragon’s body and a woman’s face.

“龍后，”提利昂說。“令人鼓舞的預兆。”

“A dragon queen,” said Tyrion. “A pleasant omen.”

“她的國王丟了。”伊利里歐指著旁邊那個曾站著另一座龍身人面獸的光滑石臺，那里已經覆滿了苔蘚和開著花的藤蔓。“多斯拉克人建造了木頭車輪墊在他的下面，把他拖回了維斯·多斯拉克。”

“Her king is missing.” Illyrio pointed out the smooth stone plinth on which the second sphinx once stood, now grown over with moss and flowering vines. “The horselords built wooden wheels beneath him and dragged him back to Vaes Dothrak.”

那也是個預兆，提利昂想，但不像剛才那個令人鼓舞。那晚，他比以往喝得還要爛醉，突然唱起歌來。

That is an omen too, thought Tyrion, but not as hopeful. That night, drunker than usual, he broke into sudden song.

“他奔馳在城里的街巷，離開那高高的山崗

He rode through the streets of the city,down from his hill on high,

馬踏過鵝卵石階小巷，帶他到姑娘的身旁

O’er the wynds and the steps and the cobbles,he rode to a woman’s sigh.

她是他珍藏的寶貝呀，她是他含羞的期望

For she was his secret treasure,she was his shame and his bliss.

項鏈和城堡都是浮云，比不上姑娘的親吻”

And a chain and a keep are nothing,compared to a woman’s kiss.

這些就是除了疊句以外他知道的全部歌詞。金手觸摸冰冰涼呀，而姑娘小掌熱乎乎。當那金手連成的項鏈勒緊雪伊的咽喉時，她拼命地拍打他。他記不得它們是否溫暖。當她的力氣耗盡時，她的拍打變得像飛蛾在他臉上的撲打。他每扭一下那項鏈，金手就嵌入得更深。項鏈和城堡都是浮云，比不上姑娘的親吻。在她死后，他有沒有最后吻她一次呢？他記不起來了……但他依然記得他們第一次的親吻，是在綠叉河邊他的帳篷里。她的嘴嘗起來多么甜美。

Those were all the words he knew, aside from the refrain. Hands of gold are always cold, but a woman’s hands are warm. Shae’s hands had beat at him as the golden hands dug into her throat. He did not remember if they’d been warm or not. As the strength went out of her, her blows became moths fluttering about his face. Each time he gave the chain another twist the golden hands dug deeper. A chain and a keep are nothing, compared to a woman’s kiss. Had he kissed her one last time, after she was dead? He could not remember … though he still recalled the first time they had kissed, in his tent beside the Green Fork. How sweet her mouth had tasted.

他又想起他與泰莎的第一次，她不知道該怎么做，比我強不了多少。我們不斷撞著鼻子，但當我們舌頭觸碰時，她渾身顫抖。提利昂閉上眼用心回想她的面容，但他卻看到了他父親，腰間裹著睡袍蹲坐在馬桶上。“妓女們的去處，”泰溫大人說，然后是十字弓的咔噠聲。

He remembered the first time with Tysha as well. She did not know how, no more than I did. We kept bumping our noses, but when I touched her tongue with mine she trembled. Tyrion closed his eyes to bring her face to mind, but instead he saw his father, squatting on a privy with his bedrobe hiked up about his waist. “Wherever whores go,” Lord Tywin said, and the crossbow thrummed.

侏儒翻了一下身，把半個鼻子深深壓在絲綢枕頭里。睡意在他身下像井口一樣張開，他許下個愿望然后讓自己投入其中，讓黑暗吞噬了他。

The dwarf rolled over, pressing half a nose deep into the silken pillows. Sleep opened beneath him like a well, and he threw himself into it with a will and let the darkness eat him up.