47. 今咱愛 koh 計畫代誌

47. Taⁿ lái ài koh kè-ōe tāi-chì

I thîn kóa kapi tī po-lê poe-á ni̍h. Lāu lâng kā chiap kòe-lâi lim.

"Góa hō͘ in phah-pāi ah, Manolin," i kóng. "In kă phah-pāi lah."

"Hî bô phah-pāi lí. Hî bô."

"Hî bô. Sī sū-āu ê tāi-chì phah-pāi--ê."

"Pedrico teh koán-kò͘ sió-chûn kap ke-si. Hî-thâu boeh chóaⁿ chhú-lí?"

"Hō͘ Pedrico kā phut-phòa, iōng tī hî-lang ni̍h."

"kiàm-chhùi neh?"

"Lí nā ài, hō͘ lí."

"Góa ài," gín-á kóng. "Taⁿ lán ài kè-ōe kî-thaⁿ ê tāi-chì."

"In ū chhōe góa bô?"

"Tong-jiân ū. Phài hái-kéng-tūi kap hoe-lêng-ki khì."

"Hái-iûⁿ siuⁿ tōa, chûn-á siuⁿ sè, chin oh chhōe," lāu lâng kóng. I hoat-hiān, ū lâng thang kóng-ōe pí kan-ta ka-tī kóng a̍h-sī kap hái kóng, sī gōa hó neh. "Góa su-liām lí," i kóng. "Lín ū lia̍h tio̍h siáⁿ?"

"Tē-it kang chi̍t bóe. Tē-jī kang mā chi̍t bóe, tē-saⁿ kang nn̄g bóe."

"Chiâⁿ hó."

"Taⁿ lán koh tâng-chê lia̍h-hî."

"Bē-sái. Góa bô hó-ūn. Góa lóng bô hó-ūn ah."

"Mài chhap he ūn lah," gín-á kóng. "Góa ē chah-lâi hó-ūn."

"Lín pē-bú ē chóaⁿ kóng?"

"Góa m̄-koán. Góa cha-hng lia̍h nn̄g bóe. Taⁿ lán tâng-chê lia̍h-hî, góa ē-tàng o̍h chin chē."

Lán ài khoán chi̍t-ki hó ê hî-pio, sûi-sî khǹg chûn-téng. Lí ē-sái iōng Ford chū-tōng-chhia ê keng-á phìⁿ bôa-chhut pio-to. Lán ē-sái khì Guanabacoa hia bôa. Ài bôa chiam, m̄-bián hôe-hóe, nā bô, kín tn̄g. Góa ê to tn̄g--khì."

"Góa koh khì chhōe to, hām khì bôa keng-á. Chiah tōa ê tang-pak hong ài koh thàu kúi kang?"

"Khó-lêng saⁿ kang. Sīm-chì khah kú."

Góa ē lóng chhoân hó-sè," gín-á kóng. "Lí kā chhiú kò͘ hó, lāu--ê."

-- 

47. 今咱愛 koh 計畫代誌

伊酙寡 kapi tī 玻璃杯仔 ni̍h. 老人 kā 接過來啉.

"我予 in 拍敗 ah, Manolin," 伊講. "In kă 拍敗 lah."

"魚無拍敗你. 魚無."

"魚無. 是事後 ê 代誌拍敗 ê."

"Pedrico teh 管顧小船 kap 家私. 魚頭欲怎處理?"

"予 Pedrico kā phut 破, 用 tī 魚籠 ni̍h."

"劍喙 neh?"

"你若愛, 予你."

"我愛," 囡仔講. "今咱愛計畫其他 ê 代誌."

"In 有揣我無?"

"當然有. 派海警隊 kap 飛行機去."

"海洋 siuⁿ 大, 船仔 siuⁿ 細, 真 oh 揣," 老人講. 伊發現, 有人通講話比干焦家己講抑是 kap 海講, 是偌好 neh. "我思念你," 伊講. "恁有掠著啥?"

"第一工一尾. 第二工 mā 一尾, 第三工兩尾."

"誠好."

"今咱 koh 同齊掠魚."

"袂使. 我無好運. 我攏無好運 ah."

"莫 chhap 彼運 lah," 囡仔講. "我會扎來好運."

"恁爸母會怎講?"

"我毋管. 我昨昏掠兩尾. 今咱同齊掠魚, 我 ē-tàng 學真濟."

咱愛款一支好 ê 魚鏢, 隨時囥船頂. 你 ē-sái 用 Ford 自動車 ê 弓仔片磨出鏢刀. 咱 ē-sái 去 Guanabacoa 遐磨. 愛磨尖, 毋免回火, 若無, 緊斷. 我 ê 刀斷去."

"我 koh 去揣刀, 和去磨弓仔. chiah 大 ê 東北風愛 koh 透幾工?"

"可能三工. 甚至較久."

我會攏 chhoân 好勢," 囡仔講. "你 kā 手顧好, 老 ê."

-- 

47.

He poured some of the coffee in a glass. The old man took it and drank it.

“They beat me, Manolin,” he said. “They truly beat me.”

“He didn’t beat you. Not the fish.”

“No. Truly. It was afterwards.”

“Pedrico is looking after the skiff and the gear. What do you want done with the head?”

“Let Pedrico chop it up to use in fish traps.”

“And the spear?”

“You keep it if you want it.”

“I want it,” the boy said. “Now we must make our plans about the other things.”

“Did they search for me?”

“Of course. With coast guard and with planes.”

“The ocean is very big and a skiff is small and hard to see,” the old man said. He noticed how pleasant it was to have someone to talk to instead of speaking only to himself and to the sea. “I missed you,” he said. “What did you catch?”

“One the first day. One the second and two the third.”

“Very good.”

“Now we fish together again.”

“No. I am not lucky. I am not lucky anymore.”

“The hell with luck,” the boy said. “I’ll bring the luck with me.”

“What will your family say?”

“I do not care. I caught two yesterday. But we will fish together now for I still have much to learn.”

“We must get a good killing lance and always have it on board. You can make the blade from a spring leaf from an old Ford. We can grind it in Guanabacoa. It should be sharp and not tempered so it will break. My knife broke.”

“I’ll get another knife and have the spring ground. How many days of heavy brisa have we?”

“Maybe three. Maybe more.”

“I will have everything in order,” the boy said. “You get your hands well old man.”

--