15 Bean’s Secret Cider Cellar

15 Bean's Secret Cider Cellar Mr Fox examined the wall carefully. He saw that the cement between the bricks was old and crumbly, so he loosened a brick without much trouble and pulled it away. Suddenly, out from the hole where the brick had been, there popped a small sharp face with whiskers. 'Go away!' it snapped. 'You can't come in here! It's private!' 'Good Lord!' said Badger. 'It's Rat!' 'You saucy beast!' said Mr Fox. 'I should have guessed we'd find you down here somewhere.' 'Go away!' shrieked Rat. 'Go on, beat it! This is my private pitch!' 'Shut up,' said Mr Fox. 'I will not shut up!' shrieked Rat. 'This is my place! I got here first!'

15比恩的秘密苹果酒窖狐狸先生仔细地检查了墙。 他看到砖间的水泥又旧又易碎，于是他毫不费力地把一块砖弄松，把它拖走。 突然，从放砖的洞里探出一张长着胡须的尖尖的小脸。 “走开!”它厉声说。“你不能进来!”这是私人!“天哪!”獾说。 这是老鼠!“你这个无礼的畜生!”狐狸先生说。 “我早该猜到我们会在这儿什么地方找到你的。“走开!”河鼠尖叫道。 “走吧，滚开!”这是我的私人演讲!“闭嘴，”狐狸先生说。 “我不会闭嘴的!”河鼠尖叫道。 “这是我的地方!”我先到的!”

Mr Fox gave a brilliant smile, flashing his white teeth. 'My dear Rat,' he said softly, 'I am a hungry fellow and if you don't hop it quickly I shall eat-you-up-in-one-gulp!'

狐狸先生露出灿烂的微笑，露出他洁白的牙齿。 “我亲爱的河鼠，”他轻声说，“我饿坏了，如果你不赶快跳起来，我就一口把你吃掉!”

That did it. Rat popped back fast out of sight. Mr Fox laughed and began pulling more bricks out of the wall. When he had made a biggish hole, he crept through it. Badger and the Smallest Fox followed him in. They found themselves in a vast, damp, gloomy cellar. 'This is it!' cried Mr Fox.

这就对了。老鼠飞快地跑了回来，不见了。 狐狸先生笑了，开始从墙上拉出更多的砖头。 当他挖了一个更大的洞后，他爬了出去。 獾和最小的狐狸跟着他进来。 他们发现自己置身于一个巨大、潮湿、阴暗的地窖里。 “就是这个!”狐狸先生叫道。

'This is what?' said Badger. 'The place is empty' 'Where are the turkeys?' asked the Smallest Fox, staring into the gloom. 'I thought Bean was a turkey man.' 'He is a turkey man,' said Mr Fox. 'But we're not after turkeys now. We've got plenty of food.' 'Then what do we need, Dad?' 'Take a good look round,' said Mr Fox. 'Don't you see anything that interests you?' Badger and the Smallest Fox peered into the half-darkness. As their eyes became accustomed to the gloom, they began to see what looked like a whole lot of big glass jars standing upon shelves around the walls. They went closer. They were jars. There were hundreds of them, and upon each one was written the word CIDER. The Smallest Fox leaped high in the air. 'Oh, Dad!' he cried out. 'Look what we've found! It's cider!' 'Ex-actly,' said Mr Fox.

“这是什么?”獾说。 “这个地方是空的”“火鸡在哪里?”最小的狐狸盯着黑暗问道。 “我以为比恩喜欢吃火鸡。“他是个火鸡人，”狐狸先生说。 “但我们现在不是在找火鸡。 我们有足够的食物。“那我们需要什么呢，爸爸?”“好好看看四周，”狐狸先生说。 “你没有看到任何你感兴趣的东西吗?”獾和最小的狐狸凝视着半明半暗的黑暗。 当他们的眼睛适应了昏暗的环境后，他们开始看到四周墙壁上的架子上放着许多大玻璃罐子。 他们走近了。它们是罐子。 瓶子有几百个，每一个上面都写着“苹果酒”两个字。 最小的狐狸在空中跳得很高。 “噢,爸爸!他叫道。“看看我们找到了什么!”这是酒!“没错，”狐狸先生说。

'Tremendous!' shouted Badger. 'Bean's Secret Cider Cellar,' said Mr Fox. 'But go carefully, my dears. Don't make a noise. This cellar is right underneath the farmhouse itself.' 'Cider,' said Badger, 'is especially good for Badgers. We take it as medicine – one large glass three times a day with meals and another at bedtime.' 'It will make the feast into a banquet,' said Mr Fox. While they were talking, the Smallest Fox had sneaked a jar off the shelf and had taken a gulp. 'Wow!' he gasped. 'Wow-ee!' You must understand this was not the ordinary weak fizzy cider one buys in a store. It was the real stuff, a home-brewed fiery liquor that burned in your throat and boiled in your stomach. 'Ah-h-h-h-h-h!' gasped the Smallest Fox. 'This is some cider!'

“巨大的!獾喊道。 “比恩的秘密苹果酒窖。”狐狸先生说。 “可是要小心，亲爱的。 不要制造噪音。这个地窖就在农舍的正下方。“苹果酒，”獾说，“对獾特别好。” 我们把它当作药服用——一天三次，每次一大杯，随餐服用，睡前服用。“它会使宴会变成宴会，”狐狸先生说。 他们说话的时候，最小的狐狸从架子上偷拿了一个罐子，喝了一大口。 “哇!他喘着气说。“Wow-ee !”你必须明白，这不是你在商店里买到的那种普通的淡味苹果酒。 这是真正的东西，一种自制的烈性烈酒，在你的喉咙里燃烧，在你的胃里沸腾。 “Ah-h-h-h-h-h !最小的狐狸喘着气说。 “这是苹果酒!”

'That's quite enough of that,' said Mr Fox, grabbing the jar and putting it to his own lips. He took a tremendous gulp. 'It's miraculous!' he whispered, fighting for breath. 'It's fabulous! It's beautiful!' 'It's my turn,' said Badger, taking the jar and tilting his head well back. The cider gurgled and bubbled down his throat. 'It's… it's like melted gold!' he gasped. 'Oh, Foxy, it's… like drinking sunbeams and rainbows!'

“够了，”狐狸先生说着，抓起罐子放到自己的嘴边。 他大口地喝了一大口。 这是不可思议的!他低声说，拼命喘着气。 “这是难以置信的!它是美丽的!“轮到我了，”獾说着，拿起罐子，向后仰着头。 苹果酒汩汩地流进他的喉咙。 “它……它就像融化的金子!”他喘着气说。 “哦，小狐，这……就像喝了阳光和彩虹!”