Ch4-Battle Scene

CHAPTER FOUR Battle Scene. Jack and Annie hurried to keep up with Leonardo. "So where are we going?" Annie asked. "To the palace of the great council," said Leonardo. "I was hired to paint a fresco in the council hall. I have been working on it for months."

第四章战斗场面。 杰克和安妮急忙追赶李奥纳多。 “那我们要去哪儿？”安妮问。 “去大议会的宫殿，”列奥纳多说。 “我受雇在议会大厅画一幅壁画。 我已经研究了好几个月了。”

"What's a fresco?" asked Jack. "It is a work of art painted onto a wall," said Leonardo. "One must spread plaster on the wall and then paint very quickly before it dries." "Sounds like fun," said Annie. "Not for me," said Leonardo. "I believe great art requires much thought. I like to paint slowly, and I change things as I go along. So for this fresco, I have invented a special oil paint that dries very slowly." "Does it work?" said Jack. "Too well," said Leonardo. "Now I have a new problem: Neither the plaster nor my oil paints have dried at all." "Oh, no," said Annie.

“什么是壁画？”杰克问。 “这是一幅画在墙上的艺术品，”列奥纳多说。 “人们必须在墙上涂上灰泥，然后在它干之前迅速油漆。” “听起来很有趣，”安妮说。 “不适合我，”列奥纳多说。 “我相信伟大的艺术需要深思熟虑。 我喜欢慢慢地画，而且我在画的过程中会改变一些东西。 所以为了这幅壁画，我发明了一种特殊的油画颜料，它干得很慢。” “管用吗？”杰克问。 “太好了，”列奥纳多说。 “现在我有一个新问题：石膏和油画颜料都没有干。” “哦，不，”安妮说。

"But today all will be well!" Leonardo said cheerfully. "I have a plan to speed up the drying process. This morning I will fix everything!" Leonardo led Jack and Annie into a square with a large building. "There it is," he said. "The palace of the great council." The palace looked like a fortress. It had rough-looking stone walls and a tower that rose high into the air. "The palace is a very important place," said Leonardo. "It is where the governing council of Florence meets. Come along." He opened one of the grand doors and guided Jack and Annie into a courtyard with a fountain. "This way to the

“但是今天一切都会好起来的！”列奥纳多高兴地说。 “我有一个加快干燥过程的计划。 今天早上我就把一切都修好！”列奥纳多领着杰克和安妮走进一个有一栋大楼的广场。 “在那儿，”他说。“大议会的宫殿。” 这座宫殿看起来像一座堡垒。 它的石墙看起来很粗糙，还有一座高耸入云的高塔。 “宫殿是一个非常重要的地方，”列奥纳多说。 “这是佛罗伦萨管理委员会开会的地方。 过来。”他打开其中一扇大门，领着杰克和安妮走进一个有喷泉的院子。 “往这边走。

council hall," he said, "and the latest work of Leonardo da Vinci." Leonardo bounded up some steps and down a corridor. Jack and Annie hurried after him until he passed through another grand doorway and stopped. Leonardo put down his basket and raised his hands. "My fresco," he said. "Oh, man," breathed Jack.

他说，“还有列奥纳多·达·芬奇的最新作品。” 列奥纳多蹦蹦跳跳地走上几级台阶，穿过一条走廊。 杰克和安妮急忙跟在他后面，直到他穿过另一个宏伟的门口，才停了下来。 列奥纳多放下篮子，举起双手。 “我的壁画，”他说。“哦，伙计。”杰克喘着气说。

They were in an enormous room with tall, arched windows and vast white walls. Several young men stood on a wooden platform on the far side of the room. On the wall above them was a giant painting of a battle scene. It showed a tangle of men on horseback, fighting over a flag. The men in the painting seemed to be in a fury as they slashed at each other with their swords.

他们在一个巨大的房间里，有高高的拱形窗户和巨大的白墙。 几个年轻人站在房间另一边的木台上。 在他们上方的墙上挂着一幅描绘战争场面的巨幅油画。 画面上，一群人骑在马背上，争夺一面旗帜。 画中的男人似乎很愤怒，他们用剑互相砍杀。

Their faces were twisted, their mouths snarling. Even their horses looked wild and angry. "The city has paid me to paint a scene from a battle once fought to defend Florence," said Leonardo. "They wanted me to paint a scene of glory. But I believe war is a beastly madness. I hope my painting shows that." "Oh, it does," said Annie. Jack nodded. It was the scariest painting he'd ever seen. "Zorro!" called Leonardo. One of the young men on the platform climbed down a ladder and jumped to the floor. He was a sturdy-looking teenager with a red face and wavy black hair.

他们的脸扭曲着，嘴巴咆哮着。 就连他们的马也显得狂暴而愤怒。 莱昂纳多说：“这座城市付钱给我，让我画一幅曾经保卫佛罗伦萨的战斗场景。” “他们想让我画一幅光荣的景象。 但我相信战争是一种残忍的疯狂。 我希望我的画能表现出这一点。” “哦，是的，”安妮说。 杰克点了点头。这是他见过的最可怕的画。 “佐罗！”莱昂纳多叫道。站台上的一个年轻人爬下梯子，跳到了地板上。 他是一个看起来很健壮的少年，红着脸，一头乌黑的卷发。