2. The Missing Ring

2 The Missing Ring "This way to the lift," Detective Bates told the Lambchops. They followed him down a hallway and into an elevator. "I think the 'lift' must be the elevator," Stanley whispered to Arthur as they were whisked to the twentieth floor. "Come, hove a seat in my office," Detective Bates said, inviting them in. "Would you like a

“往电梯这边走，”贝茨侦探告诉兰博夫妇。 他们跟着他穿过走廊，进了电梯。 “我想‘lift’一定是指电梯。”斯坦利悄声对阿瑟说，他们被迅速带到了二十楼。 “来，请到我的办公室坐一会儿。”贝茨侦探说着，邀请他们进来。 “你想要一个吗?

spot of tea?" he asked Mr. and Mrs. Lambchop, pointing to a tea set on his desk. What in the world did he mean? Stanley wondered. The tea cups had no spots on them at all! He could not think too much about this question, though, because Detective Bates started explaining why he had called them here. Detective Bates cleared his throat. "As you may know," he began, "the queen of England is no longer young. When she dies, a new king—her son—will take part in the traditional coronation ceremony. That is when he will take charge of the throne and the crown. Only the queen knows that something will be missing from that ceremony." He lowered his voice and added, "Well, the queen... and someone else." Stanley and Arthur looked at each other, confused. "What do you mean?" Stanley asked. The detective continued. "Throughout history, the crown jewels have been an important part of the coronation ceremony. One by one, they are given to the new king or queen. Each one of them stands for one part of the ruler's power. For some

来点茶吗?”他指着桌子上的一套茶具问兰切普夫妇。 他到底是什么意思? 斯坦利想知道。茶杯上一点斑点也没有!不过，他不能对这个问题想太多，因为贝茨侦探开始解释他为什么把他们叫到这里来。 贝茨警探清了清喉咙。 “你可能知道，”他开始说，“英国女王已经不再年轻了。 女王去世后，新国王——她的儿子将参加传统的加冕仪式。 那时他将掌管王位和王冠。 只有女王知道，婚礼上会少些什么。” 他压低声音补充道:“嗯，王后…… 还有其他人。”斯坦利和阿瑟面面相觑，不知所措。 “你是什么意思?”斯坦利问道。 侦探继续说。“纵观历史，皇冠上的珠宝一直是加冕仪式的重要组成部分。 一个接一个地交给新的国王或王后。 每一个都代表着统治者的一部分权力。 对于一些

time, however, the queen has kept a secret. The set of crown jewels is not complete." "One of them was stolen?" Arthur asked. "Not exactly," said Detective Bates. "Usually the crown jewels are locked away, but the royal family may also use them for special occasions. It was after one family wedding that the Windsor Ring vanished. The queen has never laid eyes on it again." "The Windsor Ring?" Stanley repeated. "The Windsor Ring," Detective Bates repeated sadly. "It has been treasured by the royal family for centuries. It features an unusual group of gems. A blue sapphire, a white diamond, and a red ruby—now the colors of our British flog."

然而，时间，女王一直保守着一个秘密。 那套皇冠上的珠宝不完整。” “其中一个被偷了?”亚瑟问。 “不完全是，”贝茨侦探说。 “皇冠上的珠宝通常是锁起来的，但王室也可能在特殊场合使用它们。 在一次家庭婚礼之后，温莎戒指消失了。 王后再也没见过它一眼。” “温莎戒指?”斯坦利重复。 “温莎指环组。”贝茨警探悲伤地重复道。 “它被王室珍藏了几个世纪。 它以一组不同寻常的宝石为特色。 一颗蓝色蓝宝石、一颗白色钻石和一颗红色红宝石——现在是我们英国国旗的颜色了。”

When the detective glanced at a small flagpole in the corner of the office, Stanley figured out what he was saying. He heard "flog," but Detective Bates was talking about a flag! "The queen's cousin, Lady Laura, was the one who borrowed the ring. She claims she returned it to the vault after the wedding. Since then, she has been spotted many times wearing a colorful ring. But no one has been able to determine if it is really the missing one." Detective Bates got to his point. "The queen does not want to embarrass her cousin. But this mystery has gone on long enough! Time is running out, and the queen wants the ring back before the next king is crowned. Stonley, how would you like to go on a spy mission?" "No fair!" Arthur answered before Stanley could say a word. "I want to go, too!" Detective Bates put a hand up to stop him. "Your family will stay together at all times," he promised Arthur. "But only Stonley will be working to solve the mystery." He explained the plan. Or, as he called it, "the plon."

当侦探瞥了一眼办公室角落里的一根小旗杆时，斯坦利明白了他在说什么。 他听到的是"鞭子"但贝茨警探说的是旗帜!“女王的表妹劳拉夫人就是借戒指的人。 她说婚礼结束后她把它放回了保险库。 从那以后，人们多次看到她戴着一枚彩色戒指。 但没有人能够确定它是否真的是失踪的那个。” 贝茨警探说到点子上了 “女王不想让她的表妹难堪。 但这个谜团已经拖得够久了!时间不多了，王后想在下一任国王加冕前把戒指拿回来。 斯通利，你愿意去执行间谍任务吗?”“不公平!”斯坦利还没来得及说话，阿瑟就回答了。 “我也想去!”贝茨警探举起手阻止了他。 “你的家人会一直待在一起。”他向亚瑟保证。 “但只有斯通利能解开这个谜团。” 他解释了这个计划。或者，用他的话说，“计划”。

Lady Laura, who lived far outside of London, was making a visit to the city. She would be attending a formal ball at Buckingham Palace— where the queen lived—with many other members of the royal family. "If Lady Laura has the ring," Detective Bates said, "this will be the perfect time to wear it. The queen is in poor health, so she will not be attending the ball. No one else knows about the missing ring. Lady Laura will think the coast is clear." "So... where do I come in?" Stanley asked. "You, Stonley, will be attending the ball," said Detective Bates. "Guests like Lady Laura will think you're there— with your family—as a famous guest." He paused and added, "I understand you are well known around the world. On account of your being... er... flot." Stanley looked modestly at the floor. "A lot of people know who I am," he had to agree. "You will be the perfect spy!" the detective exclaimed. "No one will guess you are undercover. But as you mingle with the guests, you can keep an eye on Lady Laura. You can get a

劳拉夫人住在离伦敦很远的地方，她正在访问这个城市。 她将和许多其他王室成员一起参加在女王居住的白金汉宫举行的正式舞会。 “如果劳拉夫人有戒指，”贝茨侦探说，“现在正是戴戒指的最佳时机。 女王身体不好，所以她不能参加舞会。 没人知道丢失戒指的事。 劳拉夫人会认为没有危险了。” “所以……我从何而来?”斯坦利问道。 “你，斯通利，要参加舞会，”贝茨侦探说。 “像劳拉夫人这样的客人会认为你和你的家人在一起，是一位著名的客人。” 他停顿了一下，接着说:“我知道你在全世界都很有名。 鉴于你是…… 呃…flot。”斯坦利谦虚地看着地板。 “很多人都知道我是谁，”他不得不表示同意。 “你将成为一个完美的间谍!”侦探惊呼道。 “没人会猜到你是卧底。 但当你和客人们混在一起时，你可以盯着劳拉夫人。 你可以得到一个

close look at her jewelry. And if she is wearing an unusual ring, you can use a special tool—which I will give you—to determine if it is truly the Windsor Ring." Detective Bates looked at Stanley, waiting for his reply. Stanley was excited about the mission, but he couldn't help thinking about the detective's accent. He didn't mean to be rude. He just couldn't stop himself before these words came out of his mouth: "I'd be really glod to do it!" Detective Bates did not seem to notice, though. He just thumped Stanley on the back and said, "Bright chop! I will see you at the ball." A "chop," Stanley soon learned, was a chap. That was what English people said instead of "guy." Wherever the Lambchops went in London, someone was calling Stanley a chap. "There's a fine chap," said a taxi driver, giving Flat Stanley a strange look. "The queue starts here, young chap," said a ticket seller at Westminster Abbey. Any English chap, Stanley discovered, knew that a queue was a line.

仔细看看她的首饰。 如果她戴着一枚不寻常的戒指，你可以用一种特殊的工具——我将给你——来确定它是否真的是温莎戒指。” 贝茨侦探看着斯坦利，等着他的回答。 斯坦利对这次任务很兴奋，但他忍不住想起了侦探的口音。 他不是有意无礼的。 他情不自禁地说出了这句话:“我真的很乐意做这件事!”不过贝茨警探似乎没有注意到。 他只是拍拍斯坦利的背说:“聪明的家伙!我们在舞会上见。” 斯坦利很快了解到，“chop”是小伙子的意思。 这是英国人说的，而不是“guy”。 在伦敦，无论羔羊排走到哪里，都有人叫斯坦利小伙子。 “真是个好小伙子，”一个出租车司机说，奇怪地看了Flat Stanley一眼。 “小伙子，排队从这里开始，”威斯敏斯特教堂的一位售票员说。 斯坦利发现，任何英国人都知道queue就是line。