Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5 "Welcome to the Donkey Depot, supplying your donkey needs for birthdays, bar mitzvahs, and Bible tours!" the bearded, tunic-and sandal-clad owner, Jacob, said with an enthusiastic smile. "I need to get to Ein Karem," Ruben responded.

“欢迎来到驴库，这里供应你生日、成人礼和圣经之旅所需的驴！”蓄着胡子、穿着束腰外衣和凉鞋的主人雅各布热情地微笑着说。 “我需要去艾因卡勒姆，”鲁本回答说。

"A Bible tour for you and your little companions, then?" Jacob chirped, happy to hear the request, since the trip took over a week and was a good moneymaker. "You're in luck, my friends! My next tour leaves in five days, and there's still availability!" "Five days?" Ruben griped. "I need to leave right away. Can I rent a donkey now?" He pulled out a small handful of cash. Jacob took a look at the pathetic wad of money and shook his head. "Look, I'm not running a charity here, mister! Plus, if my donkeys are traveling that far, I'm going with them." Jacob began to rattle off the complications of the long journey. Ruben rolled his eyes. As they rolled toward the corner of the lot, Ruben caught a glimpse of something. Under the shade of an olive tree, tied to a post alone, stood a scraggly old gray-haired donkey with a droopy back. "Is that one available?" Ruben asked, interrupting Jacob's monologue. Jacob paused and looked in the direction of Ruben's gaze. "Ahh... Dust— Dusty?" he stammered. "Why, that donkey is as..." Jacob paused, then looked back at the cash in Ruben's hand. "We... might be able to... come to an understanding." In truth, Dusty had been retired for a couple of years and pretty much just hung out by the olive

“那么，给你和你的小伙伴们来一次圣经之旅？”雅各布听到这个请求高兴地叫了起来，因为这次旅行花了一个多星期，而且赚了不少钱。 “你们很幸运，我的朋友们！”我的下一个巡演5天后就出发了，还有空位！”“五天?”鲁本抱怨。 “我得马上离开。 我现在可以租一头驴吗？”他掏出一小把现金。 雅各布看了看那可怜的一叠钱，摇了摇头。 “听着，先生，我不是在经营慈善事业！”另外，如果我的驴子要走那么远，我也要和它们一起走。” 雅各布开始滔滔不绝地讲述长途旅行的复杂情况。 鲁本翻了个白眼。当他们滚向停车场的拐角时，鲁本瞥见了什么东西。 在一棵橄榄树的树荫下，孤零零地拴在一根柱子上，站着一头蓬头垢面、驼背的老驴。 “那辆车有空吗？”鲁本打断了雅各布的独白，问道。 雅各布停顿了一下，朝鲁本注视的方向望去。 “啊…灰尘——灰尘？”他结结巴巴地说。 “咦，那头驴就像……” 雅各布停顿了一下，然后回头看了看鲁本手里的现金。 “我们…也许我能…… 达成谅解吧。” 事实上，达斯迪已经退休好几年了，基本上只是在橄榄树旁闲逛

tree and ate. And since a retired, hungry donkey costs more money for its owner than it makes, Jacob was thrilled at the opportunity to unload him. "Can he make the trip?" Ruben asked. "Of course, my friend! Of course!" Jacob replied, returning to salesman mode. "He looks a little... old." "Age is just a number!" Jacob countered. "He's a little on the stubborn side, I'll admit, but he's strong and knows the way!" "So, you'll rent him to me, then?"

树和吃。由于一头饥饿的退休驴给主人带来的成本要高于它的收入，雅各布很高兴有机会卖掉它。 “他能去吗？”鲁本问道。 “当然，我的朋友！”当然!”雅各布回答，回到了推销员的模式。 “他看起来有点……老了。” “年龄只是一个数字！”雅各反驳道。 “我承认，他有点固执，但他很坚强，知道路！”“那么，你要把他租给我了？”

"Rent? No. How are you supposed to return him? What am I, Hertz?" Jacob said. "You want Dusty? You buy him!" "I can't afford—" But before Ruben could finish his sentence, Jacob grabbed the bills in his hand. "Sold!" Jacob announced. "Congratulations! You are now the proud owner of a new... old donkey! Happy trails!"

“租?否。你要怎么还他？ 我是什么，赫兹？”雅各布说。 “你找达斯迪？”你买下他！”“我付不起——”但鲁本还没说完，雅各布就抓起了手里的钞票。 “卖!”雅各宣布。“恭喜你!你现在是一个新… 老驴!小径快乐!”