32 THE OLD BARN

CHAPTER 32 THE OLD BARN Long ago, Hilltop Farm was a very different place. The original farmers grew vegetable gardens and fruit orchards, and they raised chickens and sheep and goats. The farm had changed a lot since then, but there were still signs of its past. Low stone walls lined some of the fields. A rusty tractor sat in the weeds. And hidden within a densely wooded grove was the old barn. The barn hadn't been used in generations. Over the years, trees had quietly grown up around it and moss had spread across its roof. But the barn was still strong and solid, and Roz wanted to take a look inside. The big barn door screeched along its rails. "Hello?" said the robot, peering into the darkness. "Is anyone here?"

第三十二章老谷仓很久以前，山顶农场是一个完全不同的地方。 最初的农民种植菜园和果园，他们饲养鸡、绵羊和山羊。 从那时起，农场发生了很大的变化，但它过去的痕迹仍然存在。 一些田地的两旁是低矮的石墙。 一辆生锈的拖拉机停在杂草中。 在茂密的树林里隐藏着一座旧谷仓。 这个谷仓已经好几代没人用过了。 多年来，树木在房子周围悄然生长，屋顶上长满了苔藓。 但是谷仓还是很坚固，罗兹想进去看看。 大谷仓的门沿着栏杆发出刺耳的声音。 “喂？”机器人说，凝视着黑暗。 “这里有人吗？”

A mouse squeaked and scurried out of sight, and then Roz had the barn to herself. She stepped through the doorway and switched on her headlights. The vast interior was crisscrossed with thick wooden beams. Stairways and ramps led up to lofts and platforms. Lanterns hung from hooks on the walls. Old- fashioned farm equipment lay here and there. The barn still had the faint smell of farm animals, even though none had lived there in ages. A large trunk sat on a worktable, covered in dust. Roz carefully opened the lid and examined its contents: a collection of farming magazines, a pair of leather gloves, a pencil nub. And then she noticed a small journal. The name Cyrus Shareef was elegantly scrawled across its cover. The pages were filled with his handwritten notes and hand-drawn diagrams about raising livestock and growing crops and building barns, about working the land with the help of strong animals and simple machines. Cyrus Shareef had also jotted down his thoughts about the long history of farming. He believed that the modern world owed its entire existence to ancient farms, when early humans first started growing their food. Those farms were small and primitive, but they

一只老鼠尖叫着跑得无影无踪，然后罗斯就独享了谷仓。 她跨进门口，打开车头灯。 巨大的内部由粗大的木梁纵横交错。 楼梯和坡道通向阁楼和平台。 灯笼挂在墙上的挂钩上。 老式的农用设备到处都是。 谷仓里仍然散发着农场动物的气味，尽管已经很久没有动物住在那里了。 工作台上放着一只满是灰尘的大箱子。 罗兹小心翼翼地打开盖子，查看里面的东西：一堆农业杂志，一副皮手套，一个铅笔头。 然后她注意到一本小日记。 书的封面上优雅地写着塞勒斯·谢里夫的名字。 书页上写满了他手写的笔记和手绘的图表，内容涉及饲养牲畜、种植庄稼和建造谷仓，以及借助强壮的动物和简单的机器耕种土地。 赛勒斯·谢里夫也记下了他对农业悠久历史的看法。 他认为现代世界的整个存在都要归功于古代农场，那时早期人类开始种植食物。 那些农场又小又原始，但他们

supported villages, which became towns, which became cities. The writings were so wise and insightful that Roz read the journal from cover to cover. By the end, she almost felt as if she knew Cyrus Shareef, whoever he was. The journal was a treasure. And she tucked it into a pocket of her tool belt for safekeeping.

支持村庄发展成城镇，再发展成城市。 这些文章是如此睿智和富有洞察力，以至于罗兹从头到尾读了这本杂志。 到最后，她几乎觉得自己认识了塞勒斯·谢里夫，不管他是谁。 那本日记是件珍宝。 为了安全起见，她把它塞进了工具带的口袋里。