后羿和嫦娥的愛情故事
Love Story of Chang'E and Hou Yi
遠古時期，天上有十個太陽同時出現。后羿是一名射手，也是帝王衛隊的成員。他拔出神弓，站在崑崙山頂上射落九個太陽，拯救地球於水火之中。
In the distant past, there used to be 10 suns in the sky. Hou Yi, an archer and a member of the Imperial Guard, saved the earth from scorching when he drew his supernatural bow and shot down 9 unnecessary suns from the peak of Mount Kunlun.
西王母賞給后羿一顆長生不老的靈藥。據說普通人吃下去半顆靈藥便可長生不老。
As a reward, the Queen of Heaven presented Hou Yi with the elixir of life. It was said that even half of the elixir could make a person live forever.
然而，后羿不願離開妻子嫦娥，未服下靈藥，反而將靈藥交給嫦娥保管。嫦娥遂將靈藥放進梳妝檯上的一個盒子裡。后羿的徒弟蓬蒙為人奸詐，將這一切看得清清楚楚。
However, Hou Yi was unwilling to leave his wife, Chang'e, so he did not take the elixir. Instead, he gave it to Chang'e for safekeeping. Chang'e put the elixir of life into a case in her dressing table, but she was observed by one of Hou Yi's disciples, Peng Meng, who was very treacherous.
一日，后羿帶著徒弟們出去打獵。狡詐的蓬蒙裝病，未能一起前去。后羿一行人離開後不久，蓬蒙闖進后羿家中，逼迫嫦娥交出靈藥。嫦娥自知無法阻止蓬蒙奪走靈藥。
One day when Hou Yi went out to hunt with his disciples, the disingenuous Peng Meng pretended to be ill and didn't go with them. Shortly after they left, Peng Meng broke into Hou Yi's house and warned Chang'e that she had better hand over the elixir of life. Chang'e knew that she couldn't manage to protect the elixir.
在危急關頭，嫦娥從盒子裡取出靈藥，快速將它吞進肚裡，她很快飄向空中。據說嫦娥成仙后思念丈夫后羿，居住在離地球最近的月亮之上。
In the crisis, Chang'e fetched the elixir from the case and promptly swallowed it. Immediately she floated up into the sky. It was said that Chang'e became immortal and stayed on the moon nearest to the earth, as she was anxious about her husband Hou Yi.
夜幕降臨時，后羿返回家中，侍女們將白天發生的一切都告訴他。后羿聽罷大怒，立刻去殺蓬蒙。思妻心切的后羿朝向天空吶喊，他驚訝地發現那夜的月亮異常明亮清澈。他看到了一個搖曳的身影，像極了妻子嫦娥。
At nightfall, Hou Yi went back home and was told by his maids what had happened during his absence. Hou Yi was furious and immediately went to kill Peng Meng. The heart-stricken Hou Yi shouted to the sky and surprisingly discovered the moon was extremely bright and clear that night. He caught sight of a swaying figure that was exactly like Chang'e.
后羿趕忙命侍女們在後花園擺一個香案，擺上嫦娥最喜歡吃的新鮮水果與月餅，用這樣的方式懷念月亮之上的嫦娥。
Hou Yi hastily asked his maids to put an incense table in the back garden and to place fresh fruit and moon cakes – the favorite food of Chang'e – on the table, convening a memorable ceremony for Chang'e, who lived on the distant moon.
當地人聽聞嫦娥的故事後，他們在月下放置香案來祭拜嫦娥仙子，祈福求全。至此，中秋節賞月的習俗廣為流傳。
When local people heard the story of Chang'e, they arranged incense tables below the moon for the worship of the goddess Chang'e, praying for happiness and safety. Worshipping and appreciating the moon during the mid-autumn festival has been a popular activity ever since.
相傳有三位神仙，化身為三個可憐的老人，分別向狐狸、猴子及兔子乞食，狐狸、猴子都拿出了食物接濟老人，但只有兔子沒有這麼做，兔子告訴老人：「你們吃我吧。」說罷，它就跳入烈火之中。
It's said there used to be three immortals disguised as three poor old men. These poor old men begged for food from a fox, a monkey, and a rabbit. The fox and the monkey offered something to eat, but the rabbit had nothing to give them. Instead, the rabbit invited the old men to eat its meat and promptly plunged into the raging fire.
神仙們深受感動，於是將兔子送到廣寒宮，取名為玉兔。後來，玉兔就在廣寒宮裡和嫦娥相伴，並搗制長生不老藥。
The three immortals were deeply moved by the rabbit and decided to bring it to the palace of the moon. The rabbit on the moon is commonly known as the Jade Rabbit. It is a good company for Chang'e, and it mashes herbs and makes elixirs of life there, day after day.
吳剛伐桂
Wu Gang Chops the Tree
舉頭望明月時，你可以看到一個黑影，那正是努力砍倒桂樹的吳剛。
When you look up at the bright moon, you can see a black shadow, which is just the legendary Wu Gang, trying to cut down a sweet osmanthus tree.
吳剛乃一介平民樵夫，沉迷於成仙之道。他拜一位仙人為師，學習修仙之道。
Wu Gang was an ordinary woodcutter who was obsessed with becoming immortal. He invited an immortal to be his teacher, seeking instructions from him.
然而，吳剛粗心大意，缺乏耐性，注意力無法集中。仙人大怒，便把吳剛帶到月亮之上，告知他只要砍倒桂樹便可羽化成仙。
However, Wu Gang was careless, impatient, and he couldn't concentrate. The immortal became furious and made Wu Gang stay on the moon, informing him that he could become immortal once he had cut down the moon's sweet osmanthus tree.
吳剛用盡全力舉斧伐桂，然而，這棵桂樹總是自然重新長成它原來的樣子。日復一日，吳剛伐桂不止，但永遠無法砍倒這棵桂樹。
Wu Gang tried his best to fell the tree with his ax. However, the tree would always re-grow naturally into its former state. Day by day, Wu Gang chops the tree, but he can't manage to fell it permanently.