Thirty

On Monday at half past three there are new timetables at the depot, for January. I read them. Line 12. Line 9. Line 24.

星期一下午三点半,车场有一月的新时间表。我看了。12路。9路。24路。

Line 24: the last bus from the station is at five o’clock.

24路:车站的最后一班车是五点。

Five o’clock? I read it again. After five there is nothing. No evening bus. No 9:15.

五点?我又看了一次。五点以后什么都没有。没有晚上的车。没有九点十五分。

I go to Mr Hale’s office. Mr Hale runs the depot.

我去Hale先生的办公室。Hale先生管车场。

“Mr Hale. The January timetable. Line 24 stops at five. That’s wrong.”

“Hale先生。一月的时间表。24路五点就停了。这是错的。”

He looks at his desk. “It isn’t wrong, Rosa.”

他看着他的桌子。“不是错的,Rosa。”

“You know?”

“您知道?”

“For a week. It’s the transport office in the city. From the first of January, no evening bus on Line 24. The numbers are bad.” He gives me a letter. “You go to Line 9. Days. Five in the morning.”

“一个星期了。是城里的交通局。从一月一号起,24路晚上没有车。数字不好。”他给我一封信。“你去9路。白天。早上五点。”

I am angry. I am very angry. The evening 24 is my bus. Two years now! Then I know why I am so angry. No evening bus. No 9:15.

我很生气。我非常生气。晚上的24路是我的车。两年了!然后我知道我为什么这么生气。没有晚上的车。没有九点十五分。

On Tuesday morning I go to the city. The transport office is next to the river.

星期二早上我去城里。交通局在河边。

“Where is the office for the buses, please?” I ask at the door.

“请问,公共汽车的办公室在哪里?”我在门口问。

“Up the stairs. Room twelve. On the left.”

“上楼。十二号房间。在左边。”

In room twelve there is a woman with short white hair. She has a lot of paper. Her name is Mrs Lund. She doesn’t smile, but she listens.

十二号房间里有一个短白头发的女人。她有很多纸。她叫Lund太太。她不笑,可是她听。

“Line 24,” she says. “Here.” She shows me a paper with numbers. “The 9:15 from the station. Five people. Every night, five people.”

“24路,”她说。“在这里。”她给我看一张有数字的纸。“车站九点十五分的车。五个人。每天晚上,五个人。”