Learn Chinese Weekly

In Chinese, the number two is 二 (èr). However, when people talk about two of something, they would usually say 两个 (liǎng gè). A pair is called 一双 (yīshuāng) or 一对 (yī duì). Therefore, you could call a two-headed snake either 两头蛇 (liǎngtóu shé) or 双头蛇 (huāng tóu shé).

In ancient China, some people believed that encountering such a snake meant impending death of the observer.

孙叔敖是一个公元前八世纪的人.
Sūnshū’áo shì yīgè gōngyuán qián bā shìjì de rén.
Sun Shuao was a man who lived in eighth century BC.

当他还是个小孩子的时候, 他喜欢在外面玩.
Dāng tā háishì gè xiǎo háizǐ de shíhòu, tā xǐhuān zài wàimiàn wán.
When he was still a kid, he loved to play outside.

有一天, 他在外面玩的时候, 听到草丛里有沙沙的声音.
Yǒu yītiān, tā zài wàimiàn wán de shíhòu, tīngdào cǎocóng lǐ yǒu shāshā de shēngyīn.
One day, as he was playing outside, he heard a russling sound in the grass.

他走近看了一眼, 不禁吓了一跳.
Tā zǒu jìn kànle yīyǎn, bùjīn xiàle yī tiào.
He walked closer to take a look, and could not help but be shocked.

那是一条蛇, 但不是一条普通的蛇.
Nà shì yītiáo shé, dàn bùshì yītiáo pǔtōng de shé.
It was a snake, but not an ordinary snake.

它有两个头！
Tā yǒu liǎng gè tóu!
It had two heads!

孙叔敖以前听说过,
Sūnshū’áo yǐqián tīng shuōguò,
Sun Shuao had heard previously that

看见双头蛇的人必死无疑.
kànjiàn shuāng tóu shé de rén bìsǐ wúyí.
whoever saw a two-headed snake was bound to die soon.

他赶快把蛇打死了，并把它埋了.
Tā gǎnkuài bǎ shé dǎ sǐle, bìng bǎ tā máile.
He quickly killed the snake and buried it.

当他回到家, 看到妈妈时, 他放声大哭.
Dāng tā huí dàojiā, kàn dào māmā shí, tā fàngshēng dà kū.
When he got home and saw his mother, he burst out crying.

“怎么了?”, 他的母亲问道.
“Zěnmele?”, tā de mǔqīn wèn dào.
“What’s wrong?”, asked his mother.

孙叔敖告诉母亲他看到了一条双头蛇.
Sūnshū’áo gàosù mǔqīn tā kàn dàole yītiáo shuāng tóu shé.
Sun Shuao told his mother that he had seen a two-headed snake.

他很伤心, 因为他会死去而离开他的母亲.
Tā hěn shāngxīn, yīnwèi tā huì sǐ qù ér líkāi tā de mǔqīn.
He was sad because he would die and leave his mother.

母亲问: “那条蛇现在在哪里?”
Mǔqīn wèn, “Nà tiáo shé xiànzài zài nǎlǐ?”
The mother asked, “Where is that snake now?”

他回答说: “我不想让别人看到它.
Tā huídá shuō:`Wǒ bùxiǎng ràng biérén kàn dào tā.
He replied, “I didn’t want anyone else to see it.

所以, 我把它杀了, 埋了.”
Suǒyǐ, wǒ bǎ tā shāle, máile.
Therefore, I killed it and buried it.”

母亲微笑着说:
Mǔqīn wéixiàozhe shuō:
The mother smiled and said,

“你有一颗如此善良的心,
“Nǐ yǒuyī kē rúcǐ shànliáng de xīn,
“You have such as kind heart,

上天会报答你的. 你不会因为这样死去的.”
Shàngtiān huì bàodá nǐ de. Nǐ bù huì yīnwèi zhèyàng sǐqù de.”
God will reward you. You won’t die from this.”

确实, 孙叔傲并没有如他所预料的死去.
Quèshí, sūn shū ào bìng méiyǒu rú tāsuǒ yùliào de sǐqù.
Indeed, Sun Shuao did not die as he expected.

后来他担任了楚国宰相.
Hòulái dānrèn le chǔ guó zǎixiàng.
He later served as the Prime Minister of the State of Chu.

By the way, would you like to try to employ AI to help you study Chinese? Here is a suggestion from one of my readers: “A Cool Trick to Learn Mandarin“

Reading stories will help you add to your vocabulary by seeing the words and phrases in context. The following book provides a number of stories annotated in pinyin and English, with additional notes on selected words and phrases. This book is available in print and eBook formats.

“Inspiring Stories in Chinese: Intermediate Reader”

祝蛇年快乐！
Zhù shé nián kuàilè!
Have a Happy Year of the Snake!