枝丫2： 04: 第四章: 停在了半空中
Zhang Laoban experiences such a sense of dread that he feels suspended in mid-air.
Twig 枝丫 Zhīyā is a fantasy series written in Simplified Chinese characters for intermediate level adult readers.
Reviewing the word list prior to reading the chapter may help with enjoyment and comprehension.
张老板想: 是我看错了吗？他把柜门关上，又把柜门打开。沙漏还是没有出现。
张老板很快地转过头，他想看看沙漏有没有在桌子上。可是还是没有找到沙漏。
张老板又把注意力转向柜子，看了看柜子里。 他把柜子里的东西动来动去，不停地找沙漏。他看到了艺术用品，一盒子的回忆，但是没看到沙漏。张老板看着打开的柜子想：沙漏在哪儿？
张老板很着急。慢慢的，他开始慌了。在哪儿？在哪儿？
张老板胸口里面剩下的树说：你太老了。你太老了记不住了。你不能领导了。你连把东西放在哪儿都记不住。
张老板没管树，而是在房间走来走去，看了看后屋，想找到那沙漏熟悉的曲线。他在那么多箱新书中着急地找。
啊！在这儿！这一刻，张老板放心了！他以为看到了！但是，他意识到自己看错了。原来，他找到的是他的茶杯把手熟悉的曲线。
张老板开始生自己的气。树是对的！我太老了！什么都记不住了！我把那个沙漏放在哪儿了？
然后，张老板的另一个想法让他非常不安。
张老板想：如果不是我的错呢？如果我没有丢失它呢？有人借走它了吗？有人偷走它了吗？
突然，张老板惊恐地觉得自己像是停在了半空中一样。
有个人，未经张老板的同意，就进了他的私人空间。那个人看了张老板的东西，摸了他的东西，也呼吸了他的空气。
然后，他突然回到了房间，房间仿佛变成了玻璃——又硬、又静、又冷。他能看清楚一些东西，
但是门上照进来的光让半张桌子，一半的新书箱子，半张墙上的画都看不清楚了。
张老板吸气，呼气。他对自己说：放松，放松。
但是他还是看不清楚现实。他想，他一定要小心，不然整个房间都会碎掉。
Word List
柜 guì cabinet
沙漏 shālòu sand timer, hourglass
转 zhuǎn turn
注意力 zhùyì lì attention
艺术用品 yìshù yòngpǐn art supplies
回忆 huíyì v. to recall, to look back on; n. a recollection, a memory; talking about the act of remembering or specific memories
记不住 jì bu zhù can’t remember
领 lǐng lead, receive
导 dǎo guide
领导 lǐngdǎo lead, be a leader, offer leadership
连...都 lián…dōu even
管 guǎn to manage, to take care of, to control, to be responsible for
没管 méi guǎn didn’t pay attention to, ignored
熟 shú cooked, ripe, familiar
悉 xī to know in detail; to be aware
曲 qū bent, curved
线 xiàn thread, line
熟悉的曲线 shúxī de qūxiàn familiar curve
着急 zhāojí to worry, to feel anxious, to be in a hurry
慌 huāng panic
放心 fàngxīn relief
意识到 yìshí dào realize
茶杯把手 chábēi bǎshǒu teacup handle
借 jiè borrow
偷 tōu steal
惊恐 jīngkǒng horror, dread
停在了半空中一样 tíng zàile bànkōng zhōng yīyàng suspended in mid-air
未经...的同意 wèi jīng...de tóngyì without the consent of
私人sīrén private
空间 kōngjiān space
私人空间 sīrén kōngjiān private space
摸 mō touch
呼吸 hūxī breath, inhale
仿 fǎng to imitate, resemble
佛 fó Buddha, 佛教 fójiào Buddhism
仿佛 fǎngfú like, as if, to resemble, seems
玻璃 bōlí glass
房间仿佛变成了玻璃
fángjiān fǎngfú biàn chéngle bōli
the room seemed to have turned to glass
硬 yìng hard
静 jìng still
墙 qiáng wall
吸气 xī qì inhale
呼气 hū qì exhale
放松 fàngsōng relax
看清楚现实 kàn qīngchǔ xiànshí see reality clearly
看不清楚现实 kàn bù qīngchǔ xiànshí can’t see reality clearly
不然 bùrán otherwise
整个 zhěngge whole, entire
碎 suì to break, to shatter, to smash into pieces, to fragment
掉 diào to fall, to drop, to come off; also used as a result complement indicating disappearance or separation
碎掉 suì diào to shatter completely, often with a sense of finality or emotional impact
不然整个房间都会碎掉
bùrán zhěngge fángjiān dōu huì suì diào
otherwise the whole room would shatter
Notes
I was aware of 像A一样 as a way to use figurative language to write a comparison. I was enchanted to encounter 仿佛 as an additional way in the very first sentence of 《三体》The Three Body Problem by 刘慈欣 Liú Cíxīn. Here are annotations for the first chapter of 三体 for the upcoming 三体 Book Club facilitated by Diane Neubauer, Ph.D.
Image source:
ChatGPT. (2025, April 24). A watercolor painting depicts a storage room that appears to have turned to glass [AI-generated image]. OpenAI. https://chat.openai.com/
更多
枝丫1：《枝丫》第一部
枝丫1：Table of contents | 枝丫1：Chapter 1 | Complete 枝丫1 story, just 汉字
枝丫2：《枝丫》第二部
枝丫2：Table of contents | 枝丫2：Chapter 1 | 枝丫2 so far, just 汉字
微故事 Wēigùshì, a series of occasional vignettes featuring objects in the 胡同 and in the lives of 枝丫’s denizens.
Word lists for review in Hack Chinese.
Main page: Twig 枝丫: A fantasy novel