所以他又回家了，很伤心，因为他非常希望能有一位真正的公主。

so he came home again and was sad, for he would have liked very much to have a real princess

一天晚上，一场可怕的暴风雨来临了；

one evening a terrible storm came on;

有雷电交加，大雨倾盆而下。

there was thunder and lightning, and the rain poured down in torrents

突然，听到城门处传来敲门声，老国王去开门。

suddenly a knocking was heard at the city gate, and the old king went to open it

是一位公主站在城门外。

it was a princess standing out there in front of the gate

但是，天哪！风雨把她弄成了什么样子啊。

but, good gracious! what a sight the rain and the wind had made her look

雨水从她的头发和衣服上流淌下来；

the water ran down from her hair and clothes;

流进她鞋子的脚趾部分，又从鞋跟处流出来。

it ran down into the toes of her shoes and out again at the heels

然而她说她是一位真正的公主。

and yet she said that she was a real princess

“嗯，我们很快就会弄清楚的，” 老王后想。

“well, we’ll soon find that out,” thought the old queen

但她什么也没说，走进卧室，把床架上的所有被褥都拿掉，在床板上放了一颗豌豆；

but she said nothing, went into the bed - room, took all the bedding off the bedstead, and laid a pea on the bottom;

然后她拿了二十个床垫放在豌豆上，又在床垫上放了二十床鸭绒被。

then she took twenty mattresses and laid them on the pea, and then twenty eider - down beds on top of the mattresses

公主就得在这上面躺一整晚。

on this the princess had to lie all night

早晨有人问她睡得怎么样。

in the morning she was asked how she had slept

“哦，糟透了！” 她说。

“oh, very badly!” said she

“我整晚几乎都没合眼。

“i have scarcely closed my eyes all night

天知道床上有什么东西，但我正躺在一个硬东西上，弄得我浑身青一块紫一块的。

heaven only knows what was in the bed, but i was lying on something hard, so that i am black and blue all over my body

太可怕了！”

it’s horrible!”

现在他们知道她是一位真正的公主了，因为她隔着二十个床垫和二十床鸭绒被还能感觉到豌豆。

now they knew that she was a real princess because she had felt the pea right through the twenty mattresses and the twenty eider - down beds

除了真正的公主，没有人会这么敏感。

nobody but a real princess could be as sensitive as that

于是王子娶她为妻，因为现在他知道自己有了一位真正的公主；

so the prince took her for his wife, for now he knew that he had a real princess;

而那颗豌豆被放进了博物馆，如果没人偷走的话，现在还能看到它。

and the pea was put in the museum, where it may still be seen, if no one has stolen it

瞧，这是一个真实的故事。

there, that is a true story