又中又英 | Stinks to high heaven | 褚簡寧

　　Nutritionists say a healthy diet should consist of a wide range of fruits and vegetables, seafood such as salmon, skinless chicken, nuts, and brown rice. I eat a wide range of fruits, but there is one fruit I will never eat even though it is known in Asia as the king of fruits. The fruit I will never eat is durian because it stinks to high heaven. The word “stink” means a very unpleasant smell. If something stinks to high heaven, it means it smells very bad. A dead rat decaying in the sun will stink to high heaven.

　　Some Hong Kong friends once took me to a fruit seller in Penang who had fresh durian. He cut open the shells of several durians to take out the yellow inside part. My friends hungrily ate the durian and insisted I try some. I refused, telling them the durian stank to high heaven. When I was a young boy growing up in Hong Kong I often bought deep-fried tofu, known as stinky tofu, from street hawkers. The tofu stank to high heaven, but I liked the taste! I haven’t had stinky tofu in many years.

　　The expression “stinks to high heaven” has another meaning which is not about smell. An American politician used it recently in connection with the child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell who is serving a 20-year prison sentence. He said the US government’s recent transfer of Maxwell to a low-security prison which is run more like a camp despite her serious crimes stank to high heaven. The expression used this way means corrupt or very suspicious.

　　營養學家說，一個健康的飲食應該包含各式各樣的水果、蔬菜、海鮮如三文魚、去皮的雞肉、堅果以及糙米。我吃的水果種類繁多，但有一樣水果我是從來不會吃的，即使在亞洲它被奉為水果之王。我從不吃的水果是榴槤，因為它stinks to high heaven。Stink是指非常難聞的氣味；若某物stinks to high heaven，意即它臭氣沖天。一隻暴曬在日光下的死老鼠也會臭氣熏天（stink to high heaven）。

　　有一次，一些香港朋友帶我到檳城一個賣生果的檔販，那裏有賣新鮮的榴槤。他切開了幾個榴槤的外殼，取出黃色的果肉。我的朋友們飢腸轆轆地吞吃着榴槤，並堅決要求我得試一點。我拒絕了，告訴他們榴槤真的臭氣沖天（stank to high heaven）。我從前在香港長大，還是小男孩的時候，就不時去找街邊小販買臭豆腐。那豆腐也是臭氣沖天（stank to high heaven），但我很喜歡那味道！我已經多年沒有吃過臭豆腐了。

　　習語“stinks to high heaven”還有另一個不關乎氣味的意思。最近有一個美國政客談到正在監獄服20年刑期的兒童性奴販子格希萊恩．麥克斯韋爾時，就用到了這個習語。他說，儘管麥克斯韋爾已惡貫滿盈至stank to high heaven，美國政府最近仍將她轉至一個運作像度假營的低設防監獄。在這裏，這個習語是指其卑鄙齷齪，極為腐敗或可疑。

[email protected]
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻