编者按：为了更好地进行中国文学海外传播工作，让中国作品在海外被发现（Discover）、被理解（Understand）、被传播（Express），中国文化译研网（CCTSS）邀请国内资深文学主编及文学评论家，精选出近两百部短中长篇小说，形成第一期《中国当代文学作品指南》（简称“指南”），从更具权威性、价值性的角度出发，更好地向世界展示中国当代文学精品，传播中国书香。

　　夏读书，日正长，打开书，喜洋洋。现将“指南”中的精品文学作品以一日一推的方式向读者呈现，让我们不负一夏好时光。

晓航|师兄的透镜

　　推荐理由

　　傅翔在解读晓航的作品时说：“它繁复，细密，有一种超于常识的智慧，对读者的智力提出了考验；它好读，但又让人难以捉摸，字里行间充满了对时代与社会极深的洞察；它含蓄。深沉，可又不晦涩，举重若轻地勾画出这个时代的一个剪影。”（傅翔《小说的玄幻、隐喻与疾病》，《文艺争鸣》2008年第2期）不少评论家，如周冰心等则以“智性写作”来概括晓航的写作风格。在《师兄的透镜》中，晓航借鉴了推理小说的叙述模式，小说中的“我”通过师兄提供的线索，努力探求事情的真相，而整部小说的故事也就在这样的探求过程中予以展开。除了失忆这一直接诱因，师兄朴一凡的逃离，更是出于对平庸大众的厌倦，他利用人性的贪婪报复了沉沦在麻木生活中的人。而作者借助“我”一波三折的探求过程，也隐喻了真理之岸的难以抵达，探求真理的过程无疑也是逃离平庸的过程。

　　Reviews 

　　It is remarked that Xiao Hang’s works are “complex， meticulously detailed， and contains an unusual wisdom that tests the intellect of the reader. It’s easy to follow but still challenges the reader to fully grasp its intention. The works dig deep into that era of society and embody the time. The tone is reserved but avoids becoming obscure， and the works fulfil easily the task of painting a time period that could be otherwise hard to approach.” Many critics， including Zhou Bingxin， have summarized Xiao Hang’s writing style as “intellectual writing.” Within The Classmate’s Lens， Xiao Hang applies the detective story narrative model. The narrator’s following the clues provided by Pu to find the truth is used as the clue for the unfolding of the whole story. Piao’s loss of memory serves as the incentive， yet his flight is actually the escape from the weariness brought by those ordinary men. Piao takes advantage of their greed to revenge the numb people. The twists and turns along the narrator’s trail of inquiry serve as a metaphor， indicating the difficulty of attaining truth. The search for truth is， doubtless， another process of escaping from the mediocrity of life.

　　作家简介

　　Author Profile

　　晓航，1967年生，作家，原名蔡晓航，北京人。1990年毕业于北京科技大学物理化学系，1995年毕业于对外经济贸易大学国际贸易系。搞过科研，当过电台主持人，现从事贸易工作。2000年加入中国作家协会。晓航擅长中短篇小说的创作，主要作品有长篇小说《被声音打扰的时光》，中短篇小说《师兄的透镜》《一起去水城》《通往夏日之窗》《努力忘记的日落时分》《佛光》《我们的汤匙》《当情人已成往事》《零落九天——谨以此篇献给往事工作室》《有谁为我哭泣》《当兄弟已成往事》《照我无眠》等。

　　先后获得过《小说选刊》奖、人民文学奖，《师兄的透镜》获第四届鲁迅文学奖（2004年—2006年）全国优秀中篇小说奖。

　　Xiao Hang is the penname of Cai Xiaohang， an author from Beijing who was born in 1967. He graduated from the Department of Physical Chemistry， University of Science and Technology Beijing in 1990， and the Institute of International Economy， University of International Business and Economics in 1995. After completing some researches， he began working as a television presenter and then later became a businessman. In 2000， he joined the China Writers Association. 

　　He has published many works； most of them use a novel and novella format. Some have won awards， including the Selected Novels Prize and the People’s Literature Prize. The Classmate’s Lens received the 4th Lu Xun Literature Prize （2004-2006） and the National Outstanding Novella Prize.

　　中文概要

　　Synopsis

　　我是一个普通的天文工作者，与我的师兄朴一凡共事，我是他的助手，也是他唯一的朋友。我和他还同时喜欢着于童。师兄可以称得上是一个天才，他的任务是发现宇宙的第一缕星光。这个任务看似渺茫，但他却做得有声有色。他玩世不恭，酷爱山水画，且自己也动手画。作为科研人员，师兄观察星象似乎并不刻苦，但他重于思考，因此实验室的人虽对他的狂傲与怪癖颇有微词，但他的点子与灵感却供养了实验室的众多“庸才”，大家都是靠着师兄朴一凡的非凡想法，才得以完成科研任务。师兄实在厌倦了这些人对他的寄生和压榨。

　　经过努力，我们这个“星空瞭望”联合课题组获得一笔可观的经费，但在经费的分配上却难以做出一个让人人满意的方案。问题的症结在师兄朴一凡，他是整个课题组的“大脑”，这个课题要靠他的点子才能顺利推进，经费多分一点给他自然是天经地义，但在具体额度上，又难以确定。因为我与师兄关系亲近，大家便让我去探口风，而师兄却拿出一个女人的化妆镜，问了些关于平面镜以及透镜的问题，我虽然不明所以，但知道他有了新点子。因为我总向实验室其他人透露他的学术想法，他便暂时向我保密。谈到经费和奖金的问题时，师兄说要让我们这些寄生虫都急死气死。在联合课题组的会议上，师兄提出他拿的奖金占到总数的百分之九十九也不为过，但这次他决定一分不要，只要大家给他做担保人。原来一个新开张的酒店为扩大影响，办了一个“名画回家欣赏”的活动，只要有五十个好人做担保，就可以带走一幅名画，只要两个月之后如期奉还即可。对于师兄的这个提议，大家有争执和犹豫，但在奖金利益的诱惑之下，最终还是决定为师兄做担保人。最终，师兄拿到了那幅他喜欢的山水画《空山雨后》。

　　《空山雨后》拿回来之后挂在实验室里，师兄从此不再做天文观测，转而变成了这幅名画的凝望者，他异常专注地观察着这幅画的各个部分。自从画被请回来之后，办公室的电话多起来，作为担保人，大家都很关心这幅画的情况，酒店公关部的刘先生也每天都过来查看。所有的事都按部就班，这一阵的实验也进展颇顺利，设计思路完全是朴一凡设计好的，我们只负责观测和数据记录，而数据的分析还要靠师兄来完成。有天，师兄没有凝视那幅山水画，而是沮丧而惶恐地说自己被一个问题卡住了，关键他还忘记了卡住自己的这个问题是什么。之后的例会上，师兄提出要休假，接着就收拾行李离开了，他有些落寞颓唐，也未告知要去哪里。三个星期之后，朴一凡依然杳无音讯，实验室里谣言四起，而这时酒店的刘先生也发觉挂在实验室的画有些不对。他请来专家，把画拿回酒店做鉴定。这天午夜，师兄打来电话，说他携画外逃，已在国外，他利用了人性的贪婪，甩掉了实验室的这些寄生虫。酒店鉴定出那幅画是仿作，于童知道鉴定结果后也来到实验室哭了一通，师兄走了，我有更大的希望得到于童。

　　为解决名画被窃一事，酒店与实验室开了一次冗长的会，最终决定低调处理，我负责劝说朴一凡回来，大家则要全面检查朴一凡的科研日记，以期用现成的科研心得和成果换钱。这期间，师兄又打来电话，让我照顾她的妹妹，并且说要送给我一个礼物，但这礼物却要靠我的悟性去发现。整理师兄的材料如大海捞针、收获甚微，但我也遵守承诺，常常去看师兄的妹妹丫丫，并带她出去玩。在接触中，丫丫逐渐接受了我，将一个海螺交给我，这个海螺是师兄让她转交给我的。两周过去了，对这个海螺，我并无头绪。这时，我又接到了师兄的电话，他似乎记性越来越差，连回想我的电话号码也变得困难了。通过师兄在电话里的线索，我发现了“三〇三日志”，也知道了师兄留下的电子邮箱。之后，丫丫又交给我一本师兄的日记，在这本日记中我知道了海螺、“三〇三日志”与师兄的关系，也知道了关于师兄的一段青春往事。绕了这么多圈，师兄其实想告诉我“真理绝不在我们自以为是的要奔向的目标”。联想到之前师兄提到的平面镜、透镜，我突然领悟，用太空中的星系作为平面镜，便可更容易地发现宇宙中的第一缕星光。我给师兄发了邮件，想从他那儿印证我的想法。几天后，他回电话给我，他说他用了几天时间才想起我的号码，他肯定了我的想法，但也提出质疑。顺着师兄的提醒，我又找到了日记中的女主角。但最终我却得知，师兄找错了人，而他也让我完整地经历了他的错误。此时，名画丢失赔偿一事毫无进展，酒店一方继续施压，我向师兄发邮件求救。两周之后，师兄有了回音，他说他出了大问题，想要回国。我把这个消息透露给实验室其他人，大家欢欣鼓舞。而接下来两个月却又没有他的消息了。好在师兄虽然没回来，《空山雨后》却回来了，因为这件事耗时已久，双方都不想再耗下去了，所以这一次，没人敢轻易说这画是假的。

　　关于日记女主角一事，我仍不是很明白，师兄电话中告诉我，真理不是用功利而世俗的方式达到的，而是以奇异的方式出现的；另外，真理未必是我们看到的表象，但我们却很容易被表象欺骗。师兄的话让我醍醐灌顶，我也得知了师兄出逃的直接原因是他得了早老性痴呆。那幅画最终被确定是真的，经过这一番折腾，大家都想息事宁人，那幅仿作便以真迹的名义继续挂在了酒店的展览厅。没多久，一个有关星空研究的国际会议在多佛尔召开，而师兄如今就在多佛尔。我以国内学术代表的身份参加了这次会议，并决定去看望师兄，然而到了师兄住处之后，却没有等到他。由这次造访，我突然意识到用放大镜比用平面镜，更容易发现那束星光！这便是师兄要给我的完整答案。

　　两年后，凭借着师兄给予我的启发，我在学术上取得了巨大成功。我和于童结了婚，日子过得幸福。那幅《空山雨后》依然挂在酒店，慕名而来者络绎不绝，然而他们只看到了画的表象，我却看到了尘封在画面之后的那只海螺。

　　The narrator is a normal astronomer who works as an assistant to his classmate，Piao Yifan. He is Piao’s only friend， and they both like the girl Yu Tong. It can be said that Pu is talented. He is working to find the first rays of light in the universe – a seemingly unclear task but one into which he pours his spirit. He disregards convention and has a great passion for landscape painting； he even paints such paintings himself. In his role as a scientific researcher， it seems as if Piao is not hard-working in astronomy， but in truth he spends a great deal of time pondering the field. Though people in the lab complain about his eccentricity and aloofness， Piao’s ideas and inspiration have assisted many of the lab’s “average” workers； everybody depends on his extraordinary thinking in order to complete research tasks. Pu is weary of these colleagues’ oppression， parasitism， and exploitation. 

　　Their “stargazing” group is granted a considerable research fund； however， it is difficult to distribute this fund in a way that can leave everyone satisfied. The argument is cantered around the group’s “brain，” Piao. Since the project is only able to progress smoothly with his idea， it is agreed that a larger portion of the fund should naturally be allocated to him， but it is difficult to decide how much exactly shall go to him. Since the narrator is close with Piao， the group asks him to find out Piao’s opinion. In the dialogue， however，Piao produces a women’s makeup mirror and starts to ask questions about plane mirrors and lenses. Although the narrator doesn’t yet understand， he can tell Piao already has a new idea. Since the narrator always tells the other lab workers Piao’s thoughts， he temporarily stops revealing them. Whenever the issue of distribution of research funding and bonuses is mentioned， Piao says that he hopes “us parasites” all die of worry and anger. 

　　During a group meeting， Piao says that it would be acceptable if he were to receive “99 percent” of the total sum of the bonus. But he has decided this time that he doesn’t want a cent of it， as long as everybody acts as his guarantor. It is revealed that a newly opened hotel has organized a “famous paintings” show as a way to expand its public influence. Visitors need 50 trustworthy “guarantors” to be able to take a painting home， then return it in two months. At first， everyone in the lab is hesitant to accept this offer and they argue over the decision， but eventually the money lures them in. Everyone agrees to act as a “guarantor” for Piao， who selects a painting he likes， Empty Mountain After Rain， to hold onto. 

　　Empty Mountain After Rain is hung up in the lab， and Piao no longer does any astronomical observations ever since. Instead， he just stares at the painting， observing each part of it in extraordinary detail. Ever since the painting’s arrival， the guarantors call the lab more frequently， and the hotel’s public relations officer， Mr. Liu， visits the lab daily， all of which is to ensure it is OK. During that time， everything in the lab is going according to Piao’s plan， and research development is showing signs of success. The narrator and other lab workers are only responsible for observations and data recording， while data analysis is entirely left to Piao. 

　　One day， Piao does not gaze at the painting， he instead says in a dejected and terrified manner that he has gotten stuck on a problem but he can’t remember what problem he has gotten stuck on. At the next regularly scheduled meeting， Piao requests to have a vacation and then packs up his belongings and leaves. He is dejected and dispirited and doesn’t tell anyone where he’s going. Three weeks later， there is still no news of him and rumours begin sweeping across the lab. The next time the hotel’s Mr. Liu comes to the lab， he notices there is something off about the painting. He requests that a professional come to examine the painting. That evening， a phone call comes from Piao. He says that he has run off with the painting and is already abroad and has used the greed of the staff to rid the lab of its “parasites.” The examination confirms that the painting is counterfeit. Yu Tong comes to the lab on hearing the news， and she cries for quite a while. This course of events causes the narrator to feel as though he has a greater chance of being with her. 

　　Faced with the problem of the stolen painting， the hotel and the lab hold a long meeting and finally decide that the problem should be handled in a low-key way. The narrator is left with the responsibility to urge Piao to come back while everyone else comprehensively reviews his research diaries with plans to sell Pu’s previous research and findings for money. During this time， Piao calls the narrator asking him to look after his younger sister Yaya. He offers a present in return， but the present can only be found via the narrator’s “own insight.” Although organizing his files is difficult and brings only minor rewards， the narrator still keeps his promise by visiting Yaya and taking her out on occasion. Yaya gradually accepts the narrator and gifts him a sea conch. Piao had wanted her to give the conch to the narrator. 

　　After two weeks， the narrator remains confused about the sea conch. Then he once again receives a phone call from Pu. Piao’s memory seems to be getting worse； even remembering the narrator’s phone number is a difficulty. Following clues presented from the phone call， the narrator comes across the “303 remembrance diary” and Piao’s email address. Yaya later gives the narrator another diary that reveals the connection between the conch， “303 remembrance diary，” and Piao’s story from his youth. 

　　Actually， Piao wants to tell the narrator， “Truth is absolutely not the self-righteous goal which we rush toward.” It reminds the narrator of what he had said about the mirror and lens. The narrator suddenly realizes that by thinking about the galaxy as a plane mirror it becomes easier to track the first light in the universe. The narrator sends him an email to confirm the theory， and a few days later Piao calls back. Piao says it took him several days to recall the phone number. He agrees with the narrator’s theory， but he also poses a few questions. Following Piao’s comments， the narrator finds the female protagonist in Piao’s diary， but eventually realizes he has repeated Piao’s mistake in pinning down the person. At this point in time， there have been no developments in the retrieving of the painting， and the hotel is still putting on pressure to get it back. The narrator emails Piao again， asking him to return it. Two weeks later， Piao replies， saying there has been a big problem and that he is coming back to China. The narrator relays this to the lab， and everyone celebrates the news of his return， but two months later there is still no news of him. Although he himself doesn’t return， the painting does， and since so much time has already been wasted， the two parties agree not to waste much more energy testing its authenticity. 

　　The narrator still remains confused about what Pu meant about the diary’s female protagonist and how she relates to the whole story. Piao tells the narrator on the phone how truth is not something one finds through worldly means and hard work， but rather is something that manifests itself in extraordinary ways. Piao also says that truth is not always what we think we see， as we are easily fooled by appearances. Eventually， these words cause the narrator to have a feeling of enlightenment. The narrator also learns that Piao left China because he had early-onset dementia. The returned painting is finally confirmed to be authentic. After all the trouble it has caused， the two groups decide to patch up their relationship. The fake painting continues to hang on display in the hotel’s exhibition hall. A short while later， a space research conference is to be held in Dover. This is coincidentally the same place where Piao is located. The narrator attends the conference as a Chinese academic representative and decides to pay Piao a visit. At Piao’s home， however， the narrator does not find him， but he suddenly realizes that using a magnifier rather than a plane mirror to locate that starlight would be much easier. This is the conclusion toward which Piao was hoping to direct the narrator. 

　　After two years of following the path Piao set out， the narrator has achieved great academic success. Yu Tong and the narrator marry and happily spend their days together. Empty Mountain After Rain remains on the wall of the hotel， and people flock to adore the famous work. Though they only see its surface image， the narrator sees the dust-covered conch through it.