Dialogue and. Translation for Exercise 2

In the foreign visitors’ reception room of the First Heavy-Duty Machine
Factory in Fùlāěrjl, Heilongjiang, an American guest (A) is sitting on
the sofa, leafing through a copy of the magazine China Reconstructs. A
Chinese engineer (B) walks in, carrying a briefcase under his arm.

B:   Duìbuql, duìbuql, rang nín jiu

děng le.

A: Méi shenme, wō lèile bú dào shí-fēn zhōng. Nī Jiù shi Sun
Zōng-gōngchéngshl ba?

B: Wō Jiù shì.

-   A: Sun Xiansheng, hěn zSo yīqián wo

Jiu kànguo nínde wénzhāng, nín duì Jixiè gōngyède yáxxjiū zài guōwài shi
hěn yōu míngde. Jlntiān néng kàndao nín, kàndao nlmende chěng, wō hěn
gāoxìng.

-   B: Xièxie nín. Zhèige chāng shi wūshi niándài chū Jiànlìde.

-   A: Nà shi Xīn Zhōngguō chénglì yīhòu bù Jiūde shì.

-   B: Shìde, shi zài dìyīge wǔnián Jìhuàzhōng Jiànlìde.

-   A: Shi Sūlián bang nimen Jiànshède ma?

-   B: Bú shi, wánquán shi Zhōngguō rénmín zìjī Jiànshède. Nèige shihou
    zhèngfū yōngle liùge yì lái Jiànshè zhèige chāng.

-   A: Liùge yì?

-   B: Liù yì Rénmíribì. Nèige shihou, wōmen hěn qiōng, Hěilōngjiāng you
    shi yíge biǎnjiáng dìqū, wōmen zhēn shi lián qímāde Jìshu tiáo-Jiàn
    dōu méiyōu. Kěshi zhèige chāng Jiù zài Dāngde līngdǎo hé dàjiāde
    nūlì xià, fǎzhānqilai le.

I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’ve kept you waiting.

That’s all right, I’ve been here less than ten minutes. You must be
Chief Engineer Sun?

That’s right.

Mr. Sun, I read your writings a long time ago. Your research in the
machine industry is very famous abroad. I’m very happy to be able to
meet you today and see the factory.

Thank you. This factory of ours was founded in the early fifties.

Then it wasn’t too long after New China was established.

Yes. It was set up during the first five-year plan.

Did the Soviet Union help you construct it?

No, it was constructed completely by the Chinese people themselves. At
that time the government spent six hundred million to construct this
factory.

Six hundred million?

Six hundred million People’s Currency. At that time we were very poor,
and Hěilōngjiāng being a border region on top of that, we didn’t even
have the minimum technical conditions. But under the leadership of the
Party and with the efforts of everyone, we are developing.

-   A: Tīngshuō zài wùshi niandài he liùshi niándài zhèige chǎng zài
    Zhǒngguóde zhòng gōngyèli zhàn hen zhòngyàode dìwei. Nèige shihou,
    nín zài zhèige chǎng ma?

-   B: Zài. Cōng zhèige chǎng chénglìde

nèi yitiǎn yìzhí dào Yī Jiu liù liù nián, wò dōu zài zhèige chǎng.

-   A: Yīhòu nín líkǎi le?

-   B: Shìde. Yìzhí dào Yī Jiu. qī qī

niǎn vS cǎi huilai.

-   A: Tīngshuō nèige shihou zhèige

chǎngde mafan bù shǎo.

-   B: Heilongjiang suīrǎn bú suàn mafan

zuì duōde dìqū, dànshi Yī Jiù qī qī niǎnde shihou zhèige chǎngde
shēng-chǎn chàbuduō shi cōng ling kāishī.

-   A: Nà yào hua hen dàde lìliang.

-   B: Yidiānr ye bú cuò. Wǒmen huǎle

hen dàde lìliang Jiànshè kuàngqǔ, he zhèige chǎng. Zài qítǎde wèntí
shang wǒmen yě yòngle bù shǎode lìliang.

-   A: Shénmeyàngde wèntí ne?

-   B: Dàjiǎde shěnghuō wèntí, bīfǎng shuǒ chī fàn wèntí, zhù fángzide
    wèntí shenmede.

-   A: Xiànzài zěnmeyàng le?

-   B: ZSngde lái shuǒ xiànzài dōu gǎo-

de bú cud le. Wō xiang zài guò shíniǎn, dào JiSshi niandài, wǒmen zhèige
chǎng huì zài quǎnguō gōngyè shēngchǎnzhōng zhàn gèng zhòngyàode dìwei.

-   A: Hǎojíle.

-   B: Xiànzài wō Jiù péi nín qù cǎn-guǎn ba, wǒmen yìtiǎn zōu yìbiǎn
    tán, hǎo bu hǎo?

-   A: Hǎo!

I understand that in the fifties and sixties this factory held an
important place in China’s heavy industry. Were you here at that' time?

Yes. I was at this factory from the day it was established up until
1966.

And then you left?

Right. I didn’t come back until 1977.

I hear that at that time this factory had a lot of trouble.

Hēilōngjiāng wasn’t one of the regions with the most trouble, but in
1977 this factory had to start production Just about from scratch.

That must have taken a great effort.

Absolutely. We put a lot of effort into building up mining areas and
this factory. We also expended a lot of effort on other problems.

What kinds of problems?

Problems of everyday living, for example eating, housing, and so on.

And how are things now?

Generally speaking, things are pretty good now. I think in another ten
years, by the nineties, our factory will occupy an even more important
position in the nation's industrial production.

That's great.

Why don't I show you around now. We can talk as we go, all right?

All right.

B: Qīng.

After you.