The Brute and the Billionaire

野兽和亿万富翁

Hundreds of people had come to see a popular satire, but during the performance a fire started in the theater. The audience and actors evacuated the building. Luckily, no one was hurt, and the fire was soon put out. Immediately, the audience assembled into an angry mob and demanded to know what had happened.

数百人前来观看一部颇受欢迎的讽刺作品，但在演出期间剧院发生了火灾。观众和演员撤离了大楼。幸运的是，没有人受伤，火很快就被扑灭了。观众们立刻聚集成一群愤怒的暴民，要求知道发生了什么事。

It was soon revealed that the fire had started backstage, and only two people were in the area at the time. One was the husband of the play's star actress, the billionaire Henry Rich. The other was the theater's janitor, Bill, a large and strong man who looked like a brute.

很快就有消息透露火灾是从后台开始的，当时只有两个人在现场。其中一位是该剧女主角、亿万富翁亨利·里奇的丈夫。另一个是剧院的看门人比尔，他又高又壮，看上去像个粗暴的人。

The crowd segregated the two men and demanded to know who the culprit was. Most of the crowd thought that Bill was to blame. They felt that he had started the fire without ever subjecting him to any scrutiny. Bill resented this but said nothing.

人群把这两个人分开，要求知道谁是罪犯。大多数人认为是比尔的错。他们觉得是他没有仔细检查就把火点燃了。比尔很不高兴，但什么也没说。

Luckily, the billionaire's wife testified in his defense. "Your decision is premature," she told the crowd. "I fell down amid the tumult while everyone fled the fire. Bill rescued me and carried me out of the building. I think you underestimate his character. Besides, in order to be close enough to save me, he couldn't have been near the place where the fire began."

幸运的是，亿万富翁的妻子为他作证。“你们的决定还为时过早，”她对人群说。“我在混乱中摔倒了，而所有人都逃离了火场。比尔救了我，把我带出了大楼。我认为大家低估了他的品格。再说，他为了救我只会离我更近，而不可能离起火的地方更近。”

The crowd then turned their eyes to the billionaire. "He did it!" they shouted. "Make him pay!"

人群随后将目光转向这位亿万富翁。“是他干的!”“让他付钱!”

Wait, the billionaire said over the uproar. "I admit that I started the fire, but it was an accident. I was going backstage to see my wife and was clumsy. I collided with a lamp, and it fell to the floor. The floor was flammable. A fire started, and I fled."

“等等，”亿万富翁在一片嘈杂声中说。“我承认是我放的火，但那是个意外。我到后台去看我的妻子，动作笨拙。我撞上了一盏灯，灯掉在了地板上。地板是易燃的。起火了，我逃跑了。”

The mob was surprised. The man they blamed was innocent, and the billionaire was guilty. To pay for his error, the billionaire not only repaired the theater but had it remade to be better than before.

人群一片哗然。他们指责的人是无辜的，真正的罪魁祸首是亿万富翁。为了弥补他的错误，这位亿万富翁不仅修理了剧院，而且把它改造得比以前更好。

单词表

amid prep. 在……过程中

backstage adv. 在后台

billionaire n. 亿万富翁

brute n. 残酷的人

clumsy adj.笨拙的

collide v. 碰撞

culprit n. 犯人

evacuate v. 疏散

flammable adj. 易燃的

mob n. 暴徒

premature adj.早产的

resent v. 怨恨

satire n. 讽刺

scrutiny n. 详细审查

segregate v. 使隔离

subject v. 臣服

testify v. 证明

tumult n. 骚动

underestimate v. 低估

uproar n. 骚动

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