恐惧的因与果 The Story of Fu Yonggu
导语 Introduction
美国总统罗斯福曾说：“我们唯一需要恐惧的是恐惧本身。”世间万物，承上启下，环环相扣。触发恐惧的因素有很多，但归根结底是源于人们对于未知事物消极的想象。恐惧又能带来什么？现代心理学家认为，适当的恐惧心理可让我们认识并规避风险，采取合理的防范措施，确保自己和亲友的安全，因此有益于个人乃至社会的发展。然而，有时恐惧过了头，结果也就完全不同了。
Franklin D. Roosevelt once declared, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Everything in this world is connected in some ways. Many things may trigger fear, but they all come down to one’s negative imagination of the unknown. What can fear cause? Modern psychologists believe that a healthy dose of fear brings benefits to individuals and society at large by prompting us to identify and avoid some of the risks that might put us and everyone around us in harm’s way. However, too much fear sometimes can beget big trouble.
自湖北爆发“新型冠状病毒感染的肺炎”疫情以来，故事君的老姨时常感到紧张和焦虑。
Since the outbreak of “novel coronavirus infected pneumonia (COVID-19)” in Hubei Province, my aunt has been feeling quite tense and anxious.
每天一大早，她都会打开电视机，锁定“战疫情”新闻。
Early every morning, she turns on the TV and sticks to the “battling the epidemic” news channel all day long.
一有空，她便拿起手机，关注疫情的实时数据。
She also spends every bit of her free time checking real-time transmission and fatality data on her mobile phone.
“完了，完了，又感染这么多人！”她惊呼，然后赶紧用84消毒液拖了两遍地。
“Holy Christ!” She would cry. “So many people infected today!” Then she would scurry off to splash disinfectant onto the floor and mob it twice.
一天晚上，她听说双黄连口服液对新冠病毒有抑制作用，赶紧戴上墨镜和几层口罩，跑到药店排队买了几盒药回来，逼着家人服下，才算安心。
One night, upon hearing about the possible curative effects of a Chinese anti-flu patent drug on the COVID-19, she wasted no time in running to the drugstore – with sunglasses and several masks on – and queuing up to buy the medicine. Only after she returned with several boxes of the drug and forced her family to take a vial, did she feel relieved.
得知小区即将实施封闭式管理，她又拽着表弟去附近超市抢购大包小包的肉、菜、蛋、奶等生活物资，堆满了大半个客厅。
No sooner had she learned that her community was going to be locked down, than she dragged her son to the nearby supermarket to snap up bags of vegetables, eggs. pork, milk, and other daily necessities, enough to fill up the greater part of her living room.
其实，在这次全国公共健康危机中，老姨的行为并非个例。
Actually, she is not alone during this national health crisis.
这让故事君想到了另一个人。早在一千六百多年前，他因过度恐惧闹出大事，后果可比“囤货”严重多了。
Her behavior reminds me of someone who, some 1,600 years ago, was so blinded by his panic that he headed straight into big trouble – with a consequence far worse than that of “panic buying.”
此人正是前秦开国君主苻健之侄苻坚。
The man was Fu Yonggu, the second King of Former Qin and the nephew of its founder Fu Jianye.
建国早年，前秦兵强将勇，所向披靡，先后灭掉前燕、代、前凉等割据政权，统一了黄河流域。
Wielding strong military power in its early years, the state annihilated several separatist regimes, such as Former Yan, Dai, and Former Liang, uniting northern China.
公元383年，苻坚亲率百万强兵南下攻打东晋。
In 383 A.D., the King went on to lead his massive army south and conquer the State of Eastern Jin.
根据截获的晋军情报，苻坚判定晋军缺兵少粮，不堪一击。
Based on his intelligence sources, the King assumed that the Easter Jin army, in shortage of both manpower and food, could hardly sustain a strike.
在前锋将领苻融顺利攻下战略重镇寿阳（今安徽寿县）之后，苻坚派了一个叫朱序的人前往东晋军营劝降。
When his vanguard general Fu Boxiu and his mighty army invaded Shouyang Town (today’s Shouxian County of Anhui), a strategic point for both sides, the top leader sent a man named Zhu Cilun to Eastern Jin’s camp to induce their general Xie Shinu to hang out the white flag.
可令他没想到的是，转折就此发生。
But he did not foresee a turning point that would soon befall his army.
原是东晋官员、后被秦军俘获的朱序，在见到东晋将领谢石后，不但没有劝他投降，反而如实透露了秦军的布防情况，建议晋军在秦后援军到达之前袭击洛涧（今安徽淮南东洛河）。
Formerly an Eastern Jin high official and now a captive, Zhu did not do as he was asked. Instead, he disclosed all he knew about the enemy’s military strategy and suggested an attack on the other side of Luojian (today’s Luohe Town in Huainan, Anhui Province) before Former Qin’s reinforcements reached there.
朱序的出现令谢石信心大振。
This meet-up with the “spy” boosted Xie’s confidence.
他听取了这位“卧底”的建议，率五千精兵强渡洛涧，偷袭秦营。
Following the informant’s advice, he led five thousand elite soldiers across the Luojian and launched a sneak attack on Former Qin’s camp.
而此刻，秦军毫不知情，没有防备，结果大败，损失了上万人的前哨兵力。
Kept in the dark and unprepared, Former Qin lost the battle as well as tens of thousands of frontline soldiers.
洛涧的失利令苻坚大惊。
The debacle in Luojian astounded King Fu.
兵强马壮的秦军怎么就败给了小小晋军？
How could a strong army such as his ever have been defeated by the small and weak Eastern Jin troops?
答案似乎只有一个，那就是低估了对方的军事实力，这可怎么得了？
There seems only one answer to this question: the rival is stronger than originally thought. Now, what can be done about that?
晋军乘胜追击，抵达淝水东岸，与秦兵隔河对峙。
To follow up on their victory, the Eastern Jin army reached the east bank of the Fei River to face its enemy on the other side.
时值隆冬，淝水上空阴云密布，死一般寂静。
It was wintertime. Heavy clouds pressed down in dead silence.
苻坚和苻融登上寿阳城头，遥望扎营在河对岸的晋军。
With his general, King Fu climbed up the citadel of Shouyang to observe the opposing army across the river.
苻坚发现对岸晋兵阵容齐整，布防有序，顿感一阵惊惧。
To his horror, he saw a neat formation of soldiers well armed and trained.
接着，苻坚又向淝水东面望去。
Then the King looked north.
那里横着八公山，山上有八座连绵起伏的峰峦，地势险要，山脚下驻扎着晋军军营。
There swaddled the Bagong Mountain, with eight ridges rising to give a dangerous terrain. At the foot of the mountains stationed Eastern Jin’s troops.
一阵寒风呼啸而过，山上的草木随风晃动。
A gust of cold wind was sweeping by and trees on the slopes began to sway.
他见到这般景象，以为山上埋伏着成千上万的晋兵，顿时面如土色，惊恐地回头对苻融说道：“晋兵是一支劲敌，怎么能说它是弱兵呢？”
Seeing this in a far distance, the King turned ashy gray, thinking that they were helplessly ambushed by tens of thousands of soldiers. He wheeled around to face his general and said with dread, “The Jin army is a strong host. Why do we say it’s weak?”
成语“草木皆兵”便由此而来，形容“人在惊慌时疑神疑鬼”。
This is the origin of the Chinese four-character idiom 草木皆兵cǎo mù jiē bīng （literally “every tree and plant is a soldier.”）, describing a situation of being plagued by imaginary fears.
几个月前，晋军统帅谢玄在寿阳败给秦军。此时，他看到秦军采取了贴水布阵的战略，便要求秦军后撤，待晋军过河后一决胜负。
Another Eastern Jin general named Xie Youdu, who had lost the battle in Shouyang a few months earlier, requested that King Fu pull his army a few kilometers back so that they could fight the decisive battle on land.
苻坚一听，心中窃喜，认为晋军统帅缺乏用兵常识，准备在晋军过河时发动突然袭击，截断敌方兵力，便立刻答应下来。
In glee, King Fu agreed to this, assuming it was a sign of faulty strategy. He was planning to attack the rival when it was halfway across the river.
苻融指挥秦军后撤。秦军内部本已人心浮动，后撤的命令使秦兵误以为晋军打败前锋，秦军顿时大乱，一溃千里，不可遏止。
When he ordered the pull-back, however, General Fu did not realize that his troops had already been on pins and needles. Now they thought they were being defeated and retreating. All of a sudden, the entire army crumbled into chaos.
与此同时，“叛徒”朱序乘机高呼：“秦军大败！”这更使秦军陷入极度恐慌之中。
At the same time, Zhu the “traitor” seized the opportunity and shouted among them, “Qin is defeated!” This effectively caused extreme panic in the army.
晋军精锐八千涉渡肥水，展开猛烈攻击。
The eight thousand elite soldiers of Eastern Jin advanced across the river launching fierce attacks.
秦兵慌不择路，自相践踏，丢盔卸甲。
Thoroughly panicked, the Former Qin soldiers fled pell-mell, trampling one another, running wildly for dear life.
苻坚在逃跑途中中流箭，秦兵听到风声与鹤鸣，以为是东晋追兵，草行露宿，饥寒交迫，十万残兵一路溃退至洛阳。
The sounds of winds and cranes frightened them as they mistakenly thought the opponent was close behind. On his way to escape, the supreme leader Fu Yonggu was shot by a stray arrow. After great sufferings, he fled all the way to Luoyang along with what remained of his army.
这便是成语“风声鹤唳”的由来，形容“人极度恐慌以致于自相惊扰的样子”。
This is the origin of another Chinese idiom 风声鹤唳 fēng shēng hè lì, referring to great disturbances caused by extreme panic.
东晋仅以八万军力大胜八十余万前秦军；淝水之战成为中国历史上以少胜多的著名战例。
Consequently, the Eastern Jin army set a famous example of wars in Chinese history when only 80,000 of them sealed victory over the 800,000-strong Former Qin forces in the Battle of Fei River.
在攻打东晋之前，前秦国力渐衰，百官腐败，民不聊生；战败之后，前秦名存实亡，分裂为包括后秦和后燕在内的几个割据政权，北方各民族纷纷宣告脱离其统治。
Before their attack on Eastern Jin, the state power of Former Qin had been waning, with officials being corrupt and the people living in dire poverty. The defeat was their last straw. The state ceased to exist except in name and soon fell apart into several separatist regimes, including Later Qin and Later Yan. All the northern ethnic tribes also declared separation from its dictatorship.
东晋趁机北伐，扩大版图，此后数十年间再无外族侵略。
Eastern Jin took advantage and expanded its territory further north. For decades that followed, no powers sought to invade the kingdom.
《孙子兵法》有云:“知彼知己者，百战不殆；不知彼而知己，一胜一负；不知彼，不知己，每战必殆。”
The Art of War says, “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”
苻坚被不实信息所误导，对敌方认识不全面，自我准备不充分，结果导致军心涣散，在极度恐慌之中惨败。
King Fu’s fiasco was the result of being misled by false information and being poorly prepared as a leader, without an honest acknowledgment of the enemy. Inevitably, this sapped his army’s morale and led to the disastrous defeat.
2020年1月，另一场战争悄无声息地打响了。
In January 2020, another war broke out in silence.
一方是拥有14亿人口的泱泱大国，而另一方是用肉眼看不见的新型病毒。这一战，没有长剑，没有硝烟，却有上千条生命消逝。
On one side is a huge country with a population of 1.4 billion; and on the other, a new virus invisible to the naked eye. In this war, no sword is being wielded or smoke puffed, but nevertheless thousands of lives have been lost.
对此，我们本能地感到恐惧。
This triggers intuitive fear.
有人不停洗手，致使双手皮肤溃烂。
Some people wash their hands with such a frequency that their skin blisters.
有人不停喷洒酒精，以致做饭时引发火灾。
Some spray too much alcohol and set their homes on fire while cooking.
有人疯抢N95口罩，导致其脱销，无法及时输送到一线医护人员的手中。
Still others horde N95 face masks, leaving frontline medical staff in shortage.
有人强烈抵制来自疫区的同胞，导致他们无家可归，露宿街头。
People from the epicenter of the outbreak are being so prejudiced against that some are barred from their neighborhoods and sleep out on the streets.
恐惧势头蔓延到了西方国家，华人频频遭遇言语甚至人身暴力，蒙受巨大的精神损失。
Panic has spread to the Western world, where Chinese residents often suffer verbal and even physical attacks.
恐惧，是另一个看不见的劲敌。我们怎样才能战胜它？
Fear is another invisible enemy. How can we defeat it?
故事君专门请教了一位心理专家。他建议在非常时期：
For the purpose of writing this, I have consulted a psychologist. He suggests that in difficult times we:
1）切记三思而后行；
(1) Remember to think twice before we act;
（2）通过广泛阅读科学信息加大思想的广度和认识的深度；
(2) Expand the width and depth of our thoughts through scientific readings;
（3）通过冥想放松紧张的心情；
(3) Meditate regularly to relieve our tension;
（4）通过发展自己的爱好转移注意力；
(4) Do what we love to divert attention; and
（5）通过树立自信积极的心态，提升意志力，免疫力和战斗力。
(5) Establish confidence and positivity which are essential to improving our resilience, immunity, and our ability to fight for life in war-like adversities as we are experiencing now.
除此之外，故事君还有一个妙招。
In addition, I have one more tip to offer.
当我们感到恐惧时，不妨暂时忘记自我，多想想他人，在力所能及的范围内向邻里施以援手，这时我们的内心就会变得强大，恐慌情绪随即烟消云散。
Whenever we feel fearful, try to forget about ourselves, think more about others and try to help our neighbors as much as we can. This will expel panic and make us feel stronger in an instant.
我们害怕灾祸，而灾祸最害怕的是科学视角、有序管理、乐观有爱。
We are all afraid of disasters, but what disasters fear most are a scientifically sound attitude, well-organized management, optimism and love.
我们团队所有成员向奋战在前线的“逆行者”致敬，向逝去的生命及其家人奉上最诚挚的悼念与慰问。
Our team salutes the “frontline fighters” braving the deadly virus. We offer our sincerest condolences to the deceased and their families.
相信全国上下团结一心，众志成城，实事求是，不畏艰难，亿万中华儿女定能很快打赢这场抗疫阻击战！
We believe that our nation will soon win this battle as long as we stand up as one, seek truth from facts, and not fear anything that may come in our way.
来源：CATTI中心 日期：2020年3月9日 作者：胡婧
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