When that happened, actors' pay stopped and they were hard put to it.

各自找生活路子，我们女孩儿就做点女孩子能做的活。

Each had to fend for himself, and we young actresses did whatever work we could pick up.

我同几个女孩子去东亚毛纺织厂当小工，分线头、扫地等干点杂活。

I went with some other girls to the East Asia Woolen Mill to do odd jobs like unraveling strands of wool or sweeping the floor.

每天天不亮戴着星星去排队。

We had to queue up before dawn when there were still stars in the sky.

工厂没开大门就排上老长的队了。

A long queue formed before the mill's gate opened.

工头拿着皮鞭从大门出来，像轰牲口一样轰人，一个挨一个地用粉笔在人们背上写上号码。

The foreman came out with a whip, as if herding cattle, and chalked a number on our backs, one by one.

这个号码就是上工的证明。

That number showed that we were taken on.

当这个小工真不容易。

But such small jobs were really hard to come by.

经常是排了一早晨队，大门才开；画了不多的号，工头就说：“没号了!没号了!”

Often, when we'd queued up for hours before the gate opened, after chalking a few numbers the foreman would say, "That's all! No more hands needed!"

那种失望心情就别提多难受了!

At that we felt too disappointed for words!

有一次是夏天，连阴天，连着回戏。我只好去排队找活干。

One summer a spell of bad weather closed down our theatre, and I went to queue up,

还好，因为去得早，没等多久就画上号了。

I was lucky. Because I went early, before long I had a number chalked on my back.

回家时忽然下了大雨，一路跑回家，我完全想不到自己被淋。

By the time we knocked off it was pouring with rain. As I ran home I didn't mind being soaked.

只想着背上面的号，要是被雨淋掉，工就做不成了。

I was only worried that if the rain washed off the number on my back I wouldn't be able to go to work the next day.

我急着把衣服脱下来，大雨像瓢泼一样。

I frantically took off my gown, while it rained cats and dogs.

我把衣服紧紧抱在怀里，飞快跑回家。回到家里打开一看就高兴了，号码一点也没有被淋湿；可我从头到脚淋成了落汤鸡了。

Clutching my gown to my heart I flew home, and there, unfolding it, I was overjoyed to find that the number wasn't washed out, though I was drenched from head to foot like a drowned rat.

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