和老外聊天的地道口语第74期:被宰了吧?

H: I swear I will never shop at a street market in China. It's a terrible place full of excellent profiteers! You have to keep an eye whenever it comes to paying for something.

J: cool down, Harry¹! What are you really mad about? Did you get ripped off?

H: yes. Last Sunday I went to a nearby market. It was on open-air fair. I chanced upon this bag and bought it on the spot, without even trying to strike a bargain. I paid one hundred and twenty. And just now I was told by my chinese colleagues I bought it overpriced. I could have talked my way to thirty.

J: is that so? I'm afraid people here will not take pity on unlucky guys like you. Bargaining has always been an indispensable precedure in business deals. It's the norm of free trade. The seller sets a preposterous² price, and the buyer tries his best to bring it down, until a compromise is reached. Yet you ignored the process. No wonder you ended up easy prey³.

H: but don't you think it annoying to overcharge the customers by such a handsome margin⁴?

J: of course, that's something really irritation⁵. And the only way to avoid being trapped is to know in advance about the real worth of the stuff. I recommend you to consult the price tags in the supermarket first. And then you may negotiate for a real deal.
我发誓再也不会在中国的农贸市场上乱买东西了.全是些宰人的高手,太可怕了.买什么东西都得额外小心.
哈里,消消气!你怎么了?买东西被宰了?
呃,上周日,我去了附近的一个小集市,露天的.偶然看到这个包,当场就买下了,砍价都忘了,花了我120元.刚才,我的中国同事跟我说,我买贵了,只要30块钱就好了.
这样啊?恐怕这里没人会同情你这样的倒霉蛋.买东西不讨价还价哪行啊?这是规矩.卖家漫天要价,顾客就地还价,直到双方满意为止.而你居然忽略了这道程序,难怪被宰.
可是你不觉的,这样宰顾客未免也太气人了么?
当然,是很烦人.要想不被宰,恐怕只有是先知道价格. 我建议你先去超市看看标价,然后你才能还价成功,买卖公平.
 

1 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

2 preposterous   

adj.荒谬的，可笑的

参考例句：

• The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
• It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。

3 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

4 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

5 irritation   

n.激怒，恼怒，生气

参考例句：

• He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
• Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。