How do you dry your freshly-washed clothes? Maybe you are one of those lucky people with a tumble drier. Perhaps you hang them out on your balcony. Or near to a heat source. But what happens when your washing actually becomes the heat source?
That’s what happened the past few days in Nanjing, when a bed quilt spontaneously burst into flames while hanging out to dry outside a high-rise residential block.
近日，南京就发生了这样的事情，一处高层住宅区外晾晒的被子自燃起火。
The bedding, hanging just a few floors above ground, suddenly caught fire at around midday in the searing heat of Nanjing’s summer sun.
中午时分，在南京夏日的骄阳下，悬挂在离地面几层楼高的被褥突然起火。
Soon the flames had engulfed the quilt, becoming a threat to person and property.
很快，火焰吞没了被子，对人身和财产构成威胁。
But then a quick-thinking neighbour came to the rescue. Living five floors directly above the burning bedding, they spied the smoke from below drifting by their window and quickly investigated its source.
但随后一位思维敏捷的邻居出手相救。他们住在着火的被褥正上方五层楼，发现下面有烟雾从窗户飘过，并迅速调查了其来源。
They then wasted no time in pouring buckets of water from their window. The neighbour’s artificial rain saved the day and the flames were soon extinguished. There was no loss to person or property, reports The Paper.
然后他们立即从窗户里倒了一桶水。邻居的人工降雨挽救了局面，火很快就被扑灭了。据澎湃新闻报道，没有造成人员或财产损失。
Chinese people don’t just hang out their bedding after washing. They will very regularly choose to air their quilts (晒被子) as a way to provide extra softness and comfort when bed time comes. It’s the cozy factor.
中国人洗完被褥不会直接挂起来。他们会经常选择晾晒被子，以在就寝时间到来时提供额外的柔软和舒适感。这是舒适的因素。
But the practice is not without controversy. Many argue the sight of other people’s private bed wear is an eye sore, especially in residential compounds where most apartments face another block. It’s relatively common to be able to see quilts and other washing hanging outside as much as 20 percent of an apartment block’s windows.
但这种做法并非没有争议。许多人认为，看到别人的私人床上用品令人眼花缭乱，尤其是在大多数公寓面向另一个街区的住宅区。在公寓楼 20% 的窗户外挂着被子和其他衣物是比较常见的。
And after a really big wash, with no more space outside on the drying rack? The next option for many is going downstairs and hanging their undies from a nearby tree, much to the further irritation of a good few neighbours.
经过一次真正的大洗之后，外面的晾衣架上没有更多的空间了吗？许多人的下一个选择是下楼把内衣挂在附近的树上，这进一步激怒了一些邻居。
