购买
下载掌阅APP,畅读海量书库
立即打开
畅读海量书库
扫码下载掌阅APP

两枚夹发针

"Ah; my—dear fellow, what jades women are! "

“噢,亲爱的朋友,女人是多么惹人厌啊!”

"What makes you say that? "

“为什么要这么说呢?”

"Because they have played me an abominable trick. "

“因为她们很可耻地戏弄了我。”

"You? "

“你吗?”

"Yes, me. "

“是的,我。”

"Women, or a woman? "

“一群女人,还是一个女人?”

"Two women. "

“两个女人。”

"Two women at once? "

“两个人一起?”

"Yes. "

“是的。”

"What was the trick? "

“是什么样的戏弄啊?”

The two young men were sitting outside a cafe on the Boulevards, and drinking liquors mixed with water, those aperients which look like infusions of all the shades in a box of water—colors. They were nearly the same age, twenty—five to thirty. One was dark and the other fair, and they had the same semi—elegant look of stock—jobbers, of men who go to the Stock Exchange, and into drawing—rooms, who are to be seen everywhere, who live everywhere, and love everywhere. The dark one continued. "I have told you of my connection with that little woman, a tradesman's wife, whom I met on the beach at Dieppe? "

这两个年轻人坐在林阴道上的一家咖啡馆外面,喝着混有水的酒。这种开胃酒就像是水彩颜料盒里各种颜料的混合物。他们年纪相仿,大概在25岁到30岁之间。一个是深色头发,一个是金黄头发,他们有着股票经纪人那种半文雅的气质,那种在证券交易场所工作、出入上流社会、到处抛头露面、到处享受生活、到处谈情说爱的男士所特有的气质。深色头发的男士继续说道: “我告诉过你我同那个小个子女人的关系,就是那个商人的老婆,我在迪耶普的海边认识的那个,对吗?”

"Yes. "

“是的。”

"My dear fellow, you know what it is.

亲爱的朋友,你知道这意味着什么。

I had a mistress in Paris, whom I loved dearly; an old friend, a good friend, and it has grown into a habit, in fact, and I value it very much.

我在巴黎有一个情人,我非常爱她,她像一个老友,一个挚友,事实上这已经成了我的习惯,我非常珍视它。

"Your habit. "

“你的习惯。”

"Yes, my habit, and hers also. She is married to an excellent man, whom I also value very much, a very cordial fellow. A capital companion! I may say, I think that my life is bound up with that house. "

“是的,已经成了我的习惯,也成了她 的习惯。” 她嫁给了一个很出色的男人,那是一个很热诚的人,也是一个我很欣赏的人。一个极好的朋友!我可以说我的生活与那个家庭紧密相连。”

"Well? "

“是吗?”

"Well! They could not manage to leave Paris, and I found myself a widower at Dieppe. "

“是的,他们不能离开巴黎,而我在迪耶普则成了鳏夫。”

"Why did you go to Dieppe? "

“你为什么要去迪耶普呢?”

"For change of air. One cannot remain on the Boulevards the whole time. "

“为了换个环境。我不能一直呆在这林阴大道上。”

"And then? "

“然后呢?”

"Then I met the little woman I mentioned to you on the beach there. "

“然后我就在海边遇到了刚才跟你提过的那个小个子女人。”

"The wife of that head of the public office? "

“那个部长的老婆?”

"Yes; she was dreadfully dull; her husband only came every Sunday, and he is horrible! I understand her perfectly, and we laughed and danced together. "

“是的,她感到很无聊,她丈夫只有每个星期天过来,而且他这个人还非常惹人厌。我很理解她,我们一起欢笑,一起跳舞。”

"And the rest? "

“然后你们就没做其他事情吗?”

"Yes, but that came later. However, we met, we liked each other. I told her I liked her, and she made me repeat it, so that she might understand it better, and she put no obstacles in my way. "

“做了,但是那是后话了。总之,我们遇见了,也彼此喜欢。我告诉她我喜欢她,她让我重复一遍,以便能更好地品味,她对我没有防备。”

"Did you love her? "

“你爱她吗?”

"Yes, a little; she is very nice. "

“是的,有一点儿,她很迷人。”

"And what about the other? "

“那么另一个是怎样的呢?”

"The other was in Paris! Well, for six weeks it was very pleasant, and we returned here on the best of terms. Do you know how to break with a woman, when that woman has not wronged you in any way? "

“另一个在巴黎!嗯,那六个星期过得很愉快,等回到这儿时,我们的关系已经非常好了。你知道怎样跟一个没有任何地方对不起你的女人分手吗?”

"Yes, perfectly well. "

“是的,我知道得很清楚。”

"How do you manage it? "

“你会怎么处理?”

"I give her up. "

“我会放弃她。”

"How do you do it? "

“怎么个放弃法?”

"I do not see her any longer. "

“我不再见她。”

"But supposing she comes to you? "

“那如果她来找你呢?”

"I am... not at home. "

“我……不在家。”

"And if she comes again? "

“如果她又来了呢?”

"I say I am not well. "

“我就说我不舒服。”

"If she looks after you? "

“如果她说要照顾你呢?”

"I play her some dirty trick. "

“我就对她耍些手段。”

"And if she puts up with it? "

“如果她能忍受呢?”

"I write to her husband anonymous letters, so that he may look after her on the days that I expect her. "

“我就给她丈夫写匿名信,那她丈夫就会在我等待她的日子里监视她了。”

"That is serious! I cannot resist, and do not know how to bring about a rupture, and so I have a collection of mistresses. There are some whom I do not see more than once a year, others every ten months, others on those days when they want to dine at a restaurant, those whom I have put at regular intervals do not worry me, but I often have great difficulty with the fresh ones, so as to keep them at proper intervals. "

“这也太严重了吧!我不会拒绝,不知道怎样断绝关系,所以我有很多情妇。有些我一年多才见一次,有些十个月见一次,有些甚至在她们想去餐馆吃饭时才见一次,那些我已经把见面时间错开的我不担心,我担心的是那些刚认识的,为了控制与她们见面的时间我颇费周折。”

"And then.... "

“然后呢……”

"And then... Then, this little woman was all fire and flame, without any fault of mine, as I told you! As her husband spends all the whole day at his office, she began to come to me unexpectedly, and twice she nearly met my regular one on the stairs. "

“然后,那个小个子女人就发火了,而且一发不可收拾,我可一点错都没犯啊,就像我告诉你的。” 她丈夫整天都呆在办公室,她就开始毫无预见性地造访我家,有两次还差点儿在楼梯上遇到我的老情人。”

"The devil! "

“真倒霉啊!”

"Yes; so I gave each of them her days, regular days, to avoid confusion; Saturday and Monday for the old one, Tuesday, Friday and Sunday for the new one. "

“是的,所以我给她们分配了固定的日期,以免搞混;周六和周一给老情人,周二、周五和周天给新欢。”

"Why did you show her the preference? "

“你为什么表现出对她的偏爱呢?”

"Ah! My dear friend, she is younger. "

“啊!我亲爱的朋友,她更年轻啊。”

"So that only gave you two days to yourself in a week. "

“所以你一周只留给自己两天时间吗?”

"That is enough for one. "

“这对我来说足够了。”

"Allow me to compliment you on that. "

“请允许我表达对你的赞扬。”

"Well, just fancy that the most ridiculous and most annoying thing in the world happened to me. For four months everything had been going on perfectly; I felt perfectly safe, and I was really very happy, when suddenly, last Monday, the crash came.

唉,真是可笑啊,这个世界上最荒谬最讨厌的事情发生在我身上了。四个月里,事情都进展得很顺利,我觉得很安全也很开心,但上周一,突然一切都完了。

"I was expecting my regular one at the usual time, a quarter past one, and was smoking a good cigar, and dreaming, very well satisfied with myself, when I suddenly saw that it was past the time, at which I was much surprised, for she is very punctual, but I thought that something might have accidentally delayed her. However, half—an—hour passed, then an hour, an hour and a half, and then I knew that something must have detained her; a sick headache, perhaps, or some annoying visitor. That sort of waiting is very vexatious, that... useless waiting... very annoying and enervating. At last, I made up my mind to go out, and not knowing what to do, I went to her and found her reading a novel. "

“一点一刻,我像往常一样等着她的到来,抽了一根上好的雪茄,胡思乱想着,十分惬意。突然我发现已经过了时间,她一向都很准时的,但继而又觉得她可能是被什么意外事情给耽搁了。然而,又过了半个小时,一个小时,一个半小时,我才意识到她肯定有事情来不了了,也许是头疼,也许是来了什么讨厌的客人。这种空等真令人恼火,让人萎靡不振。最后,我决定出去,但也不知道该做什么,于是就去找她,却发现她正在看小说。”

"Well! " I said to her.

“出什么事了?” 我对她说。

And she replied quite calmly:

她很平静地回答我:

"My dear I could not come; I was hindered. "

“亲爱的,我不能去了,我受到了一些困扰。”

"How? "

“怎么了?”

"My... something else. "

“我的……一些别的事情。”

"What was it?

“是什么?”

"A very annoying visit. "

“一个很讨厌的客人。”

"I saw that she would not tell me the true reason, and as she was very calm, I did not trouble myself any more about it, and hoped to make up for lost time with the other, the next day, and on the Tuesday, I was very... very excited, and amorous in expectation of the public official's little wife, and I was surprised that she had not come before the appointed time, and I looked at the clock every moment, and watched the hands impatiently, but the quarter past, then the half—hour, then two o'clock. I could not sit still any longer, and walked up and down very soon in great strides, putting my face against the window, and my ears to the door, to listen whether she was not coming upstairs. "

“我能看出来她不愿意告诉我真正的原因,因为她非常平静,我也就省得麻烦,不再去问了,我希望在第二天得到弥补。第二天是星期二,我很激动,兴奋地等着小个子的局长夫人,但是奇怪的是她居然没有提前来,我隔一会儿就看一下钟,不耐烦地盯着指针,但是一刻钟过去了,半小时过去了,已经两点了。我不能再等了,大步地走出去,把脸靠近窗户,把耳朵贴在门上去听她是否在上楼梯。”

"Half—past two, three o'clock! I seized my hat, and rushed to her house. She was reading a novel my dear fellow! 'Well! ' I said, anxiously, and she replied as calmly as usual: 'I was hindered, and could not come. "

“两点半,三点!” 我抓起帽子冲进了她的家。她也在看小说,我亲爱的朋友! “怎么回事?” 我焦急地问道。她很淡定地回答我:我有事耽搁了,去不了了。

"By what? "

什么事啊?

An annoying visit.

一个讨厌的客人。

"Of course, I immediately thought that they both knew everything, but she seemed so calm and quiet, that I set aside my suspicions, and thought it was only some strange coincidence, as I could not believe in such dissimulation on her part, and so, after half—an—hour's friendly talk, which was, however, interrupted a dozen times by her little girl coming in and out of the room. I went away, very much annoyed. Just imagine the next day.... "

“我马上意识到她们肯定全部都知道了,但她看起来是那么平静和安详,我打消了疑虑,认为这只是个奇怪的巧合,因为我不相信她能掩饰得这么好,我们十分友好地谈了半个小时,中间多次被她进进出出的小女儿打断。最后我离开了,非常气恼。设想下吧,第二天……”

"The same thing happened? "

“又发生了同样的事情?”

"Yes, and the next also. And that went on for three weeks without any explanation, without anything explaining that strange conduct to me, the secret of which I suspected, however. "

“是的,接下来还是这样。这样的状况毫无缘由地持续了三个星期,没有任何的解释来告知我为什么会发生这样奇怪的事情,但我已经猜到了其中的奥秘。”

"They knew everything? "

“她们都知道了吗?”

"I should think so, by George. But how? Ah! I had a great deal of anxiety before I found it out. "

“我是这么认为的,的确是这样。但是她们怎么知道的呢?啊!在知道真相之前我是多么焦虑啊。”

"How did you manage it at last? "

“那你最终是怎么知道的呢?”

"From their letters, for on the same day they both gave me their dismissal in identical terms. "

“从她们的信中。因为她们都在同一天给我寄了一封措辞相同的分手信。”

"Well? "

“还有呢?”

"This is how it was.... You know that women always have an array of pins about them. I know hairpins, I doubt them, and look after them, but the others are much more treacherous; those confounded little black—headed pins which look all alike to us, great fools that we are, but which they can distinguish, just as we can distinguish a horse from a dog.

就是这样了……你知道女人通常都有很多的夹发针。我知道夹发针,我怀疑它们,我提防着它们,但是那些其他的却更加危险;对于我们这些愚蠢的男人来说,那些有着黑头的小夹发针都是一样的,但是女人们能够分辨出它们,就像我们能够分辨出马和狗一样。

"Well, it appears that one day my minister's little wife left one of those tell—tale instruments pinned to the paper, close to my looking—glass. My usual one had immediately seen this little black speck, no bigger than a flea, and had taken it out without saying a word, and then had left one of her pins, which was also black, but of a different pattern, in the same place.

某天小个子的部长太太把这些告密凶器中的一个别在镜子旁边的纸上。我的老情人马上发现了那个跟跳蚤差不多大的黑点,没说什么就把它拿下来了,然后在相同的地方别上了自己的一枚夹发针,也是黑色的,只不过是不同的款式。

"The next day, the minister's wife wished to recover her property, and immediately recognized the substitution. Then her suspicions were aroused, and she put in two and crossed them, and my original one replied to this telegraphic signal by three black pellets, one on the top of the other, and as soon as this method had begun, they continued to communicate with one another, without saying a word, only to spy on each other. Then it appears that the regular one, being bolder, wrapped a tiny piece of paper round the little wire point, and wrote upon it: C. D, Poste Restante, Boulevards, Malherbes.

第二天,部长太太希望拿回自己的东西,马上发现被人换过了。然后她起了疑心,放了两个头针,并把它们交叉,接着我的老情人用三个黑头的夹发针,一个别在一个上面,来作为对这个电报讯号的回应,她们就用这种方式无声地交谈,去监视对方。看起来似乎我的老情人比较大胆,她在头针上卷了一个小纸条,上面写着:马尔泽尔布林阴大道,C. D, 留居待取。

"Then they wrote to each other. You understand that was not everything that passed between them. They set to work with precaution, with a thousand stratagems, with all the prudence that is necessary in such cases, but the regular one did a bold stroke, and made an appointment with the other. I do not know what they said to each other; all that I know is, that I had to pay the costs of their interview. There you have it all! "

“然后她们互相给对方写信。你知道她们间的交流不止这些。她们在过程中非常小心翼翼,采用了多种计谋,百倍谨慎,但是老情人做出了一个大胆的举动,她约了对方见面。我不知道她们彼此之间说了什么,我只知道我得为她们这次见面产生的一切后果买单。现在你知道是怎样的情况了吧!”

"Is that all? "

“就这些吗?”

"Yes. "

“是的。”

"And you do not see them any more? "

“你后来还跟她们见过面吗?”

"I beg your pardon. I see them as friends, for we have not quarreled altogether. "

“很抱歉,我把她们当作朋友,因此我们并没有真正争吵过。”

"And have they met again? "

“那么她们两个又见过面么?”

"Yes, my dear fellow, they have become intimate friends. "

“是的,我亲爱的朋友,她们变成了亲密无间的朋友。”

"And has not that given you an idea? "

“这些难道没有给你一个启示吗?”

"No, what idea? "

“没有啊,什么启示?”

"You great booby! The idea of making them put back the pins where they found them. "

“你真是笨啊!启示就是要让她们把她们发现的那些夹发针放回原处啊。”

The Maison Tellier VVe1H3TZ6pz560w457mVg5DgJtT0tlGzOtbJofckhjYXByW9Ci5cjoXkE3VAv9Pa

点击中间区域
呼出菜单
上一章
目录
下一章
×