A tall man entered, wearing a tidy overcoat, rather short trousers, grey doeskin gloves, and two neckties—a black one outside, and a white one below it. There was an air of decorum and propriety in everything about him, from his prosperous countenance and smoothly brushed hair, to his low-heeled, noiseless boots. He bowed first to the lady of the house, then to Marfa Timofyevna, and slowly drawing off his gloves, he advanced to take Marya Dmitrievna's hand. After kissing it respectfully twice he seated himself with deliberation in an arm-chair, and rubbing the very tips of his fingers together, he observed with a smile—

一个个子高高的人进来了，他穿着整洁的长礼服，裤子稍微有点短，戴着一副灰色麂皮手套，系着两条领带，上面一条是黑色的，下面一条是白色的。从他那大富大贵的面容、梳得光滑的头发，到他那双走起路来没有声响的平跟靴子——他整个人都显得彬彬有礼、端庄得体。他首先向女主人施鞠躬礼，然后向玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜行礼，接着慢慢脱掉手套，走近玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜，托起她的手。他毕恭毕敬地亲吻了两次她的手，接着从容不迫地坐到一把扶手椅上，轻揉着指尖，微笑着说：

"And is Elisaveta Mihalovna quite well?"

“叶莉萨维塔·米哈伊洛芙娜还好吗？”

"Yes," replied Marya Dmitrievna, "she's in the garden."

“她很好。”玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜答道，“她在花园里呢。”

"And Elena Mihalovna?"

“叶连娜·米哈伊洛芙娜呢？”

"Lenotchka's in the garden too. Is there no news?"

“连诺奇卡也在花园里呢。没什么新消息吗？”

"There is indeed!" replied the visitor, slowly blinking his eyes and pursing up his mouth. "Hm!... yes, indeed, there is a piece of news, and very surprising news too. Lavretsky—Fedor Ivanitch is here."

“确实有呢！”客人慢慢地眨了眨眼睛，撇了撇嘴答道，“嗯……是啊，确实有条新消息，并且是很令人吃惊的消息：拉夫列茨基·费奥多尔·伊凡内奇回来了。”

"Fedya!" cried Marfa Timofyevna. "Are you sure you are not romancing, my good man?"

“费佳！”玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜喊道，“你不是在胡编吧，我的爷？”

"No, indeed, I saw him myself."

“当然不是，我可是亲眼看见他了。”

"Well, that does not prove it."

“喔，你的话，我可不敢信。”

"Fedor Ivanitch looked much more robust," continued Gedeonovsky, affecting not to have heard Marfa Timofyevna's last remark. "Fedor Ivanitch is broader and has quite a colour."

“费奥多尔·伊凡内奇看起来壮实多了。”格杰奥诺夫斯基装作没听见玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜的话，继续说道，“他肩膀更宽厚了，面色相当红润。”

"He looked more robust," said Marya Dmitrievna, dwelling on each syllable. "I should have thought he had little enough to make him look robust."

“他看起来更强壮了，”玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜一字一顿地说，“我还以为他不可能壮实起来呢。”

"Yes, indeed," observed Gedeonovsky; "any other man in Fedor Ivanitch's position would have hesitated to appear in society."

“是啊，的确是这样，”格杰奥诺夫斯基说道，“在他这种处境下，换成别人，怕都不敢再露面呢。”

"Why so, pray?" interposed Marfa Timofyevna. "What nonsense are you talking! The man's come back to his home—where would you have him go? And has he been to blame, I should like to know!"

“怎么能这么说呢？”玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜插嘴说道，“你这么说就错了！一个人回到家乡——你让他躲哪儿去呢？我倒想知道，他有什么错啊！”

"The husband is always to blame, madam, I venture to assure you, when a wife misconducts herself."

“夫人，请允许我冒昧说一句，妻子行为不端的话，总是丈夫的错。”

"You say that, my good sir, because you have never been married yourself."Gedeonovsky listened with a forced smile.

“你这么说，我的好先生，那是因为你还没有结过婚。”格杰奥诺夫斯基听后勉强挤出一个笑容。

"If I may be so inquisitive," he asked, after a short pause, "for whom is that pretty scarf intended?"

“请别怪我这么好奇，”他稍稍停顿后问道，“这么漂亮的围巾，给谁织的呢？”

Marfa Timofyevna gave him a sharp look.

玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜快速地看了他一眼。

"It's intended," she replied, "for a man who does not talk scandal, nor play the hypocrite, nor tell lies, if there's such a man to be found in the world. I know Fedya well; he was only to blame in being too good to his wife. To be sure, he married for love, and no good ever comes of those love-matches," added the old lady, with a sidelong glance at Marya Dmitrievna, as she got up from her place. "And now, my good sir, you may attack any one you like, even me if you choose; I'm going. I will not hinder you."And Marfa Timofyevna walked away.

“这是给，”她回答道，“不说闲话、不耍滑头、不撒谎的人织的，要是世上真有这样的人的话。费佳这个人，我非常了解，只怪他宠坏了他的老婆。他一定是因爱结婚的，那些恋爱结婚的夫妻从来都没有好结果。”这位老太太斜着眼瞥了一眼玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜，站起来接着说，“现在啊，我的好先生，随便你攻击谁都行，要是你想攻击我也行，我走啦。不妨碍你们了。”说着，玛尔法·季莫菲耶芙娜走开了。

"That's always how she is," said Marya Dmitrievna, following her aunt with her eyes.

“她就是这样的人。”玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜目送着姑姑说道。

"We must remember your aunt's age...there's no help for it," replied Gedeonovsky. "She spoke of a man not playing the hypocrite. But who is not hypocritical nowadays? It's the age we live in. One of my friends, a most worthy man, and, I assure you, a man of no mean position, used to say, that nowadays the very hens can't pick up a grain of corn without hypocrisy—they always approach it from one side. But when I look at you, dear lady—your character is so truly angelic; let me kiss your little snow-white hand!"

“我们不能忘了你姑姑年岁大了……没办法啊。”格杰奥诺夫斯基回答说，“她刚才说到了不耍滑头的人。可如今谁不耍滑头呢？我们生活的世道就是这个样子。我有一位朋友，他是一位非常受人尊敬的人，并且官职还不小。他曾经说，现在啊，就连母鸡啄食都耍滑头呢——常常是绕个弯儿接近谷粒。可是看看您，亲爱的女士，您拥有真真正正天使般的性情。让我吻一吻您那雪白的小手吧！”

Marya Dmitrievna with a faint smile held out her plump hand to him with the little finger held apart from the rest. He pressed his lips to it, and she drew her chair nearer to him, and bending a little towards him, asked in an undertone—

玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜微微一笑，就把自己那小手指张开着的小胖手伸给他。他把嘴唇凑上去，吻了吻那只手。她把椅子朝他那里挪了挪，凑身过去，低声问道：

"So you saw him? Was he really—all right—quite well and cheerful?"

“这么说，您看见他了？他真的身体很好，心情不错？”

"Yes, he was well and cheerful," replied Gedeonovsky in a whisper.

“是啊，很好哇。”格杰奥诺夫斯基低声轻答。

"You haven't heard where his wife is now?"

“您有没有听说他妻子在哪里？”

"She was lately in Paris; now, they say, she has gone away to Italy."

“前段时间，她在巴黎呢。现在，听他们说她去意大利了。”

"It is terrible, indeed—Fedya's position; I wonder how he can bear it. Every one, of course, has trouble; but he, one may say, has been made the talk of all Europe."

“真是糟糕啊，我是说费佳的处境，不知道他怎么忍受得了的。当然，各人有各人的麻烦。不过可以说，他的事全欧洲都传遍了。”

Gedeonovsky sighed.

格杰奥诺夫斯基叹了口气。

"Yes, indeed, yes, indeed. They do say, you know that she associates with artists and musicians, and as the saying is, with strange creatures of all kinds. She has lost all sense of shame completely."

“是啊，是这样没错。你知道，据说她常常和那些艺术家和钢琴家混在一起，用他们的话说，就是与各种奇怪的动物交上了朋友。她已经完全没有了廉耻心。”

"I am deeply, deeply grieved." said Marya Dmitrievna. "On account of our relationship. You know, Sergei Petrovitch, he's my cousin many times removed."

“真是让我太伤心了。”玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜说，“要是论起我们的关系来，你知道，谢尔盖·彼得罗维奇还是我远房的表弟呢。”

"Of course, of course. Don't I know everything that concerns your family? I should hope so, indeed."

“当然了，当然了。跟您家里有关的事，我可都知道呢。我当然知道的。”

"Will he come to see us—what do you think?"

“您说，他会来看我们吗？”

"One would suppose so; though, they say, he is intending to go home to his country place."

“可能会吧，不过听说他想要回他的乡下老家。”

Mary Dmitrievna lifted her eyes to heaven.

玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜抬起头，放眼天空。

"Ah, Sergei Petrovitch, Sergei Petrovitch, when I think how careful we women ought to be in our conduct!"

“噢，谢尔盖·彼得罗维奇，谢尔盖·彼得罗维奇，一想起这事，我就觉得我们女人应该恪守妇道才是！”

"There are women and women, Marya Dmitrievna. There are unhappily such ... of flighty character... and at a certain age too, and then they are not brought up in good principles." (Sergei Petrovitch drew a blue checked handkerchief out of his pocket and began to unfold it.) "There are such women, no doubt." (Sergei Petrovitch applied a corner of the handkerchief first to one and then to the other eye.)"But speaking generally, if one takes into consideration, I mean...the dust in the town is really extraordinary today," he wound up.

“女人和女人可不一样，玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜。可惜呀，有的女人……生性轻浮……也与年龄有关系，她们从小就没有学会守规矩。”（谢尔盖·彼得罗维奇从口袋里抽出一条蓝色方格手帕，把它展开。）“就是有这样的女人，我确定。”（他用手帕的一角挨个儿擦了擦自己的眼睛。）“不过，考虑一下的话，总的来说，我是说……今天城里的灰尘怎么那么多啊。”他总结道。

"Maman, maman," cried a pretty little girl of eleven running into the room, "Vladimir Nikolaitch is coming on horseback!"

“妈妈，妈妈，”一个十一岁大的漂亮小女孩边喊边跑了进来，“弗拉基米尔·尼古拉伊奇来了，还骑着马呢！”

Marya Dmitrievna got up; Sergei Petrovitch also rose and made a bow. "Our humble respects to Elena Mihalovna," he said, and turning aside into a corner for good manners, he began blowing his long straight nose.

玛丽娅·德米特里耶芙娜站了起来，谢尔盖·彼得罗维奇也跟着站了起来，鞠了个躬。“叶连娜·米哈伊洛芙娜，向您问好。”他说。出于礼貌，他转身走进角落里，捏住他那直挺挺的长鼻子，擤起鼻涕来。

"What a splendid horse he has!" continued the little girl. "He was at the gate just now, he told Lisa and me he would dismount at the steps."

“他那匹马特别好！”小女孩继续说，“他刚才在大门那里告诉我和莉萨，他一会儿就到台阶这儿下马。”

The sound of hoofs was heard; and a graceful young man, riding a beautiful bay horse, was seen in the street, and stopped at the open window.

马蹄声传来，街上出现了一个举止文雅的男青年。他骑着一匹红棕色骏马，在敞开的窗前停了下来。 D3vI7YP9YB4FiYsWhfvVLblgQkWfR8GHIIvGwi2lf8QRvsAaPJRyW9ySrZ1fQWBx