Chapter 11 Eight

From a very clean, bright, and spacious staircase to the third floor, there is the house of the Gania family. There are six or seven rooms of different sizes. Thousands of rubles, and not always affordable.This apartment was originally going to be sublet to several tenants, taking care of meals and housework, but two months ago, it was rented by Ganya’s family. Gania was very unhappy about this, but Nina Ya Alexandrovna and Varvara Ardalionovna insisted on doing this, because they also wanted to help the family, at least to supplement the income of the family. Ganya frowned and put Soliciting tenants and renting out houses is called indecent.After they did this, he seemed to feel his social disrepute, for he had always come into society at a young and promising age.The backing down to fate, the whole annoying crowding—it all seared a deep scar inside him.From a certain point on, he began to get angry easily over some trivial things, and no matter how big or small the matter was, he would throw a tantrum when he was angry. If he could temporarily give in and swallow his anger, it was only because he had made up his mind to change in the shortest possible time. and rearrange it all.But to bring about this change, the way out which he has chosen, is not in itself an easy task--to solve this task by hand will be more troublesome and painful than anything that has been done in the past. .

From the front room is a corridor that divides the residence in two.On one side of the corridor, there are three rooms ready to let, for "specially recommended" tenants; besides, on the same side of the corridor, at its end, near the kitchen, there is a fourth small room, narrower than the others, In it lived the head of the family, the retired general Ivolkin, who slept on a large couch, so that one had to pass through the kitchen and take the back stairs to get in and out of the house.In the same hut was Gavrila Ardalionovich's thirteen-year-old brother Kolya, a schoolboy, who they also crammed into the small room to study, sleep, and sleep. On another very old, narrow and short sofa, a bed sheet full of holes was spread on the sofa. His main task is to take care of his father, and the old man has become more and more inseparable from other people's care , the middle one of the three rooms that the prince was admitted to lived in; the first on the right was occupied by a man named Fedsenko, and the third from the left is still vacant.But Ganya first led the duke into their own half.The half of his house consists of three parts: sitting room, living room and bedroom.The so-called sitting room, when necessary, becomes the dining room, and the drawing room, which becomes the living room only in the mornings and mornings, becomes Ganya's study and bedroom at night, and finally a third room, smaller and always closed. Door: This is the bedroom of Nina Alexandrovna and Varvara Ardalionovna.In short, everything in this flat is crowded and compact.Ganya had no choice but to grit his teeth secretly and swallowed his breath.Although he really wanted to be respectful and filial to his mother, from the moment he stepped through the threshold of their house, you would find that he was a big tyrant of the family.

Nina Alexandrovna was not alone in the drawing-room, and Varvara Ardalionovna was sitting with her, and they were knitting something, and with the guest Ivan Peter Rovich Ptitsyn was talking.Nina Alexandrovna looked to be about fifty years old, with a thin, thin face and heavy black halos around her eyes.She looked sickly and frail, but her face and eyes were quite pleasing.From the very beginning of the conversation, it was clear that she had a serious personality and was full of self-esteem.Despite her frail appearance, she could feel a kind of strength, even determination.She was very plainly dressed, in a dark, thoroughly old lady's dress, but her manner, her speech, her whole demeanor revealed that she was a woman who had seen the world.

Varvara Ardalionovna was a girl of about twenty-three, of medium height, rather thin, with a face which, if not beautiful, was charming enough to A heart-wrenching secret.She is very much like her mother, because she doesn't want to dress herself up at all, and she even dresses like her mother.The look in her gray eyes, though sometimes quite cheerful and enthusiastic, was more often than not serious and thoughtful, sometimes too serious, especially of late.There is also a strong and decisive expression on her face, which makes one feel that this strong character may even be more resolute and shrewd than her mother.Varvara Ardalionovna had a very bad temper, which was very violent, and sometimes even her brother was afraid of her violent temper.The one who was also afraid of three points after seeing her, and the guest who is sitting here now, Ivan Petrovich Ptitsyn.He was still quite young, in his late thirties, dressed plainly but elegantly, and behaved quietly, but seemed a little too dignified.He had some dark brown beards, which showed that he was not a man who worked in the yamen.His conversation is bright and funny, but often silent.On the whole he gave an even pleasant impression, he was obviously not indifferent to Varvara Ardalionovna, and he did not hide his feelings.Varvara Ardalionovna was friendly to him, but was slow to answer some of his questions, and even disliked them.However, Ptitsyn was not discouraged by this.Nina Alexandrovna was very kind to him, and lately even trusted him.However, everyone also knows that he made his fortune exclusively by issuing usury loans and collecting relatively reliable collateral.He was an acquaintance with Ganya.

After Ganya introduced the prince in detail, but with a hammer here and there (Ganya greeted his mother very coldly, ignored his sister and did not greet her, and immediately called Ptitsyn out of the room), Nina Alexandrovna said a few polite words to the prince, and ordered Kolya, who was peeping through the door, to lead the prince into the middle room.Kolya was a little boy with a very lively and rather sweet face, and a frank and loyal manner. "Where's your luggage?" he asked, as he led the prince into his room. "I have a small bag, which I left in the antechamber."

"I'll bring it to you right now. The only servants in our house are the cook and Matriona, so I'll help too. Varya is the manager, and she has a temper. You just Back from Switzerland?" "right." "How is Switzerland?" "very good." "There are mountains?" "right." "I'm going to fetch all your baggage." Varvara Ardalionovna entered the room. "Matrona will make your bed right away. Do you have a box?" "No, just a small bag. Brother Ling went to get it. The bag is in the front room."

"Except for this little bag, there is nothing else. Where did you put it?" Kolya asked again, returning to the room. "Other than that, there is nothing else," said the Duke, taking the little bag. "Ah—ah! I thought, don't let Fedsenko take it away." "Don't talk nonsense," said Varya sternly, and she also spoke very coldly to the prince, but politely. "Chere Babette, talk to me softly, I'm not Ptitsyn." "You deserve a beating, Kolya, you are so stupid. If you need anything, you can ask Matrona. Dinner starts at 4:30, and you can eat with us or in your own room, as you like. Go, Kolya, and leave the prince alone."

"Let's go, this temper is really embarrassing!" As they were going out, they happened to meet Ganya. "Is father at home?" Ganya asked Kolya, and after getting an affirmative answer, he whispered to Kolya. Kolya nodded and went out with Varvara Ardalionovna. "Duke, because of these ... things, I forgot to tell you two things. I have one thing to ask: please - if you don't have to do it very hard - please don't talk here about what I just said. Don't go there and talk nonsense about what you saw here about Aglaya, because there are also a lot of outrageous things here. But, hell... just today you can survive."

"Believe me, I won't talk nonsense, and even if I talk nonsense, it's much less than you think," replied the prince, not without irritation at Gania's reproach.Their relationship is visibly going from bad to worse. "Well, I've had enough today because of you. Anyway, please." "One more note. Gavrila Ardalionovitch, I am not under any restraint, why can't I mention the photograph? You didn't ask me not to." "Oh, what a terrible room," said Ganya, looking around contemptuously, "not to mention the darkness, and the windows looking out on the courtyard. In all respects, it's not the right time for you to move in...well, but it's not It's none of my business, I'm not renting out the house."

Ptitsyn stuck his head in and called to Ganya, who hastily left the prince and went out, though he seemed to have something to say, but he was evidently hesitating, as if ashamed to speak.When he scolded the house, he also seemed ashamed. The duke had just washed his face and combed it a little, when the door opened again, and a master looked inside. This is a gentleman in his thirties. He is not small, with big arms and round waist, and a big head.Light brown curly hair.The face is fleshy, with ruddy cheeks, thick lips, a large flat nose, small eyes, naked eyes, and a mocking look that seems to be blinking constantly.On the whole, it all came across as rather rude and presumptuous.This guy is dirty.

He opened the door a crack at first, just enough to put a head in.After sticking his head in, he looked around the room up, down, left, and right. After about five seconds, the door began to open slowly, and his whole body appeared at the door, but the guest still didn't come in. Instead, he closed his eyes and continued to look around from the door. Duke.Finally, closing the door behind him, he approached, sat down on a chair, and took the prince's hand firmly, and made him sit on the couch, facing him diagonally. "That's Fedsenko," he said, looking questioningly into the prince's face. "So what?" replied the prince, almost laughing. "The lodger," said Fedsenko, still looking at the prince's face. "Want to get to know each other?" "Ah-ah!" said the visitor, scratching his head, sighing, and began to look around the opposite corner. "Do you have any money?" he asked eagerly, turning to the prince. "not much." "How much?" "Twenty-five rubles." "let me see." The prince took a twenty-five-rouble note from his waistcoat pocket and handed it to Fedsenko.He opened the bill, looked at it, then turned it over to the other side, and then brought it up to the light again. "It's strange," he said thoughtfully, "how come the notes turn brown? Sometimes the twenty-five-ruble notes turn brown very badly, but the other notes, on the contrary, fade away." Color. You keep it." The duke withdrew his banknotes.Fedsenko got up from his chair. "I'm here to take care of you: first, don't lend me money, because I will definitely borrow money from you." "it is good." "Are you going to pay for the room here?" "Intend." "I don't intend to, thank you. I'm at the first door on your right, see? Please don't come to the house too often. I'll come to see you, don't bother. See the general?" "No." "I haven't heard of it either?" "of course not." "Well, then you'll see and hear about it, and besides, he's even borrowing money from me often! Good-bye, Aris au lecteur. Can a man named Fedesenko survive? Ah? " "Why can't you survive?" "goodbye." After that, he walked out the door.As the duke learned later, the gentleman seemed to think it his duty to wow everyone with his eccentricities and amuse- ments , but somehow he never managed to do so.He even made a bad impression on some people, which made him very sad, but he never gave up his task.At the door he bumped into a gentleman who was walking in, and he finally seemed to wake up.He stepped aside to let the new visitor, whom the duke did not know, into the room, and after giving the duke a warning wink behind him, he strutted away. The new gentleman was tall, about fifty-five years old, or a little more, rather stout, with a purplish-caramel face, full of flesh and loose muscles.A bushy white beard surrounds his face, he has a mustache, and he has big eyes, staring wide open.If there hadn't been something about him that was wretched, even disgraceful, it would have been a rather imposing look.He was wearing an old jacket that was fraying at the elbows, and his underwear was also oily and twisted—a homely look.Near him, one could smell a little alcohol, but his manner was very dignified, as if well-trained, obviously, he very much hoped to impress others with his manner, and praised him.The gentleman walked up to the prince without haste, with a friendly smile on his face, silently took his hand, held it in his own, and looked at his face for a moment, as if recognizing a familiar face like. "It's him! It's him!" He whispered solemnly, "It's as if it's alive! I heard someone repeating a familiar and friendly name, and I suddenly remembered the past that never came back... . . . you are Prince Myshkin?" "That's right, I am." "This is the retired and downcast General Ivolkin. What is your name and father's name, please?" "Lev Nikolayevich." "Yes, yes! You are my friend, the young master of my friend Nikolai Petrovich?" "Father's name was Nikolai Lvovich." "Lvovich." The general corrected himself, but he spoke in a calm and confident manner, as if he hadn't forgotten anything, but just accidentally said something wrong.He sat down, took the Duke's hand again, and let him sit beside him, "I even hugged you." "Is that so?" asked the duke. "My late father has been dead for twenty years." "Yes, twenty years, twenty years and three months. I went to school together, and I went directly to the military academy..." "Yes, my late father also went to military school and was a second lieutenant in the Vasilikov regiment." "In the Belomir Regiment. He was transferred to the Belomir Regiment almost before his death. I stood beside him and wished him eternal life. The Lord..." The general paused for a moment, as if overwhelmed by the memory. "She also died of a cold six months later," the Duke said. "It's not a cold. It's not a cold. Please take my old man's word for it. I'm right next to her, and I buried her. Died of grief over your father's death. Not from a cold. Yes, and I'll never forget your father too." Young people are always absurd! My father and I are best friends, but because of her, we almost died in a duel." The duke listened to him with a half-suspicious air. "I am in love with Lingtang. At that time, Lingtang hadn't passed the door yet, but he was already engaged to my father, my friend. My father was shocked when he found out. He came to me early in the morning at six o'clock and woke me up. I Dressed in amazement, and said nothing to each other. I understood it all. He took two pistols from his pockets, with a handkerchief between them, no witnesses. Anyway, in five minutes we'll have each other dead forever, witness. What's the use? We loaded the bullets, stretched out the handkerchiefs, held each other's pistols to each other's hearts, and looked at each other's faces. In an instant, the two of them burst into tears and kept falling , the hands of both sides trembled. Both sides, both sides, suddenly turned around! Well, at that time, naturally, they embraced each other and competed for tolerance. Your father shouted: She is yours! I also shouted: She is yours! Anyway... anyway... do you want to stay here... to live?" "Yes, perhaps for a while," the Duke seemed to stammer a little. "Duke, my mother invites you to go." Kolya poked his head in and called.The Duke got up to leave, but the general put his right hand on his shoulder and kindly asked him to sit back on the sofa. "I remind you, on behalf of your father and dear friend," said the general, "that you yourself have seen that I am suffering, that my family is in ruins because of bad luck, but there is nothing to blame! I have nothing to say! Nina A. Alexandrovna is a rare good woman, and my daughter, Varvara Ardalionovna, is also a rare good daughter! We are renting out the house because of the poverty of the officials—the family is very poor, Shocking! A man like me who could have been Governor!... But you are always welcome. I will tell you that a tragedy has happened!" The duke looked at him suspiciously but with great curiosity. "She is planning a marriage, a rare marriage. On the one hand is a woman who has misbehaved, and on the other is a young man who may be promoted to the imperial court. They are going to marry this woman and marry her into the house where the youngest daughter and wife live. This home! But she will never come to my threshold as long as I am alive! I will lie on the threshold and let her step over me!... I hardly speak to Ganya now, and I don't even want to see him. I want to take special care of you, and since you live in the cottage, you will see anyway. But you are the son of my dead friend, so I have a right to count on..." "Prince, please come to my drawing room." Nina Alexandrovna herself appeared at the door and called the prince. "Baby, think about it," cried the general, "so I hugged the Duke." Nina Alexandrovna looked disapprovingly at the general, then at the prince inquiringly, but said nothing.The prince followed her to the drawing-room, but as soon as they entered and took their seats, and Nina Alexandrovna began to tell the prince something hastily in a low voice, the general himself drove into the drawing-room unexpectedly.Nina Alexandrovna immediately closed her mouth, and bent her head with obvious chagrin to knit something.The general may have been aware of this annoyance, but he was still beaming and in high spirits. He said to Nina Alexandrovna: "My dead friend's son! What an unexpected encounter! I've forgotten about it long ago. But, darling, don't you remember my dead friend Nikolai Lvovich? You also met him...in Tver?" "I don't remember Nikolai Lvovich. Is he your father?" she asked the prince. "It was my father, but he didn't seem to have died in Tver, but in Elisabethgrad," the prince said timidly to the general. "I heard from Pavlishev." "It was in Tver," the general affirmed. "He was transferred to Tver just before his death, before his condition deteriorated. You were young at that time, and you don't remember the transfer or the removal of your family." Pavlishev may have misremembered the matter, although he is a very good man." "You know Pavlishev too?" "He is a rare good man, but I watched your father die with my own eyes. When he was dying, I personally blessed him..." "My father died during his trial," the duke went on, "though I have never been able to find out what crime he committed. He died in the hospital." "Oh, it's because of the case of Private Kolpakov, and there can be no doubt that your father could have been acquitted." "Really? Are you sure?" the Duke asked with great interest. "Never mind!" cried the general. "The court has dismissed it without making any decision. This case is very difficult! It can even be said to be somewhat mysterious. The company commander, Captain Larionov, is critically ill, and your father has been ordered to act as his temporary representative." Duty, well. Private Kolpakov committed theft, stole a brother's shoe mending leather, traded it for wine, well. Father (please note, this is in the presence of a sergeant and Sergeant's face) gave Kolpakov a hard time and said that he would be good with a stick. Kolpakov went back to the barracks, lay down on his bed, and died a quarter of an hour later. Too Wonderful, but this incident was too unexpected, almost inconceivable. After such a discussion, Kolpakov had to be buried first. His father reported the truth, and then Kolpakov was removed from the roster Nothing seems more natural than this, right? But after half a year, one day a brigade parade, Private Kolpakov appeared in the 2nd Battalion of the Xindi Infantry Regiment of the same division and brigade as if nothing had happened. Three in a row!" "What!" the Duke exclaimed in surprise. "That's not true. It's a mistake!" Nina Alexandrovna said suddenly to the prince, looking at him almost sadly, "Mon marise trompe." "But baby, se tormpe, that's easy to say. But if it were you, how would you solve this! At that time, everyone was out of control. I would be the first to say qu'on se tromp, but I am this An eyewitness to the headless case, and he personally participated in the investigation team. All the people who came forward to confront him said that this person is Private Kolpakov, and it is exactly the same person, that is, he used an ordinary funeral half a year ago, in the Private Kolpakov buried to the sound of the drums. It's a strange thing, it's incredible, I agree with that, but . . . " "Father, dinner is ready for you," Varvara Ardalionovna informed him, coming into the room. "Oh, that's wonderful, wonderful! I'm starving... But it's even psychological..." "The soup is getting cold again," Varya said impatiently. "Immediately, immediately." The general muttered to himself as he walked out of the room, "and no matter how you investigate..." He was already in the corridor, and he could still be heard chattering. "If you live in the cottage, please forgive Ardalion Alexandrovitch," said Nina Alexandrovna to the prince, "but he won't bother you too much, he won't even eat It is also eaten alone. You have to admit that everyone has their own shortcomings and... characteristics, and some people may have more shortcomings than those who make people poke their backs. I have one thing to ask: If the poor man asks you Please tell him that he has paid the rent. In other words, even if you hand it over to Ardalion Alexandrovitch, we will count you as having paid the rent. I ask you to do so, Out of fear of being mistaken... what is this, Varya?" When Varya returned to the house, she silently handed the photograph of Nastasya Filippovna to her mother.Nina Alexandrovna took the picture, shuddered, looked at it for a moment, first as if in horror, then with a bitter feeling of despair.Finally, he raised his questioning eyes and looked at Varya. "It's a present she gave him personally today," Varya said. "Tonight, they're going to finalize it all." "Tonight!" Nina Alexandrovna repeated in a low voice, as if in despair. "What? Is there no more doubt, no more hope: this photograph says it all... Did he show it to you himself?" she added in surprise. "You know, we didn't speak a word for almost a whole month. Ptitsyn told me all this, and as for the photograph, it was thrown on the floor by the table, and I picked it up." "Prince," Nina Alexandrovna asked him suddenly, "I want to ask you a question (that's why I have invited you here), have you known my son already?" I just came back from somewhere today, is that right?" The Duke made a long story short, simply talking about himself.Nina Alexandrovna and Varya listened attentively. "I don't take the trouble to ask you now to find out anything about Gavrila Ardalionovitch," said Nina Alexandrovna. Misunderstanding. If there is something he won't tell me directly, I don't want to ask behind his back. I'm asking you, honestly, because Ganya was in front of you, and after you went out, I asked When it comes to your situation, he always answers me: "He knows everything, no need to be formal!" What does this mean? That is to say, I want to know how much you know..." At this moment Ganya and Ptitsyn came in suddenly, and Nina Alexandrovna immediately fell silent.The prince continued to sit in the chair next to her, and Varya stepped aside.The photograph of Nastasya Filippovna was prominently placed on the little table where Nina Alexandrovna was working.Ganya frowned when he saw the photo.Annoyed, he picked it up from the table and threw it across the room on his own desk. "Today, Ganya?" asked Nina Alexandrovna suddenly. "What today?" Ganya was startled, and then angrily reprimanded the Duke, "Oh, I see, you're here to make trouble again!... What's wrong with you doing this? You can't hold back Is it? You should also understand something, Your Excellency the Duke..." "Ganya, it's my fault. Don't blame the good guys," Ptitsyn interrupted him. Ganya looked at him suspiciously. "That's all right, Ganya, and besides, on the one hand, the matter is finally settled," muttered Ptitsyn, who stepped aside, sat down at the table, and took out of his pocket a piece of paper on which he had written After writing in pencil, I began to watch with my heart.Ganya scowled, anxiously awaiting the family quarrel.As for the duke, it did not even occur to him to apologize. "If everything is lost, then Ivan Petrovich is right," said Nina Alexandrovna, "don't frown or get angry, Ganya, you don't want to I will never ask you a word of what I said, I assure you, I have completely resigned to my fate, please don’t worry.” When she said this, she was still working non-stop, and she looked really calm.Ganya was surprised, but was careful not to say a word, looking at his mother, waiting for her to speak more clearly.The continuous family quarrels made him physically and mentally exhausted and suffered a lot.Nina Alexandrovna noticed his cautiousness, and added with a wry smile: "Are you still suspicious and don't believe me? Don't worry, you won't be crying and begging like before, at least I won't be like this. All my wishes are, as long as you are happy, you know that Yes, I have resigned to my fate, but my heart will always be with you, no matter whether we will live together in the future or we will be separated. Of course, I can only promise myself, you cannot ask your sister to do the same..." "Ah, it's her again!" cried Ganya, looking at his sister with irony and hatred, "Mother! I swear to you again, although I have already promised you that as long as I am here, as long as I You are still alive, and no one dares to disrespect you at any time. No matter who this person is, no matter who steps into our family's threshold, I insist that he have the utmost respect for you..." Ganya was in a good mood and looked at his mother almost with a conciliatory and kind look. "Ganya, you know, I'm not worried about myself at all. I'm not worried about myself, I'm not suffering about myself all this time. I hear you're all going to be finished today? What's the deal? Woolen cloth?" "She promised to announce it at her house this evening, whether she agrees or not," Gania replied. "We avoided talking about it for almost three weeks, and that's fine. Now that it's all over, I just want to ask you one thing: You don't love her, how did she say yes to you, and even send you pictures ? Do you really want to marry her, marry such a...such a..." "Well, such a seasoned lover, isn't he?" "I don't mean to say that. Can you hide it from her so well?" In this question, a very angry emotion can be heard suddenly.Ganya stood for a while, pondered for a moment, and then said unabashedly and sarcastically: "Mom, you're getting mad again, and you can't help it. We always get into trouble like this. You said just now that you would neither question me nor accuse me, but now you have it all! Don't come here One thing, really, don't do that, at least, you once planned... I will never leave you. If someone else has a sister like this, why don't you run away quickly--look at her looking at me now That's it! Let's stop here! I'd be glad... Why do you think I'm lying to Nastasya Filippovna? ​​As for Varya, let her figure it out, that's enough. Humph, that's enough for now!" Ganya became more and more angry, walking aimlessly around the room.Such a conversation immediately touched the hearts of all family members. "I said that if she came here, I would leave here, and I kept my word," Varya said. "Stubbornness!" cried Ganya, "it's because you're stubborn that you don't marry! Why are you angry with me? I don't care. If you really want to, Miss Varvara, go away even now. Do you want me to?" I'm bored. What! Are you going to leave us, prince?" he called to the prince, seeing him rise from his seat. In Ganya's voice, one could hear the extreme irritation that a man takes pleasure in his own anger, and allows it to flare up, no matter how intense it may be, it gets better and better.When the Duke came to the door, he was about to turn his head and answer his question, but seeing the sickly face of the bully, he now owed fuel to the fire, so he turned his head again, and went out in silence.A few minutes later, he heard by echoes from the living room that the conversation had grown louder and more outrageous since he had gone. He walked through the living room, walked to the outer room, and was about to walk into the corridor, and then return to his room through the corridor.As he passed the door leading to the stairs, he heard and noticed that someone was ringing the bell vigorously outside, but the bell might be broken somewhere: it only vibrated twice, but there was no sound.The prince unlatched the door, opened the door, and suddenly stepped back with astonishment, even trembling: standing before him was Nastasya Filippovna.He recognized her immediately because he had seen the photo.When she saw him, a spark of resentment flashed in her eyes.She went quickly into the outer room, bumped him with the shoulder to get him out of the way, and said angrily as she took off her coat: "If you can't be bothered to fix the bell, you should at least sit in the outhouse and wait for the knock. Look, you dropped your coat again, you fool!" Sure enough, the fur coat fell to the floor.Nastasya Filippovna took off her coat without waiting for the prince to take it off for her, and with her back turned to the prince, threw it into the prince's hands without looking, but the prince had no time to catch it. "You should be fired. Go and report." The Duke wanted to say something, but he was so flustered that he couldn't say anything, so he went to the living room with the overcoat he picked up from the ground. "Look, now you're going in with your coat in your arms! Why did you take the coat away? Hahaha! Are you crazy?" The prince came back again, staring at her blankly like a wooden man.She smiled, and he smiled too, but his tongue still couldn't move.When he opened the door for her, his face was pale, and now his face flushed suddenly. "What an idiot!" cried Nastasya Filippovna angrily, stamping her foot at him angrily. "Where are you going? Now, who are you going to tell?" "Nastasya Filippovna," murmured the prince. "How do you know me?" She asked him quickly, "I've never seen you before! Go and report...what's the noise inside?" "A quarrel," answered the prince, and went into the drawing-room. He entered at a critical moment: Nina Alexandrovna had almost completely forgotten what she had said about "resigning everything to fate."However, she defended Varya desperately.Ptitsyn also left his penciled sheet of paper and stood beside Varya.Varya was not afraid either. She was a girl who was not afraid of anything, but her brother's foul language was becoming more and more rude and unbearable.On such occasions, as usual, she said nothing, but looked at her brother silently, mockingly, and intently.She knew this was the best way to heal him, enough to make him fly into a rage.At this critical moment, the Duke stepped into the room and announced to everyone: "Nastasya Filippovna is here!"