Chapter 18 Chapter Seventeen

According to the custom, on the eve of the execution, the passive participants and the active participants must say goodbye to the main officials one by one, but in order to further shorten the time of this ceremony, it was decided that all the relevant personnel would gather at the suburban residence of the deputy municipal executive (the executive himself was visiting friends in Pritomsk, nephew of the Deputy Mayor), Cincinnatus and Monsieur Pierre stopped by to have a light meal together. It was a dark night and a warm wind was blowing, and they, wearing the same cloaks and escorted by six soldiers with halberds and lanterns, crossed the bridge on foot into the sleeping city, avoided the streets, and began to walk in the rustling garden Climbing up a flint-strewn path between them.

(Before this, Cincinnatus had looked back on the bridge, his head poking out from the hood of his cloak: the blue, complex, multi-towered great fortress plunged into the dark sky, where a cloud obscured the apricot moon The night sky above the bridge flickered and twitched with bats flying. "You promised..." M. Pierre whispered, squeezing his elbow lightly, and Cincinnatus put the hood back on his head superior.) This nocturnal procession should have given people the impression of being sad, carefree, humming, whispering—what is peace of mind if not the soul of impressions? —and in the end just scurry past expressionlessly and insignificantly, as in familiar surroundings, in the dark, when the colorful days are replaced by the monotonous nights.

In a narrow dark alley, the gravel crunched and the air smelled of juniper.At the end, there suddenly appeared a bright theatre-like garage, with freshly painted columns, friezes on the gables, and potted laurel adornment.Servants flitted about like birds of paradise, and scattered their feathers on the black and white tiles.Cincinnatus and Monsieur Pierre hardly paused, and went straight into a noisy assembly hall.All the people are here. Here, the City Fountain Keeper is instantly recognizable by his characteristic lock of hair; here, the telegraph master gleamed in his uniform with gold badges; the superintendent; the lion tamer with an Italian name; the deaf but respectable judge; the park ranger in green patent leather shoes; .There were no women present, unless one counted the District School Superintendent, a stocky old woman in a gray frock coat with large flat cheeks and smooth haircuts that shone like steel.

Someone slipped on the parquet floor, and everyone burst into laughter.A candle fell from the chandelier.A small coffin was on display, and someone had placed a bouquet of flowers on it.Monsieur Pierre, who stood with Cincinnatus, was the one who alerted those under his care to these phenomena. However, at this moment, the master, the swarthy boss with a goatee, clapped his hands.The door slammed open and everyone rushed into the dining room.Monsieur Pierre and Cincinnatus sat side by side at the head of a dazzling table, and all eyes turned to the two men, wearing the same Elsinore jacket, restrained at first, then openly. Benevolent curiosity - some even surreptitiously send them affection.As Monsieur Pierre began to speak with a faint smile on his lips, the eyes of the guests were fixed more and more openly on him and on Cincinnatus, who was calmly, earnestly and attentively— —as if looking for an answer to a question—trying to balance the fish knife in various ways, now resting on the salt shaker, now on the inward curvature of a fork, now resting on the elongated crystal vase, in the vase There is a white rose, apparently an addition to his seat.

The valets were recruited from among the sharpest dandies in the city - the best representatives of the city's pompous youth - and they brought the food to the table briskly (sometimes even leaping across it with their plates) and everyone noticed Seeing Mr. Pierre's courteous attention to Cincinnatus, he carefully placed a selected piece of delicious food on Cincinnatus's plate, and the smile on his face during the conversation immediately turned into a momentary seriousness .Then his pink, hairless face returned to the earlier expression of insincere delight and continued his witty conversation, this time to the whole table—and suddenly he leaned forward slightly and grabbed the boat The gravy plate or the pepper shaker eyed Cincinnatus quizzically.But Cincinnatus didn't touch any food, and just played the fish knife repeatedly with silent concentration and painstaking attention.

"Your word," said Monsieur Pierre cheerfully, turning to the Minister of Urban Transport.The minister had just interrupted, and was now anticipating with joy the enlightening answer, "Your words remind me of the famous anecdote about the Hippocratic oath." "Tell us about it, we don't know about it, tell us about it quickly," people from all directions begged him in unison. "I do what you want," said M. Pierre. "A gynecologist sees this..." "I'm sorry to interrupt you," said the Lion Tamer (gray-haired, with a mustache, and a crimson ribbon across his breast), "but would this condemned gentleman think this anecdote fit for the ears of . . . ?” His eyes focused on Cincinnatus.

"Of course it is," replied M. Pierre firmly. "I will never say anything inappropriate in the presence of .... As I said, a gynecologist saw the little old woman." (Monsieur Pierre protrudes his lower lip slightly). "She said, 'I'm very ill and I'm afraid I'm going to die from this.' 'What are your symptoms?' asked the doctor. 'Oh, doctor, my head keeps shaking...'" M. Pierre imitated the old woman The look, muttering in his mouth, shaking his head constantly. All the guests laughed.The deaf judge sat at the other end of the table, his face contorted in pain, as if glazed over by the laughter.He put his big wet ear to the face of his laughing, selfish neighbor, tugged at his sleeve, and begged him to repeat Pierre's story to him.Meanwhile, Monsieur Pierre watched to see how everyone at the table reacted to his story.The judge was not satisfied until someone satisfied his curiosity.

"Your extraordinary maxim that life is a medical mystery," said the fountain keeper, splattering a rainbow around his mouth, "applied perfectly to a strange incident that happened at my secretary's house the day before yesterday. Can you imagine . . . " "Ah, poor Cincinnatus, are you frightened?" asked a radiant servant, pouring him wine.Cincinnatus looked up, and it was his joking brother-in-law. "I'm scared, aren't you? Come, have a glass of wine in danger." "What are you doing here?" said Monsieur Pierre icily, telling the talkative servant not to forget his identity, who hurried away, stooping over the elbow of the next guest, to pour him wine.

"Gentlemen!" said the host loudly, rising from his chair, and holding a glass of cold pale yellow drink to his starched chest. "I propose a toast to..." "Bitter, bitter, sweeten it with a kiss," said a young man who had recently been best man, and the whole party echoed. "Let us... bruderschaft... I beg you—" Monsieur Pierre changed his voice to Cincinnatus, his face contorted with pleading eagerness, "don't refuse me this request, I beg you, this is The usual way, always..." Cincinnatus was fingering the curled tips of the moist white roses he had absently pulled from an overturned vase.

"...Finally, I have the right to ask," M. Pierre murmured frantically, and with a sudden forced laugh, he poured a drop from his glass on top of Cincinnatus's head and sprinkled it too. on himself. Cheers of "Yes!" came from all directions, neighbors expressed their surprise and joy in pantomime, unbreakable wine glasses clinked, a silver ship sailed against the wind was loaded with gray-blue bunches of grapes, There were piles of glowing apples in the middle, each as big as a child's head, the table tilted up like a mountain of diamonds, and the multi-armed chandelier weaved through the mist of tempera on the ceiling, dripping candle tears, Spread the brilliance, but still can't find a landing place.

"I am very touched, very touched," said Mr. Pierre, who took turns to congratulate him.When they came to congratulate, some stumbled and some sang.The father of the city fire brigade was so drunk that two servants tried to take him out quietly, but he sacrificed his swallowtail like a lizard sacrifices its own tail, and stayed behind.The venerable woman in charge of the school, flushed with blush, was silently and nervously avoiding the intrusion of the Chief of Supplies, his carrot-like fingers playfully aimed at her as if to pierce She might tickle her, laughing "hee-hee-hee" non-stop. "Let's go out on the balcony, friends," announced the host.Upon hearing the sound, Marthe's younger brother and the son of the late Dr. Seniokov immediately drew back the curtain and made a sound of wooden rings.The flickering light of painted lanterns illuminates a stone balcony surrounded by uprights of bottle-roller balustrade, between which hourglass-shaped darkness of night. The guests sat down in low armchairs, their stomachs growling, their stomachs growling.Some lounged against the pillars, others leaned against the railing.Cincinnatus was also standing by the rail, smoking a cigar.Monsieur Pierre stood beside him, turned away from him, but kept touching him with his back or side.While Monsieur Pierre was speaking, the audience gave occasional exclamations of approval: "Photography and fishing are my two great passions. You may find it strange to hear that, but fame and honor mean nothing to me compared to the tranquility of the country. I see your smile with suspicion , gracious sir" (he said in passing to one of his guests, who immediately corrected his expression), "but I can swear to you that it is true, and I swear it is not unfounded. Love of nature is my His father's heritage, he never lied. Of course, many of you remember him and can testify to it, even in writing if necessary." Cincinnatus stood by the railing, looking vaguely at the darkness in front of him. The darkness seemed to be understanding, and gradually faded. It turned out that the clear and high moon peeked out from behind the black clouds, illuminating the darkness. cleared the bushes and let the moonlight flow into the pools.Suddenly Cincinnatus felt a jolt in his soul and realized that he was in the depths of Tamara Park, which he still remembered vividly but seemed out of reach.He remembered how many times he had walked here with Marthe, passing in front of the house in which he was now, and he had previously had the impression of a white villa with boarded-up windows through which The branches and leaves on the hill shone brightly... At this time, he scanned everything around him with tireless eyes, and easily removed the mist of night from the familiar lawn, and at the same time removed the excess dust in the moonlight. Accurately restore the original appearance of the lawn.When he recovered the scenery covered by the haze of night, he gradually saw the jungle, paths, and streams in their original places... In the distance, under the metallic sky, the intoxicated mountains stood still, blue light Faint, overlapping in the dark... "The colonnade, the torch of the moon, he and she," read Monsieur Pierre, smiling at Cincinnatus.Cincinnatus noticed that everyone was looking at him with tender, expectant sympathy. "Are you enjoying the view?" the park ranger said to him mysteriously, clasping his hands behind his back. "You..." He stopped suddenly, seemed a little embarrassed, and turned to Mr. Pierre: "I'm sorry...do you allow me to talk to him? After all, I haven't been introduced yet..." "Please, please, you don't need my permission," replied Monsieur Pierre politely, touching Cincinnatus on the elbow, and whispering: "This gentleman wants to talk to you, Dear." The park ranger cleared his throat into his fist and repeated: "The view... are you enjoying the view? You can't see much right now. But if you're willing to wait, it's midnight - our chief engineer Promise me... Nikita Lukic! Come here, Nikita Lukic!" "Here we come," said Nikita Lukić in a beaming bass voice, and approached politely, looking cheerfully at this one and at that, his young, eager face He wears a white mustache.He freely put one hand on the park ranger's shoulder and the other on M. Pierre's. "I just said to him, Nikita Lukic, you promised, it's midnight, to celebrate..." "Of course," the chief engineer interrupted. "Our surprise is safe. You don't have to worry about it. By the way, what time is it, guys?" He took his hands off the shoulders of the two men, and walked into the room with a look of ecstasy. went. "So we shall be in the square in about eight hours," said M. Pierre, closing the watch cover with force. "We don't have much sleep time. You're not cold, are you, dear?" The kind person said they were going to surprise us. I think they're spoiling our fun. The one we had at the party The fish is absolutely fantastic." "...Stop, don't touch me," said the female administrative officer in a hoarse voice, she flinched before the index finger of the Director of Supplies, and her thick back and gray bun approached Mr. Pierre. "Hee-hee," he squealed playfully, "hee-hee." "Take it easy, madam," said M. Pierre in a low, hoarse voice. "My corn is not state property." "What a ecstasy woman," the director of supplies and supplies said casually, with no expression on his face, and jumped towards a group of men standing by the pillars.His shadow quickly disappeared into their shadows.A Japanese lantern is swaying in a breeze, and a hand can be seen smugly stroking a mustache, or a wine glass is raised to an old man, or a fish's lips are trying to get sugar from under it. "Attention!" cried the host, passing through the guests like a whirlwind. The lights came on, crimson, sky blue, topaz, first in the park, then out of the park, and beyond, along the sidewalks, into the woods, into the glades , On the lawn, there are both single lamps and clusters, gradually inlaid with colorful gems on the night.The guests began to shout "Oh!" "Ah!"Monsieur Pierre took a deep breath and grabbed Cincinnatus by the wrist.The area covered by the lights grew larger and larger: they stretched along a distant canyon to the other side like a long brooch, and by this time they covered the first hillsides, and from there they spread again. To one hill after another, looming at the overlap of the most mysterious mountains, gradually climb up to each peak, and climb over the peak! "Oh, how beautiful," whispered Monsieur Pierre, and for a moment he even pressed his cheek to Cincinnatus's. The guests applauded.Millions of colorful light bulbs light up for three minutes, skillfully distributed on the grass, among the branches, and on the cliffs. From the perspective of the overall layout, the magnificent initials "P" and "C" surround the entire night scene, however , the performance effect of these two letters is not very successful.When the time came, all the lights suddenly went out, and the thick night shrouded the balcony. When engineer Nikita Lukic reappeared, they surrounded him and tried to throw him up.But it was getting late, and everyone began to think that it was time to rest.Before the guests left, the host offered to have Monsieur Pierre and Cincinnatus pose for a photo by the railing.Although the picture was to be taken of Monsieur Pierre, he directed the action himself.A strong light illuminates Cincinnatus' white profile and the blind face beside him.The master himself handed them the cloaks, and went out to see them off.In the foyer, stern, drowsy soldiers were rearranging their halberds, making a continuous crisp clang. "I am very honored to have your visit," said the host to Cincinnatus at parting. "Tomorrow—more precisely, this morning—I will of course be there, not only as an official but also as a person. My nephew told me that there will be a large number. "Well, good luck," he said to Monsieur Pierre, kissing him three times on the cheek, as is customary. Cincinnatus and Monsieur Pierre, escorted by soldiers, plunged into the alley. "In general, you are doing well," said Monsieur Pierre, after they had walked a short distance, "but why do you always... your shyness makes a very bad impression on people who meet you for the first time. I don't know how you feel," he added, "while I'm happy with the lighting etc, I have a burning sensation in my stomach and I suspect they don't cook with all dairy butter." They have been on the road for a long time.It was dark and foggy. As they walked up Stipe Street there was a muffled tuk-tuk-tuk somewhere to the left.Tuk-tuk-tuk. "The rascals," muttered Monsieur Pierre. "Didn't they swear and say it was all over?" Finally, they crossed the bridge and started uphill.The moon had vanished, and the dark towers of the keep merged with the clouds. At the third door Rodrigo Ivanovitch was waiting in dressing gown and nightcap. "Tell me, what's the situation?" He asked impatiently. "No one is sorry that you were not there," said M. Pierre drily.