Chapter 3 Chapter two

Margaret Dangcy lived in an apartment near the Boulevard Montparnasse, and Susie Boyd lived with her.In order to meet her, Arthur specially arranged a schedule to come over for afternoon tea.The two ladies sat in the studio, waiting for his arrival.There was a kettle on the stove, steaming hot.Tea sets and snacks are neatly placed on the table.Susie looked forward to meeting Arthur with great interest.She had heard a great deal about the young man and about his relationship with Marguerite.Susie is a girls' school teacher who has lived a monotonous life for many years.A distant relative of hers left her an inheritance that was enough to live and eat, so she was willing to live in such a dull and boring life.Not long after that, her former student Marguerite came to Paris and told her that she wanted to stay in Paris for a few years to study art, so she readily let Marguerite live in her.Since then, she has been working diligently at the Colarosi Academy of Art, definitely not because she thinks she is brilliant, but purely for fun.She didn't want to admit that the environment she was in was actually a bit harsh.After years of hard work, she learned not to reveal her true feelings about anything, which made her a lot easier.She likes to observe all kinds of life around her, and can get endless satisfaction from it.

She likes Margaret very much.Although she herself has no enthusiasm, she can thoroughly appreciate Marguerite's indulging in various exquisite arts.She is an ordinary woman, but she has no jealousy.Marguerite's fresh beauty delighted her from the bottom of her heart.Seeing that beautiful person getting more and more beautiful year after year, she felt a surge of pride almost like a mother treating her daughter.But she was endowed with good judgment, and she could always fend off the mad admirers in the painting class for the pleasant and talented girl with a good-natured little joke.She helped Marguerite develop her current temperament, and cultivated her beauty carefully.She was always very proud to think of such a sweet boy she would be handing over to Arthur Borden.

Some of Susie's knowledge of Arthur comes from snippets of letters Margaret read to her, and some from their conversations.She knew that Arthur was deeply in love with his bride, and to her delight Margaret loved Arthur as much, and was gratefully willing to dedicate her life to him.Therefore, Arthur's trip to Paris aroused her infinite reverie.Margaret's father was a country lawyer, and Arthur stayed by his side for many years.Margaret's mother died early, so when her father died Arthur became her guardian and executor.He sent her to school, gave her everything she could possibly want, and then, when she was seventeen, she told him she wanted to go to Paris to study painting, and he didn't hesitate.He had never ordered her to do anything, but this time he told her not to live alone, and it was for this reason that she ran to Susie.Before she could make any preparations for the trip, however, she happened to discover that her father had died without leaving her a penny, and that Arthur had been paying all her expenses for so many years.She ran to him crying and told him she knew the truth, and Arthur was embarrassed as if he had done something absurd.

"Why did you do that?" she asked him. "Why didn't you tell me?" "I don't think it's fair for you to feel indebted to me, and I want you to live free." She cried and couldn't help herself. "Don't be silly," he said with a smile. "You don't owe me anything. I haven't done anything amazing for you, and I'm happy to do something for you." "I don't know how to repay you." "Don't say that," he yelled. "It's making it harder for me to say it." She glanced at him quickly, her cheeks flushed.Her dark blue eyes were clouded with tears.

"Don't you know I would do anything for you?" she cried. "I don't want you to be grateful to me, because I hope—maybe someday I'll propose to you." Margaret held out her hands to Arthur and smiled charmingly at him. "You know I've wanted you to do that since I was ten." She would have been more than willing to give up going to Paris and get married at once, but Arthur advised her not to change her plans.At first Marguerite vowed not to go to Paris, because she knew she had no money, and it was impossible for her to ask her lover to pay for her.

"What does it matter?" said he, "it only pleases me to keep giving you a little pocket money as I have done before, and I have money too, and my father left me a good fortune, and now I do Surgery also makes a lot of money.” "That's right. But it's different now. I didn't know it before, and I always thought it was my own money." "If I die tomorrow, every penny I have is yours. We'll be married in two years. We've known each other for so long, and nothing can change our hearts. Our lives are bound together , nothing can separate us."

Margaret was desperate for a trip to Paris, and Arthur had decided that it would only be fair to her to wait until she was nineteen to marry her.So she turned to Susie Boyd for advice.Susie's natural sense of judgment prevented her from wasting too much on unnecessary troubles. "Honey, if you are already married to him at this time, then you don't need to hesitate to take his money. Besides, you will get married sooner or later, so why can't you take it now? Besides, you don't have the ability to make a living, and you are also not suitable for it." Be a governess or a typist, so you don't have a choice at all, so you better put away your delicate sentimentality."

By various chances, Miss Boyd had never met Arthur, but she had heard so much about him that he seemed to her an old friend.She admired his talent and strong personality, as well as his loving tenderness for Marguerite.Susie had seen photographs of Arthur, but Margaret said he wasn't photogenic.She asked Margaret if Arthur was handsome. "No, I don't think he's handsome," replied Marguerite, "but he's good for drawing." "One good thing about this answer is that it sounds like the same thing, but it doesn't make any sense at all," said Susie, smiling.

She privately regarded Margaret's enthusiasm for art as an unobtrusive gesture which would naturally fade once Margaret was happily married.To Susie, having a dozen kids was far more important than painting.Although Margaret is indeed talented, Susie believes that if she is as old and ordinary as herself, the group of indifferent masters will not be so enthusiastic. Miss Boyd is thirty years old.Her busy life doesn't make her feel rushed, and she looks much older now.But she is the kind of woman who is so ordinary that even if she looks mediocre, she doesn't care.A gallant Frenchman once referred to her to her face as an "ugly but charming woman."Faced with such an evaluation, instead of denying that gentleman's opinion, she was even a little flattered.Her mouth was huge, her eyes were small and round, and her skin was pale and freckled and not at all good-looking.Her nose is narrow and long.Yet she was pleasant, full of life, and had a certain kind of appeal that no one thought she was ugly after ten minutes with her.Then you will notice that her hair, although it has a few gray hairs, is very pretty and has a very well-proportioned figure.She has a pair of beautiful hands, white and slender.She loves waving them and making all kinds of passionate gestures.She has plenty of money, so she spends a lot of thought on the dress.Her clothes are beautiful (albeit far more than she can afford), and she has great taste and style, so she always looks her best in clothes.She had made up her mind that if people thought she was ugly, at the same time they had to admit that she was perfect in dressing.Susie had an extraordinary taste for dresses, and under her influence Margaret always wore the most fashionable styles.Margaret's taste in dressing is artistic, and her sense of color is lost after much thought.If it hadn't been for Susie's firm objection, she would have donned a brightly colored dress with no personality.That's when Susie would speak out categorically.

"A well-made corset doesn't make you badly drawn, my dear, any more than a few gray velvet straps don't make you any more talented." "But the fashions are ugly," said Marguerite, smiling. "Bullshit! What's in fashion is beautiful. Last year, it was beautiful to wear a hat over your nose like a pork pie, and next year, as far as I know, it's beautiful to pile a floppy hat on the back of your head like a bidet. Art and A beautiful dress has nothing to do with it, and whether a painter likes a high-heeled shoe or not, it's the only thing that makes a woman's feet look slender and beautiful."

Susie Boyd swore she would not live with Margaret unless she made her responsible for the clothes shopping. "When you're married, for God's sake, ask me to come to your house four times a year so I can inspect your clothes. If you dress according to your own taste, you'll never be able to keep a husband. Heart." Miss Boyd did not get feedback from Margaret until yesterday.She relayed Arthur's words when she and Arthur returned from dinner. "You're so beautifully dressed!" he said. "I was afraid you'd be wearing art students' serge shirts." "That's because he doesn't know that I bought every piece of cloth on you," Susie said loudly. "I told him," Margaret said flatly, "I told him that I have no taste, and you prepared all the clothes for me." "You can say that, at least, well," said Miss Boyd. At the same time, however, she could not help worrying about Margaret.From this little incident, it can be seen what a frank girl this is.Many of Miss Boyd's friends also took advantage of her unrivaled taste, though few would admit it when their lovers complimented their dress. At this moment, there was a knock on the studio door.Arthur is here. "This is the prince I always talk about." Margaret introduced him to her friends. "Nice to meet you, thank you so much for everything you've done for Margaret," he said, smiling, and took Susie's outstretched hand. Susie noticed that he was kind to her, but at the same time indifferent, as if his heart was too occupied with the one he loved to pay attention to anyone else.So she wondered how she could talk to such a man who was so engrossed.When Margaret was busy preparing tea, his affectionate, faithful and moving eyes followed her figure, wandering from the corner of her smiling mouth to her nimble hands, never letting her go every bit of it.It was as if he had never seen anything more intoxicating than the sight of her leaning over the water jug.Marguerite felt him looking at her and turned her head away.Their eyes met, staring at each other silently. "Don't be a fool," cried Susie cheerfully, "I'm waiting for my tea." The two looked at each other and smiled, their faces blushing immediately.Arthur suddenly realized that something polite should be said. "Miss Boyd, would love to see your sketches, Margaret says they are wonderful." "You really don't have to show the slightest interest in me." She replied bluntly. "Her caricatures are really interesting." Margaret said, "After you leave, she will definitely draw you, and I will bring them to you." "Don't play tricks, Margaret." Having said that, however, Miss Boyd could not help thinking that Arthur Borden was really good material for a character caricature.He was not handsome, and Margaret was not wrong in that.But to an observer like her, the clean-shaven face looked very interesting.Susie talked to herself, while Margaret and Arthur listened quietly.She was eloquent, satisfied that she had their attention.Arthur seemed to be aware of her at last, and laughed genuinely as she described the antics of the Colarossi students.While chatting, Susie also watched Arthur carefully.He was tall and thin, broad-boned, with a solid Yorkshire frame of his frame.Fortunately, years of self-reliance had left him with a composure that made him not ugly.He had high cheekbones, a long, thin face, a large nose and mouth, and a sallow complexion.However, there are two things in him that attract Susie very much: an unforgettable willpower and an extraordinary tolerance for suffering.The man has a brain and is imperative.Susie had been dealing with extremely weak young painters of late, so she was refreshed by Arthur's fortitude.But those piercing black eyes were very moving, and could express unbearable pain.His vivid lips are always full of tension, which also shows that he is prone to deep sorrow. When the tea was ready, Arthur stood up to take his cup. "Sit down," said Margaret, "I'll bring you whatever you want, and I know how much sugar you want. It makes me happy to entertain you." Holding a mug full of tea in one hand and a plate of pastries in the other, she walked across the studio towards Arthur, sparkling with every step she took.From Susie's point of view, facing Margaret's condescension, Arthur seemed to be full of gratitude. When he took the candied fruit from Margaret, there was an indescribable look in his eyes. Tenderness, while Margaret smiled with happiness and relief.Susie has a gentle temperament, but looking at this sweet couple, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of pain in her heart.She also has the ability to love, and her heart is full of deep love, but no one has ever discovered this, and no one has ever whispered those sweet words in her ears that she has read in books.She knows that she is not beautiful, but at least she was lively and young before, but now she is not even young, and the chance to break into the world has come too late.But her gut told her that she was perfectly capable of being a decent wife and mother.Thinking of this, she stopped speaking wittily, unable to believe her inner voice.But Margaret and Arthur were too absorbed to realize that her babble had come to an abrupt end.They sat next to each other, enjoying the happiness of having each other's company. "I'm so stupid!" thought Susie. She had learned long ago that natural determination, intelligence, good temper, and willpower were nothing compared to a pretty face.She shrugged. "I don't know if you two young people have noticed that it is getting late. If you want to invite us to the Black Dog Restaurant for dinner, then you should go back now, and you have to leave some time for us to dress up." "Of course." Arthur said, standing up. "I'm going back to the hotel to take a shower. I'll see you at half past seven." Margaret saw Arthur off, closed the door, and turned to her friend. "What do you think of him?" she asked, smiling. "We've only met for a short while, so how can we tell whether it's good or bad?" "Nonsense," said Margaret. Susie hesitated for a moment. "I think he looks very good." Finally, she said seriously, "I have never seen anyone who can write his sincerity so frankly on his face." Susie Boyd was very lazy and didn't want to be burdened with chores.While Margaret was packing the tea things, she drew caricatures of the characters.She does this whenever a new face inspires her.She drew a sketch of Arthur, unnaturally thin, with a huge nose, winged, and Cupid's bow in his hand.Not long after she started writing, she felt very bored, so she tore up the manuscript impatiently.Then Margaret came back, and Susie turned and looked at her calmly. "What's the matter?" Margaret said, smiling as Susie looked at her. Marguerite stood in the middle of the studio.The studio has a high ceiling, and unfinished oil paintings are leaning against the wall facing inward.There are hangings all over the house, as well as pictures of famous paintings.Margaret inadvertently made a beautiful pose.Although she was very young, her beauty added to her a rare nobility.Susie smiled sarcastically. "You're like a Greek goddess in Parisian fashion," she said. "What do you want to say to me?" Margaret asked.From Susie's piercing eyes she had seen that her friend had something to say. Susie stood up and walked over to her. "You know, before I met him, I really hoped that he would give you happiness. Although you told me a lot about him, I was still worried. He was much older than you, and he was the first person you knew. A man, I really don't want to entrust you to him like this, I'm afraid you will be unhappy." "I don't think you need to worry at all." "But now I hope you can give him happiness. Now I am not worried about you, but him." Margaret didn't answer, she didn't understand what Susie said. "I've never seen a man so vulnerable. I don't think you can imagine how desperate he will be. So, Margaret, you have to be very careful and treat him well, because you more lethal than anyone else.” "Oh! But I want to give him happiness." Margaret cried excitedly. "You know I owe him so much. I would do anything to make him happy, even if I sacrificed myself. But I didn't sacrifice myself." What, because I love him so much and everything I do just makes me happy." Tears welled up in her eyes and her voice choked.Susie gave her a kiss and laughed almost hysterically. "My dear, for God's sake don't cry! You know I can't see people cry. He won't forgive me if he sees your red eyes."