Chapter 67 Chapter 63 A Guest

I have come to the end of what I have to say, but there is one particular thing on my mind that makes me very happy when I think about it.Without this, one end of the web I have woven would have unraveled. In terms of fame and fortune, I have made progress.I have been married for ten years and my family is happy.Agnes and I were sitting by the fire in our London home one spring evening while three of our children were playing inside.At this time, I heard that a stranger wanted to see me. My servant asked him if he was here on business, and he answered in the negative.He said that he made a special trip to see me, and he came from a very far away place.He is old, my servant said, and looks like a farmer.

The children found this statement very mysterious, like the beginning of a funny story that Agnes used to tell them, and immediately after that there would be an old hating monster in a long coat and savage; and they were a little alarmed.One of our boys leaned his head on his mother's lap to avoid harm, and our oldest, little Agnes, put her doll on the chair in her stead, and plucked her golden curls out of the curtains. Fat's little head sticks out to see what's going to happen. "Let him come up here!" I said. Soon, a healthy old man with white beard walked in.He stopped at the dimly lit doorway.Attracted by his appearance, little Agnes ran and drew him in.Before I could see his face, my wife jumped up, and cried to me in a voice excited and delighted, "It's Mr Peggotty!

Sure enough, this was Mr. Peggotty.He is already an old man, but he is a red-faced, white-haired, energetic old man.When our initial excitement had passed, he sat down by the fire and lifted the children onto his lap.The firelight reflected on his face, and I thought he was as strong and healthy as ever, and a handsome old man. "Master Wei," he said.I heard that familiar voice call that familiar old title very naturally! "Master Wei, I saw you and your dear and faithful wife again, what a very happy day!" "A very happy day indeed, old friend!" cried I. "And these lovely children," said Mr. Peggotty, "look at these little flowers! Why, Master Wei, when I first saw you, you were only as tall as the youngest! Emily is not much older, and our poor boy is only half a boy!"

"Time has changed me more than it has done you since then," I said, "and let those lovely little rascals go to bed. Now that you have come to England, you must live Here. Tell me where to send for your luggage. I wonder if there is still that old black sack in it that has been with you so far! Have another Yarmouth water, we Come and hear about the past 10 years!" "Did you come alone?" asked Agnes. "Yes, ma'am," he said, kissing her hand, "it's just me." We let him sit between us.We don't know how to welcome him.At first hearing his familiar tone, I almost thought he was still on the long road, looking for his niece.

"It's a lot of water to come," said Mr. Peggotty, "and it's only a few weeks. But I'm used to water, especially when it's salty. Friends are precious, so I've come to meet—it's all poetry I did," said Mr. Peggotty in amazement when he noticed it, "but I never thought of doing poetry." "So quickly, you came back from thousands of miles away?" Agnes asked. "Yes, ma'am," he answered, "I promised Emily before I came. You know, I don't get any younger as I go on, and if I don't come back this time, I probably never will." Here I am. I always think, before I get too old, I must come and see Master Wei and you in a happy marriage."

He looked at us carefully, as if he couldn't get enough of it.Agnes smiled and brushed back some of the loose gray curls, so that he could see them better. "Now," said I, "tell us all that has to do with your fortune." "Now, Master Wei," he said, "I'll just talk about our luck. We haven't had anything bad happen to us, we've had a good time. We've always been good. We've done our duty, and maybe we've We've had a hard time, but we've been on good terms. Whether raising sheep or other livestock, doing this or that, we've always prospered as much as we want. God always seems to bless us," said Mr. Peggotty, bowing reverently. Said, "We've been well developed. All in all, that's how it is. If it wasn't yesterday, it will be today. If it wasn't today, it will be tomorrow."

"Where's Emily?" Agnes asked with me. "Emily," said he, "after you left her, ma'am—I used to hear your name every night when she prayed behind the canvas curtain when we were staying in Australia—she and I After she couldn't see Master Wei again at sunset that day, she was wilted at first, so wilted. If she knew that Master Wei was so kind and careful to hide some things from us, I don't think she would be able to survive. But, She took care of some poor people on board when they were sick, and she took care of some children among us. Just being so busy and doing good deeds saved her."

"When did she get the news?" I asked. "After I heard the news," said Mr. Peggotty, "I kept it from her for nearly two years. We were then living in a very remote place, surrounded by some fine trees, with roses on the roofs. One day, While I was working in the fields, a dear traveler from England came (whether he was from Norfolk or Suffolk, I don't care) and we of course invited him in, fed him, and greeted him. That's what we all do in the colony. He had an old newspaper with him, and there was an account of the storm. That's how she knew it. I came home at night to find she knew it."

When he said these few words, his voice was very low, and the serious expression I was so familiar with piled on his face again. "Has she changed a lot after knowing that news?" "Well, even if it wasn't until now," he said, shaking his head, "she hasn't wanted to interact with people for a long time, but being lonely is also good for her. In terms of breeding, she has to be distracted and manage a lot of things, so she can Get over it. If you see my Emily now, Master Wei," he pondered, "I wonder if you can recognize her!" "Has she changed that much?" I asked.

"I don't know. I see her every day, so I can't tell; but, sometimes, I think so. Small," said Mr. Peggotty, looking at the fire, "a little thin, and blue eyes so tender and sad; little face Delicate and dainty; the pretty head bowed a little; the voice and manner so quiet--almost timid. That's Emily!" We watched him silently, and he still looked at the fire. "Some people think," said he, "that she was unloved; others that she was widowed, and no one knew the real reason. She had many chances of marriage. 'But, uncle,' she said to me , 'This is never going to happen again.' She likes to be with me and is very happy, but when others show up, she hides. She is willing to go to any remote place to babysit a patient, teach a child, or Helps a girl prepare for her wedding (she has helped many times, but has never attended a wedding); .This is Emily!

He wiped his face with his hands, sighed softly, and looked up from the fire. "Is Martha still with you?" I asked. "Martha," he answered, "were married the next year, Master Wei. It was a young man, a laborer, who drove his master's van to the market--that was more than five hundred miles round-trip--passing us. There, I proposed to marry her (there, wives are very rare), and then the two lived together in the interior. She asked me to tell him everything about her, and I did. They Married. They live hundreds of miles from any other voice than their own and the singing birds." "Where's Mrs. Gummidge?" Mr. Peggotty burst out laughing, and rubbed his hands against his legs as he had done in the old ruined houseboat when he was having fun.It's a real joy. "Would you believe it!" he said. "Hey, someone even proposed to her! A ship's cook who changed his job as a beggar, Master Wei, actually proposed to Mrs. Gao Mizhi. It's absolutely true. If there is a half-word lie, there will be a thunderbolt-I can't help it." Speak clearly!" I never saw Agnes laugh so much.Mr. Peggotty's burst of joy made her feel happy too, and she laughed so hard that she couldn't stop herself; the more she laughed, the more I laughed too; and Mr. Peggotty became happier and more vigorous rubbed his legs. "What did Mrs. Gummidge say?" I asked when I couldn't help laughing. "If you will believe me," replied Mr. Peggotty, "Mrs. Gummidge didn't say 'Thank you, I appreciate it, but I don't want to change myself at this age,' but took a pail of water nearby, Poured it over the head of the ship's cook, who yelled for help. He didn't get away until I came." Mr. Peggotty laughed again, and Agnes and I laughed with him. "I should do something for that person, though," he continued, wiping his face after we had died from laughing, "she did exactly what she promised us, and better. No woman has ever helped so sincerely, truly and honestly, Master Wei. I never saw her feel alone for a minute; not even when we had only our strange colony before us. Since her Leaving England, I can assure you, she never thought of the old man again." "And now, last but not least, Mr. Micawber, what about him?" said I, "he has paid all his debts here—even Traddles' bill, You remember, Agnes—so, naturally, we reckon he is doing well. But how has he been lately?" Smiling, Mr. Peggotty reached into his breast pocket, and took out a flat-folded packet, from which he took with great care a curious little newspaper. "You know, Master Wei," said he, "that as we are rich we have left the interior, and come to a place we call the town, near Middlewood Harbour." "Is Mr. Micawber not far inland from you?" said I. "Ah, yes," said Mr. Peggotty, "doing what he can. I never saw a man of class so much doing what he did. I saw his bald head sweating in the sun, Mr. Wei, I almost thought his head would melt off. Now he's a ward." "A district chief, huh?" Mr. Peggotty pointed to a passage in the paper.The paper was the Middle East Times.I read that paragraph aloud: Yesterday in the lobby of the Grand Hotel we dined with Mr. Wilkin Micawber, Mayor of Middleby, our eminent fellow-colonial and local gentry.There were so many guests that the big hotel was packed to the brim.Not counting the guests in the corridors and stairs, there were no less than 47 people who took meals.The ladies, gentry, and gentry of Middleby paid homage to a man so deserving, so talented, so famous.The host is Dr. Meyer (principal of Salem School in Middle Bay Colony) and other distinguished guests are seated on the right.Hymns were sung after the meal (so beautifully sung that we could easily recognize the silvery voice of the son of the gifted singer, Mr. Second-rate.This was followed by a very emotional speech by Dr. Meyer, in which he suggested a toast to "our honored guest, the glory of this town. May he never leave us but for his high promotion, and may he win between us." His achievements have prevented him from being promoted forever!" The cheers during the toast are indescribable, falling and rising again and again, like the rough waves of the sea.Mr. Wilkin Micawber rose to speak, and this finally silenced the room.In the current situation where this newspaper is short of manpower and talent, it is really difficult to record all the elegant and smooth speeches of our esteemed gentleman!Here is only a brief introduction: it is a masterpiece of eloquence and ingenuity, in which some passages specifically refer to the roots of his success, and exhort young listeners to be careful not to fall into debts that cannot be paid; The people in the house were also moved to tears.He raised his glass again, to Dr. Meyer, to Mrs. Micawber (who saluted gracefully at the side door, where there were beauties standing on chairs who both witnessed and adorned the pomp), Mrs Ligier Beggs (ex-Miss Micawber), Mrs Meyer, son of Mr Wilkin Micawber It can be replaced by a song, and the audience laughed because of it) Congratulations to Mrs. Micawber's natal family (of course it is a famous family in the country) etc., etc.After the ceremony, the table is removed as if struck by a wand, and the dance begins.Among the believers of the god of song and dance, Mrs. Wilkin Micawber's son and Dr. Meyer's fourth miss, Ms. Helena, are particularly eye-catching.Everyone had a good time, and the meeting was not adjourned until the sun god's car approached. I looked back at Dr. Maier's name again.I was delighted to see Mr. Meyer, former poor assistant teacher of the Middlesex Inquisitors, in such a happy report.Then Mr. Peggotty pointed to another part of the paper, and my eyes fell upon my own name, and I read: To author David Copperfield my dear sir: It has been a long time since we last met, and most people in the civilized world are already familiar with Mr. My dear sir, although I can't see the friends of my youth (because I don't have the power to control my own environment), I haven't forgotten the glory of you for a moment. Poem St. Burns has a poem: "The stormy waves are separated by an ocean;" However, I can still go to the gathering of the king's soul. Yes, on the occasion of the departure and return of a man whom we all respect, my dear sir, I take this opportunity, on behalf of myself, and on behalf of all the inhabitants of Middle Bay, to thank you for the kindness you have bestowed on me. Forge ahead, my dear sir!Your reputation has been heard here, and your masterpieces have been read and appreciated here.Although I know that I am far away from you, I don't feel lonely or sad because of it, and I am in a trance because of it.Forge ahead, my dear sir, the future is boundless!Let the inhabitants of Middle Bay rejoice in the desire to learn from Sir! I still have one breath, so that everyone in the world can worship you sir. district administrator Sincerely, Wilkin Micawber Reading the rest of that paper, I found Mr. Micawber to be its diligent and highly regarded correspondent.In the same paper there is another letter by him concerning bridge-building, and an advertisement for the forthcoming publication of a collection of his letters (a hardcover volume with extensive explanatory supplements); Confused, that editorial was also his masterpiece. We talked a great deal about Mr. Micawber many evenings during Mr. Peggotty's stay with me.He stayed with me for the whole of his stay in England - I can't think of a month - and his sister and my aunt came to visit him in London.Agnes and I saw him on board as he set off.In the world, we can no longer see him off. He went with me to Yarmouth before he left, to see the little tablet I had erected for Ham in the graveyard.When I copied the plain inscription for him at his request, I saw him leaning over, pulling a bunch of grass from the tomb, and grabbing a handful of soil. "For Emily," he said while putting those things in his arms, "I promised, Master Wei."