Chapter 4 "Yao Neiqi" one

Yao Nech one Whenever someone comes to the provincial capital C and complains that the life here is dull and monotonous, the local residents seem to defend themselves by saying: On the contrary, this city is very good. There are libraries, theaters, clubs, and frequent There are dance parties and, finally, plenty of smart, funny, delightful families to befriend.They singled out the Turkins as the most educated and talented family in the town. The family lived in their own house on one of the main streets of the city, next to the governor's residence.Ivan Petrovich Turkin himself was a fat, handsome, dark-haired man with a beard, who often gave amateur performances to raise funds for charity, and played the role of an old general in the play, coughing comically from time to time Voice.He knew a lot of anecdotes, charades and sayings, and liked to joke and say witty words, and the expression on his face always made it difficult to figure out whether he was joking or serious.His wife, Vera Iosefovna, a thin, lovely-faced lady with a pince-nez, wrote novellas and novels and liked to read to her guests.Their daughter Ekaterina Ivanovna was a young girl who could play the piano.All in all, each member of this family has their own talents.The Turkins were hospitable, always cheerful, sincere, and generous in displaying their talents to their guests.Their tall brick house was spacious and cool in summer, and half of the windows looked on to an old lush garden where the nightingales sang in the spring.Whenever guests come to the house, there is a sound of clinking kitchen knives in the kitchen, and there is a smell of fried onions in the yard.All this bodes well for a hearty and delicious dinner soon.

①The original text is French. Dmitry Yaonech Startsev, a new doctor appointed by the Zemstvo, lived in Dhalizh, nine versts from the provincial capital.Not long after he took office, he was also told that, as a man of knowledge, he should have known the Turkins.Once, in winter, he was introduced to Ivan Petrovitch in the street.The two talked about the weather, the theater, and cholera, until Turkin invited him to visit.In the spring, on Ascension Day, Startsev, after seeing the sick, went into town to relax and do some shopping.He walked into the city without haste (he had not yet prepared a carriage), singing softly all the way:

I drink from the cup of life, I still don't know how to cry... ① ① From the poem "Elegy" by the Russian poet Jerry Vig, composed by the famous musician Yakovlev. He had lunched in the city, took a walk in the park, and then, quite naturally, remembering Ivan Petrovich's invitation, he decided to visit the Turkins and see what kind of people they were. "Good day, please," said Ivan Petrovitch, meeting him on the steps, "very, very glad to have such a pleasant guest. Come in, and let me introduce you to me." good lady. I told him, Milochka," he went on, introducing the doctor to his wife, "that he had no right under Roman law to remain in his own hospital, and that he should Dedicate leisure time to socializing. Am I right, dear?"

② Vera's nickname. "Sit here, please," said Vera Iosefovna, pointing to the seat next to her, "and you may be courteous to me. My husband is very jealous, he is Othello, but we can do everything possible to prevent him from seeing anything." come out." ③The protagonist in Shakespeare's famous novel "Othello" killed his wife because of jealousy. "Oh, you little hen, you spoiled woman . . . " said Ivan Petrovitch softly, kissing her on the forehead. "You came just in time," he said to the guest again, "my good wife has just finished writing a novel 'It's Big and Boundless', and is going to read it today."

"Let," said Vera Iosefovna to her husband, "go and order them to bring tea." ④French name, equivalent to Ivan in Russian. ⑤ The original text is French. The host introduced Startsev to Ekaterina Ivanovna, a girl of eighteen, who resembled her mother, was equally thin, and had a lovely face.The expression on the face is somewhat childish, the waist is soft and slender, the breasts of the already developed girl are very toned and full of youthfulness.Afterwards everyone drank tea and ate jam, honey, sweets and biscuits.The biscuits are delicious and melt in your mouth.In the evening, gradually many guests came, and Ivan Petrovich greeted each guest with a smile, saying:

"Hi, welcome!" Then everyone sat solemnly in the drawing-room, and Vera Iosifovna began to read her novel.She started like this: "It's bitterly cold..." All the windows are open, you can hear the sound of kitchen knives, and smell the smell of frying shallots... Everyone is comfortable in the soft deep armchairs, In the dimly lit living room, the lights kindly blind the eyes.Now, on this summer evening, when people's voices and laughter from the street come from the window, and the fragrance of lilacs in the yard comes from the window, it is difficult for the audience to appreciate the bitter cold and the setting sun that shines with cold light. Seeing the scene of the snow field and the lonely traveler.Vera Iosefovna read how a young and beautiful countess opened a school, a hospital, and a library in her village, and how she fell in love with a wandering painter.Although the content she read has never been seen in her life, it still sounds very pleasant and comfortable, and many beautiful and peaceful thoughts are born in people's minds.I just don't want to stand up...

"It's not bad..." Ivan Petrovitch sighed softly. One of the guests was so fascinated that he said in a barely audible voice: "Yes... indeed..." Two hours passed.A band played and a choir sang in the neighboring city park.When Vera Iosefovna closed her notebook, everyone was silent for four or five minutes, listening to the choir singing. No. "Will your work be published in a magazine?" Starze asked Vera Iosifovna. "No," she replied, "my work is never published. I hide it in my closet when I'm done. Why publish it?" she explained, "You know we have a family."

For some reason, everyone sighed. "Now it's your turn, Kotik, to play something," Ivan Petrovitch said to his daughter. ① Ekaterina's nickname. The lid of the piano was lifted, and the music score that had been laid out was opened.Ekaterina sat down, struck the keys with both hands, and then struck again with all her might, once, twice, her shoulders and chest trembling unceasingly, she struck the same place tenaciously, as if she did not hit the keys Never give up at the piano.In the living room the sound of the piano was thundering, shaking the floor, the ceiling, and the furniture. Ekaterina Ivanovna played a very difficult piece, long and monotonous, and the only interesting thing about it was that it was hard to play. .While listening, Startsev imagined that the rocks on the high mountain were rolling down, rolling down, and he hoped that these stones would stop soon.At this moment Ekaterina was flushed with tension, full of energy and vitality, with a lock of hair falling on her forehead, which pleased him very much.He sat in the parlour, after the long winter among the sick and peasants on Cali Day, and watched this young, gentle, presumably pure man, listening to this loud, tiresome, But after all elegant music, how delightful and fresh it is...

"Oh, Kotik, you played better than ever today," Ivan Petrovich said tearfully when his daughter stood up after a piece, "you can die, Denis, you can't write It's a better song."① ① It is said that this is Duke Potemkin's evaluation of the comedy "The Playboy" by the Russian playwright Feng Weixin.Dennis is Feng Weixin's name. Everyone surrounded her, congratulated her, expressed surprise, and said in unison that they hadn't heard such wonderful music for a long, long time.As for her, she listened silently, showing a slight smile, and she was full of complacency.

"Excellent! So beautiful!" "Excellent!" Startsev added, inspired by the enthusiasm of the crowd. "Where did you learn music?" he asked Ekaterina Ivanovna, "at the Conservatory?" ?” "No, I'm planning to go to the conservatory now, and I'm taking piano lessons with Mrs. Zavlovskaya." "So, you graduated from the local high school?" "Oh, no!" replied Vera Iosefovna on behalf of her daughter. "We have hired a governess for her, and she has been sent to a public school or a noble girls' school. I think you will agree, and it is inevitable that she will be affected badly. A Girls should only accept the influence of their mothers during their developmental stages."

"But I'm going to the Conservatory anyway!" said Ekaterina Ivanovna. "No, Kotik loves her mother. Kotik won't make Mom and Dad sad." "No, I'm going! I'm going!" said Ekaterina Ivanovna coquettishly, stamping her foot. When supper time came, it was Ivan Petrovitch's turn to show off his talent.With a smile on his eyes, he told all kinds of anecdotes, joked, made some ridiculous exercises, and then solved them by himself.He spoke in a different language, a language he had developed from a long practice of witticisms that had apparently become his habit, such as: It's huge, it's really not bad, thank you so much, etc., etc. Wait. But that's not all.While the well-fed and contented guests crowded in the antechamber, with their coats and sticks, a little boy was busy waiting on them.His name was Pavlusha, and the family called him Pava, a boy of fourteen or fifteen, with short hair and a plump face. "Hey, Pava, show me!" Ivan Petrovitch said to him. Pava made a ridiculous gesture, raised his hand, and said in a mournful voice: "Die, you unfortunate woman!" So everyone laughed. "It's very interesting," Startsev thought to himself as he went out into the street. He stopped at another restaurant, drank a beer, and walked back to Calij.As he walked, he sang softly: Your voice is gentle and kind, Makes me intoxicated... ① ① Quoted from Pushkin's poem, composed by the musician Rubinstein. After walking nine versts and then lying down to sleep, he did not feel tired at all, on the contrary, he felt that he could happily walk another twenty versts. "It's really not bad..." He was about to fall asleep, when he remembered this sentence, he laughed again.