Chapter 8 four, five, six

Four Elliott believed that breakfast should only be eaten with strangers, and only as a last resort, so both Mrs. Boo and Isabel were forced to eat breakfast in their bedrooms; I am very willing, but Isabel doesn't feel anything at all.However, when Isabelle woke up, she sometimes told Antoinette—that noble maid whom Eliot had hired for them—to take her coffee with milk to her mother's room, so that she could relax Drink coffee and chat with my mother.She is not free all day now, and this is the only time of day she can be alone with her mother.It was on such a morning, almost a month after the mother and daughter arrived in Paris, that Isabel told her mother how she had spent the night before, and how she and Larry spent most of their time visiting those nightclubs with a group of friends; Mrs. Bradley asked her the question she had been wanting to ask since she came to Paris.

"When is he going back to Chicago?" "No idea. He hasn't talked about it." "Didn't you ask him?" "No." "Are you a little afraid to ask?" "No, of course not." Mrs. Bradley was reclining on the back of the ottoman, wearing the smart morning dress Elliott had insisted on buying her, manicuring her nails. "What do you talk about all the time when you two are alone together?" "We don't talk all the time. It's nice to be together. You know, Larry's been pretty quiet. Most of the time we talk, I'm the one talking."

"What does he usually do?" "I don't know either; I just don't think it's a big deal. I think he's doing well." "And where does he live?" "This, I don't know either." "He seems very secretive, doesn't he?" Isabel lit a cigarette and watched her mother silently as she exhaled a puff of smoke from her nostrils. "What on earth do you mean by that, mother?" "Your uncle thinks he rents an apartment and lives with a woman." Isabelle burst out laughing. "Do you believe it, Mom?" "No, to be honest, I don't believe it." Mrs. Bu looked at her nails and thought about it. "Did you ever talk to him about Chicago?"

"Talk, talk a lot." "Has he ever expressed any intention of going back?" "I can't say there is." "He's been out of Chicago for two years this October." "I know." "This is your business, darling, do what you think is right. But procrastination won't solve the problem." She stared at her daughter, but Isabel avoided her mother's gaze.Mrs. Boo smiled lovingly at her. "You'd better go take a shower, otherwise, you'll be late for lunch." "I'm going to lunch with Larry. Somewhere in the Latin Quarter."

"Enjoy playing." An hour later, Larry came to pick her up.They hired a car to get on the Pont Saint-Michel, and wandered up the crowded boulevard Saint-Michel to find a decent-looking café.They sat down in the corridor and ordered two glasses of Dubonnet.Then another car was taken to a restaurant, and Isabel had a great appetite, and she enjoyed all the good dishes Larry ordered her.She liked to see the people who sat shoulder to shoulder with them, because the place was crowded; and she laughed at the apparent interest they took in food; but she was happiest looking alone with Larry. A small table to sit on.She loved the look of joy in his eyes when she was croaking happily.She was enchanted to be so free with him.However, in the corner of her mind, there was a vague uneasiness, because although he seemed at ease, she felt that it was not so much because of her, but because he liked the environment.What her mother said in the morning touched her a bit, and now, although she was chatting carelessly, she paid attention to his every expression.He wasn't quite the same as he was when he left Chicago, but nothing had changed.He looked as young and as frank as she remembered him, only changed; I have seen it; it seems that I have solved some of my problems, so I have never felt so at ease as I am now.

After the two finished their lunch, he suggested to visit the Luxembourg Museum. "No, I don't want to see those paintings." "Okay, then go sit in the garden." "No, I don't want that either. I'm going to see where you live." "Nothing to see, I'm in a crappy little room in a hotel." "Uncle Elliott says you live in a flat and have an affair with a painter's model." "Then you go and see for yourself," he laughed. "It's only a few steps from here. We can walk across." He led her through some narrow, crooked streets, shabby even though a glimpse of blue sky could be seen between the tall houses on either side, and after walking for a while, he came to a house with a very unremarkable front. Stop at the door of the small hotel.

"Here we are." Isabel followed him into a narrow hall. There was a desk on one side of the hall. Behind the desk sat a man with no shirt on, only a vest with thin black and yellow stripes and a pair of dirty pants. An apron, reading a newspaper.Larry asked him for the key, and the man handed it to him from the lattice shelf behind him, while giving Isabel a curious look that turned into a knowing smirk.Apparently he didn't think Isabelle's going to Larry's room was a proper thing to do. They climbed two flights of stairs with a threadbare red carpet, and Larry opened his own door, and Isabel went into a small room with two windows.The window looked out to a gray apartment across the street, with a stationery store on the ground floor.There is a single bed in the room, a bedside table next to the bed, a large wardrobe with a large mirror, a cushioned armchair with a straight back, and a table with a shelf between the two windows. A typewriter, some paper and several books.Bound books were stacked on the mantelpiece.

"You sit in an armchair. It's not very comfortable, but it's the best I can get." He pulled out another chair and sat down by himself. "Is that where you live?" Isabel asked. He saw the look on her face and giggled. "It's here. I've lived here since I came to Paris." "But why?" "It's convenient, it's close to the National Library and the University of Paris." He pointed to a door she didn't notice, "There's a bathroom here, I can have breakfast here, and dinner is usually at the one where we had lunch .”

"It's so dirty." "No, I feel good, I just want to be like this." "But who live here?" "Oh, I don't know. A few students lived in the attic above. Two or three old bachelors who worked in the government office and a retired actress from the Otion Theater; the only other room with a bathroom lived in a package. I'm a married woman, and her boyfriend comes to see her every other Thursday; I'm afraid there are some temporary guests. It's a quiet, well-behaved place." Isabelle was quite embarrassed, and, knowing that Larry had seen it and was laughing at her, was a little out of it.

"What's that big book on the table?" she asked. "Which one? Oh, that's my Greek dictionary." "Your what?" she called. "It's okay, I won't bite you." "Are you studying Greek?" "right." "why?" "It occurred to me to learn a little." There was a smile in his eye as he looked at her, and she smiled back at him. "Do you think you might as well tell me, what have you done in the past two years since you arrived in Paris?" "I read a lot. Eight or ten hours a day. I took lectures at the University of Paris. I think I have read all the important works of French literature, and I can read Latin, At least I can read Latin prose, almost as easily as I do French. Of course, Greek is more difficult. But I have a very good teacher. Before you came to Paris, I used to go to him three nights a week for tutoring. .”

"What will be the result of this?" "Gain knowledge." said with a smile. "That doesn't seem very practical." "Maybe not very practical, on the other hand, maybe very practical. It's very interesting anyway. You can't imagine how exciting it is to read the original text of the Odyssey. It makes you feel as if you just put your feet up and stick out your hands Come, the stars in the sky can be touched." He stood up from the chair, as if he couldn't control himself with excitement, and walked back and forth in the small room. "I watched Spinoza [Note] in the last month or two. I dare not say that I have understood it very well, but I was very excited. It was like landing in a plane on a plateau among the majestic mountains. There was everything around me. And the air is so clean, it's as refreshing as a fine wine: I feel like a millionaire." "When are you going back to Chicago?" "Chicago? No idea. I never thought about it." "You said, if you can't find what you're looking for after two years, do you just give up?" "I can't go back now. I'm just about to enter the door: seeing the vast spiritual realm unfolding in front of me, beckoning to me, I am eager to travel there." "What do you hope to find there?" "Answers to my questions." He glanced at her almost mischievously.If she hadn't known him so well, she might have thought he was joking. "I want to find out whether there is a God or not. I want to find out why there is evil in the world. I want to know if my soul is immortal or if it's all over when I die. " Isabelle gasped.It made her uncomfortable to hear Larry talk about these things, but luckily he talked so casually and in his usual tone that she was not embarrassed. "But, Larry," she smiled, "people have been asking these questions for thousands of years; if they could be answered, they must have been answered." Larry laughed. "You're smiling like I said something stupid," she said angrily. "No. I think you've got a point. But, on the other hand, you might as well say that since people have asked these questions for thousands of years, they couldn't help asking them, and Had to keep asking. Also, you are not right when you say that no one has found the answers. There are more answers than questions, and quite a few people have found completely satisfactory answers to them. Rusbrook [ Note] that old man." "Who is he?" "Oh, just a guy I don't know at the University of Paris," Larry answered casually. Isabel did not understand what he meant, but he went on. "That sounds very naive. These things excite sophomores in college, but forget about them when they leave college. They have to support their families." "I don't blame them, you know, I'm lucky to have some money to live on. If I didn't, I'd have to try to make money like everybody else." "Don't you care about money at all?" "Yes," he said with a smile. "How long do you think you'll be working on these things?" "I can't say either. Five years. Ten years." "And after this? What are you going to use this wisdom for?" "If I have wisdom, I think it will not be difficult for me to know how to use it." Isabelle leaned out of the chair with her hands clasped together excitedly. "You're dead wrong, Larry. You're an American, and this isn't your place to live. Your place to live is America." "I'll go back when I'm done." "However, you are going to miss a lot of opportunities. We are living through a magnificent era that the world has never experienced before. How can you bear to sit still in this dead place? Europe is finished. We are the greatest and strongest in the world Big nation. We are advancing by leaps and bounds. We have everything. It is your duty to participate in the development of the country. You forget that you do not know how thrilling life is in America today. You can safely say that you do not participate in this kind of nation building , because you don't have the guts to take on the burden that is facing every American right now? Well, I know you're working to some degree, but that's just shirking responsibility, isn't it? Isn't that just a positive Lazy? What would America be like if everyone held back like you did?" "You're harsh, sweetheart," he said with a laugh. "My answer is that not everyone feels the way I do. Tell them maybe it's luck and most people are ready to go about their business; what you're forgetting is that I want to learn just like—just like Gray I am as passionate as wanting to earn a lot of money. Am I really betraying my motherland if I want to spend a few years educating myself? Maybe after I finish my studies, I will give away some things that people are happy to want. Of course it depends, but if I failed, and I'm no worse than a man in business who doesn't make any money." "What about me? Am I not important to you at all?" "You mean a lot to me. I want you to marry me." "When? Within ten years?" "No. Now. The sooner the better." "What do you rely on? Mom doesn't have any dowry for me. Besides, she won't. She will think it's wrong to encourage you to do nothing like this." "I don't want any of your mother's dowry," said Larry. "I have three thousand a year. That's enough in Paris. We'll have a little flat and a maid all the time. We'll be very happy, sweetie." "But, Larry, you can't live on three thousand a year." "Of course. Lots of people can live on much less than that." "But I don't want to live on three thousand dollars a year. I have no reason to." "I used to live on half the money." "But you, how did you live!" She looked at the shabby little room and shrugged her shoulders in disgust. "That said, I've saved a little money. We could go to Capri for our honeymoon, fall. We'll go to Greece next day. I'd love to see Greece. You remember we used to talk about traveling the world together. ?" "Of course I want to travel. But not this way. I don't want to fly second class, and I don't want to live in a third-class hotel. I don't even have a bathroom, and I eat in small restaurants." "That's how I went to Italy last October. It was such a fun time. We can go all over the world for three thousand dollars a year." "But I'm going to have kids, Larry." "It doesn't matter. We took the baby with us." "You're so stupid," she laughed. "Do you know how much it costs to have a baby? Violet Tomlinson had a baby last year. She saved as much as she could and spent twenty-five hundred dollars. And do you know how much it costs to hire a nanny?" A succession of events ran through her mind, becoming more and more agitated. "You're not practical. You don't know what you want from me. I'm young. I want to have fun. I'm going to do what everyone else does. I'm going to parties, I'm going to dances, I'm going to play golf and ride horses." I want to get dressed. Do you know what it's like when a girl can't dress as well as the people she's with? Larry, do you know how to buy your friend's tired; I'm sorry you gave you a new dress, what's it like? I can't even go to a decent barber's to get my hair done. I don't want to run around by trams and buses; I want my own car. You think, you are reading in the library, what am I doing all day long? Walking on the road, looking in the window, or sitting in the garden of the Luxembourg Museum and watching out for my children to avoid trouble? We don’t even have friends.” "Oh, Isabel," he interrupted her. "It won't be the friends I used to see. Yes, Uncle Elliot's friends sometimes take us out for his sake, but we can't because I don't have decent clothes to wear, and we won't Go, because we can't afford it. I don't want to meet a bunch of unsightly, slovenly people. I want to live, Larry." She suddenly felt a look in his eyes, though he never stared at her. It's so gentle, but a little funny. "You think I'm stupid, don't you? You think I'm wordy and unreasonable." "No, I don't. I think what you're saying is very natural." He was standing with his back to the fireplace, and she got up, and came up to him, facing him. "Larry, if you don't have a penny, but find a job that pays three thousand dollars, I'll marry you without hesitation. I'll cook for you, make your bed, and I won't care what I wear, I don't care about anything, I think it's very interesting, because I know it's only a matter of time, you will always have money. However, marrying like this now means I will live this dirty cow and horse for the rest of my life In life, there is no hope. This is equivalent to saying that I will work hard for the rest of my life. And for what? To enable you to find answers to problems that you say you can't solve yourself for years and months. This is too shameful ...a man should work. This is what he was born into, and this is what he does for society." "Anyway, it's his duty to settle down in Chicago and join Henry Maturin's investment firm. Do you think I'll do a great deal of good to society by persuading my friend to buy stocks that Henry Maturin is interested in?" "There is always a broker. There is nothing dishonorable or dishonorable about supporting a family like this." "You describe the life of a person on an average income in Paris as a mess. It's not, you know. One doesn't have to go to Chanel and still dress well.And all the interesting people don't live near the Arc de Triomphe and on the Avenue Foch.In fact, the interesting people don't even live there, because interesting people generally don't have a lot of money.I know quite a few people here, painters, writers, students, French, English, Americans, you name it, and I think you'd find them better than Eliot's curmudgeonly Marchionesses and The defiant Duchess is much more interesting.You have a quick mind and a great sense of humor.You must have enjoyed listening to them talk to each other over supper, though it was just plain wine, and you didn't have to have a butler and two men waiting on you. " "Don't bullshit, Larry. Of course I'd appreciate it. You know I'm not a snob. I enjoy meeting interesting people." "Yes, in Chanel's. Do you think they'll think you're visiting the slums when they see you dressed like that? They won't be comfortable, and you won't be comfortable, and you won't be comfortable unless you tell love afterwards Millie de Montadour and Gracie de Châteaugallard, say you got nothing but fun from meeting a bunch of weird, unkempt people in the Latin Quarter." Isabel shrugged slightly. "I bet you're right. They're not the kind of people I grew up with. They have nothing in common with me." "What do you mean by that?" "That's what I said at the beginning. I've lived in Chicago for as long as I can remember. All my friends are in Chicago. All my interests are in Chicago. I'm used to Chicago. It's my country and it's yours Country. Ma is sick now, and she's never going to get better. I can't leave her if I want to." "Does that mean you don't want to marry me unless I go back to Chicago?" Isabel snorted.She loves Larry.She is going to marry him.She loved him with all her being.She knew he wanted her too.She didn't believe he wouldn't soften when the showdown came.She was afraid, but she had to take a risk. "Yes, Larry, that's what I mean." He struck a match on the mantel--one of those old French sulfur matches that fill your nostrils with acrid smell--and after lighting his pipe, passed her, and stood in front of a window. with.He looked out of the window and was silent for a long time, as if it would never end.She was still standing where she had stood facing him, looking into the mirror on the mantel, but she could not see herself.With her heart pounding and frightened, he turned at last. "I wish I could make you understand that the life I propose to you is far more fulfilling than any life you can imagine. I wish I could make you understand how exciting and rich the life of the mind is. It is not Endless. It is a life of extreme bliss. There is only one thing similar to it, and that is when you fly alone into the sky in a plane, flying higher and higher, and only infinite space surrounds you, and you are intoxicated in In the boundless space. You are so joyful that you despise any power and honor in the world. A few days ago, I read Descartes [note] with such joy, elegance and fluency. My God! " "But, Larry," she interrupted sharply, "can't you see that you're asking me to do something I can't do, something I'm not interested in and don't want to be interested in? I I've told you I don't know how many times, I'm just a normal, normal girl, I'm twenty years old, I'll be old in ten years, and I'm going to have a good time. Well, Larry, I do love You. All of this is nonsense. It won't get you anywhere. For your own sake, I beg you to give it up. Larry, be a good man and do what a man should do. Man Every second counts, and you're wasting precious time. Larry, if you loved me, you wouldn't abandon me for a dream. You've been ridiculous. Come back to America with us." "I can't. It would be suicide for me. It would be selling my soul." "Why, Larry, why talk like that? That's what those hysterically funny women say. What's the point? Nothing, nothing, nothing." "That's exactly how I feel," he replied, rolling his eyes. "How can you laugh? You realize this is a very serious issue. We are at a crossroads, and the decisions we make now will affect our lives forever." "I know. Please believe me, I'm taking it very seriously." She sighed. "If you don't listen to what I'm telling you, there's nothing to say." "But I don't think it's serious. I think what you've been talking about has been absurd from beginning to end." "Me?" If it weren't for the fact that she was very sad at the time, she would have laughed. "Poor Larry, you're acting like a madman." She slowly took the engagement ring off her hand, put it in her palm, and looked at it.It was a boxy ruby ​​set in fine white gold, and she had always liked it. "If you loved me, you shouldn't make me so unhappy." "I do love you. Unfortunately, one cannot help but make others unhappy by wanting to do what one thinks is right." She held out the hand that held the ruby ​​ring, and forced a smile on her trembling lips. "Give it back, Larry." "I'm useless. Will you keep it as a token of our friendship? You can wear it on your little finger. Our friendship doesn't need to end, does it? " "I'll always care about you, Larry." "Keep it then. I'll always like you too." She hesitated for a moment, then put the ring on the little finger of her right hand. "too big." "You can modify it. Let's go up to the Ritz bar for a drink." "it is good." She was a little surprised at how easily the matter had been settled.She didn't cry.Nothing seemed to have changed except that she would not marry Larry.She couldn't believe it was over, over.She was a little reconciled to the fact that the two hadn't had a big fight.The matter was settled in such a calm manner, as if they were talking about renting a house just now.She felt that she had been fooled, but at the same time she felt slightly satisfied, because both of them behaved very civilized.She really wanted to know what Larry was in the mood.But this was never known; his attractive face, those dark eyes, she knew were only a mask, for, though she had known him for many years, she could not guess him.She had taken off her hat and put it on the bed; now she stood in front of the mirror and put it on. "I was just asking," she said, smoothing her hair, "were you going to break my contract?" "No." "I think maybe it can save you from the burden." He didn't answer.She turned around with a relaxed smile on her lips. "Now let's go." Larry locked the door behind him.When he handed the keys to the man sitting at the desk, the man looked at them knowingly and slyly.Of course Isabel guessed that this man thought they were doing something wrong. "I dare say this guy has questions about my virginity," she said. They hired a car and went to Ritz for a drink and talked about irrelevant things without seeming restrained at all, just like two old friends who meet every day.Although Larry was naturally not very talkative, Isabel was very talkative, and she was determined not to let each other become silent and speechless.She didn't want to make Larry think she hated him, and her pride forced her to act so that Larry wouldn't suspect that she was sad and unhappy. After a while, she suggested that he take her back.When he pulled the car up to the gate to drop her off, she said to him with ease, "Don't forget you're having lunch with us tomorrow." "Decapitation will not be forgotten." She let him kiss her on the cheek and went in through the driveway gate. Fives When Isabel walked into the living room, she saw that several guests were already drinking tea.Two were American women living in Paris, very well dressed, with beads around their necks, diamond bracelets on their hands, and expensive rings on their fingers.Although the hair of one was dyed a reddish brown with henna, and the other had unnatural blond hair, they were very much alike.The same ointment eyelashes, the same bright red lips, the same rouge cheeks, the same slender figure maintained through hard training, the same clear facial features, the same hungry and hesitant eyes; Realize that their life is a desperate struggle to maintain their milf look. They chattered in loud and loud voices, without stopping for a moment, as if they were afraid that if there was a moment of silence, the machine would stop and the man-made building that represented them all would collapse.There was also a secretary of the American embassy, ​​who was gentle and silent, because he couldn't get in a word, and looked very dignified; a little dark-skinned Romanian prince, always so servile, with two small and exquisite black Eyes, a clean-shaven dark face, always saw him standing up before he was too late to deliver tea, cake, or light cigarettes, and he was always brazenly flattering those present.In doing so he was paying back the dinners he had received from these curry favors in the past, and the dinners he hoped to receive in the future. Mrs. Booth sat there, dressing Elliot better than she usually did at tea.With her customary politeness, but with a rather indifferent air, she carried out her housewife duties with poise.What she thought of these guests of her own brother, I can only imagine.I've never been close to her, and she's a woman who puts everything in her stomach. She was not stupid; she had lived in foreign capitals for so many years and had met a great variety of people about whom she supposedly drew her shrewd conclusions by the standards of the small Virginia city in which she had been born and bred.I'm afraid she was rather amused at the antics of these people, and dare say she was as indifferent to their airs as she was to the sorrow and anguish of the characters in a novel, for she knew from the first The novel has a happy ending (otherwise she wouldn't have read it).Paris, Rome, Peking had no more influence on her American air than Eliot's devout Catholicism had on her frank but inconvenient Presbyterian religion. Isabelle's youth, vitality and healthy beauty brought a breath of fresh air to this glitzy atmosphere.She rushed in like a new earthly goddess.The Romanian prince stood up in a panic, pulled a chair for her, and made a lot of gestures to compliment her.The two American women talked to her kindly in high-pitched voices, looked her up and down, looked at her clothes carefully, and compared themselves with Isabel's beautiful years, perhaps feeling a sense of desolation in their hearts.The American diplomat was smiling alone, seeing how empty and empty Isabel made the two women look.Isabel, however, thought them very stylish; she liked their rich dresses and expensive beads, and felt a little jealous of their affectation.She wondered if she would become so graceful one day.The little Romanian was ridiculous, of course, but he was also quite likable, and it wasn't a bad thing to listen to, even if the nice things he said were insincere.The conversation which had been interrupted when she came in was resumed now, and with such vigor and conviction that it seemed that what they were saying was worth talking about, that you almost thought there was truth in what they were saying.They talked about the parties they had attended, and the ones they were planning to attend.They tell of the latest scandal.They ruined their friends to pieces.They went from this big shot to that big shot.They seemed to know everyone; they knew all the secrets.Almost vehemently they mentioned the latest play, the latest couturier, the latest portrait-painter, the latest mistress of the latest prime minister.People will act as if they don't know a thing.Hearing this, Isabel was stunned.It was all very civilized, she felt.This is indeed life.This gave her a sense of surprise in being in it.This is real.The occasion was simply too fitting. The spacious room, the Savonnerier carpet on the floor, the beautiful paintings on the gorgeous wood-panelled walls, the finely carved chairs, the finely inlaid cabinets and coffee tables, everything is enough Gotta go to a museum: this room cost a fortune, but it was worth it.She had never felt it so beautiful, so well furnished, because the poor little room in the hotel, the iron bed, the hard, uncomfortable chair she sat in, that Larry thought nothing of. The bad room was still vividly imprinted in her mind.It can be said to be empty, depressing, and terrible.She shivered when she thought about it. The guests dispersed, leaving only Isabel, her mother, and Elliott. Elliott sent those two poor powdered American sluts out and back. "Interesting women," he said, "I've known them since they first settled in Paris. I never dreamed that they would be as beautiful as they are now. It's amazing how well we women adapt. You can't see They're Americans, and they're from the Midwest." Mrs. Bu raised her eyebrows and said nothing. She just glanced at Elliott, but with Elliott's cleverness, there was no one who didn't understand. "Nobody can say that about you, my poor Louisa," he said, half ironically, half affectionately. "But, God knows, you used to be quite able to do it." Mrs. Boo pouted. "I'm afraid I've disappointed you very much, Elliott, but, to tell you the truth, I'm quite happy with myself." "Tons les gouts dans la nature," Elliot muttered in French. "I thought I should tell you that I'm done with Larry," said Isabel. "Shoot, squirt," Elliott called out. "In this way, the lunch I will invite tomorrow will be terrible. How can I find another person in such a short time?" "Oh, he's still here for lunch." "After you've broken off the contract with him? That doesn't seem quite customary." Isabelle giggled.She kept her eyes on Elliott because she knew her mother's eyes were on hers and she didn't want to meet hers. "We didn't quarrel. We had a talk this afternoon and thought it was a mistake that we got engaged. He didn't want to go back to America; he was staying in Paris and he said he was going to Greece." "Why? There's no society in Greece. In fact, I've never paid much attention to Greek art. There's something old Greek that has a little decadent charm, and it's okay to see. But, Phidias [Note]: No, no.” "Look at me, Isabel," said Mrs. Booth. Isabel turned her head and looked at her mother with a slight smile on her lips.Mrs. Bu took a good look at her daughter, but only snorted.The child hadn't cried, she could see that; her face was quite composed. "I think you did well to let go, Isabel," said Elliott. “我原来想竭力成全这件事，可是，我一直认为，这个婚姻不对头。他实在配不上你，而且他在巴黎的所作所为很清楚表明他决不会有什么出息。以你的漂亮和你的关系，你可以找一个比他好得多的对象。我觉得，你这件事情做得很有见识。” 布太太瞟了女儿一眼，看得出有点担心。 “你不是为了我解约吧，伊莎贝儿？” 伊莎贝儿断然摇摇头。 “不是，亲爱的，我完全是自愿做的。” six 那时候，我已经从东方回来，正在伦敦住一个时期。大约在上述事件发生之后两个星期光景，艾略特一天早上打电话给我。我听见他的声音并不奇怪，因为他的习惯总是在游宴季节到了尾声时来英国玩乐一下。他告诉我，布太太和伊莎贝儿和他一起来了，如果我今天傍晚六点钟过来喝杯酒，她们一定很高兴看见我。他们当然住在克拉里奇饭店。当时我的寓所离那儿并不远，所以我踱过公园巷，穿过美菲亚区那些安静、高贵的街道到了克拉里奇饭店。艾略特就住在他平时住的一套房间。 室内镶的是褐色木头壁板，就象雪茄烟盒子的那种木头，陈设既文静又豪华。侍役领我进来时，艾略特只有一个人在屋里。布太太和伊莎贝儿上街去买东西，眼看就要回来。他告诉我，伊莎贝儿和拉里解约了。 艾略特对于在什么处境下应该怎样做人，有他自己的浪漫和高度保守的看法。 他对这两个年轻人的行为很看不惯。拉里不但在解约后的第二天来吃午饭，而且做得就好象自己地位一点没有改变似的。他和平日一样随和，一样彬彬有礼，一样安静愉快。对待伊莎贝儿还是和他过去对待她一样亲亲热热的。他看上去既不感觉窘，也不心烦意乱，也不垂头丧气。伊莎贝儿也不象有心思的样子，人很快活，笑得照样轻松，照样嘻嘻哈哈地打趣，仿佛并不曾在自己一生中刚刚作了一项重大决定；而且肯定是忍痛的决定。艾略特弄得丈二金刚摸不着头脑。他从侧面听到他们一言半语的谈话，打听到他们丝毫没有意思要取消以前讲定的那些约会；所以一得空他就找姐姐谈这件事。 “这不成话，”他说。“他们不能够仍旧象订婚一样两个人到处跑，拉里实在应当懂得一点分寸。而且，这样会毁掉伊莎贝儿的机会。小福塞林根，那个英国大使馆的男孩子，显然很中意她；他有钱，而且社会关系很不错；如果他知道伊莎贝儿已经解约，可能会向她求婚，这我一点不奇怪。我觉得你应当跟她谈一下。” “亲爱的，伊莎贝儿二十岁了，她有套办法能够婉婉转转告诉你不要管她的事情。这使我一直很难对付。” “那么，你就是太娇纵她了，路易莎，再说，这是你应管的事情。” “在这件事情上，你跟她的看法肯定不一样。” “路易莎，你叫人简直不能容忍。” “我可怜的艾略特，你假如有个成年的女儿的话，你就会发现她比一头抗拒的小公牛还要难管。至于她内心里想的什么，你还是装作她认为的那种头脑简单的老糊涂虫好得多。我几乎可以肯定她就是这样看你的。” “可是，你不是跟她谈过这件事吗？” “我打算谈。她大笑，告诉我实在没有什么可说的。” “她难过吗？” “我也不知道。我只知道她吃得很香，睡得就象个孩子。” “哼，你记着我的话，如果你听任他们这样搞下去，总有一天两个人会溜掉，跟谁也不说一声就结婚了。” 布太太忍不住笑了。 “这一点你尽可放心，在我们现在呆的这个国家里，不正常的男女关系有一切方便，结婚则到处会碰壁。” “很对，结婚是严肃的事情，家庭的保障和国家的稳定全系在这上面。但是，婚姻只有在婚姻之外的关系得到容忍，并且得到认可时，才会保持其尊严。娼妓，可怜的路易莎——” “得了，艾略特，”布太太打断他。“你对不正常男女关系的社会价值观和道德价值观，我一点不感觉兴趣。” 就在这时候，艾略特提出一个阻止伊莎贝儿和拉里往来的计划，因为他对这种越轨的的行动太看不人眼了。巴黎的游宴季节已到尾声，所有的上流人士都准备先上海边或者多维尔，然后去他们在图兰、昂懦或者布列达尼半岛的祖传宫堡度夏。 艾略特通常都是在六月底去伦敦，可是，他的家族感很强，对姐姐和伊莎贝儿的感情又很真实；他原来打算，只要她们愿意，即使巴黎象样的人走光了，他也可以完全自我牺牲继续留下来。但是，现在他发现自己的处境很合心意，既能够尽量为别人着想，同时又于自己方便。他向布太太建议，三个人立刻一同上伦敦去，因为伦敦那边游宴季节正处在高潮，而且新的兴趣和新的朋友将会使伊莎贝儿的心情不再缠在这种不幸的遭遇上。据报载，那位专治糖尿病的有名专家这时就在英国首都，布太太正好找他诊治，这样就可以为他们匆促离开巴黎找到合理的解释；伊莎贝儿即使不愿离开，也说不出口了。布太太同意这个计划。她弄不懂的是伊莎贝儿。伊莎贝儿是不是如她表面那样一点不在乎，还是心里痛苦、气愤或者伤心，但是，故意装得硬挣，好掩盖自己的内心痛苦，布太太也肯定不了。她只能同意艾略特的说法，看见新朋友和新地方，对伊莎贝儿有好处。 艾略特忙着去打电话。那天，伊莎贝儿正和拉里一同去逛凡尔赛宫；她回家时，艾略特已经各事就绪，就告诉她已经替她母亲约好那位有名的医生看病，时间在三天以后；他而且在克拉里奇饭店定下一套房间，因此，后天就要动身。当艾略特有点沾沾自喜地把这个消息告诉伊莎贝儿时，布太太留心察看女儿，但见她神色不动。 “啊，亲爱的，我很高兴你能够去看那个医生，”她以平素那种急腔急调的派头叫出来。“当然你不能错过这个机会。而且上伦敦走一趟太有意思了。我们在那里要呆多久？” “再回巴黎就没有意思了，”艾略特说，“因为一个礼拜之内，这里的人都要走光了。我要你们跟我在克拉里奇饭店住完这个夏天。七月里总有些很好的舞会，当然还有温布尔登网球赛[注]。这以后，还有古德伍德的赛马和考斯的赛船。我肯定埃林厄姆家会欢迎我们坐他们的帆船去看考斯船赛，班托克家在古德伍德赛马时总举行一次很大的宴会。” 伊莎贝儿看上去很高兴，布太太心放下来了。伊莎贝儿好象把拉里根本不放在心上。 艾略特才跟我讲完这些，母女两个就走了进来。我有一年又大半年没见到她们，布太太比以前消瘦一点，而且脸色更加苍白了；人样子很疲倦，气色很坏。可是，伊莎贝儿却是容光焕发，红红的脸色，深褐色的头发，亮晶晶的深栗色眼睛，白净皮肤，给人一种深刻的青春感，好象单是觉得自己活着，就很快活；看到这些，你不禁会高兴得笑出来。她使我产生一个相当荒唐的看法，仿佛她是一只金黄的熟透了的梨子，又香又甜，只等你来吃。她身上发出温暖，使你觉得只要伸出手来就能够感到舒适。人比我上次看见时高了一点；是不是因为穿了高跟鞋的缘故，还是那个聪明的裁缝把她的衣眼剪裁得把她的年轻的丰满体型给遮盖了，我也说不出。她的举止有自幼从事户外运动的女孩子的那种潇洒风度。总之，从性的角度看，她已经是一个非常诱人的少女。我是她母亲的话，会认为她应当赶快结婚才是。 我很高兴有这个机会能答谢我在芝加哥时布太太对我的招待。所以请她们三位晚上一同去看戏；还安排请她们吃一次午饭。 “你还是现在就约定的好，老朋友，”艾略特说。“我已经通知一些朋友，我们到了伦敦，敢说一两天之内，我们这个季节的时间全要排满了。” 我懂得艾略特这话的意思是说他们没有时间和我这样的人在一起，不禁大笑。 艾略特看了我一眼，神情有点傲慢。 “可是，当然你下午六点钟来时，一般都会找到我们，我们也很高兴看见你，” 他婉转地说，可是，他的用意显然是要我明白，作为一个作家，自己的地位并不高。 但是，瓦片也会翻身。 “你一定要跟圣奥尔弗德家碰碰头，”我说。“听说他们打算卖掉他家的那张康斯特布尔[注]的索尔兹伯里教堂。” “我眼下不想买什么画。” “我知道，可是你说不定可以帮他们处理掉。” 艾略特的眼睛恶狠狠地看着我。 “亲爱的朋友，英国人是一个伟大的民族，可是，他们从来就画不好，而且永远画不好。我对英国画派不感兴趣。”