Chapter 4 Chapter Four

When half of Russia was occupied, the inhabitants of Moscow fled to the outlying provinces, and militias all over the country rose up to defend the motherland one after another, those of us who did not grow up in that era naturally imagined that the entire Russian people, from adults to children, were united. Want to sacrifice oneself, save the motherland, or cry bitterly about the fall of the motherland.Stories and accounts of that era tell, with exception, only of sacrifice, patriotism, disappointment, suffering, and heroism.But it is not.Things are as they appear to us only because we see in what happened only the general historical interest of the time, and not the individual interest that all men had.In reality, however, those immediate personal interests outnumber common interests so much that sometimes there is no sense (or even awareness) of common interests.Most people at that time paid no attention to the general process of history, and only took everyone's immediate personal interests as the criterion.And these people were the most useful activists of that era.

Those who try to understand what is going on in the world, and to participate in it by self-sacrifice and heroic deeds of war, are the most useless members of society; they see everything upside down, and everything they do for the common good It is useless nonsense, like Pierre's and Mamonov's corps1 looting the Russian countryside, and the cotton balls of the ladies in the rear who tear cloth and draw yarn never reach the wounded, etc.Even people who love to show off their intelligence and express their feelings, when they talk about the situation in Russia, unconsciously, there are traces of hypocrisy and lying in their words, or they uselessly blame and hate certain people who cannot be blamed.Nowhere is this more evident than in historical events the prohibition of tasting the fruit of wisdom.Only inadvertently inserting willows can bring a green shade, and those who play the leading role in historical events will never understand the meaning.If he tries to understand, he will fail in vain.

-------- ① Refers to the two corps established with donations from these two people. Those who were more closely connected with the events taking place in Russia at this time were less likely to perceive their significance.In Petersburg and in the provinces far from Moscow, women and men in the uniform of the Volunteer weep for Russia and its ancient capital, profess sacrifices, etc.; Moscow, while looking at its burning, no one swears revenge on the French, but thinks about the next ten days of military pay, the next oath, the military merchant Matryoshka, and so on... Nikolai Rostov did not hold on to the purpose of self-sacrifice, because he encountered wars during his service, he continued to voluntarily participate in the war for the defense of the motherland, so he was not disappointed with the situation in Russia at that time, and he did not have melancholy thoughts .If anyone asked him what he thought of the situation in Russia at this time, he would say that he had nothing to think about. Kutuzov and others were thinking about these things, and he said that the regiment was being replenished, and it seemed that there would be more battles. After playing for a long time, if it continues as it is now, it will not be surprising for him to lead a regiment in another year or two.

Just because he saw the matter in this way, when he learned that he was sent to Voronezh to replenish his division, he was not only not sorry, but very happy, and he did not hide it, that he would not be able to take part in the approaching battle. His colleagues also fully understand his mood. A few days before the battle of Borodino, Nicholas received funds and documents, sent a hussar first, and then he went to Voronezh by stage horse. One can only experience the joy that Nikolai enjoyed at this time when he was in the atmosphere of military and combat life for months on end: he escaped from the area where the troops were raising supplies, delivering rations, and setting up field hospitals. ; he now saw not soldiers, carts, and squalid barracks, but country of peasants and wives, dwellings of squires, fields where cattle grazed, post-posts and postmasters sleeping soundly, as if for the first time he had seen So happy with all this.What surprised and delighted him for a long time was that the women he saw were young and healthy, and there was not one of them who was not pursued by a dozen officers, and they were all happy and flattered by this passing officer making fun of them.

Nicholas, who was in a very happy mood, arrived at a hotel in Voronezh in the evening, asked for a meal that he hadn't provided for a long time in the army, and the next day he shaved clean, put on the review uniform he hadn't worn for a long time, and went to see the chiefs. The militia chief was a civilian general, an old man, obviously very proud of his rank and position.He received Nikolay angrily (thinking it was a soldier) and questioned Nikolai meaningfully, as if he had the right to do so and thought he was considering the overall situation.Nikolay is happy, just thinks it makes him happy

From the militia chief he went straight to the governor, a small, brisk man, very good-natured and simple.He told Nikolay of the stud farms where he could get horses, introduced him to a horse dealer in the city and to a landowner twenty versts from the city (they had fine horses), and promised to help him as best he could. "You are Count Ilya Andreevich's son? My wife and your mother are very close. Every Thursday we have a party; today is Thursday, so please come and enjoy it." The governor and he said when he said goodbye. As soon as he left the governor's place, Nicholas hired a stagecoach, took the steward with him, and drove straight to the landowner's stud farm, twenty versts away.During this time when he was a newcomer in Voronezh, Nikolay was very lighthearted, and when he was alone, everything went well.

The landowner whom Nikolay was looking for was an old bachelor, a former cavalryman, horse breeder and hunter, who had a smoking room, a century-old cellar of cider and Hungarian wine, and rare horses. In a few words, Nikolay bought seventeen selected (as he said) stallions for six thousand rubles as a sample of supplementary horses.After lunch, Rostov had saved a little Hungarian wine, and kissed the landowner who now called him "you" good-bye.Along the way, he kept urging the coachman in a happy mood, and hurried back to the city in order to rush to the party at the governor's house.

Having changed his clothes, sprinkled mountain perfume, and washed his head with cold water, Nicholas arrived at the prefect's house, although he was a little late, but he thought of a ready-made excuse: vautmieuxtardquejamais (better late than never). It's not a ball, and no dancing is said; but everyone knows that Katerina Petrovna will play waltzes and Scottish dances on the clavichord, and there will be dancing, and that's expected, so everyone goes to the ball The appearance is coming. In 1812, life in the provinces was as usual, the only difference being that the town was busier with the arrival of many rich and wealthy families from Moscow; Unfettered idiosyncrasies—nothing, nothing big; then, the inevitable chatter among men, which formerly revolved around the weather and common acquaintances, now turned to Moscow, the army, and Napoleon.

Those who meet at the governor's house are the quintessence of Voronezh society. There were many ladies there, and a few Moscow acquaintances of Nikolai; but there was no match for knights of the order of St. George, hussars, horse-purchasing officers, and Count Rostov, who was well-mannered and well-bred. Men, but none.Among the men was a captured Italian, an officer in the French army, and Nicholas felt that the presence of this prisoner enhanced his status as a Russian hero.The Italian was like a trophy.Nicholas felt this way, and at the same time it seemed to him that everyone regarded the Italian in the same way, so Nicholas looked after him with dignity and reserve.

Nicholas, who was dressed in a hussar uniform and smelled of perfume and wine, said something as soon as he came in, and heard "vautmieus xtardque jamais" (better late than never) said to him several times, and then and all eyes were turned upon him, and he felt at once that he had entered his proper place in that province—that which had been happy, and now, after a long life of misery, reveled in contentment, The status of everyone's favorite.Not only in the posthouses, in the hotels, and in the smoking-room of the landowner, there were maids who wanted his attention; but here, too, at the governor's evening parties, there were (so it seemed to Nicholas) countless young ladies and beautiful women. The girl waited impatiently for Nicholas' favor.Among the ladies and girls who flirted with him, the old men who, from the first day they saw him, tried to get the young hussar prodigal son married, set up a family, stabilize him, and among them was the governor. The lady herself, who considered Rostov a close relative, called him "Nikolai" and "you." (Nicolas used French Nicolas)

Katerina Petrovna did indeed play the waltz and Scotch dances, and the dancing began, and Nikolay's dexterity in dancing fascinated the provincial society even more.His unique and uninhibited dance moves even surprised everyone.Nicholas himself was a little surprised by his dancing style that night.He had never danced like this in Moscow, and he even considered such an overly casual gesture impolite, mauvaisgenre; but here he felt compelled to frighten the locals with an unusual trick The big jump is a kind of thing that they regard as common in the new and old capitals, but they have not seen it in other provinces. Throughout the evening Nicholas had paid most attention to a blue-eyed, buxom, pretty, fair-haired woman, the wife of a provincial official.With the naive belief that young people, who are boundless in joy, think that other people's wives are made for them, Rostov never left her, and treated her husband in a friendly and somewhat tacit way, as if they hadn't said anything. , but I knew in my heart that they hit it off, what a wonderful couple, they were Nicholas and the husband's wife.But the husband seemed not to think so, and was doing his best to deal with Rostov melancholy.But Nikolay's kindness and innocence knew no bounds, and the husband was sometimes infected by his cheerfulness unconsciously.However, towards the end of the party, as the wife's face became more ruddy and more excited, the husband's face became more and more gloomy and more serious, as if the two shared a joy, and the wife added some , the husband will be reduced.