Chapter 7 Chapter VII

Petya bid farewell to his parents, left Moscow, returned to his regiment, and soon became an orderly to a general commanding a large partisan army.Ever since his promotion to the rank of officer, and especially since he joined the combat unit and participated in the Battle of Vyazma, Petya has always been in a state of happiness and excitement, glad that he has grown into a man, and he is always cheerfully busy with his work. Get busy, don't miss an opportunity to do something truly heroic.He was fascinated by his combat career in the barracks, and he was very interested in what he saw and heard in the barracks.He always felt that there was always something truly heroic going on where he was not there.So he is eager to go where he has not been.

On October 21, when his general wanted to send someone to Denisov's partisans, Petya begged the general so hard that he could hardly refuse.However, the general recalled the madness of Petya at the Battle of Vyazma. He did not follow the chosen route, but forcibly drove across the French fire blockade. While flying over the blockade, he fired two shots. .So this time the general specifically told him that he was not allowed to participate in any of Denisov's combat operations.It was for this reason that when Denisov asked if he could stay, Petya blushed and panicked.Before reaching the edge of the wood, Petya had thought that he should resolutely obey orders and return to the army at once.But when he saw the French with his own eyes, saw Tihon again, and heard that an attack on the French was to be made that night, he changed his mind with the quickness of a young man, and he thought that the man he had always respected The general was an incompetent German, but Denisov was the hero, the Cossack first captain was the hero, Tikhon was the hero, and it would be shameful to leave them at this difficult time.

It was dusk when Denisov, Petya, and the first captain of the Cossacks arrived at the forest hut.Saddled horses could be seen in the twilight, Cossacks and hussars pitched huts in the glades, and (in order to hide the smoke from the eyes of the French) glowing fires were lit in the hollows.Under the canopy of the hut, a Cossack rolled up his sleeves and cut mutton.Inside the room three officers from Denisov's brigade were making a table out of a door.Petya took off his wet clothes, handed them to dry, and at once helped the three officers to set the table. Ten minutes later, a table was ready covered with a tablecloth.On the table were vodka, rum from a military jug, white bread, roast mutton, and salt.

Petya sat at the table with the officers, tearing and eating the delicious mutton, his hands dripping with oil.Petya was innocent, he loved everyone, and he believed that others loved him in the same way. "What do you think, Vasily Fyodorovitch," he said to Denisov, "I'll stay with you for a day, will it be all right?" Without waiting for an answer, he answered himself: "I was ordered to find out I'm not inquiring about the situation... But please let me take part in the most... the main thing... I don't need a reward... I just hope..." Petya gritted her teeth, looked around, and raised her head. Highly, he waved his arms.

"To the main..." Denisov repeated Petya's words with a smile. "Just give me a detachment, and I'll be in charge," continued Petya. "That doesn't matter to you, does it? Oh, do you want a knife?" he said to an officer who wanted to cut mutton.He handed over a pocket knife. The officer praised his knife. "Keep it, please, I have several of these knives," said Petya, blushing. "Alas, man! I forgot all about it," he exclaimed suddenly. "I've got good raisins, you know, without pits, and we've got a new army peddler over there, and he's got a lot of good stuff. I bought ten catties at once, and I like something sweet, do you want some?" Petya ran to the door to look for his Cossack, and brought some sacks containing about five catties of raisins. "Please! Gentlemen! Please, please."

"Would you like a coffee pot?" he said to the Cossack captain. "I bought it from our peddler. It's very fine. He has a lot of good things. He's also honest. That's all the more important. I'll bring it to you. And maybe you've run out of flints—here's It’s a common thing. I have it, and it’s here..." He pointed to those pockets, "One hundred yuan, I bought it very cheaply. You can take as much as you want, and you can take it all..." Peter Jia suddenly stopped talking, blushing, feeling that she had gone too far. He began to recall whether he had done anything stupid today, and he searched his memory carefully.He thought of the little French drummer. "We're comfortable now, how is he now? Where is he? Did he get food? Did he bully him?" he was thinking.

He felt a little frightened now that he had talked about the Flintstones. "Can I ask?" He thought, they would say that he was still a child, and children sympathized with children.I must let them know tomorrow what kind of child I am! "Would it be embarrassing if I asked?" thought Petya. "Well, it's all the same anyway!" He blushed, looked at the officers in alarm to see if there was any sarcasm on their faces, and said: "Can you call the little prisoner you caught and give him something to eat...Maybe..." "Yeah, poor little one," said Denisov, obviously not seeing the proposal as anything to be ashamed of. "Call him. His name is Vincent Bosch. Call him."

"Go, go. Poor little fellow," repeated Denisov. Petya was standing by the door when Denisov said this.He passed among the officers and came up to Denisov. "Let me kiss you, darling," he said. "Hey, how nice! So nice!" He kissed Denisov, and immediately ran out into the yard. "Bosch! Vincent!" cried Petya from the door. "Who are you looking for? Sir!" said a voice in the darkness.Petya replied, "I'm looking for the French boy who was captured today." "Oh! Vicini?" said one of the Cossacks. Vincent's name had already been misused: the Cossacks called him Vecinny, the peasants and soldiers called him Vecinna.Both of these names mean spring.It just fits that little furry kid.

"He's warming himself by the fire. Hey, Vecinna! Vecinna! Vecinny!" Calls and laughter came one after another in the darkness. "That boy is very clever," said the hussar standing beside Petya. "We gave him something to eat just now. He is very hungry!" Footsteps sounded in the darkness, and the little drummer came to the door with his bare feet and muddy feet. "AhC'estvous!" said Petya: "Voulezvousmanger? N'ayezpaspeur, onnevousferapasdemal," he added. He touched his hand shyly and enthusiastically and added: "Entrez, entrez. "① "Merci, monsieur. ’” answered the little drummer in a trembling, almost childlike voice, as he wiped the mud from his feet at the door. Petya had a lot to say to the little drummer, but he dared not, and stood beside him before entering the house, Not knowing what to do, in the dark he took the boy's hand and shook it.

-------- ①French: Ah, it’s you!Want something to eat?Don't be afraid, nothing will happen to you.come in. ②French: Thank you, sir. "Entrez, entrez," he said softly. "Well, what can I do for him?" said Petya to himself, and he opened the door to let the boy in first. The little drummer entered the room, and Petya sat down at a distance from him, feeling that paying too much attention to him would be detrimental to his status.He put his hand in his pocket and fumbled for the ball, hesitating whether it would be a shame to give the little drummer the ball.