Chapter 111 Part Three - Seven

On the day when the escort and the prisoner clashed over a child on departure from the inn, Nekhludoff woke up very late in the inn, and after getting up he wrote several letters, which he was going to post in the provincial town. So I left the inn a little late by car, and did not catch up with the group of people on the way as usual.It was dusk when he reached the village where the prisoners had spent the night.The inn where Nekhludoff stayed was run by a fat old widow with a thick white neck.There he dried his clothes, drank enough tea in the clean room, which was richly decorated with icons and pictures, and hastened to the station of the escort to ask permission to see Maslova.

In the past six inn stations, although the escorts had been changed, none of them had allowed Nekhludoff to enter the inn room, so he had not seen Maslova for more than a week.The reason why they are so strict is that a high official in charge of the prison will pass through this place.Now, that officer has passed, and he didn't take a look at the brigade at all.Nekhludoff hoped that the escort who had taken over the prisoners today would allow him to see them. The innkeeper advised Nekhludoff to drive to the inn at the end of the village, but Nekhludoff preferred to walk.A broad-shouldered, well-built young waiter, wearing large leather boots freshly oiled and smelling of tar, led him the way.There was a mist in the sky, and it was very dark.Nekhludoff could not see him as long as the leading waiter took three steps out of the light, and could only hear his big leather boots groaning in the thick mud.

Nekhludoff followed the waiter leading the way through the square in front of the church and the street with brightly lit houses on both sides, to the end of the dark village.But after a while, there was another light in the darkness, which was emitted by the street lamp near the station through the fog.Those light red lights are getting bigger and brighter.The stakes of the fence, the dark shadows of moving sentries, the painted striped posts and sentry boxes gradually loomed.The sentinel saw someone approaching the first part of the part, describing that the "absolute spirit" had not been externalized into the natural world, and shouted as usual: "Who?" Stay by the fence.However, the waiter who led the way for Nekhludoff was not alarmed when he saw the stern attitude of the sentinel.

"Hey, boy, you've got a temper!" he said to the sentinel. "You go and ask your leader to come out, we will wait here." The sentinel made no answer, but called to the side door, stopped, and stared at the broad-shouldered young man as he scraped the mud off Nekhludoff's boots with a wooden chip by the lamplight.From the fence came the noisy voices of men and women.About three minutes later, the side door opened with a bang, and the captain, wearing a military overcoat, came out of the darkness under the street lamp and asked them what they wanted.Nekhludoff handed the prepared business card and a note stating that he had a private matter to see to the captain and asked him to forward it to the escort.The captain was not as strict as the sentinel, but he was very curious.He must know what Nekhludoff wanted to see the escort and who he was.Apparently, he has sensed that there is lucrative water to be fished, and he refuses to let go of the opportunity.Nekhludoff said he had a special business to send and he would thank him when it was done.The captain took the note, nodded and left.Not long after he had gone, the side door slammed again, and several women came out with baskets, bark baskets, milk jugs, and bags in their hands.They talked loudly in the Siberian dialect as they crossed the threshold of the side door.They were not dressed like country people, but wore overcoats and leather jackets like city people, with skirts tucked high at the waist, and turbans on their heads.They looked curiously at Nekhludoff and his guide by the light of the street lamps.One of the women was visibly delighted to see the broad-shouldered young man, and immediately began to call him affectionately in Siberian swear words.

"You bloody forest ghost, what are you doing here?" she said to him. "You see, I've sent a visitor here," answered the lad. "What did you bring?" "Dairy, they want me to bring some more in the morning." "Then they didn't tell you to stay the night?" asked the boy. "Fuck you, damn it, rot your tongue!" she yelled, laughing. "Let's go back to the village together, and you will see us off." The guide told her some jokes, which made not only the women giggle, but even the sentry.Then he said to Nekhludoff:

"How about it, can you find it when you go back alone? You won't get lost, right?" "I can find it, I can find it." "Passing the church, it's the second house on the right from the two-story house. Here, here's a walking stick," he said, handing Nekhludoff the stick that was about a man's height that he carried with him. husband.Then he stepped on his big squeaking leather boots and disappeared into the darkness together with those women. The half door slammed again, and when the captain asked Nekhludoff to go with him to the escort, the young man's voice, mingled with a woman's, came from the mist.