Chapter 24 twenty two

Our two friends have been silent all the way from the house to Fedot's carriage shop, except for exchanging a few insignificant words now and then.Bazarov was dissatisfied with himself, and Arkady was dissatisfied with Bazarov, and besides that there was in his heart an inexplicable melancholy familiar only to young people.The coachman changed horses, sat on the driver's box and asked, "Right or left?" Arkady shuddered.To the right is to go home via the provincial capital; to the left is to go to Odintova's manor. He glanced at Bazarov and asked: "Evgeny, go to the left?"

Bazarov turned his head. "Why do that stupid thing?" he said. "I know it's stupid," answered Arkady, "but what's the big deal? Is it the first time? " Bazarov pressed his hat to his forehead. "Do as you say," he said at last. "To the left!" cried Arkady. The four-wheeler turned left and went straight to the village of Nikoli.After deciding to do this stupid thing, the two friends didn't say a word, as if they were angry. Even from the way the Odintova's housekeeper greeted him on the steps, the two friends could have guessed that their sudden visit was quite inopportune, and that it was evidently a surprise to the master.They sat for a long time in the living room with sullen faces before Odintsova received them.She greeted them with her usual hospitable expression, but marveled at their return so soon, with hesitant gestures and words that expressed displeasure at their visit.They hurriedly explained that they just came by the way, and they would go to the provincial capital after staying for about four hours.She was slightly surprised at their haste, and asking Arkady to convey her regards to his father, she sent for her aunt.

The old princess came to the living room sleepily, her old and wrinkled face seemed more angry.Katerina was not feeling well, so she did not leave her bedroom.Arkady suddenly felt that he wanted to see Katerina as well as Anna Sergeyevna.Four hours passed in chatter, and Anna Sergeyevna neither heard nor spoke, and never smiled, but at the moment of parting, the former friendship seemed to flash in her heart. "I'm in a bad mood right now," she said, "don't mind that, please come back later, for both of you." Neither Bazarov nor Arkady bowed silently to her, and boarded the carriage and drove away.Without stopping, we arrived at Marino in the evening of the next day.No one on the road mentioned Odintsova again, especially Bazarov, who kept his eyes fixed on the side of the road with a tense, hard-hearted expression on his face.

At Maryino, everyone is delighted to have them here.After a long separation, Nikolai Petrovich had long felt uneasy about his son, so when Fedosya came running and told him with excited eyes that "two young masters" were coming, he screamed and danced with his feet. , from the sofa overnight.Pavel Petrovich was also overwhelmed by the cheerful atmosphere, with a gentle smile on his face as he shook hands with the returning wanderers.talk, ask.Arkady talked a lot at the supper table.At Nikolai Petrovich's orders several bottles of strong stout just arrived from Moscow were opened, and supper lasted until well after midnight.Even Nikolai Petrovich himself was flushed from drinking, and kept laughing in a way that was neither childish nor neurotic.The excitement also spread to the servants, and Dunyasha ran up and down as if on fire, opening and closing doors; Peter was still playing Cossack waltzes on his guitar at midnight.The strings vibrated eagerly in the still air, but apart from the first few grace notes the newly-educated servant produced nothing new, as nature had endowed him with no musical talent as with any other. Same.

Things were not going well in Marino at this time, and poor Nikolai Petrovich was in a dilemma.Every day the troubles of the farm increased, and their resolution was difficult and disturbing.The hired workers are simply cheating people: some ask for bills or additional wages, and some leave after receiving their wages.The horses were ill, the yokes broke down after a short period of use, the field work was not done carefully, and one of the two threshing machines ordered from Moscow was too heavy to use, and the other broke down when it was started.The barn was caught in a fire, and half of it was destroyed. The cause of the fire was that a blind old woman who was in charge of the yard caught fire when she took a piece of burning wood to smoke the barn when the wind was blowing.But according to the old woman, it was the master's bad idea to blame: to make a kind of cheese and milk products that had never been seen before... The steward suddenly became lazy and his body began to gain weight.All Russians are like this. Once they "eat and drink well", they will gain weight.When the steward saw Nikolai Petrovich from a distance, he picked up a wooden stick and threw it at the piggies running past, or yelled a few times at the half-naked child to show his diligence, but other than that It was falling asleep.The tenant farmers did not pay the rent as scheduled and allowed them to steal wood from the forest.Almost every night the night watchman caught the work horses of the farmers grazing in the meadows of the "farm", and sometimes fights were unavoidable.Nikolai Petrovich had made a penalty clause, but in the end, the imprisoned horse ate the master's feed for a day or two, and the owner took it away.In addition, the peasants quarreled with each other: the two brothers asked to separate the family, the brothers' mother-in-law couldn't get along together, and suddenly there was a fight again, so all the people gathered in front of the steps of the office as if they had heard an order. The drunk grimace asked the master to comment and deal with it.Noisy, yelling, women's crying, and men's cursing are intertwined. You have to distinguish right from wrong and keep your voice dry. In fact, you have long known that such cases are difficult for honest officials to decide.There was a shortage of manpower for harvesting, and the neighboring small landowners put on a laughing face, saying that a peasant who borrowed from him would pay two rubles for every dessiacre he cut, and that his own peasant wife demanded exorbitant prices.The harvest has not been negotiated, the wheat in the field is falling one after another, and the charitable foundation is demanding the postponed loan and interest...

"I'm helpless!" Nikolai Petrovich groaned more than once in despair, "I'm going to fight—impossible, send for the Attorney General— It's not in line with my principles, but nothing can be achieved without severe punishment! " "Ducalme, ducalme," Pavel Petrovich warned him, but he was also moaning, frowning, and stroking his beard. -------- ①French: Quiet, quiet. Bazarov stayed away from "useless quarrels", and besides, he was a guest and should not get involved in other people's affairs. On the second day of his arrival in Marino, he devoted himself to studying his frogs, flagellates and various species. Compounding agent.On the contrary, Arkady believed that if he could not help his father, he should at least act as if he had a responsibility.He patiently listened to his father's nagging, and once even helped out with an idea. Of course, it was not a good idea, but a sense of participation.He was not averse to clerical work, no, he fantasized about farming.But at this moment Arkady had other thoughts in his mind: the endless longing for Nikoli.He himself felt strange, how could it be?If he had been told before that it would be lonely living under one roof with Bazarov, he would have shrugged his shoulders in denial.Moreover, it is in his own home!But he was really lonely and wanted to go away, he went for a walk outside, and walked and walked until he couldn't lift his feet, but there was nowhere to go.Once I learned from my father's conversation that there were still several letters in the family, which were written by Odintsova's mother to Arkady's mother at some time, and the content was quite interesting.He pestered his father for these letters, and Nikolai Petrovitch had to rummage through twenty boxes.Arkady seemed relieved after getting a few tattered letter papers, and seemed to see his destination.He often whispers to himself: "There are her own words: this is for you two. I must go, I must go, let it go!" But then he remembered the cold reception he received during the last visit, and the embarrassment he ended up in. Situation, can not help but feel timid.But young people like to "try their luck", have an earnest pursuit of happiness, and always want to try their edge without anyone's supervision.Less than ten days after returning to Maryino, he went to the provincial capital on the pretext of knowing the Sunday school system, and from the provincial capital to the village of Nicoli.He urged the coachman to speed up all the way. He was as scared, happy, and eager as a young officer on the battlefield. "The main thing is: don't think too much!" he ordered himself.The coachman was just a man of great energy, and whenever he came to a tavern, he would ask "Would you like a drink?"Finally, the familiar roof appeared... "Why am I here?" The thought flashed through Arkady's mind.The three sets of horses are galloping in unison, the coachman is yelling and whistling, the small bridge is creaking under the hooves and wheels of the horses, and the avenue lined with fir trees is neatly lined up on both sides... The woman's pink dress emerges from the green bushes Floating by, the young girl's face peeped out from under the fringe of the little parasol... He recognized Katerina, and Katerina recognized him.Arkady ordered the galloping horse to be reined in, jumped out of the wagon, and approached her. "Oh, it's you!" After saying that, her face flushed. "Let's go, let's go find my sister, she is in this garden, she will be happy to see you."

-------- ①Sunday school is an elementary school for adults at that time, and classes are held every Sunday. Katerina led Arkady into the depths of the garden.This meeting with her seemed to be a good omen, for she was as genuinely happy to meet him as if she had met a family member.Everything went smoothly, without the housekeeper's greeting and notification.He saw Anna Sergeyevna standing with her back at the bend in the path, and at the sound of footsteps he turned slowly. Arkady felt awkward again.But her first words reassured him. "Greetings, fugitive!" she said in a sweet voice, and came towards him, smiling, her eyes squinted by the sun and the wind. "Where did you find him, Katerina?"

"Anna Sergeyevna," he began, "I bring you something that you never expected..." "You brought yourself, and that's better than anything."