Chapter 28 Chapter Twenty Six

After the heavy snow, it was a cold and dry sunny day.In the daytime the trees shone in the sun, the rivers were sealed with ice, and the moor was frozen hard; in the still nights, the trees in the forest were peeling and cracking loudly.Birds fly to places where there are people.Hungry wolves are in groups, not only attacking single people, but also invading villages, making pedestrians very unsafe.Yet, in their smoky huts, enjoying the warmth of the fires, the bitter winter heralds a bountiful year, and joyfully awaits the coming festival.The Duke's Forest Palace looked very deserted.The princess went to Ciechanov with the court and Vishoniak.Zbyszko, though greatly improved from his wounds, was still too weak to ride a horse, and remained in the forest palace, accompanied by Sandrus, his Czech squire, and a steward's dame. Several servants.

① refers to the period between Christmas and Epiphany. But the knight missed his young wife terribly.Indeed, the thought that Danusia was his own, and that no power on earth could take her from her, gave him great comfort, but at the same time his longing was deepened by this feeling.All day long he looked forward to leaving the palace as soon as possible, and all day long he thought about what he should do, where he should go, and how to make Jurand change his mind.He also had moments of restlessness and restlessness.But on the whole, the future was happy for him.Loved Danusia, and plucked the peacock feathers from the German helmets—that was the life he would live.Many times he wanted to tell the story to his favorite Czech, but when he thought about it, he felt that the Czech was so loyal to Jagienka that it would be too rash to talk to him about Danusia, and he decided I swore to keep it a secret and not to tell what happened.

After all, his health was improving day by day.A week before Vigil (Christmas Eve), he rode his horse for the first time.Although he felt that riding a horse in armor was not enough, he still had enough confidence in the end.Besides, it did not occur to him that he would soon have to don his armor and helmet.In any case, he always hoped to be strong soon, put on his armor, and gallop his horse.To pass the time, he tried to lift the sword in the house, which he managed, but it seemed difficult for him to swing the axe.But he was convinced that if he held the handle with both hands, he could swing it freely.

Finally, two days before the Vigil, he ordered the sleds to be ready and the horses saddled, and informed the Czechs that they were going to Ciechanov. The faithful squire was a little worried, especially because The atmosphere outside is cold.But Zbyszko said to him: "Grovage (because that's what they call him in Polish), it's nothing to do with your head, it's no use for us to stay here, go to Ciechanov and see the old gentleman, even if I'm sick I can't let this opportunity go by. Besides, I don't go on horseback, but in a sleigh, with straw stretched up to my neck and covered with furs, and I don't ride until I'm near Tsykhanov."

1 Zbyszko here calls the Czech in Polish.Note to the English translation: Grovaz is Polish, meaning "big head" or "thick head", which is equal to the Czech Hlava, meaning "head". And so it went.The Czech knew his young master's temper, and knew that it was best not to oppose him, and especially not to fail to carry out his orders seriously.So they set out early in the morning.On the way out, Zbyszko saw Sandrus getting into the sleigh with his box, and said to him: "How did you nail me like a thorn on wool? . . . Did I say you were going to Prussia?"

"Yes, I said so," replied Sanders. "But in such a storm, can I get there alone? The wolves will eat me before the first star appears, and I'll be fine here. I'd rather go to town, go Inspire the people to worship God, give them my holy goods, and deliver them from the devil's control, for I swore an oath in Rome to the Fathers of Catholicism. Besides, I admire your lordship very much, and when I return to Rome Before, I didn't want to leave you, maybe I can do a little service for you." ① That is, the atonement symbol and the like. "Sir, he is always at your service! He is always ready to serve you with food and drink," said the Czech. "He is very glad to serve you like this. But if wolves should come and attack us in the woods near Przasnich, I'll feed him to the wolves, because he has nothing else to do." usefulness."

"Better be careful," Sanders replied. "Speaking of such crimes will burn you in hell, and will freeze you all the way down to your beard." "Fuck you!" Grovatchi replied, stretching his iron gauntlet over his new beard and rubbing it, "I want to drink a few sips of ale to warm up and refresh myself, but I won't give you any .” "It's a crime to give alcohol to an alcoholic—another crime." "Then I'll give you a pail of water to drink, but you can take whatever I have in my hand now!" he said, filling a pair of iron gloves with a big handful of snow and pointing it at Sanders. beard, but Sanders dodged it and said:

"Chuichanov has no place for you, because there people have tamed a big bear to play in the snow." That's how they love to tease each other.But Zbyszko did not forbid Sandrus to ride with him, because the stranger was very pleasing to him, and it seemed to him that he really admired him. They left the forest palace in the bright morning light.The frost was so thick that the horses had to be covered with horse clothes.The scenery in front of me was completely submerged by snowflakes.The snow-covered roof is almost unrecognizable.The smoke seemed to evaporate directly from the white hills, rushing straight into the sky, dyed red in the morning light, and spread out on the roof like a paintbrush, looking like the fur decoration on a helmet.

Zbyszko sat in the sleigh, firstly to gain strength, and secondly, so that the inside of the sleigh would be better protected against the severe cold; Chat with him happily. "As far as Przasnich, we have only to feed the horses and warm up a little, and then continue on our way at once." "To Ciechanov?" "First go to Cuichanov, pay respects to the court, and attend the worship service." "What about the future?" Grovatsch asked. Zbyszko replied with a smile: "Afterwards, who knows, maybe to Bogdaniec." The Czech looked at him in amazement, and a thought came to his mind: "Perhaps he had a quarrel with Miss Jurand. He thought it was extremely possible, otherwise how could she have left. The faithful squire, who had heard that Lord Spychoff was unwilling to marry his daughter to the young knight, for he loved Jagienka and regarded her as a star in the sky; for her He was willing to bleed for his happiness. He loved Zbyszko too, and he wished with all his heart to serve them both to death.

"Then your Excellency wants to make a home in the territory?" he said happily. "How can I make a home on the land," replied Zbyszko, "because I challenged the knights of the crusaders, and before that I challenged Lichtenstein." said de Rausch However, the grand master will invite the king to visit Torunny. I will go with the king's retinue; I think that Lord Chavisha of Gabov or Povara of Tachev will ask our lord Allow me to fight the priests. They will come with their squires; then you must fight them too." "If I was going to kill anybody, I'd like to kill a priest," said the Czech.

Zbyszko looked at him with satisfaction. "Well, whoever touches your steel knife must be unlucky. God has given you great strength, but if you use it too much, it will be bad, because humility is the quality that a good servant should have." The Czech shook his head, saying that he would never waste his strength, but he would never spare his strength against the Germans. Zbyszko laughed, not at what the squire said, but at his own thoughts. "When we go back, the old man will be happy, and there will be a lot of joy in Zgotrilici." Jagienka suddenly appeared before Zbyszko's eyes, as if she were riding with him in the sleigh.He always thought of her as if he really saw her clearly. "Well," he said to himself, "she won't be happy, because I'm going to see her with Danusia when I get back to Bogdaniets. Let her marry someone else. . . . " Thinking of this, the shadows of Wilk from Borzodova and Little Chedang from Rogoff flashed in his mind, and suddenly he also had an unpleasant feeling in his heart, because the girl would always fall behind them. One of these guys got it, and then he thought, "Better she finds someone better, because those two guys are drunks and gluttons, and the girl is noble." He thought of this man, thinking of that man again; thinking of what would happen to his uncle when he found out what had happened; whatever the outcome, it must have been tiresome; Over kinship and money matters, because these two things can promote the interests of their family.It is true that Jagienka was closer, but Jurand had more lands than Tsikhe of Zgotrilici.And he decided that Macko would not continue to object to the marriage, much less when he understood his nephew's love for Danusia and Danusia's dowry.He might murmur a bit, cheer up afterwards, and love Danuska as his own daughter; His heart was suddenly filled with love and nostalgia for his uncle.His uncle, though a stern man, loved him as the eye of his own; he had looked after him in the field more than he had looked after himself, had taken the spoils for him, and had gone far from home for his sake.Both of them were alone in the world, with no near relatives except a distant one like the abbot.Often when they were about to break up with each other, neither of them knew what to do, especially the older one, who no longer had any extravagant hopes for himself. "Hey! He'll be happy, he'll be happy!" repeated Zbyszko to himself. "I only hope for one thing—that Jurand will treat me like an uncle." Then he began to imagine what Jurand would say and what he would do when he found out about the marriage.Thinking of this, although he was a little worried, but not too worried, the reason was very simple, it was already a fait accompli.Even if Jurand wanted to challenge him, he couldn't do it.Even if Jurand objected, Zbyszko could have answered him thus: "Be patient, I beg you; your rights over Danuska are man-made, mine are divine; therefore she is no longer It's yours, it's mine." Once he heard a priest who knew the Bible say that a woman must leave her parents to be with her husband.He felt, therefore, that the advantage was on his side; but he did not expect Jurand to quarrel violently with him, to lose his temper, for he counted on Danusia's entreaties to be granted, and he also counted on Jurand's The serving duke would intercede in it, as would the duchess, and Jurand had always loved the duchess as her daughter's protector. Due to the extremely cold weather, wolves came out in large numbers, and they even attacked groups of passers-by.Zbyszko was urged to spend the night in Przasnici, but he ignored it, because at the inn he met some Mazovia knights with their entourage, who were also going up to Cuychanov to meet the prince; There were several armed merchants there, escorting several cartloads of goods from Prussia.With such a company there was no danger of walking; so they set out at dusk, though a sudden gust of wind arose in the evening, chasing dark clouds, and it began to snow.They walked close together, but so slowly that Zbyszko feared that they might not be in time for Vigil.In a few places the horses could not go, and they had to dig through the snow, luckily the road in the woods was not covered with snow.It was dusk when Cuichanov appeared before their eyes. Had it not been for the sight of the bonfire on the high ground where the new castle stood, they would not have known that they were near the town, and might have been lost for a long time in the blinding blizzard.They could not decide whether the fire was burning in honor of the guests on Christmas Eve, or according to the ancient custom.But none of Zbyszko's traveling companions thought of it, for they were anxious to find shelter from the snow as soon as possible in the town. At this time, the blizzard became more and more violent, and the biting cold wind brought large flakes of snow; the cold wind shook the branches, roared wildly, and blew the whole snowdrift madly, and swept it into the air; the cold wind kept whistling , changing direction, almost overturned the sledge and horses, and scratched the faces of the riders like sharp stones, making them breathless and speechless.The bells tied to the sleigh-shafts were all inaudible; amidst the howling and whistling of the whirlwind, there were only mournful sounds, like the howl of a wolf, like the neighing of a distant horse, sometimes like The cry of people in distress.The exhausted horse began to pant and gradually slowed down. "Hey! What a snowstorm! What a snowstorm!" said the Czech out of breath. "My lord, it's a good thing we're near the town, and the fire is burning yonder; otherwise we'd have had enough." "Anyone who goes out in this weather is doomed," replied Zbyszko. "I can't even see the fire. It's so dark that it's hard to make out the flames; perhaps the logs and coals have been buried." The wind blows away." The merchants and knights in the other sledges said the same: if the storm blows anyone off his seat, he will not hear the morning bell. 1 Zbyszko suddenly became disturbed and said: ①The morning bell refers to the church bell in the morning; if the morning bell is not heard, it means that the person is finished. "I hope Jurand is not on his way!" The Czech, though absorbed in looking at the fire, turned his head and asked after hearing Zbyszko's words: "Is Lord Spycherof coming?" "yes." "Come with Miss?" "The fire has really gone out," said Zbyszko. All right, the fire went out, but before the horses and sleds suddenly appeared some riders. "What are you doing?" cried the wary Czech, taking up his crossbow: "Who are you?" "The Duke's subordinates are sent to help passers-by." "Praise Jesus Christ!" "Eternal life." "Please take us to town," said Zbyszko. "Is there no one behind?" "There's no one left." "Where are you from?" "Purzasnich." "Did you meet no one else on the way?" "I didn't meet anyone. Maybe they went another way." "People are looking on all the roads; come with us, you are lost! Go to the right." They turned their horses' heads; and for a while they could make out nothing but the cry of the storm. "How many guests are there in the castle?" asked Zbyszko after a while. The horseman closest to him didn't hear the question clearly, so he stooped down and moved closer to him. "My lord, what do you say?" "I asked if there are many guests in the Duke's mansion?" "As usual, a lot." "Is Lord Spycherof here?" "He hasn't arrived yet, they are waiting for him. Someone has been sent to fetch him." "With a torch?" "That depends on the weather." They could go no further, for the noisy blizzard was blowing harder and harder. "It was a devil's wedding," said the Czech.But Zbyszko told him to be silent, not to speak of the devil or not. "Didn't you know?" he said, "on such a holy day the devils are also tamed and hide in ice caves. Fishermen near Sandomiez once found the devil hiding In their nets there was a dagger in his mouth, but he fainted at the sound of the bell; and they beat him with sticks till night. The storm was violent indeed, but it was the will of the Lord Jesus, Because he wants to make tomorrow happier." "Ah! We're almost at the city," said Grovage. "If it weren't for these people, we would have lost our way until late at night, because we have already left the right path." "We got lost because the fire went out." Just then they entered the city.The streets were covered with snow, and in some places even the windows were covered, so that passers-by could not see the lights inside.But the people here didn't feel the blizzard's invasion very much.There was no one on the street.Residents are having dinner to celebrate Christmas.In front of this house, children braved the snowstorm, holding little books with annotations, leading goats, singing Christmas carols, and some people in the market were dressed as bears with pea straw on their bodies; besides, There is no one else on the street.The merchants who accompanied Zbyszko and the nobles remained in the town, and Zbyszko and the others continued to walk towards the old castle where the prince lived; On a group of people on the road. The drawbridge over the moat was not closed, because the Lithuanian invasions had decreased in the previous period, and the crusader knights who were going to fight the Polish king were now courting the Duke of Masovia.One of the duke's men blew the horn, and the gates opened at once.There were a few archers inside, but there was no one on the ramparts and the wooden palisades, because the Duke had allowed the guards to play outside at this time.Old Mrokote, who had arrived two days before, came out to meet the guests, greeted them on behalf of the prince, and took them into the house, where they were dressed and prepared for dinner. Zbyszko asked him at once whether Jurand of Spykhov had come, and replied that he had not come, but he would, because Jurand had promised to come, and he would if he was very ill. sent a letter.And several riders had been sent to fetch him, for even the oldest man had never seen such a blizzard. "Then he will be here soon?" "I think he's coming soon. The Duchess has ordered places to be made for them at the main table." Although Zbyszko was always a little afraid of Jurand, he was very happy now, and said to himself: "I don't know what to do, but one thing is for sure, that is my wife, my woman, My dearest Danuska is coming." When he said these words to himself over and over again, he couldn't believe that he would have such happiness.Of course, he thought, she might have confessed everything to her father, she might have moved his pity, and begged him to promise her at once. "Honestly, what else can he do if he refuses? Jurand is a wise man, and he knows that although he refuses to let her marry me, I will take her away, because my rights outweigh her. his rights." While he was changing, he talked to Mrokote about the health of the Duke, and especially the health of the Duchess. Since he had been in Krakow for a while, he loved her as much as his own mother. up.He was glad to hear that everyone in the castle was healthy and happy, except that the Duchess missed her favorite songstress very much.Now Jagienka played the lute for her, and His Excellency loved her very much, but not as much as the singer. "Which Jagienka?" Zbyszko asked in surprise. "Jagienka of Vergrassus, granddaughter of the old lord of Vergrassus. She is a beautiful girl. The Rottlinger is in love with her." ① Refers to Fulco de Lauche of the French knight Rotelinger. "And is M. de Lauches here?" "Where will he go? He has lived here since he came from the duke's forest palace, and lives happily. Our duke is always full of guests." "I'm glad to see him, he's a flawless knight." "He likes you too. Let's go, the duke and madam will be seated soon." They went into the dining-room, where a fire was burning in two hearths, and the servants kept watch. The room was already full of guests and court attendants.Accompanied by some "Fu Ye Fu Da" and a few cronies, the Duke walked in first.Zbyszko bowed low to him, and kissed his hands. The prince hugged Zbyszko's head, then took him aside and said: "I knew it all, and at first I was offended when I heard that it was done without my permission, but there was no time and I was in Warsaw, where I was going to spend the holidays. Everyone knows that a woman wants to get It is useless to object to something, and there is no benefit in objecting. The Duchess hopes that you will be well like a biological mother, and I have nothing to object to. It is better to follow her heart, lest she be troubled and cry." Zbyszko bowed deeply again, and bent up to the prince's knees. "May God enable me to repay your kindness." "Praise God, you have recovered. Go and tell the Duchess how well I have received you and made her happy. To tell the truth, her joy is my joy! I will say a word to Jurand for you too. Well, I think he'll agree, because he loves the Duchess too." "Even if he refuses to marry her to me, my rights are higher than his." "Of course your rights are higher than his, and people will admit it, but you may not get his father's blessing. No one can take her away from you, but if you don't have a father's blessing, you won't get her." God's blessing." Zbyszko was troubled by these words, for he had never thought of them before; but at that moment the princess entered, accompanied by Jagienka of Vergolaso ​​and the other ladies of the court; he hurried to her Bowing, she welcomed him more kindly than the prince, and told him at once that Jurand was coming.She said: "Here's the cutlery for him, and someone has been sent to guide them over the snowdrifts. We won't wait for them to have Christmas Eve dinner because the Duke doesn't approve, but they'll be there before dinner is over." here." "As far as Jurand is concerned," continued the princess, "he will come in time. I will tell him all about it today or tomorrow after morning prayers, and the duke has promised to speak for you. Jurand is very obstinate, But not to those whom he loves, nor to those whom he is obliged to obey." Then she began to teach Zbyszko how to treat his father-in-law, never to offend him or make him angry.These words sounded like good-natured advice at first, but for an experienced person, one only needs to look carefully at Zbyszko, and then at her, and you will be able to detect a kind of worry in her tone and complexion. means to come.Perhaps she was worried that the lord of Spychoff was a ignorant man, and perhaps she was a little uneasy that he had not come for so long.The blizzard outside was getting fiercer, and everyone said that if anyone was out in the field, Bao would die.But the princess thought that perhaps Danuska had confessed to her father about her marriage to Zbyszko, and the old man became angry and decided not to come to Tsykhanov.But the princess did not want to reveal her thoughts to Zbyszko; and she had no time to do so, since the servants had already brought the food and laid it on the table.But Zbyszko still wanted to get to the bottom of it and continued to ask. "What if they arrive, my dear lady? Mrokete told me that a special room has been prepared for Jurand alone; enough grass has been prepared for the frozen horses to rest. What should I do?" how?" The princess laughed, and patting him on the face with her glove, said: "Be quiet. Look at you, what's the matter?" So she went up to the prince, who helped her into her seat.A page placed before the duke a flat plate containing slices of pancakes and wafers, which he distributed among the guests, courtiers, and servants.Another squire brought a handsome boy, the son of the Governor of Stud Farah, to the Duke.On the other side of the table stood the Abbe Vishoniak, who wished to bless the fragrant supper. ① Wafabread is a kind of thin muffin, or used as a sanctuary. At this moment, a man covered in snow came in and shouted: "Most merciful duke!" "What is it?" said the Duke.He was not happy that someone interrupted his prayer service. "Several travelers got stuck in the snow on the way to Rajanov. We need help digging them out." Everyone was taken aback by this—and so was the duke, and he turned to the governor of Sakhohova: "Send riders with shovels! Quick!" Then, he asked the messenger: "How many people have been killed by the snow cover?" "We don't know yet, the blizzard was very violent; many horses and vehicles were covered." "Don't you know who those are?" "They are said to be from Jurand of Spyhof."