書(shū)蟲(chóng)6級(jí)《名利場(chǎng)》第三章: 阿梅莉亞·塞德利幾乎絕望

The two Miss Osbornes were rather proud young ladies. They did not think Amelia was good enough for their handsome brother, and they did not treat her kindly. "What can George see in that dull little creature?" they asked each other.

奧斯本家的兩位小姐是相當(dāng)傲慢的年輕女士。她們覺(jué)得阿梅莉亞配不上她們那英俊的兄弟，因而沒(méi)有善待她。“喬治究竟 看上那個(gè)無(wú)聊的小東西哪一點(diǎn)了？”她們互相詢(xún)問(wèn)。

Unfortunately, these visits were not at all frequent. George was often with his regiment down in Kent, and when he was in London, he seemed to have so many other things to do, so many friends to see, so many games of cards to play. Amelia saw more of his sisters, Miss Jane Osborne and Miss Maria Osborne, since the Osbornes' home was just the other side of Russell Square.

不幸的是，他的拜訪一點(diǎn)兒都不頻繁。喬治常常隨軍團(tuán)駐扎肯特，而當(dāng)他在倫敦的時(shí)候，似乎總有很多別的事要處理，很多朋友要拜訪，很多牌局要參加。阿梅莉亞見(jiàn)喬治的姐妹——簡(jiǎn)·奧斯本小姐和瑪麗亞·奧斯本小姐——次數(shù)更多，因?yàn)閵W斯本家就在拉塞爾廣場(chǎng)的另一頭。

And what has happened to Amelia Sedley during this time? While Rebecca was working so hard to make her future safe with the Crawley family, her dear friend Amelia had nothing to do but to sit in her comfortable home, with loving parents, and wait for George Osborne's visits.

那么這段時(shí)間里，阿梅莉亞·塞德利那邊又發(fā)生了什么事呢？在麗貝卡處心積慮確保自己在克勞利家族占有一席之地的時(shí)候，她親愛(ài)的朋友阿梅莉亞卻無(wú)所事事，只能和慈愛(ài)的雙親待在舒適的家中，等待喬治·奧斯本的拜訪。

So Amelia sat at home, waiting for George, and worrying about Napoleon Bonaparte and the talk of war. She had heard reports that George's regiment would be sent to France to fight Napoleon's army, and the thought terrified her. She asked Dobbin about it when he visited the Sedleys one day. No orders had yet been received, Dobbin told her gently. He was very upset to see Amelia so unhappy and so neglected by George.

因此，阿梅莉亞就待在家中，一邊等喬治來(lái)訪，一邊擔(dān)心拿破侖·波拿巴的動(dòng)向和有關(guān)戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的傳言。她聽(tīng)說(shuō)喬治所屬的軍團(tuán)會(huì)被派去法國(guó)，對(duì)抗拿破侖的軍隊(duì)。一想到這個(gè)，她就十分害怕。一天，多賓來(lái)拜訪塞德利一家，她向他詢(xún)問(wèn)此事。目前尚未接到命令，多賓溫柔地告訴她。見(jiàn)到阿梅莉亞這么不開(kāi)心，這么被喬治冷落，多賓不由得心煩意亂。

"Yes, it is, George, because you're neglecting a sweet girl. You should have seen her sad little face when I visited the other day. Go and comfort her, you bad fellow, instead of spending all your time in gambling-houses when you're in town."

“有關(guān)系。喬治，你冷落了這么一個(gè)好姑娘。你真該瞧瞧幾天前我去拜訪時(shí)她那張傷心的小臉。去安慰安慰她吧，你這個(gè)壞小子，回城時(shí)別都泡在賭場(chǎng)里了。”

"Is that any business of yours?" George asked fiercely.

“跟你有什么關(guān)系？”喬治語(yǔ)氣激烈地反問(wèn)。

"George," he said, "are you going to marry Amelia or not?"

“喬治，”他說(shuō)，“你還打算娶阿梅莉亞嗎？”

Time went past and still George did not visit, but poor little soft-hearted Amelia went on hoping and trusting. She loved George Osborne with all her heart, and wrote to him every day -- long, long letters, which were not very well written, but were full of love, devoted, uncritical, unquestioning love.

時(shí)間一天天過(guò)去，喬治還是沒(méi)來(lái)拜訪，可憐又心腸軟的阿梅莉亞卻一直滿懷期待與信任。她全心全意地愛(ài)著喬治·奧斯本，每天都給他寫(xiě)信——長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的書(shū)信，雖然信寫(xiě)得不太好，但字里行間充滿了愛(ài)意——深情、不加批判、深信不疑的愛(ài)。

"I'm very fond of Amelia, of course I am," said George, "but -- but a man must enjoy himself before he gets married, you know."

“我很喜歡阿梅莉亞，這是當(dāng)然的。”喬治說(shuō)，“但是——但是男人結(jié)婚前一定要好好享樂(lè)，你知道的。”

These letters became quite a joke with George's friends in the regiment. On one occasion George was seen lighting his cigar with one of them, to the horror of Captain Dobbin, who would have very much liked to receive such a letter himself. In fact, Dobbin was so angry that he could remain silent no longer.

這些信成了喬治軍團(tuán)里的朋友們的笑柄。有一次，喬治用其中一封信點(diǎn)雪茄，這一行為讓多賓上尉大為驚恐，他自己是多么希望能收到這樣的一封信啊。事實(shí)上，多賓太生氣了，他無(wú)法再繼續(xù)保持沉默。

Since George was only in town for one day, he invited Emmy to dine with him at his father's house that evening, and took her to spend the afternoon with his sisters while he went off to see to some important business (trying on a new coat, and playing several games of billiards with a friend).

由于喬治只在城里待一天，他邀請(qǐng)埃米去他父親家共進(jìn)晚餐，并把她送去和他的姐妹們待一下午，他自己則去處理一些重要事宜（試一件新外套，和一個(gè)朋友打幾局臺(tái)球）。

"Go and see her," said Dobbin, "or write her a long letter. Do something to make her happy. It won't take much."

“去看看她，”多賓說(shuō)，“或者寫(xiě)封長(zhǎng)信。做點(diǎn)事哄她開(kāi)心，又不費(fèi)什么勁。”

"You're right. Yes, I'll go tomorrow. It's true, she is very fond of me," George said, in a self-satisfied way.

“你說(shuō)得對(duì)。好，我明天去。不騙你，她確實(shí) 非常喜歡我。”喬治揚(yáng)揚(yáng)自得地說(shuō)。

He did go to see Amelia the next day, and Dobbin even lent him some money to buy her a present. George probably would have done so, but on the way to the Sedleys' house, he saw a very nice diamond shirt-pin, and he bought it for himself.

他第二天的確去見(jiàn)阿梅莉亞了，多賓甚至借了些錢(qián)給他，讓他給她買(mǎi)份禮物。喬治或許真會(huì)這么做，要不是他在去塞德利家的路上看到了一枚特別漂亮的鉆石襯衫飾針，并為自己買(mǎi)了下來(lái)的話。

When he arrived, Amelia's sad little face lit up in the sunshine of George's smile. She ran to him, and George kissed her fondly on the forehead and was very affectionate with her; and she thought his diamond shirt-pin (which she had not seen him wear before) was the prettiest thing ever seen.

喬治到達(dá)塞德利家時(shí)，阿梅莉亞一看見(jiàn)喬治燦爛的笑容，她傷心的小臉就頓時(shí)露出了喜色。她跑到他面前，喬治疼愛(ài)地親了親她的額頭，對(duì)她溫情脈脈。她覺(jué)得他的鉆石飾針（她以前從沒(méi)見(jiàn)他戴過(guò)）是她見(jiàn)過(guò)的最好看的飾品。

He was late home for dinner, and found his father in a very bad mood and his sisters and Amelia eating in nervous silence. When the ladies had gone up to the drawing-room, leaving father and son to their wine, George watched his father's face anxiously. He needed urgently to ask his father for money, to pay off some of his debts, but when he cautiously raised the subject, he did not get the explosion of bad temper he had feared.

他回家吃飯晚了，發(fā)現(xiàn)他父親情緒很差，他的姐妹們和阿梅莉亞在悶頭吃飯，氣氛緊張。等女士們?nèi)チ藰巧峡蛷d，留下父子倆喝葡萄酒時(shí)，喬治不安地觀察他父親的臉色。他急需向父親要錢(qián)還一些債。但是當(dāng)他小心翼翼地提起這個(gè)話題時(shí)，他所擔(dān)心的雷霆之怒并沒(méi)有爆發(fā)。

George was relieved and properly grateful, but it seemed that the old gentleman had something else on his mind.

喬治松了口氣，恰到好處地表達(dá)了謝意。但是，似乎老頭兒心里還有別的事情。

"That little girl upstairs -- Amelia," he said. "What do you intend to do about her, George?"

“樓上那個(gè)小姑娘——阿梅莉亞。”他說(shuō)，“你打算拿她怎么辦，喬治？”

"Well, it's clear, isn't it?" George said. "She's very fond of me. Anyone can see that. And didn't you order me to marry her, and don't I always obey you?"

“噢，這顯而易見(jiàn)，不是嗎？”喬治說(shuō)，“她很喜歡我，誰(shuí)都看得出來(lái)。您不是命令我娶她嗎？難道我不是一直都聽(tīng)您的話嗎？”

"Well, well," Mr Osborne said, "young men will be young men. I know you're mixing in the best society, and I like to see it. You have to pay your own way, and my money's as good as theirs, George my boy. You can call at my bank tomorrow."

“嗯，嗯，”奧斯本先生說(shuō)，“年輕人就是年輕人。我知道你正在融入上流社會(huì)，這也是我樂(lè)意看到的。該用錢(qián)的時(shí)候就得用，喬治我的兒子，我的錢(qián)跟他們的一樣好用。你明天到我的銀行拿吧。”

"But you and Mr Sedley arranged this years ago," said George.

“可是您和塞德利先生幾年前就把這門(mén)親事安排好了。”喬治說(shuō)。

"Mmm," said Mr Osborne. "Pass the wine, boy. Why shouldn't you marry higher than just old Sedley's daughter, eh?"

“唔。”奧斯本先生說(shuō)，“把酒遞過(guò)來(lái)，孩子。為什么你不娶個(gè)比老塞德利的女兒社會(huì)地位更高的人呢，呃？”

"Things have changed since then," his father said, frowning. "Sedley's business is not doing well. I'm not sure that he can pay the money we agreed on for the marriage settlement. In fact, unless Sedley can pay me ten thousand pounds now, there will be no marriage between you and Amelia Sedley."

“打那以后事情就起了變化。”他父親說(shuō)，眉頭皺了起來(lái)，“塞德利的生意做得不好。我拿不準(zhǔn)他是否還拿得出當(dāng)初我們商定的結(jié)婚禮金。實(shí)際上，除非塞德利現(xiàn)在能給我一萬(wàn)英鎊，否則你和阿梅莉亞·塞德利之間的婚事就當(dāng)沒(méi)提過(guò)。”

"Poor little Emmy -- dear little Emmy! How fond she is of me," George said, reading the letter after a lively evening with his friends. "And oh Lord, what a headache this red wine has given me!" Poor little Emmy, indeed.

“可憐的小埃米——親愛(ài)的小埃米??！她是多么喜歡我啊！”和朋友們快活了一晚的喬治讀著信說(shuō)，“哎，我的老天，這紅酒鬧得我頭疼死了！”可憐的小埃米，的確是。

George was especially good to Amelia that evening, and even visited her again the next morning on his way to his father's bank. Later in the day Amelia, still anxious about old Mr Osborne's coldness to her the day before, wrote George another of her long letters -- four pages of love and fear and hope and worry.

那天晚上喬治對(duì)阿梅莉亞格外殷勤，甚至第二天早晨在去他父親銀行的路上順道又去見(jiàn)了她一面。那天晚些時(shí)候，因?yàn)榍耙惶炖蠆W斯本先生對(duì)她態(tài)度冷淡，憂心忡忡的阿梅莉亞又給喬治寫(xiě)了一封長(zhǎng)信——四頁(yè)紙上交織著愛(ài)與恐懼、希望與擔(dān)憂。

No more than four months later, Mr Osborne's words to his son were proved true. Old John Sedley was a ruined man. He had judged badly and lost money, and could not recover from his mistakes. The final disaster struck when Napoleon escaped from the island of Elba and invaded France. The money market crashed, taking with it what remained of Mr Sedley's fortune. The family had to leave their fine home in Russell Square, and all the contents of the house were put up for sale.

過(guò)了不到四個(gè)月，奧斯本先生對(duì)他兒子說(shuō)的話應(yīng)驗(yàn)了。老約翰·塞德利破產(chǎn)了。他判斷失誤，賠了錢(qián)，而且無(wú)法從失誤中恢復(fù)過(guò)來(lái)。最后，災(zāi)難性的打擊降臨：拿破侖逃離厄爾巴島，進(jìn)攻法國(guó)。貨幣市場(chǎng)崩潰了，塞德利先生余下的財(cái)產(chǎn)變得一文不值。他們一家人只好搬出拉塞爾廣場(chǎng)的好宅子，并把宅子里所有的物品都拿出來(lái)拍賣(mài)。

About a month after Becky had set up home with Rawdon, she expressed a wish to see Amelia again. Money being short in the Crawleys' little home, and with no sign of forgiveness from Miss Crawley, Rawdon agreed that it would be good to see George Osborne again. "I'd like to play a few more games of cards with him. He'd be what I call useful just now," he said, with his loud soldier's laugh. Rawdon Crawley had no intention of cheating George Osborne, of course; it was just rather convenient to gamble with someone less skilful than himself.

貝姬和羅頓安家落戶后一個(gè)月左右，她表達(dá)了想再見(jiàn)到阿梅莉亞的愿望?？藙诶驄D小家庭正資金短缺，克勞利小姐又沒(méi)有原諒他們的跡象，羅頓也認(rèn)為再見(jiàn)見(jiàn)喬治·奧斯本是件好事。“我想再和他多玩幾把牌。按我的說(shuō)法，現(xiàn)在就是他‘派上 用場(chǎng) ’的時(shí)候了。”他一邊說(shuō)著，一邊以軍人的大嗓門(mén)笑了起來(lái)。當(dāng)然，羅頓·克勞利沒(méi)打算欺詐喬治·奧斯本，只不過(guò)和牌技不如自己的人賭博可省事多了。

On the day of the sale, who should visit the house in Russell Square but our old friends, Captain and Mrs Rawdon Crawley? Rebecca had seen her dear friend Amelia a few times since she had been at Miss Crawley's house. Amelia and George Osborne visited her, and Rawdon invited George several times to little gambling parties, which George always accepted, happy to lose money to the son of a baronet and his high-society friends.

拍賣(mài)那天，除了我們的老朋友克勞利上尉夫婦，誰(shuí)還會(huì)到拉塞爾廣場(chǎng)的這座宅子拜訪呢？自從到克勞利小姐家之后，麗貝卡見(jiàn)過(guò)她親愛(ài)的朋友阿梅莉亞幾次。阿梅莉亞和喬治·奧斯本拜訪過(guò)她，羅頓也幾次邀請(qǐng)喬治參加小型賭博聚會(huì)。喬治每次都接受邀請(qǐng)，樂(lè)意輸錢(qián)給這位準(zhǔn)男爵的兒子和他上流社會(huì)的朋友們。

When they arrived in Russell Square, Rebecca was shocked to see a sale at the house where she had once been treated so kindly. However, this did not stop her from trying to buy Amelia's piano, though it is not clear why she wanted it. Perhaps her own piano had been sold in order to pay the rent.

他們到達(dá)拉塞爾廣場(chǎng)時(shí)，麗貝卡震驚地發(fā)現(xiàn)，她曾經(jīng)受到極好招待的地方正在舉行拍賣(mài)。然而，這并不妨礙她試圖買(mǎi)下阿梅莉亞的鋼琴，雖然我們并不清楚她想要這架鋼琴的原因。也許是她為了付房租已經(jīng)把自己的鋼琴拿去賣(mài)掉了。

The news of Sedley's ruin was announced in the newspaper, and soon became widely known. The family moved to a little house in an unfashionable street. Mr Sedley's former friends now avoided him, but what really hurt him was that his most bitter, most unforgiving enemy was John Osborne, George's father, whom Sedley had helped many years before, when Osborne was starting his own business.

塞德利先生破產(chǎn)的消息在報(bào)紙上公布后，很快便街知巷聞。他們一家人搬到了一條老街上的一棟小房子里。塞德利先生以前的朋友現(xiàn)在對(duì)他避而不見(jiàn)，但真正讓他傷心的是，對(duì)他最刻薄、最無(wú)情的敵人是約翰·奧斯本——喬治的父親。許多年前奧斯本生意剛起步的時(shí)候，塞德利先生曾幫助過(guò)他。

But the piano was finally sold to Captain Dobbin, who knew how much Amelia loved her piano and who paid a great deal more for it than the piano was worth. Rebecca and Rawdon looked for him after the sale, hoping to find out more about what had caused the Sedleys' ruin, but he had already left.

但是鋼琴最終賣(mài)給了多賓上尉。他知道阿梅莉亞多么喜愛(ài)自己的鋼琴，于是出了高出鋼琴價(jià)值很多的價(jià)錢(qián)把它買(mǎi)了下來(lái)。拍賣(mài)結(jié)束后，麗貝卡和羅頓去找多賓，希望能從他那里打聽(tīng)出更多塞德利家破產(chǎn)的內(nèi)幕，不過(guò)那時(shí)他已經(jīng)離開(kāi)了。

"I'm sorry Mr Sedley has had such bad luck," Becky said as they got back into their carriage. "He was a very kind old man."

“很遺憾，塞德利先生運(yùn)氣這么差。”他們回到馬車(chē)上時(shí)，貝姬說(shuō)，“他是位很善良的老人。”

"Oh, it happens all the time with businessmen, you know," Rawdon said. "I don't suppose Osborne will marry your pretty little friend now. How upset she'll be, hey, Becky?"

“噢，生意人總碰到這種事，你知道的。”羅頓說(shuō)，“我猜奧斯本現(xiàn)在不會(huì)娶你那個(gè)漂亮的小朋友了。她得多難過(guò)啊，是吧，貝姬？”

"Oh, I expect she'll recover," Becky said with a smile, and they drove on and talked about something else.

“噢，我知道她會(huì)挺過(guò)來(lái)的。”貝姬微笑著說(shuō)。他們繼續(xù)前進(jìn)，談起了其他事。

As for John Sedley, he spoke of the Osbornes with bitterness and anger, and swore that nothing on earth would persuade him to allow his daughter to marry John Osborne's son. He ordered Amelia to put George Osborne from her mind and to return all his gifts and letters. The poor girl tried to obey him, and put together a few of George's little gifts. She took out his letters and read them all again, but how could she return them? How could she put George from her mind? And she put the letters back in their secret place, to read later, over and over again.

至于約翰·塞德利先生，他一提到奧斯本家就滿腔怨憤，發(fā)誓無(wú)論如何都不會(huì)同意把女兒嫁給約翰·奧斯本的兒子。他命令阿梅莉亞忘掉喬治·奧斯本，歸還他所有的禮物和來(lái)信?？蓱z的姑娘本想遵從父親的話，把喬治送的一些小禮物收攏起來(lái)。她拿出他的信，又從頭到尾讀了一遍，可是她怎么能歸還這些信呢？她怎么可能忘掉喬治呢？她把信放回隱藏的地方，以后好再拿出來(lái)一遍又一遍地讀。

In a short, cruel letter, Mr Osborne informed Amelia that her father's behaviour had been so shameful that there could be no marriage between her and his son. Amelia accepted the news almost as if she had been expecting it. For some time, she had suspected that George no longer loved her, although in her heart she wanted to go on believing that he did. She showed little emotion outwardly, but alone in her little room in the new house, that gentle heart quietly died a little more each day.

在一封冷酷的短信里，奧斯本先生通知阿梅莉亞，她父親的行為如此可恥，她和他兒子的婚事是不可能的了。阿梅莉亞接受了這個(gè)消息，就好像這完全在她預(yù)料之中一樣。一段時(shí)間以來(lái)，她一直在懷疑喬治已經(jīng)不愛(ài)她了，盡管她內(nèi)心還希望繼續(xù)相信他的愛(ài)。她沒(méi)怎么流露出情緒，但當(dāng)她獨(dú)自待在新家自己的小房間里時(shí)，她那顆溫柔的心一天天地默默枯萎了。

"She -- she's sent me back some things I gave her," he said, and he showed Dobbin the letter Amelia had sent.

“她——她把我送她的一些東西還回來(lái)了。”他說(shuō)，還讓多賓看阿梅莉亞寫(xiě)來(lái)的信。

Meanwhile, Napoleon was marching into Paris, and the British Army, including of course the regiment in which George and Dobbin served, was ordered abroad to join the fighting.

與此同時(shí)，拿破侖正進(jìn)軍巴黎。英軍，當(dāng)然包括喬治和多賓服役的軍團(tuán)在內(nèi)，接令開(kāi)拔，去國(guó)外作戰(zhàn)。

MY FATHER HAS ordered me to return these presents to you, and this is the last time I may write to you. I am sure you are as unhappy as I am that we cannot marry, and I do not blame you in any way. I am sure you had nothing to do with the cruel things which Mr Osborne has said. Goodbye. I pray that I may be strong enough to bear this. I shall often play upon the piano -- your piano. It was so kind of you to send it. Amelia

我父親命令我把這些禮物歸還給你，這可能也是我最后一次給你寫(xiě)信了。我相信，我們結(jié)不成婚，你和我一樣難過(guò)，我不會(huì)怪你的。我相信，奧斯本先生說(shuō)的那些薄情的話跟你一點(diǎn)兒關(guān)系都沒(méi)有。永別了。我祈禱我能堅(jiān)強(qiáng)地承受這一切。我會(huì)經(jīng)常彈那架鋼琴——你的鋼琴。你把它送來(lái)真是太好心了。阿梅莉亞

When Dobbin heard the news, his first thought was for Amelia, knowing how this would add to her sorrows. George, however, felt nothing but excitement. He had just been made a captain, and he was enjoying trying on his fine new uniform. That evening he went to see his father, who told him again that there could be no marriage with Amelia -- and gave George a large amount of money to pay for his new clothes. Money was always useful to George, and he took it without many words. On the way back from his father's house, he passed the Sedleys" old home, now closed up. Where were the Sedleys now? The thought of their ruin made George sad.

多賓聽(tīng)到這個(gè)消息時(shí)，他最先想到的是阿梅莉亞，知道這個(gè)消息會(huì)讓她更加傷心。而喬治只是興奮不已。他剛剛晉升為上尉，還沉浸在試穿精美新制服的喜悅之中。當(dāng)晚他去見(jiàn)他父親，奧斯本先生再次向他申明他和阿梅莉亞不能結(jié)婚，還給了他一大筆錢(qián)去買(mǎi)新衣服。錢(qián)對(duì)于喬治來(lái)說(shuō)總是用處多多，他沒(méi)說(shuō)什么就收下了。從父親家返回時(shí)，他經(jīng)過(guò)塞德利家的老宅子——現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)關(guān)閉了。他們一家人現(xiàn)在在哪里呢？想到他們破產(chǎn)了，喬治不免悲傷。

Three days later, Dobbin found George looking miserable.

三天后，多賓發(fā)現(xiàn)喬治悶悶不樂(lè)的。

"Where are they?" he asked, ashamed that he had made no effort to find Amelia. "There's no address in the letter."

“他們現(xiàn)在在哪里？”他問(wèn)，心里很羞愧，因?yàn)樽约簤焊鶝](méi)去找過(guò)阿梅莉亞。“這封信里沒(méi)有地址。”

Dobbin knew where they were. Had he not sent the piano there? In fact, he had visited Mrs Sedley and Amelia the day before, and been shocked by Amelia's pale face and lifeless eyes. It was he who had brought the packet back for George.

多賓知道他們的住處。不是他把鋼琴送去的嗎？實(shí)際上，他前一天才去拜訪過(guò)塞德利夫人和阿梅莉亞。阿梅莉亞蒼白的面孔和毫無(wú)生氣的眼睛讓他震驚。正是他把包裹帶回給喬治的。

Four hours after the talk between Dobbin and Osborne, the Sedleys' little servant girl came into Amelia's room. As usual, Amelia was sitting reading her old love letters from George.

多賓和奧斯本談話后四個(gè)小時(shí)，塞德利家的年輕女仆走進(jìn)阿梅莉亞的房間。和往常一樣，阿梅莉亞正坐著讀喬治寫(xiě)給她的舊情書(shū)。

"George, she's dying," William Dobbin said.

“喬治，她快死了。”威廉·多賓回答。

"How is she? How did she look?" asked George.

“她現(xiàn)在怎么樣？她看起來(lái)如何？”喬治問(wèn)。

Dobbin was very soft-hearted. The idea of Amelia so lonely and unhappy made him break out into a passion of praise for her. George listened, remembering Amelia's sweetness, her unquestioning love for him, and thought about what he had lost.

多賓心腸很軟。想到阿梅莉亞那么孤獨(dú)，那么傷心，他熱情洋溢地說(shuō)了一大堆贊美她的話。喬治聽(tīng)著，回憶起阿梅莉亞的柔情、她對(duì)他無(wú)條件的愛(ài)，他意識(shí)到自己究竟失去了什么。

I must see you. Dearest Emmy -- dearest wife, come to me.

我必須見(jiàn)你。最親愛(ài)的埃米——最親愛(ài)的妻子，來(lái)我身邊吧。

"Miss Emmy," said the girl. "There's someone -- look, here's a message." She gave her a letter, which Amelia opened and read.

“埃米小姐。”女孩說(shuō)，“有人——看，這兒有一封信。”她遞給她一封信，阿梅莉亞打開(kāi)讀了起來(lái)。

George and her mother were outside, waiting until she had read the letter, and a minute later the door was thrown open.

喬治和她的母親在房門(mén)外，等她把信看完。一分鐘后，門(mén)猛地打開(kāi)了。

A harder heart than George's would have melted at the sight of that sweet face, that flood of despairing tears as Amelia wept over his hand, kissing it again and again. Full of emotion at the sight of so grateful and devoted a slave, George swore to himself that he would make her happy, no matter what happened.

心腸比喬治還硬的人若是看到那張可愛(ài)的臉蛋、那決堤而下的絕望淚水，他的心也會(huì)被融化掉的。阿梅莉亞一遍遍親吻喬治的手，眼淚淌在他的手上。喬治望著這個(gè)感激涕零又滿懷深情的奴隸，心中百感交集。他暗暗發(fā)誓，無(wú)論發(fā)生什么都要讓她幸福。

Dobbin, though sad at heart, was content. He believed Amelia would only be happy if she married George, and so he was determined to make that happen. He urged George to speak to his father, and to persuade him to agree to the marriage.

多賓雖然暗自悲傷，但卻心滿意足。他認(rèn)為阿梅莉亞只有嫁給喬治才會(huì)快樂(lè)，所以他下定決心要促成此事。他催促喬治和他父親談?wù)劊瑒袼膺@門(mén)親事。

But that fierce old gentleman had other plans, and had his eye on an extremely wealthy young lady as a bride for his son.

可那位脾氣暴躁的老紳士有別的打算，他為兒子相中了一位極其富有的年輕女士作新娘。

Overnight, Amelia became her old self again, bright-eyed and cheerful, full of smiles and laughter, and eagerly waiting for George's next visit. She smiled at Captain Dobbin, who usually came with George, but apart from that she did not notice him.

一夜之間，阿梅莉亞又恢復(fù)了舊時(shí)的模樣，雙目閃亮，神采奕奕，滿面笑容，熱切地盼望著喬治下次來(lái)訪。她朝多賓上尉微笑，他通常和喬治一起來(lái)拜訪。但除此之外，她沒(méi)有注意過(guò)他。

"George!" said Jane Osborne, glancing in alarm at their father.

“喬治！”簡(jiǎn)·奧斯本說(shuō)，神色慌張地瞥了他們的父親一眼。

"Stop, sir. You don't use the word 'dare' to a captain in the British Army," said George.

“住口，先生。您不能對(duì)一名英軍上尉使用‘竟敢’這個(gè)詞。”喬治說(shuō)。

The storm broke one night at dinner. The name of Amelia Sedley, forbidden by the father, was spoken by the son. "She's the best, the gentlest, the sweetest girl in England," said George.

一天晚飯時(shí)，爭(zhēng)吵爆發(fā)了。父親嚴(yán)禁提及的名字——阿梅莉亞·塞德利，從兒子的口中冒了出來(lái)。“她是英格蘭最優(yōu)秀、最溫柔、最可愛(ài)的女孩子。”喬治說(shuō)。

But George did not lack courage, and stared back at his father coolly. As soon as they could, his sisters hurried away to the drawing-room, leaving father and son to their battle.

可是喬治不乏勇氣，冷冷地回瞪他的父親。他的姐妹一抓到機(jī)會(huì)就立刻離開(kāi)，匆匆去了客廳，留下父子倆對(duì)戰(zhàn)。

"I shall say what I like to my son, sir. I can cut him off with a penny if I like. I can make him a beggar if I like. I will say what I like," his father said. "No gentleman, not even a fine captain in the British Army, has the right to insult his father."

“我樂(lè)意對(duì)我兒子說(shuō)什么就說(shuō)什么，先生。我樂(lè)意不給他一分錢(qián)就不給。我樂(lè)意讓他當(dāng)乞丐就讓他當(dāng)。我想怎么說(shuō)就怎么 說(shuō)。”他父親說(shuō)，“任何一位紳士，即便是一名出色的英軍上尉，也無(wú)權(quán)侮辱自己的父親。”

"How dare you, sir, mention that person's name in my house?" demanded old Mr Osborne, his face purple with fury.

“先生，你竟敢在我的屋子里提那個(gè)人的名字？”老奧斯本先生質(zhì)問(wèn)道，氣得臉色發(fā)紫。

"That name is forbidden in this house!" screamed his father.

“在這個(gè)家里不準(zhǔn)提那個(gè)名字！”他的父親大吼。

"I never insulted you, sir," George said. "But I shall defend Miss Sedley and her name wherever I go."

“我從沒(méi)侮辱過(guò)您，先生。”喬治說(shuō)，“但是無(wú)論在哪里，我都會(huì)維護(hù)塞德利小姐和她的名聲。”

"Who told me to love her?" demanded George. "I might have chosen elsewhere, but I obeyed you. And now that her heart is mine, you order me to throw it away, to punish her for the faults of other people. Well, sir, I won't do it!"

“是誰(shuí)讓我愛(ài)她的？”喬治追問(wèn)，“我本可以選擇其他人，但是我遵從了您的意愿。如今她一顆心都在我身上，您又命令我拋棄她，就為了別人的錯(cuò)誤而懲罰她。哼，先生，我不會(huì)這么干！”

"I won't have this damned nonsense, sir. If you choose to throw away eight thousand pounds a year, you may do it, but by God you will walk out of this house, sir, and not come back."

“我才不聽(tīng)你這套狗屁話，先生。你要選擇扔掉一年八千英鎊，可以，但老天在上，你就滾出這個(gè)家，先生，再也別回來(lái)了。”

An hour later in the army camp George, looking very pale, went to find Dobbin. "I've done it," he said.

一小時(shí)后，軍營(yíng)里，面色蒼白的喬治找到多賓。“我做了。”他說(shuō)。

"Done what?" asked Dobbin.

“做什么了？”多賓問(wèn)。

George told him. "And I'll marry Amelia tomorrow," he said. "I love her more every day, Dobbin."

喬治給他講了來(lái)龍去脈。“我明天就和阿梅莉亞結(jié)婚。”他說(shuō)，“我一天比一天更愛(ài)她了，多賓。”

And so, quietly and secretly, George Osborne and Amelia Sedley were married, to the sound of rain beating down on the church roof, and Mrs Sedley crying quietly. Captain Dobbin arranged the wedding, and as old Mr Sedley refused to have anything to do with it, Amelia's brother Joseph came to give away the bride.

喬治·奧斯本和阿梅莉亞·塞德利就這樣靜悄悄地秘密結(jié)婚了。那天，雨水打在教堂的屋頂上，塞德利夫人默默地流下眼淚。多賓上尉安排了婚禮。由于老塞德利先生拒絕參與此事，只好由阿梅莉亞的哥哥約瑟夫前來(lái)，把新娘交給新郎。

And with that, Mr Osborne shouted for a servant and ordered him to call a carriage for Captain Osborne.

話說(shuō)完，奧斯本先生大聲喊仆人，下令給奧斯本上尉叫一輛馬車(chē)。

When the ceremony was over and the kissing and the hand-shaking were all done, the happy couple drove away in Joseph's carriage. Captain Dobbin stood outside the church and watched them go. Never in his life had he felt so miserable and lonely. Then he turned and walked away, through the rain.

等儀式結(jié)束，親吻、握手完畢，一對(duì)快樂(lè)的新人駕著約瑟夫的馬車(chē)走了。多賓上尉站在教堂外看著他們離去。他從未覺(jué)得如此痛苦，如此孤獨(dú)。他轉(zhuǎn)身冒雨離去。