書蟲6級《名利場》第五章: 在布魯塞爾等待戰(zhàn)爭

They first met the Crawleys again riding in the park. Rebecca was surrounded by admirers, and when Amelia saw her dear friend, her heart sank. The sun on that clear May day suddenly seemed to shine less brightly.

他們再一次見到克勞利夫婦是在公園騎馬游玩時。麗貝卡被愛慕者們包圍著，阿梅莉亞一看到她這位親愛的朋友，心情就變得沉重起來。忽然間，五月晴朗的陽光也似乎不那么明亮了。

Amelia was very happy for her first two weeks in Brussels. She was young and sweet-natured, and George's army friends thought she was "a pretty little thing". Everybody liked her and George himself was full of kind attention to his wife, buying her little gifts, and taking her out every night to a party or the opera.

初到布魯塞爾的頭兩個星期，阿梅莉亞非常開心。她年輕，性情溫柔，喬治的戰(zhàn)友們都認為她是個“漂亮的小東西”。大家都喜歡她，喬治對妻子也極盡溫柔體貼，給她買小禮物，每晚都帶她參加聚會或者去劇院看戲。

Joseph, who had accompanied his sister to Brussels, was also enjoying himself. He was not a soldier, but since army men were the most popular in town, he grew a very fine military moustache, in order to look as much like an army officer as possible.

約瑟夫陪妹妹來到布魯塞爾，也玩得很盡興。他不是軍人，但因為軍人在城里最受歡迎，他蓄起了很精致的軍人胡子，好讓自己看上去盡可能像個軍官。

Napoleon Bonaparte would be defeated, people said, almost without a struggle. Weren't the armies of Europe and the great Duke of Wellington lined up against him? Everyone had such perfect confidence in the result of the battle that the atmosphere in Brussels was one of pleasure and enjoyment. The city was full of fashionable English people, riding in the park, going to the opera, dancing and gambling the nights away.

人們說，拿破侖·波拿巴會被打敗，這基本上是手到擒來之事。歐洲聯(lián)軍在偉大的威靈頓公爵的指揮下不正嚴陣以待嗎？大家對這場戰(zhàn)役的結果充滿信心，因而布魯塞爾盡是一片享樂與愉悅的氣氛。城里到處都是時髦的英國人，在公園里騎馬游玩，去劇院看戲，夜夜跳舞、賭博，消磨時光。

"Not yet," said George. "But he will. And I've some private fortune through my mother. What about your aunt?"

“還沒有。”喬治說，“但是他會的。我從母親那里得到一些私財。你姑姑呢？”

"Good to see you, Crawley," he said. "How are you?"

“見到你真高興，克勞利。”他說，“你怎么樣？”

"All right, my boy," said Rawdon. "How's the business with your father? Has he given in?"

“還好，我的兄弟。”羅頓說，“和你父親的事怎么樣了？他讓步了嗎？”

But George was delighted, riding over to shake Rawdon warmly by the hand.

但喬治欣喜地驅馬上前，熱情地與羅頓握手。

"Sent me twenty pounds, damned old woman. When shall we have a game, eh? Come round on Tuesday, why not?"

“給了我二十英鎊，這個可惡的老女人。我們什么時候玩一局，呃？星期二過來，怎么樣？”

The Crawleys were at the opera that night as well. Becky was sitting in General Tufto's box, clearly a great favourite with the General, but as soon as she saw Amelia, she hurried round to see her. Such affectionate kisses! How was her dearest, best little Amelia? How pretty she was looking! And here was Mr Jos too, looking so well, and such a fine moustache! Becky smiled, and talked, and laughed, busily spreading charm all around her.

那天晚上克勞利夫婦也在劇院。貝姬坐在塔夫脫將軍的包廂里，顯然格外受到將軍的喜愛。但她一看見阿梅莉亞，就趕過來見她。這一串深情的吻??！她最好最親愛的小阿梅莉亞怎么樣？她看起來多漂亮??！喬斯先生也在啊，氣色這么好，胡子這么漂亮！貝姬滿面笑容，說說笑笑，忙著向周圍的人施展魅力。

"What a slippery little snake that woman is!" honest old Dobbin murmured to George when Becky had left. "She's acting all the time, didn't you see, George?"

“那個女人真是條狡猾的小蛇??！”貝姬離開后，忠厚年長的多賓向喬治低語。“她一直在裝模作樣，你沒看出來嗎，喬治？”

"When are you going to give up gambling, George?" he said.

“你打算什么時候戒賭啊，喬治？”他說。

"When are you going to give up criticizing me?" was the reply. "Rawdon doesn't cheat, you know. I'll start winning some games soon -- it all balances out in the end."

“你打算什么時候不再批評我?。?rdquo;喬治回答，“羅頓不使詐，你知道的。我就要開始贏錢了——最后輸贏會相抵的。”

George's gambling was the least of Amelia's worries. The more brilliantly Rebecca shone in society, the more shy and awkward Amelia became. The more time George spent in Rebecca's company, the more miserable and lonely Amelia became. But she said nothing, and suffered in secret.

喬治賭博遠不是阿梅莉亞最擔心的事。麗貝卡在社交圈里越是大放光彩，阿梅莉亞就變得越發(fā)靦腆，越發(fā)緊張不安。喬治和麗貝卡相處的時間越長，阿梅莉亞就覺得越發(fā)痛苦、孤獨。但是她什么都沒說，默默忍受著這一切。

Dobbin understood enough about George, however, to become anxious after a few days, when he saw how often George was playing cards with Rawdon Crawley, and losing.

不過多賓對喬治的了解已經(jīng)足夠深了。過了幾天，他見喬治頻頻和羅頓·克勞利打牌輸錢，就有些著急了。

"But I don't think Crawley could pay if he lost," Dobbin said.

“可是我覺得如果克勞利輸了，他是不會給錢的。”多賓說。

"Acting? Nonsense! She's the nicest little woman in England," George replied. "You don't understand women, Dobbin."

“裝模作樣？胡說！她是全英格蘭最善良的小婦人了。”喬治回答，“你不了解女人，多賓。”

Good advice is never taken, and George continued to visit the Crawleys' hotel to play cards with Captain Crawley, and to attend the little dinners given by Mrs Crawley, whose green eyes always lit up when George came into the room -- or so George liked to believe. In fact, he was convinced that Becky was in love with him, unable to resist such a handsome, charming fellow as himself. Meanwhile, Rawdon continued to beat him at cards.

忠言總是不被采納，喬治繼續(xù)去克勞利夫婦下榻的旅館，和克勞利上尉打牌，參加克勞利夫人舉辦的小型晚宴。每次喬治一走進房間，克勞利夫人的綠眼睛就發(fā)亮——至少喬治是這么認為的。事實上，他堅信貝姬愛上了他，因為她無法抗拒像他這樣英俊迷人的男士。與此同時，羅頓繼續(xù)在牌局上贏他的錢。

"I'll send my own dressmaker to you tomorrow," she said. "And my dear," she went on, "do stop George from gambling. He and Rawdon play cards every night, and Rawdon will win every penny from him if he does not take care. Why don't you stop him, you careless girl? Oh, look, here comes your darling husband now."

“明天我派自己的裁縫去你那里。”她說。“還有啊，親愛的，”她繼續(xù)說，“別讓喬治再賭下去了。他和羅頓每晚玩牌，要是他不多加小心的話，他會輸個精光的。你怎么不阻止他呢，你這個粗心的姑娘？啊，瞧，你親愛的丈夫過來了。”

Amelia's appearance at the ball was a failure; Mrs Crawley's appearance, however, was a brilliant success. She arrived very late. Her eyes sparkled with life, her dress was perfection. At once there was a crowd of admirers around her, begging for a dance.

阿梅莉亞在舞會的現(xiàn)身是個失敗，然而，克勞利夫人的現(xiàn)身卻大獲成功。她很晚才到。她的雙眸神采奕奕，她的服飾完美至極。頃刻之間就有一群仰慕者圍攏過來，求她賜舞一曲。

In June there was a grand ball, to which George and Amelia, Dobbin, and the Crawleys were all invited. After generously buying his wife a new dress and some ornaments, George took her to the ball, where she did not know anyone, put her on a chair and left her there. She was free to amuse herself as she liked, but no one came to disturb her except Dobbin.

六月里舉行了一場盛大舞會，喬治、阿梅莉亞、多賓和克勞利夫婦都接到了邀請。喬治十分慷慨地給妻子買了一件新裙子和一些佩飾，然后帶著她出席舞會。她在那里一個人都不認識，喬治安排她坐下就走開了。她可以毫無拘束地娛樂一番，但是除了多賓以外沒有人理睬她。

But Rebecca went straight to where poor little Amelia was sitting, and in the kindest possible way, began to criticize Amelia's dress, her hair, and her shoes.

但是麗貝卡徑直走到可憐的阿梅莉亞坐的地方，用盡可能友善的方式，挑剔起阿梅莉亞的衣著、發(fā)式還有鞋子。

"Where have you been, you wicked man?" she said. "Here is Emmy crying her eyes out for you. Have you come to fetch me for our dance?"

“你去哪兒了，你這個討厭的家伙？”她說，“埃米在這兒為你痛哭流涕。你是過來請我去跳舞的嗎？”

She turned to smile at George, who was approaching them.

她轉頭朝著走近的喬治微笑。

At last George came back -- for Rebecca's shawl and flowers. He took them away, but when he gave them back to their owner, there was a note, rolled up like a tiny snake among the flowers. Rebecca put out her hand to take them, and it was clear from her eyes that she knew what she would find there. She had been used to such notes from her early years. She gave him her hand and one of her quick, knowing glances, and George bowed over her hand, his heart hammering with the excitement of victory.

最后，喬治終于回來了——來拿麗貝卡的披肩和花。他把它們?nèi)∽撸斔麑⑵浣贿€原主時，里面多了一張字條，像小蛇似的卷起來藏在花束中。麗貝卡伸手接過，眼神里明白無誤地表露出，她知道那里面是什么。多年以前她就已經(jīng)習慣了這樣的字條。她向他伸出一只手，迅速遞了個心領神會的眼色，喬治躬身吻她的手，一顆心因為行動成功而激動地怦怦狂跳。

And she left her shawl and her flowers by Amelia's side, and went away to dance with George. Only women know how to be so cruel. There is a poison on their sharp little knives which hurts far more than a man's blunter weapon.

她把披肩和花留在阿梅莉亞身邊，然后和喬治去跳舞了。只有女人才會這么殘忍，她們鋒利小刀上的毒藥傷起人來可比男人們的鈍器厲害多了。

Amelia sat alone with her sad thoughts in her corner, unnoticed except when Rawdon came to offer a few words of clumsy conversation, and when Dobbin brought her food and drink, and sat with her for a time.

阿梅莉亞獨自一人坐在角落里，黯然神傷。除了羅頓過來笨嘴拙舌地和她說了幾句，多賓取來飲料點心陪她坐了一會兒之外，沒有人理會她。

Amelia saw the glance, and suddenly it was too much.

阿梅莉亞看到了那個眼色，一下子承受不住了。

"William," she said to Dobbin, who was near her, "you've always been kind to me -- I'm -- I'm not well. Take me home."

“威廉，”她對身邊的多賓說，“你一向對我很好——我——我不太舒服。送我回家吧。”

George, meanwhile, wild with excitement, had been gambling and had then gone to spend his winnings on drink. Dobbin found him with a glass in his hand, and red in the face.

與此同時，激動不已的喬治又賭上了，把贏來的錢拿去喝酒。多賓找到他的時候，他手里拿著一杯酒，臉色通紅。

"Have a drink, old boy," George said. "Stop being so serious."

“喝一杯吧，老伙計。”喬治說，“別這么一本正經(jīng)的。”

He went away with her quickly. The streets seemed noisier and more crowded than usual, but the hotel was not far, and they soon reached it. Amelia went straight to bed.

他連忙陪著她離開。街上似乎比往常更喧鬧擁擠，不過旅館離得不遠，他們不久就到了。阿梅莉亞徑直上床休息。

"Come away, George," Dobbin said quietly. "Don't drink."

“走吧，喬治。”多賓輕聲說，“別喝了。”

Dobbin came close to George and whispered in his ear. At once George banged his glass down on the table and, taking his friend's arm, walked quickly away with him. "The enemy has advanced," Dobbin had said. "The fighting has already begun. Come away -- we march in three hours."

多賓湊近喬治耳邊低語幾句。喬治立刻把杯子重重往桌子上一摔，抓住他朋友的手臂，和他一道匆匆離開了。多賓說的是：“敵人向前推進了，戰(zhàn)斗已經(jīng)開始。走吧——我們?nèi)齻€小時后出發(fā)。”

"Hallo, Dob! Come and drink, Dob!" George called out.

“嗨，多布！來喝一杯，多布！”喬治大叫。

Back in his hotel, George thought about a thousand things -- his past life -- his chances in war -- his wife -- the child, perhaps, whom he might never see. Oh, how he wished that note to Becky had never been written, and that he could say goodbye without guilt to the gentle girl whose love he had valued so little!

回到旅館，喬治思緒萬千——過去的生活——戰(zhàn)場上的命運——他的妻子——他的孩子，也許，他沒有機會見到了。唉，他多希望自己沒給貝姬寫過那張字條，那么他就可以毫無愧疚地與他溫柔的妻子道別了。他之前是多么不珍惜她的愛啊！

He thought over his short married life. He had wasted all his money. Why had he been so wild and careless? If he was killed, what would be left for her? He was not good enough for her. Poor Emmy. He should never have married her. Why hadn't he obeyed his father, who had always been so generous to him?

他仔細想想自己短暫的婚姻生活。他把所有的錢都花光了。自己為什么這么毫無顧忌、粗心大意呢？他要是死了，還能給她留下什么？他配不上她啊，可憐的埃米。他根本就不該娶她。為什么當初不聽父親的話呢？父親對他向來慷慨大方。

Full of selfish regret, he sat down and wrote a last letter to his father. By the time he had finished, it was almost day. He went into the bedroom and looked down at Amelia's sweet, pale face. How pure and innocent she was, and how badly he had treated her! How selfish he was! Sick with shame, he watched the sleeping girl, then bent down to kiss that pale cheek.

充滿了對自己自私的懊悔之情，他坐下來給父親寫了一封告別信。信寫完的時候，天快亮了。他走進臥室，低頭俯視阿梅莉亞甜美卻蒼白的面孔。她是多么天真純潔，而自己待她多么薄情?。∷媸翘运搅?！遭受著羞愧之情煎熬的他，望著熟睡中的姑娘，俯下身去吻她蒼白的臉頰。

Two pretty little arms closed gently round his neck. "I am awake, George," the poor girl said, her eyes full of tears.

兩只小胳膊溫柔地摟住了他的脖子。“我醒著呢，喬治。”可憐的姑娘說，雙眼滿含淚水。

And at that moment outside the window the bugles sounded, and the drums began to beat. The city was waking up to war.

就在那時，窗外響起軍號聲和陣陣鼓聲。這座城市意識到了戰(zhàn)爭的到來。

In another hotel the Crawleys were also saying their goodbyes. Rawdon truly loved Becky and had known real happiness in his marriage. He was anxious for the future, and much more affected by the parting than his brave little wife who, having wisely decided to be calm and sensible, tried to laugh away his fears.

另一家旅館里，克勞利夫婦也在道別。羅頓真心愛著貝姬，在婚姻生活中感受到了真正的幸福。他對未來感到焦慮，分離對他的觸動很深。這可比不上他那勇敢的小妻子，她明智地決定要從容務實，想用笑容驅除他的恐懼。

And Rawdon Crawley, who had seldom thought about anyone but himself until these last few months, wrote down a list of all the things Rebecca could sell if he was killed. Then he put on his oldest uniform, leaving the best for Rebecca to sell, and before he left, he picked her up in his arms and held her close to his heart. His eyes were clouded, as he put her down and left her.

幾個月以前，羅頓·克勞利只會為自己考慮，極少為他人打算。而現(xiàn)在他列了一張單子，如果他陣亡，麗貝卡可以把單子上的東西都賣掉。然后，他穿上最舊的制服，把最好的留給麗貝卡變賣。在離開之前，他把她抱起，緊緊地貼在胸前。他把她放下來并離開她時，他的眼睛模糊了。

Becky became serious at once. "Dearest love," she said softly, "do you suppose I feel nothing?" She quickly wiped her eyes, then smiled lovingly at her husband.

貝姬立刻嚴肅起來。“我最親愛的愛人，”她溫柔地說，“你以為我無動于衷嗎？”她迅速地擦了擦眼睛，又朝丈夫深情地笑了。

"It's no laughing matter, Mrs Crawley," her husband said, sounding hurt. "I'm a big man, easy to shoot at. And if I drop, I want to be sure you'll be all right."

“這可不是開玩笑的，克勞利夫人。”她丈夫傷心地說，“我身材高大，是個活靶子。如果我倒下了，我想確保你一切都好。”

"Now, let's see," said Rawdon, comforted. "I've had some luck at the card-tables, and here's two hundred and thirty pounds. I won't take my horses -- I'll ride one of the General's. If I'm hit, you can sell them -- should get a good price for them."

“好了，讓我們來看看。”羅頓說，心里舒暢了，“我打牌手氣還不錯，這里有二百三十英鎊。馬我也不帶走了——我騎將軍的馬。要是我被打死了，你就把它們賣了——應該能賣個好價錢。”

Rebecca waved goodbye to him from the window, and stood there for a moment looking out after he was gone. The sun was just rising as she turned away from the window, and saw on a table her flowers from the ball. She picked them up, and saw the little note pushed in between them. With a smile, she took the note out and locked it away in her little writing desk. Then she put the flowers in water, went to bed, and slept deeply.

麗貝卡在窗前向他揮手告別，等他離開后，她還待在原地向外望了一會兒。太陽剛剛升起，她轉身離開窗前，看到桌上放著那束從舞會上帶回的花。她拿起花，看見塞在里面的小字條。她微笑著把它取出來，鎖進小寫字臺里，然后把花放進水中，上了床，沉沉睡去。

Joseph Sedley, of course, was not a soldier and had no goodbyes to say. However, he was disturbed from his sleep before daybreak by Captain Dobbin, who insisted on shaking hands with him.

當然，約瑟夫·塞德利不是軍人，也不用和誰道別。但是，天明前他就被多賓上尉從睡夢中吵醒了，上尉堅持要和他握手道別。

She carefully locked away all her possessions, but kept out a cheque from George Osborne for gambling debts. This made her think of Mrs Osborne. "I'll get the cheque cashed," she said to herself, "and pay a visit afterwards to poor little Emmy."

她小心翼翼地把所有的財物都鎖起來，只留下了一張喬治·奧斯本用來償還賭債的支票。這讓她想起了奧斯本夫人。“我去把支票兌現(xiàn)。”她心想，“然后再去看看可憐的小埃米。”

It was ten o'clock when she woke, and after drinking her coffee, she continued Rawdon's list, adding to it all the gifts and jewellery she had received from her admirers. She was pleased to find that if her husband did not return, she would have quite a useful amount of money.

十點鐘，她醒了。喝過咖啡，她往羅頓的單子上繼續(xù)添加仰慕者們送給她的所有禮物和珠寶首飾。她高興地發(fā)現(xiàn)，即使她丈夫回不來，她也有相當一筆錢可用。

"Some of us -- well, some of us may not come back again -- and -- and I want to be sure that you'll all be all right."

“我們中有些人——呃，我們中有些人可能再也回不來了——呃——我想確定你們都會平安無事。”

"I didn't want to go without saying goodbye," he said.

“我不想沒道別就走。”他說。

Jos and the Osbornes shared a sitting-room in their hotel apartment, and while Dobbin was speaking, he kept walking up and down, glancing through the open door of Jos's bedroom into the sitting-room, hoping desperately for a last sight of Amelia.

喬斯和奧斯本夫婦在旅館套房共用一間起居室。多賓說話時，一直來回踱步，眼光穿過喬斯開著的臥室門瞥向起居室，急切地希望能最后再看阿梅莉亞一眼。

"Very kind of you," said Jos, yawning, and rubbing his eyes.

“你可太好心了。”喬斯說，一邊打哈欠，一邊揉眼睛。

"Of course I'll take care of my sister," answered Jos.

“我當然會照顧我妹妹。”喬斯回答。

"I'll tell you what you can do," Dobbin said. "George and I may never come back. You are not to move from this town until you know what has happened. You are to watch over your sister, and comfort her, and make sure that no harm comes to her. Remember, if anything happens to George, she has no one but you. You must promise me that you will never leave her."

“我告訴你你能做什么。”多賓說，“喬治和我可能再也回不來了。在你知道確切消息之前，不要離開這座城市。你要照看你的妹妹，安慰她，確保她不受任何傷害。記住，如果喬治遭遇不幸，她只能靠你了。你必須向我保證，你絕不會離開她。”

At that moment Dobbin had the opportunity he wanted so much -- to see Amelia's face again. But what a face -- so white, so wild, so despairing! Shocked, Dobbin stood and watched her, torn with pity for such helpless, speechless misery.

就在那時，多賓得到一直渴望著的機會——再見阿梅莉亞一面。然而那是怎樣的一張臉啊——如此蒼白，如此失魂落魄，如此絕望！多賓震驚地站在那兒看著她，她無助、無言的痛苦，激起他無限憐憫。

"Defeat! Don't try and frighten me," cried our hero, in his bed.

“戰(zhàn)??！別想嚇唬我。”我們的英雄在床上大叫。

Jos stared at his visitor as he marched up and down. "What can I do for you, Dobbin?" he said at last, rather crossly.

喬斯注視著他的這位訪客來來回回踱步。“我能為你做點什么，多賓？”他終于忍不住頗為惱火地說。

"And you must see that she gets safely out of Brussels and back to England in the event of a defeat."

“如果我們戰(zhàn)敗，你必須確保她安全離開布魯塞爾，返回英格蘭。”

Wrapped in a white morning dress and with her hair hanging loose, Amelia was trying to help George as he did his packing. At last, however, George took her hand and led her back into the bedroom. He came out alone, and hurried away.

阿梅莉亞裹著一件白色晨衣，頭發(fā)松垂，想幫喬治收拾行裝。然而，最后喬治拉著她的手送她回臥室。他獨自一人出來，匆匆離開了。

All day Brussels waited for news of the battle. Stories flew around the city -- Napoleon's army was advancing, the Duke of Wellington was wounded, the British had suffered great losses. Shops closed, and soon carriages began to leave the city.

整整一天，布魯塞爾的人都在等待戰(zhàn)斗的消息。城內(nèi)流言四起：拿破侖的軍隊仍在推進，威靈頓公爵受傷了，英國軍隊遭受了重創(chuàng)。商店紛紛關門，很快一駕駕馬車開始駛離這座城市。

The sun was just rising as the soldiers marched away. It was a brave sight, with the band playing, and the bright flags flying, and George marching proudly at the head of his company. He looked up, and smiled at Amelia, and passed on; and even the sound of the music died away.

軍人們出發(fā)時，太陽剛剛升起。樂隊奏樂，旌旗飛揚，場面非常壯觀。喬治神氣地走在自己連隊的前面。他抬起頭，向阿梅莉亞微笑，繼續(xù)向前走去。最后，音樂的聲音也逐漸消失了。

"Thank heaven that's over," he thought, running downstairs to join the regiment, who were gathering in the street below.

“謝天謝地終于結束了。”他跑下樓時想。軍團在樓下街道上集合，他趕了過去。

"Are you leaving us to join the army, Mr Joseph?" she said, looking at his coat, which was cut in a military style. "How brave you are! But then who will be left to protect us poor women? Oh, please don't leave us, Mr Joseph!"

“您是要拋下我們?nèi)④妴?，約瑟夫先生？”看見他軍服式樣裁剪的外套，她說，“您真是太勇敢了！但是誰留下來保護我們這些可憐的女人呢？啊，請不要離開我們，約瑟夫先生！”

Jos, who had felt quite brave and confident in the morning, now began to fear the worst. He was just putting on his coat to go out for the latest news on the street, when Rebecca arrived to visit Amelia. Her smiling face, refreshed by her quiet sleep, was pleasant to see in a town where everyone else looked anxious.

早晨時還勇氣、信心十足的喬斯，現(xiàn)在卻開始作最壞打算。他剛穿上外套想去街上打聽最新消息時，麗貝卡正好來探望阿梅莉亞了。麗貝卡安眠之后容光煥發(fā)，在城里其他人都愁容滿面的時候，她的一張笑臉讓人見了十分愉快。

What Rebecca really meant was, "Sir, you have a comfortable carriage, and if the army is defeated and we have to leave Brussels, I would like a seat in it."

麗貝卡真正的意思是：“先生，您有駕舒適的馬車。如果軍隊戰(zhàn)敗，我們不得不離開布魯塞爾時，我希望你給我留一個位置。”

Jos had been deeply offended by Rebecca's treatment of him in Brussels. She had paid little attention to him, and had not invited him to her parties. "She only wants me when there is no one else," he thought. But a vain man is always pleased to be called brave, and wiser men than Jos Sedley have been fooled by women. A few soft words, some admiring glances from those sparkling green eyes, and it was not long before Jos's heart was beating fast, and his doubts and suspicions were all forgotten.

喬斯原本對麗貝卡在布魯塞爾待他的態(tài)度很生氣。她對他毫不在意，也不邀請他參加她的聚會。“沒其他人了她才想到我。”他想。但是虛榮的人總喜歡被人稱贊勇敢，比喬斯·塞德利更聰明的人也曾被女人愚弄過。幾句溫言軟語，閃亮綠眸里幾瞥崇拜的眼色，不一會兒工夫，喬斯的心開始怦怦狂跳，他那些疑慮全都扔到九霄云外去了。

Her appearance struck Amelia with terror. It brought her back to the real world, and reminded her of the jealous misery that had been forgotten in the pain of parting from her adored husband. And when Rebecca came forward to kiss her, Amelia, her pale face suddenly red with anger, returned Rebecca's look with a steadiness that rather surprised her visitor.

看見麗貝卡，阿梅莉亞嚇了一跳，驚恐不已，一下把她打回現(xiàn)實世界之中。與摯愛丈夫的痛苦離別，讓她一時忘記了嫉妒的酸楚，這時又想起來了。麗貝卡上前親她，阿梅莉亞蒼白的面孔由于氣惱頓時變得通紅。她定定地回視麗貝卡的目光，這讓她的訪客有些吃驚。

Presently, Rebecca left him, confident of her place in his carriage, and went to tap gently at the door of his sister's room.

不久，麗貝卡確信自己在他的馬車上能占據(jù)一個位置后，就丟下他，去輕輕地敲他妹妹的房門。

"Don't be upset, dear Amelia," she said. "I only came to see if I could -- if you were well."

“別生氣，親愛的阿梅莉亞。”她說，“我只是來看看我能不能——看看你是否安好。”

Amelia did not take the offered hand. "Why are you here, Rebecca?" she said, looking at her with her large eyes.

阿梅莉亞拒絕拉她的手。“你 為什么來這兒，麗貝卡？”她說，一雙大眼睛盯著她。

This worried Rebecca. "She must have seen him give me the letter at the ball," she thought.

這讓麗貝卡擔心起來。她想：“她一定是看見他在舞會上給我字條了。”

"Dearest Amelia, you are not well." Rebecca put out her hand to take Amelia's. "I could not rest until I knew how you were."

“最親愛的阿梅莉亞，你身體不好。”麗貝卡伸出手，想拉住阿梅莉亞的手。“不知道你的情況，我可沒法休息。”

"When you were poor, I was your friend. George loved me. He gave up his fortune and his family to marry me, to make me happy. Why did you come between us? His love was everything to me. You knew it, and wanted to steal it from me. You are a wicked woman, Rebecca -- a false friend and a false wife!"

“你窮困的時候，我是你的朋友。喬治愛我。他為了娶我，讓我幸福，舍棄了他的財富和家人。你為什么要插在我們中間？他的愛是我的一切啊。你都知道，而你還想把它從我這里偷走。你是個邪惡的女人，麗貝卡——一個虛情假意的朋友，一個虛情假意的妻子！”

"Amelia, I swear that I have done my husband no wrong."

“阿梅莉亞，我發(fā)誓我沒有做對不起我丈夫的事。”

"Have you done me no wrong, Rebecca? You did not succeed, but you tried."

“那你有沒有做對不起我 的事呢，麗貝卡？你雖然沒成功，但是你嘗試過。”

"Indeed, Amelia, no," Rebecca said, looking away from her.

“沒，阿梅莉亞，當然沒有。”麗貝卡說，把視線移開了。

"Are you well?" said Amelia. "I'm sure you are. You don't love your husband. You would not be here if you did. Tell me, Rebecca, was I ever unkind to you?"

“你安好嗎？”阿梅莉亞說，“我相信你挺好的。你不愛你的丈夫。要是愛的話，你不會來這里的。告訴我，麗貝卡，我虧待過你嗎？”

"He came back to me. Your tricks and lies could not keep him for long. But what have I done to you? Why did you try to take him from me?" Amelia's voice became wilder. "And now he's gone. But he will come back. He promised me to come back."

“他回到我身邊了。你的花招和謊言騙不了他多久的?？墒俏夷膬旱米锬懔?？你為什么要把他從我身邊奪走？”阿梅莉亞的聲音愈加激動，“現(xiàn)在他走了。但是他會回來的。他向我保證會回來。”

She knows nothing, Rebecca thought.

她什么都不知道，麗貝卡想。

"He will come back, my dear," said Rebecca, gently.

“他會回來，我親愛的。”麗貝卡溫柔地說。

Amelia walked to a chair and knelt beside it. "He was here," she said. "He sat here, in this chair." She seemed to have forgotten Rebecca's presence, and began to stroke the arm of the chair.

阿梅莉亞走到一把椅子跟前跪下。“他當時就在這兒。”她說，“他坐在這兒，就在這把椅子上。”她似乎忘了麗貝卡的存在，開始摩挲起椅子的扶手。

Rebecca turned and left the room silently. "How is she?" asked Jos, who was still sitting in the sitting-room.

麗貝卡轉身默默離開了房間。“她怎么樣？”喬斯問，他還在起居室坐著。

"There should be somebody with her," said Rebecca. "I think she is very unwell." And she went away, with a very serious face.

“得有人陪著她。”麗貝卡說，“我覺得她情況很不好。”然后，她滿臉嚴肅地離開了。

She did, in fact, like Amelia, and felt some pity for her. She thought of the little note locked away in her writing desk. "Poor thing! That note would destroy her. Why does she break her heart for a man who is stupid -- and who does not care for her?"

實際上，她真的喜歡阿梅莉亞，覺得她有些可憐。她想起鎖在寫字臺里的小字條。“可憐的小東西！那張字條會要了她的命。為什么她要為這樣一個不關心她的傻瓜傷心呢？”

By late afternoon the sound of gunfire could be heard in the city, and few people had much sleep that night. The next day brought wounded soldiers returning from the battlefield, with reports of regiments destroyed, and Napoleon closing in on Brussels.

下午晚些時候，炮火的聲音傳進城里，那一夜沒有什么人合眼。第二天，傷兵從戰(zhàn)場上撤下來，帶來消息說軍團被擊潰，拿破侖正在逼近布魯塞爾。

As he passed Rebecca's hotel, he caught sight of her and hurried over. By now, the two horses which Rawdon had left behind were extremely valuable, and one look at Jos's fat, frightened face told Rebecca that she had found a buyer who would pay whatever price she asked.

他經(jīng)過麗貝卡住的旅館時看見了她，便匆匆去找她。到現(xiàn)在，羅頓留下的那兩匹馬變得極為珍貴。麗貝卡一看見喬斯那張肥胖又驚恐的臉就知道，她找到買家了，無論她要價多高，他都會買的。

"What! Are you leaving, Mr Sedley?" she said, with a laugh. "And Amelia? Who is to protect your poor little sister?"

“什么！您要走了，塞德利先生？”她笑著說，“阿梅莉亞呢？誰來保護您可憐的妹妹？”

Like many others, Joseph Sedley was now desperate to leave, but his servant told him there were no horses to hire or to buy anywhere in the city. Wild with terror, Jos shaved off his moustache, in case the enemy thought he was a soldier, and set out into the city to search for horses himself.

和其他許多人一樣，約瑟夫·塞德利現(xiàn)在迫不及待想要離開，但他的仆人告訴他，城里哪里都租不到也買不到馬匹了。萬分驚恐之下，喬斯剃光了自己的胡子，以防敵人誤認為他是軍人，然后親自上街找馬。

"I have two to sell," said Becky. "But they're not carriage horses. You'll have to ride them."

“我有兩匹要賣。”貝姬說，“不過它們不能拉車。您只能騎著。”

Jos nearly wept for joy. The business was soon done, and Jos was obliged to part with an enormous amount of money.

喬斯高興得差點哭了。這筆交易很快就成交了，喬斯被迫花了一大筆錢。

That night there was more encouraging news of the battle, but by Sunday morning the guns of Waterloo began to roar. When Jos heard that dreadful sound, he could bear it no longer.

到了晚上，戰(zhàn)場傳來振奮人心的消息，但星期天早晨，滑鐵盧開始槍炮聲大作。喬斯聽到那可怕的聲響，再也忍不下去了。

"There's a seat for her in my carriage," gasped Jos. "And for you, dear Mrs Crawley, if only I can find horses!"

“我的馬車里有她的位子。”喬斯喘著粗氣說，“也有你的，親愛的克勞利夫人，只要我能找到馬的話！”

"Without my husband, Joseph?" Amelia said, with a look of wonder. But Jos's patience was at an end.

“不等我丈夫嗎，約瑟夫？”阿梅莉亞面帶驚訝地說。但喬斯的耐心已經(jīng)用盡了。

"You must come with me, Emmy!" he cried, rushing into her room. "I have bought a horse for you. You must come!"

“你必須跟我走，埃米！”他大喊著，沖進她的房間。“我給你買了一匹馬。你必須走！”

"Goodbye, then," he shouted angrily, banging the door shut as he left. And he got on his horse, and with his servant he rode away out of Brussels, leaving his sister behind him.

“那就再見。”他怒吼著，狠狠地摔門而出。他上了馬，和他的仆人一道，騎馬離開布魯塞爾，把他的妹妹丟在了身后。

All that day, from morning until past sunset, the guns roared, and the women prayed for their husbands and lovers. On a hill on the battlefield the lines of English foot-soldiers stood firm against the furious attacks of the French, who were forced to fall back again and again. In the evening, the French made a final big attack. Then at last the English roared down from the hill-top which they had held all day, and the enemy turned and ran.

整整一天，從清晨到日落之后，槍炮聲轟鳴不斷。女人們?yōu)樗齻兊恼煞蚝颓槿似矶\。戰(zhàn)場的一座小山上，一排排英國步兵頑強地抵抗著法軍兇猛的進攻，法國人被迫一次又一次退回。晚上，法軍發(fā)起了最后一次大規(guī)模進攻。最終，英軍高喊著沖下?lián)匾惶斓纳巾?，敵人掉頭逃跑了。

In Brussels the guns could be heard no more. Darkness came down on the battlefield and on the city; and Amelia was praying for George, who was lying on his face, dead, with a bullet through his heart.

布魯塞爾再也聽不見槍炮聲了。黑暗籠罩著戰(zhàn)場和這座城市。阿梅莉亞為喬治祈禱著，而他趴在地上，一顆子彈穿透他的心臟，死了。