War and Peace

Chapter 30

When she got home, Natess couldn't sleep, and she was tormented by an unsolvable question: who did she really love?Ion Ladury or Duke Andrele?She loved Duke Andréle, and she clearly remembered how much she loved him.However, she also undoubtedly loves Angladuli. "How else could this happen?" Happened, so I loved him from the first time I met him. So kind and sublime, it was impossible not to love him. How could I love him and yet love another Okay?" She said to herself, unable to find answers to these questions.

[fourteen]
Morning came with its gloom and tumult.Everyone got up and sat around drinking tea.Nates stared wide-eyed, looking at everyone anxiously, trying to block every gaze cast on her.She tried her best to act as usual.

After breakfast, Ahrosimova called the old count and Natess to her, and said that she had gone to see old Prince Bolkonski, but to no avail, and suggested that the count and Natess go home first, Wait there for Ondry before things get worse.Natess showed an expression of indifference, and a decisive thought came to her heart.Ahrosimova also brought a letter from Princess Molière to Natès.

The princess tried to explain the misunderstanding of the last meeting to Natess, and asked Natess to forgive her sick father.After reading the letter, Natess was ready to reply, but she only wrote one sentence, and she had no intention of writing any more.

After lunch, Natess returned to her bedroom and picked up the letter from Princess Molière. "Has it all come to an end?" she thought, "has it all come so quickly, and has everything before it vanished?" She recalled her love for the Duke d'André as fondly as before, and now felt I love Ang Ladurie.She vividly imagined that she became the wife of the Duke of Andrele and lived a happy married life with him, but at this moment, she recalled every detail of meeting Angla Duli yesterday, and trembled with excitement. "Why can't it be perfect?" she thought foolishly, "that's the only way I can be completely happy, both are necessary. But it's not at all right to tell Duke Andrée what happened or to hide it from him." Possibly. Have I really cut off the happiness I have shared for so long, the love for the Duke Andréle?"

At this moment a maid came into the room and handed Natès a letter from Unladury.Nates held in trembling hands the love letter written by Rucourt for Unladourie, and as she read it, she felt that she had found in it all that she desired.

The beginning of the letter is like this: "Since last night, my fate has been decided: either to be loved by you, or to die." The letter continued, knowing that her relatives would not marry her to him, There are some unspeakable secrets in this, he can only tell her this secret, but if she loves him, as long as she says "yes", it will be difficult to hinder their happiness no matter what.Love conquers all.He will wander the world with her.

"Yes, yes, I love him!" thought Natsès, reading the letter a dozen times in succession, looking for some special meaning in each word.

[fifteen]
Martha, who had been away for a visit, came back very late, and found Natess lying on the sofa with all her clothes on, with the letter on the table beside her.Martha read the letter, turned pale for a moment, and burst into tears with panic and apprehension.She woke Nates, and Nates immediately saw the disturbed look on her friend's face. "Martha, have you read the letter?"

"Yes." "Martha, I can't hide from you. He and I are in love..." "And what about Balkonski?" "Oh, Martha, you don't understand how happy I am, you don't at all understand love..."

"But is that the end of everything before?" "Oh, you don't understand at all." Natess said angrily. "No, I don't believe it at all," repeated Martha, "I don't understand. You've been in love with someone for a whole year, and all of a sudden...you've only seen him three times in all. Tess, I don't believe you, you're messing around, it's only been two days..."

"Two days," said Nates, "I feel that I have loved him for a thousand years. I feel that I have loved no one else before loving him. You do not understand this at all. Martha, take it easy, sit down." "Natiss put her arms around Martha and kissed her, "I didn't know what love is until now, it's different from the love before. As soon as I saw him, I felt that he was my master and I was his. I can't help loving him, servant. You don't understand. There's nothing I can do, Martha, what do you think I should do?" said Nates, with a mixture of pleasure and surprise on her face.

"I can't allow such a thing to happen, I want to speak out." Martha yelled, tears welling up in her eyes.

"You can't do this, for God's sake... If you speak out, you are my opponent," Natess said. "If you want to make me unhappy, if you want to tear us apart..."

Seeing Natess so frightened, Martha couldn't help crying.After the quarrel between her girlfriends, Martha ran out of the room crying when she saw that Natess could not be persuaded.Annoyed, Nates went to the table and immediately wrote an unfinished letter to Princess Molière. She wrote concisely: the misunderstanding between them was resolved, and she thanked Duke André for going abroad. Before giving her the kindness of space, she asked the princess to forget everything, if I have wronged the princess, please forgive her, but she will not be his sister-in-law again.At this time, she felt that everything was very simple and everything became easy.

The Rostaff family decided to return to their hometown on Thursday, and on Tuesday, the earl would go to the manor outside Moscow to deal with business matters.On the day the count went out, Natess and Martha were invited to another ball.At the ball, Natess and Angladuli met again.Martha saw them chatting together for a long time. After arriving home, Natess seemed very happy and nervous all the time. She was sitting in front of the living room window, whispering to someone, and even received a letter from the maid.Martha suddenly realized that Natess must have some terrible plans tonight.

"She's going to run away with him!" thought Martha. "What shall I do when my uncle is away?"

Martha was determined to guard the corridor. Even if she guarded for two days and two nights, she would not let the Rosettaff family lose face. She wanted to repay the Earl's family for their kindness to her, and to repay Malal for their love.

[sixteen]
Unladuri has recently moved here in Rukot.The plan to abduct Nates was thought up and prepared by Rucourt, and it was being put into action on the day Earl Rostaff left.Natess agreed to meet Unladourie at the back door at nine o'clock at night, boarded a troika prepared by Unladurie, and the two of them set out for the village of Kamenka, sixty miles from Moscow, where the A dismissed priest held the wedding for them, and then changed trains and fled abroad along the highway.Angladuli has a passport, a train use certificate, and 1 yuan from his sister and 1 yuan borrowed by Rukot.

Two witnesses were sitting in the room drinking tea, one of them was called Hvostikov, a retired clerk who ran errands for Rukot's gambling house, and the other was Makarin, a retired hussar who had a Ladury had supreme reverence.

Even though Rucourt planned all this, he still tried to persuade Unladuli because he knew that Unladuli had married once in Poland. At that time, Unladuli had a crush on a Polish girl and was The girl's father found out, and the father forced Unladhuli to marry his daughter.

"You will be brought to civil court..." "No need to talk nonsense!" "What if I run out of money?"

"What should I do?" Angladuli felt at a loss when he thought about it later, "I didn't know what to do at that time... Oh, nonsense!" He looked at his watch, "It's time!"

[seventeen]
There was a three-set carriage parked in front of the door, and two coachmen reined in the horses.Angladuli and Rukot sat in the same car, Makarin, Khvostikov and the servants in the other.

"Are you seated?" the coachman asked. "Let's go!" He yelled, wrapped the reins around his hands, and drove the carriage quickly.

As they approached Ahrosimova's house, Unladuri and Rukot got out of the car and walked along the tree-lined path.Walking to the door, Rucourt blew a dark whistle, and a dark whistle answered him, and then a maid ran out.

"Come into the yard, or she will come out immediately if no one finds out," said the maid.

Rukot stopped at the door, and Unladuli followed the maid into the courtyard, around the corner, and up the porch steps.

Ahrosimova's entourage, Gavrilo, a burly man, approached Angladuli.

"Please go to see your wife." Gavrilo said in a low voice, blocking Angladuli.

"See my wife? Who are you?" Angladuli asked in a low voice, out of breath.

"Please, I was ordered to invite you."

"Kurakin! Come out!" Rookout yelled, "We're exposed! Come out!"

Rukot, who was standing in front of the door, was fighting with the gatekeeper, who tried to lock the door after Angladuri entered.Rucourt desperately pushed the gatekeeper away, grabbed Angladuri by the arm, and pulled him out the door, and the two ran towards the troika together.

[eighteen]
Akhrosimova saw the tearful Masha in the corridor and forced her to tell the inside story.She snatched Nates' letter, read it, and went to find Nates.

"Crazy girl, shameless thing! I don't want to listen to what you say!" She glanced at the surprised Natess, and locked the door of Natess' room with a key.She bade the gatekeeper to let in those who came tonight, but not to let them out, and to bring them to her.Hearing that the person who came had run away, she frowned tightly, took out the key, and walked to Nates' room.

Ahrosimova gave Natsy a lesson again, and told her not to tell the old count all this, as long as Natsy made up her mind to forget everything and keep it a secret from anyone, no one would know.Natess said nothing, she stopped crying, but trembled all the time.Ahrosimova put a pillow on her, covered her with two quilts, and brought her toilet water herself, but Natis paid no attention to her.

"Well, let her sleep," Ahrosimova said, as she left the room, thinking that Natess had fallen asleep.But Nates didn't sleep, she stared at the front with her big eyes open, stayed up all night, and didn't talk to Martha.

When it was time to have breakfast the next morning, the old count returned from his estate on the outskirts of Moscow.He was glad that since the price had been negotiated with the buyer, there was no reason for him to live in Moscow any longer, and he was going back to the Countess whom he had been thinking about day and night.Ahrosimova received him and told him that Natess had been unwell the day before, had been examined by a doctor, and was much better now.That morning, Natess never went out of the room. She bit her thirsty lips, stared at her dry eyes, and sat by the window, looking at the passers-by outside in a hurry, or hurriedly walked into the room. She was obviously waiting for news from him, waiting for himself or his letter to arrive.

When the count entered the room to see her, she heard a man's footsteps, turned around hastily, and saw that it was her father, her face returned to the previous indifference, even anger, and she did not stand up to receive her father.

The old earl asked with concern why her face was so ugly, did something happen to her fiancé.She said with certainty that nothing had happened, so that he needn't worry.Ahrosimova confirmed to the count what Nates had said, that nothing had happened.However, seeing his daughter's panic-stricken expression, seeing Masha's and Ahrosimova's uncomfortable expressions, the count clearly knew that something must have happened in his absence, but he was particularly worried about thinking about him. What bad things will happen to his daughter, and his current good mood does not allow him to ask too many questions. He just tried his best to convince himself that nothing extraordinary happened. However, because his daughter was unwell, he had to postpone going home. Time, which made the old earl feel a little unhappy.

(End of this chapter)