beautiful friend

Chapter 17

Duroy felt that it was reasonable, so he stopped insisting.As soon as M. Walter saw him, he embraced him and said: "Well done! Well done to you for defending the honor of our Le Vie Française!"

That night, Duroy went around the various newspaper offices and cafes, and twice met dueling opponents who came out like him.

They did not greet each other.Maybe a handshake if one of them gets hurt.Both claimed to have heard each other's bullets whistle past their ears.

About eleven o'clock the next morning, Duroy received a letter which read:

God, you scare the hell out of me!Please come to Constantinople Street and let me kiss you, my darling.You are so brave and I love you.

Cloduroy immediately rushed to the meeting place.Madame de Maraire threw herself into his arms and kept kissing him: "Ah, my dear! When you saw the news this morning, you didn't know how excited I was! Tell me the whole story. I really want to know."

Duroy had no choice but to tell the whole story in detail.Madame de Marais exclaimed:

"The night before the duel, you must have been tossing and turning!"

"On the contrary, I slept well."

"If it were me, I wouldn't be able to close my eyes. Tell me about the scene in the duel."

Duroy spoke vividly:

"At the time, I was standing face to face with him, only twenty paces apart, or four times the length of the house. Jacques asked if we were ready, and ordered 'let'. Immediately I raised my arm and aimed at the other's head But the thing is, I'm used to pistols with good triggers, and this pistol had a tight trigger; the bullet went off, but it didn't miss much. The guy's not a bad shot either, and the bullets whizzed by my temples However, I can still feel a gust of wind."

Madame de Marais, sitting on his lap, clasped him tightly in her arms, as if to share his danger, and kept saying:
"Oh! my poor darling, my poor darling . . . "

After Duroy finished speaking, she immediately said:

"You know, I can never leave you again! I must see you every day. But my husband is in Paris, and it is very inconvenient. But I can spare an hour to see you before you get up. You I don't want to go to that ghost place where I live. What do you think should I do?"

Duroy had an idea and asked:

"What is the rent for this apartment?"

"One hundred francs a month."

"Otherwise, I will live here in the future, and I will pay the rent. With my current status, it is not suitable to live in such a place."

Madame de Marais thought for a while, and said:
"No, I don't agree."

Duroy asked in surprise:

"why?"

"because……"

"You have no reason not to say yes. The house suits me well; and now that I have come, I shall not go."

Then he started laughing:
"Besides, the house was originally rented in my name."

Madame de Marais still refused:
"No, no, no..."

"Then why?"

Madame de Marais approached and said in a low voice:

"Because you will bring other women here, of course I don't agree."

Duroy said solemnly:

"Such a thing will never happen, I assure you."

"No. You will certainly bring them."

"I swear not."

"really?"

"Of course it's true. I guarantee it on my honor. This is our home, and it belongs only to the two of us." Madame de Maraire hugged Duroy affectionately: "Okay then, my dear. But you You know, if you cheat on me, even once, our relationship is over, forever."

Duroy swore again, and decided to move that very day.In this way, Madame de Marais could come in and see him every time she passed the door.

Madame de Marais said: "Sunday, come to my house for dinner. My husband is very impressed with you."

Duroy said triumphantly: "Ah! Really?"

"Yes, he was full of praise for you. By the way, did you ever say that you grew up in a country house?"

Yes what's the matter?
"Then you should know a little about farm work in the field?"

"Yes."

"You can talk to him about gardening and growing crops, which he loves."

"Okay, I won't forget."

Madame de Marais kept kissing Duroy, and then reluctantly left.This duel made her love for him stronger and stronger.

On the way back to the museum, Duroy kept thinking:
"This woman has such a strange idea! I really don't know what she thinks about all day long, what she likes? The couple is really interesting! I don't know how this old guy got together with this simple-minded woman? I don't know this railway Why did the Inspector marry such a schoolgirl? How strange! Who knows? Maybe it's love?"

Finally, he thought: "Anyway, she's a good mistress, and I wouldn't be so foolish as to give her up!
The duel made Duroy one of the few leading columnists in Le Vie.However, he often suffers from no new ideological theme to write, so he can only use exaggerated writing to exclaim the decline of the world, the moral corruption, the weak patriotism, and the anemia of French honor (he is proud of being able to find the word "anemia") endlessly.); this has also become a feature of the political column.

Madame de Marais was everything Parisian: ironic, joking, but sometimes too trusting.She never paid much attention to Duroy's long speeches, and always liked to make a sarcasm.To this, Duroy always laughed it off: "Don't say that, I will be famous by them in the future."

He now lives in Constantinople Street, and all his belongings, including boxes, toothbrushes, razors and soap, have been moved here.Two or three mornings a week, Madame de Marais would come here for a tryst before he got up.Every time she came in, she would immediately take off her clothes, and shivering into his bed with the cold outdoors.

Every Thursday, Duroy dined at Madame de Marais's; he talked to her husband about farming in order to win his favor.Since Duroy himself is also interested in farming, the two talked very speculatively, often forgetting the young woman who was napping on the sofa.

Lorina sat sometimes on her father's lap, and sometimes on that of her pretty friend, and fell asleep too.

Every time after Duroy left, M. de Marais always said in his usual instructive tone:

"This young man is indeed a good, very learned man."

It's the end of February.Every morning, when people pass by the flower girl's car, they can already smell the refreshing fragrance of flowers.

Duroy is enjoying the spring breeze now, like a clear sky without a trace of dark clouds.

One night, when he opened the door of his house, he found a letter on the ground slipped through the crack of the door.He checked the postmark. It was from Cannes.He opened the letter and read it:
Sir, my dear friend:
I remember you once told me that I can get your help anytime.Now, I have one thing to trouble you with.Charlie is dying, I hope you can come over, don't leave me alone watching him go.Although he can still get out of bed now, the doctor told me that he probably won't make it through this week.

Day and night I felt more and more powerless in the face of a dying Charlie.The thought of the impending final hour fills me with dread.Charlie has no family but you to turn to.He is your comrade in arms and introduced you to the newspaper.So please come quickly!I can't find anyone else to help me but you.

Your loyal friend Madeleine Forestier at the Villa Laury in Cannes At this moment, Duroy seems to be in a spring breeze, and a vision suddenly opens up.He murmured:

"Of course I'm going. Poor Charlie! We're all going to have that day."

Duroy briefly explained the content of the letter to the boss; Walter reluctantly agreed with him to go, but repeatedly urged, "You must come back quickly, the work of the newspaper is indispensable."

The next day, Georges Duroy sent an express letter to the de Marais couple explaining the situation; then, he took the seven o'clock express train to Cannes.

At four o'clock in the afternoon on the third day, Duroy arrived in Cannes.

Guided by a porter, he found Lawley Cottage.The villa is located in the fir forest on the hillside, surrounded by white houses.This forest stretches from Cannes to Juan Bay.

Villa Lawley is very small and Italian in style.There is a winding road in the forest nearby; every corner presents a pleasant view.

The servant opened the door and cried out:

"Ah, sir, madam is waiting for you anxiously."

Duroy asked, "How is your master?"

"No, sir, he won't live long."

Duroy walked into the living room, which was hung with pink and blue flower curtains.Looking out of the window, you can overlook the entire urban area and the sea.

Duroy couldn't help sighing:

"What a nice location this country house is in! Where the hell did they get all that money?"

At this time, the sound of a dress came from behind, and Duroy turned around.

Madame Forestier held out her hands to him, and said: "It is very kind of you to come." Suddenly, she kissed Duroy on the cheek, and the two looked at each other in silence.

Madame Forestier looked a little pale, she had lost a lot of weight; but her charm remained the same, and the haggardness on her face made her look even more charming.She murmured, "Charlie is getting scary now, knowing he's dying, and torturing me like hell. I told him you'd come. By the way, where's your luggage?"

Duroy replied:

"I don't know which hotel you will arrange for me to stay in, so I left my luggage at the train station." Madam Forestier hesitated for a moment and said:
"You can stay with us. Besides, the room is ready for you. Charlie will die at any time, and if it happens at night, what can I do by myself? I will send someone to get your luggage back."

Duroy bowed and said, "Everything is according to your arrangement."

"Now let us go upstairs," said Madame Forestier.

Duroy followed her up to the second floor.Madame Forestier opened a door.With the afterglow, Duroy saw a man wrapped in a thick quilt with a pale complexion who looked like a corpse sitting on an armchair in front of the window and staring at him.Duroy could hardly recognize the man, but he guessed it must be his old friend.

A strong, indescribable smell of soup, ether, and asphalt permeated the house everywhere; one could tell from the first smell that a lung patient with high fever lived here.

Forestier raised his hand with difficulty and said, "You are here, thank you for coming to see me die."

Duroy forced a smile and said, "I'm going to die for you, why? It's not a fun thing. If it's for this, I wouldn't choose to come to Cannes at this time. I just came to visit you and take a rest by the way. "Sit down, please," said Forestier, then drooped his head, as if lost in painful contemplation.He was short of breath, gasping for breath and sometimes groaning in pain, as if to remind people how ill he was.

Seeing that he was silent, his wife came over and leaned against the window, raised her head and said, "Look! Isn't the scenery beautiful?"

On the opposite hillside, there are row upon row of villas, leading directly to the urban area.The whole city lies on a semicircular coast: the right side is close to the breakwater, above which is an old city with an ancient clock tower;These islands are like two green spots on the blue sea.Looking from top to bottom, the island is stable, like two giant leaves floating on the sea.

On the far side of the sky, above the breakwater and the bell tower, the continuous dark green mountains outline a strange and charming curve under the red sky.Some of the undulating peaks are round, some are pointed, some are like hooks, and the last one is like a pyramid, with the vast sea at its feet.

Madame Forestier pointed to the mountain and said, "This is Monte d'Estret."

Behind the gloomy mountains, the sun has dyed the sky blood red, and the golden light is so dazzling that people can't open their eyes.

Faced with such a spectacular sunset, Duroy was intoxicated.

He racked his brains, but he couldn't think of a word to express his feelings at the moment, and finally he could only say, "Ah! This scenery is so beautiful!"

Forestier raised his head and said to his wife:

"Let me breathe."

Mrs. Forestier replied: "Be careful. It's getting late now, the sun has gone down, and it's easy to catch cold from the wind. You know, with your current physical condition, it's not suitable for you to blow the wind."

Forestier waved his right hand impatiently and feebly, as if he wanted to punch her; the thin lips, sunken cheeks and protruding bones of the face became more obvious with anger:

"Tell you, I'm about to die of suffocation! Anyway, I have no hope, and I will die sooner or later. Why do you treat me like this?"

Madame Forestier had to open the window.

Suddenly, a ray of wind blew in front of them, and the three of them were unavoidably cheered up.The breeze is soft and moist, with the intoxicating aroma of hillside flowers and grass, the smell of spring, and the strong smell of resin and pungent eucalyptus.

Forestier was out of breath, breathing in and out of fresh air.But not long after, he nervously tore the armrest of the chair, gasped heavily, and shouted angrily: "Close the window quickly, I can't stand the smell, I might as well go to the basement and wait to die."

His wife slowly closed the window, leaned against the glass, and gazed into the distance.

Duroy felt very embarrassed and wanted to chat with the patient and comfort him, but couldn't find the right words.

He stammered:

"So, after you came here, your condition still hasn't improved."

Forestier shrugged weakly, and said impatiently: "Haven't you already seen it?" After finishing speaking, he lowered his head.

Duroy continued: "Damn it! Compared with Paris, it's much more comfortable here. It's still the middle of winter over there, with either rain, snow or hail; at three o'clock in the afternoon, it's dark, and the lamps must be lit."

Forestier asked: "Is there anything new in the newspaper?"

"No. It's just that a young man named Lachlan recently came here. He graduated from the Voltaire College and is going to take your place. However, this person is still a novice. Come back soon!"

Forestier said vaguely: "Me? I can only wait a hundred years later."

The thought of "death" was already deeply etched into his mind; every little thing, every word could make it ring like a chiming bell.

There was silence in the room, which made people feel extremely painful and depressing.The setting sun outside the window was slowly setting, the red sky gradually dimmed, and the mountains in the distance also turned dark black.Night began to fall, and the dark night brought the last ray of light into the room, covering the furniture, walls, curtains and every corner with a layer of red and black tulle.The mirror over the mantel reflected a patch of sky like a pool of blood.

Madame Forestier remained motionless, facing the window, with her back to the room.

Forestier began to speak brokenly, sounding distressed with difficulty in breathing:

"How many more times can I watch the sunset? Eight...ten...fifteen or twenty...at most thirty...you...you have a long time...and I'm done... After I die... everything will be the same... as when I was alive..."

Having said that, he was silent for a moment, and then continued:

"Everything in front of me reminds me: in a few days, I will never see them again...it's horrible...I will never see again...everything that exists in the world...even if I can touch The tiniest things that arrived... cups... dishes... a soft, comfy bed... and a carriage. What a pleasure to drive in the evening! How I love it all!"

Forestier tapped nervously on the armrest as if he were playing a piano.It was all the more unbearable when he was silent; for then he was sure to be thinking about those terrible things again.

Duroy suddenly remembered what Nobel de Wallen had said to him a few weeks earlier: "Now, I feel that death is near me, and I often want to push it away, but it is everywhere. The crushed bugs, the yellow leaves falling from the trees, the white hairs in the beard of friends, all make me feel horrified; because they are always reminding me, 'Death, it is here'."

At the beginning, he couldn't understand the meaning at all.But looking at Forestier now, he finally understood.An unprecedented melancholy overwhelmed him, as if the dreadful god of death was at his side, right next to the dying patient sitting in the chair.How much he wanted to get up and go away, far away from here, back to Paris!Why!Had he known this, he would not have come.

The night slowly spread in the room, as if a shroud sent in advance was about to fall on the dying patient.Only the window is clearly visible, and the bright glass reflects the motionless figure of a young woman.Forestier said angrily:

"Why don't you light the lamp today? Is this how you take care of the sick?"

The figure on the glass disappeared.After a while, a crisp electric bell sounded in the room.

A servant came in quickly and put a lamp on the fireplace.Madame Forestier said to her husband: "Would you like to sleep for a while, or come down to dinner?"

Forestier replied in a low voice:

"I'm going downstairs."

Before dinner, the three of them sat there quietly, waiting for nearly an hour.During this period, they said a word or two from time to time.It seems that a long silence will gradually condense the air in the room where the god of death is about to visit; if it is not broken, there will be unpredictable dangers at any time.

(End of this chapter)