dead souls, imperial envoy

Chapter 63 Outerwear (2)
Nowadays, there is an unwritten rule in storytelling. For all the characters appearing in the story, their personalities must be explained in detail.Therefore, although there is a suspicion of putting the cart before the horse here, we can only introduce this Petrovich first.He now lives on the fourth floor, which can be reached directly from the back stairs of Akaky Akakiyevich's house.At the beginning, he worked as a serf in a certain landlord's house. At that time, his name was Gregory.Later, he was relieved of his status as a serf and regained his freedom. From then on, every time he met any serious festival, he would drink endlessly, and later evolved to drink no matter what festival To drunk.It was during that period that he changed his name to Petrovic.He especially liked to quarrel with his wife, and called her an "old-fashioned bitch" and "German woman", which was a consistent tradition in their family.Speaking of his wife, I have to add something.It's a pity that we don't know much about her, except that there is such a woman who never wears a headscarf, but wears a hair-wrapped hat all the time.As for her appearance, it is not humane at all.The only ones who were interested in peeking at her face hidden under the bonnet were the guards, but when they saw her face clearly, they raised their beards and made mocking noises.

The stairway leading up to the Petrovich house was filthy with water, and there was a strong and almost choking smell of wine, which was common to all the back stairs in Petersburg, and it was unbelievable. We all know.While walking on the stairs, Akaky Akakiyevich thought that Petrovich's asking price would be far-fetched, so he made up his mind to take two rubles as the limit of his tolerance, which was more than the asking price of two rubles. I won't say anything by myself.The tailor's wife was cooking fish at the moment, and the kitchen was surrounded by smoke and fog, which completely blocked the ubiquitous cockroaches, so she opened the door and was letting the smoke out.After Akaky Akakyevich entered the door, when he passed by the kitchen, he didn't notice her in it at all, and just passed by.Then he saw Petrovich.The tailor sat cross-legged on a large unpainted wooden table like a Turkish chief.Tailors always go barefoot when they work, and Petrovich is no exception at this time.The first thing Akakiy Akakiyevich noticed was his thumb with its hard, thick nails, which looked very strange and looked like the shell of a turtle.Around his neck were ropes, cotton thread, and silk thread, and he spread a tattered piece of clothing on his lap.He held a needle and thread in his hand, and in the past two or three minutes, he kept trying to pass the thread through the needle hole, but unfortunately failed.Right now, he looked at the needle and thread in his hand angrily, and complained in a low voice: "I just can't get in, you stinky woman, it's all your fault, you've tired me to death!"

It was a coincidence that he came at the time when he was angry, and Akaky Akakyevich felt a little depressed.How he wished he had come here just as Petrovich was slightly tipsy, or, as his wife put it, "a one-eyed man full of horse piss."Because Petrovich was always very friendly at such times, and he would agree to any requests from the guests, and even bowed and saluted.Although his wife would often cry to find someone else's house after the guests came home, claiming that her husband's price was too low because he was already drunk and unconscious.But it was easy enough to settle the matter, and she would be sent away for ten kopecks.However, at this moment Petrovich obviously hadn't drunk any wine, so who could guess what price he would charge.What's more, he always insisted on his own opinion at such a time, and there was no room for bargaining.Thinking of this, Akaky Akakyevich planned to leave this place.But Petrovich had noticed him and was staring at him with his only eye.He couldn't retreat anymore, so he had to greet: "Petrovich, hello!"

Petrovitch responded: "Sir, you too!" He wanted to see what kind of work was coming to him, and as he spoke he glanced at Akaky Akakievitch's hand.

"Petrovich, I have come to invite you, that is..."

When Akaki Akakiyevich spoke, he often mixed a lot of unnecessary modal particles or adverbs.If the matter encountered is very troublesome, then he can't even utter a complete sentence, and the first thing he says is: "This matter, in fact, is..." At this point, it seems to him that he has finished talking, As for what he planned to say, he didn't even remember himself.

Petrovich asked, "What's the matter?" As he spoke, he began to examine the uniform worn by the other party with his only remaining eye.It is a common characteristic of all tailors to start looking at your clothes as soon as they see you.Speaking of which, Akaky Akakiyevich's uniform was still his work, so whether it was the collar or sleeves of the uniform, the skirt or the back, and even the buttonholes, everything was very familiar to him.

"I'm here because...Petrovich...this coat...clothes...otherwise it's all right, it's a new coat, but it looks a bit worn, but it's just dusty, But there are some in some places...the back, the shoulders are a bit worn, yes, on this shoulder—look, it shouldn't take much work on such a small place..."

Petrovich took the overcoat and spread it on the table, stared at it for a long time, then shook his head a few times, and took a snuff bottle on the window sill.The snuff bottle was round, with a picture of a general on it, but since his face had been mutilated and mutilated, it was pasted with a square piece of paper, so it was impossible to tell who it was.Petrovich took a puff of snuff, then propped up his overcoat, looked carefully at the bright spot, and then shook his head again.He turned it inside out and shook his head again.He opened the lid of the snuff bottle, took a small amount of tobacco from it, stuffed it into his nostrils, closed the lid, put the snuff bottle away, and concluded: "The condition of this dress is simply terrible. , can’t be repaired at all!”

Hearing his conclusion, Akaky Akakyevich's heart sank involuntarily.

He pleaded: "Petrovich, why can't it be repaired anymore? It's just that the shoulders are a little worn out, you can definitely find small pieces of cloth here..." His tone was no different from that of a child up.

Petrovich said: "I can help you find a small piece of cloth, I do have this thing here. But it is impossible to repair it. You see, this dress is completely rotten, and the needle is up. One poke and it breaks."

"It doesn't matter if it's punctured, but it's fine to sew a patch."

"The key is that it's so shattered that you can't even find where the stitches are, let alone sew patches. This material is woolen at best, but after being blown a few times by the wind, it becomes a pile. Rags."

"Anyway, it's all right if you make it up for me. Really, how is this possible, this..."

Petrovich resolutely refused his request: "I can't help you repair it. This dress is completely reimbursed. After a while, the weather will get colder, and it is not warm enough to wear socks. I wanted to make more money, so I tinkered with useless things like socks." It is a personal hobby of Petrovich to make fun of the Germans when there is nothing to do. Use it as a foot wrap. Now, a new overcoat is imminent for you."

Hearing the words "new coat", Akaki Akakiye Vickey felt dizzy for a while, everything in front of him became blurred, only the man on the snuff bottle whose face was covered with torn paper The general is still clearly visible.

He whispered, "A new coat? But, I don't have that much money."

Petrovich showed no pity for him, and said calmly: "It's time for a new overcoat."

"Make a new coat, this, this..."

"You want to inquire about the price of a new coat?"

"Correct."

"It's more than 150 rubles." Petrovich said, poking his lips and making a deep look.He is especially fond of this one, he strikes so suddenly that the opponent has nothing to fight back, and he himself hides aside, admiring the embarrassment of the opponent.

Akaky Akakiyevich couldn't help shouting: "More than 150 rubles!" He usually speaks in a very soft voice, but this may be the first time he uttered such a high-pitched voice. .

Petrovich said: "That's not all. Different coats have different prices. If you want to sew mink on the collar and use silk for the lining of the wind pocket, then there is no 200 rubles. not reach."

Akaky Akakiyevich put aside Petrovich's words and pretentious demeanor, and begged in a low voice: "I beg you, Petrovich, just make it up for me." , it would be nice if you can tell me to wear it down after mending it.”

Petrovich refused: "Forgive me for not agreeing. It will take a lot of effort and money, and the gain will not be worth the loss." Hearing what he said, Akaky Akakiyevich could only leave in a dejected manner.For a long time after he left, Petrovich stood still, curled his lips again, and made that bumbling gesture, feeling very proud that his face had been saved and his craftsmanship had not been harmed. trample.

When he got out into the street Akaky Akakievitch still felt like he was dreaming.He murmured to himself: "How did things develop to this point? It's beyond my expectation..." He was silent for a while, and then said: "How did this happen? How did it end up like this, I I didn't expect it at all before." The silence that followed was even longer, and then he said again: "How could this happen? I didn't expect it at all, alas...how could it develop...to such a field!" His My mind was in a mess, and I went in the direction opposite to my own home.Someone was cleaning the chimney, and when he passed by, one of his shoulders happened to rub against it, and it was instantly covered with filth.Someone was building a house on the side of the road, and a lot of lime fell on him from the roof, but he didn't even feel it.A policeman on guard put aside his weapon and was busy pouring snuff from a cigarette box into his calloused hand when suddenly Akaky Akakiyevich, who was in a state of despair, was caught Hit it.The police reprimanded: "Would you know how to walk on the sidewalk? How did you get under the nose of others?"

At this time, Akaky Akakyevitch finally came to his senses, looked back at the way he had come, then turned around and walked home.He finally had a deep understanding of his current situation, so he abandoned his previous confusion and began to use all the wisdom in his mind, just like communicating with a close friend in depth, and frankly discussed the countermeasures with himself.Akakiy Akakiyevich said to himself: "It's not right, it's not right to go to Petrovich's place at such a time. Well... it looks like he's just been beaten by his wife. Saturday After the evening he must be bleary-eyed and desperate for money to buy some liquor to sober him up, but his wife won't let him if I go to see him on Sunday morning and slip him ten kopecks and go Well... he must be much friendlier to me, and my coat is just..." Thinking of this, Akaky Akakiyevich couldn't help cheering up.

The Sunday of the second week finally came. He saw the tailor's wife had left home and disappeared, so he hurried to find the tailor.After Saturday, Petrovich did, as he expected, become extremely weak.His head was hanging down, staring at the ground in a daze.However, when Akaky Akakyevich explained his purpose of visiting today, Petrovich suddenly came to his senses and said, "This is not going to work, you should make a new coat." Akaky Seeing this, Akakiyevich hastily thrust ten kopeks into his hands.But Petrovich said: "Thank you, sir, and I will wish you a long life over the drink. But you don't have to worry about that old overcoat of yours. It has been completely paid off. I promise , I will definitely help you make a new coat with my heart."

Akakiy Akakiyevich continued to beg him, but Petrovich interrupted him and said: "Don't worry, I will do my best to make you a new coat. If The collar buttons can be silver-plated if you like, and that's the fashion at the moment."

Akaky Akakievitch finally realized that his only choice was to make a new overcoat.Frustration immediately took hold of him. Where was the money for a new coat coming from?It is true that he will get a bounty during the festival, but how to use the money, he has planned it early in the morning.The cobbler had not yet paid the bill for putting new toes on his old boots, and besides, a new pair of trousers had to be sewn, three shirts to be made by a seamstress, and two tight-fitting tops. Underwear worn in secret.After completing these, the bounty will be gone.Even if the boss is extra merciful this year and increases the bounty from 40 rubles to 45 or even 50 rubles, after paying these bills, there will be very little left.It's crazy to think about spending the rest of the money on a new coat.However, Petrovich has always liked to make random bids, and Akaky Akakyevich knew this early on.Even the tailor's wife, after hearing his asking price, couldn't help crying out: "You fool, are you crazy? You don't want to pay for a penny to help others work for nothing, and then you are crazy." Similarly, if you offer such an outrageous price, even if you are sold, you will not be able to sell for so much money!" Akaky Akakiyevich understood that if he could only pay 80 rubles, Petrovich Would still happily make myself a new coat.However, 80 rubles is not a small amount, how to raise it?If it is one-half of 80 rubles, if you try to make it together, you may still be able to make it up, or even more than this is not impossible.But what about the remaining half? ...

Speaking of which, I should first let everyone understand one thing, how Akaki Akakievitch was able to raise the first half.He had a small box with a hole cut in the lid, and the box was always locked.Every time he used up a ruble, he would put a half-copeck coin into the box.This has become a habit of his. He opens the box every six months, counts how many coins are inside, and then converts them into silver coins.In this way, over the past few years, he has saved more than 40 rubles.That's how the first half was solved, but what about the second half?How will the remaining 40 rubles be raised?

Akaky Akakyevich thought for a long time, and finally decided to reduce daily expenses to a minimum.He decided that there would be no more tea and no lamps at night.If it's really necessary, go to the landlady and borrow her lamp.In order to reduce wear and tear on the soles of his shoes, he decided that when he walked on the stone-paved road in the future, he must put his footsteps at the lightest level, almost only with his toes on the ground, and move forward cautiously.Every day when I get home from get off work, I immediately take off my underwear and put on a cotton robe. Although this robe has been worn for many years, it is not damaged.In this way, a piece of underwear can be worn more times, thereby reducing the number of times it is sent to be cleaned.At the beginning, he himself found this kind of poverty-stricken life simply unbearable.But then he got used to it.It didn't matter that he was hungry every night, as long as he thought about that new coat that made him dream about, he would immediately be full of energy.

From this moment on, his life began to become more fulfilling. He seemed to have gotten rid of his single life, and there was another person beside him, forming a family with him. In the long journey of life, this lover will always be by his side.Of course, this so-called "lover" is not a real person, but his brand new coat.It's stuffed bulging with cotton and has a very strong lining that will last for years.Akaky Akakyevich seemed to have found his goal in life. Compared with before, his personality was much stronger and he had added a lot of vitality.In his words and deeds, the original hesitation and shrinking can no longer be found.There were bright lights shooting out of his eyes, and occasionally he would suddenly have some very bold ideas: what if we really sewed ermine fur on the collar?

(End of this chapter)