第十章（第21/42页）

"I'll come tomorrow," she said, drawing away; "if I can," she added.

“我明天再来，”她边说，边挣脱他的怀抱，“要是有机会的话，”她补充道。

"Ay! Not so late," he replied out of the darkness. Already she could not see him at all.

“是呀！别来得太晚。”黑暗中，只听得见他的声音。她已经完全看不到他的身影。

"Goodnight," she said.

“晚安。”她说。

"Goodnight, your Ladyship," his voice.

“晚安，夫人。”他回答。

She stopped and looked back into the wet dark. She could just see the bulk of him. "Why did you say that?" she said.

她停住脚步，回头望向细雨霏霏的暗夜。她只能辨出他的轮廓。“你为什么还那样称呼我？”她问。

"Nay," he replied. "Goodnight then, run!" She plunged on in the dark-grey tangible night. She found the side-door open, and slipped into her room unseen. As she closed the door the gong sounded, but she would take her bath all the same—she must take her bath. "But I won't be late any more," she said to herself; "it's too annoying.” The next day she did not go to the wood. She went instead with Clifford to Uthwaite. He could occasionally go out now in the car, and had got a strong young man as chauffeur, who could help him out of the car if need be. He particularly wanted to see his godfather, Leslie Winter, who lived at Shipley Hall, not far from Uthwaite. Winter was an elderly gentleman now, wealthy, one of the wealthy coal-owners who had had their hey-day in King Edward's time. King Edward had stayed more than once at Shipley, for the shooting. It was a handsome old stucco hall, very elegantly appointed, for Winter was a bachelor and prided himself on his style; but the place was beset by collieries. Leslie Winter was attached to Clifford, but personally did not entertain a great respect for him, because of the photographs in illustrated papers and the literature. The old man was a buck of the King Edward school, who thought life was life and the scribbling fellows were something else. Towards Connie the Squire was always rather gallant; he thought her an attractive demure maiden and rather wasted on Clifford, and it was a thousand pities she stood no chance of bringing forth an heir to Wragby. He himself had no heir.

“下不为例。”他回答。“那么，晚安，快点赶路！”他消失在深灰色暗沉的夜里。她发现侧门尚未上锁，就借道溜回自己房间，没被任何人察觉。刚刚掩上门，就听到开饭的锣声响起，尽管如此，她还是要洗个澡——她必须这样做。“可我不会再这么晚回来，”她告诫自己，“太让人手忙脚乱了。”第二天，她没去成树林。她而是陪克利福德去了趟乌斯维特。现在，他时常乘车外出，得雇个年轻强壮的司机，需要时还得靠他帮忙，将克利福德从车里搀扶下来。更重要的是拜望他的教父，莱斯利·温特，这位老先生住在史普利府，距离乌斯维特不远。温特是位家资殷实的老绅士，爱德华王（注：1841-1910，英国统治者）在位时，也曾是显赫一时的煤矿主。爱德华王外出游猎时，曾在数次史普利下榻。那是座气派的古老宅邸，用灰泥粉饰，布置得优雅华丽，因为温特至今独身，对自己的情调颇感骄傲。唯一的不足之处是，整座宅邸被煤矿所环抱。虽说两人关系匪浅，但因为对克利福德刊登于各类画报的照片以及文学作品不屑一顾，温特的态度有些不冷不热。这位老先生是位地道的纨绔子弟，秉承爱德华王在位时的社会风尚，认为生活就是生活，而舞文弄墨的家伙们则是另一回事。而对康妮，这位乡绅则总是殷勤备至。在他看来，她丰姿绰约，端庄秀丽，宛若处女，许配给克利福德，简直是鲜花插在牛粪上，她没能给拉格比生位小少爷，实在是令人扼腕。他自己就没有子嗣。