《曾达的囚徒》第13期:为了对国王的爱(1)

7 For love of the King

7 为了对国王的爱

Every day I was sent a secret report by the Chief¹ of Police，and the next afternoon I was playing cards with Fritz when Sapt brought it in．

第二天下午我和弗里茨打牌时，萨普特带给我一封密信，那时每天警察长都要给我送一份秘密报告。

We learned² that Duke³ Michael and the Three had left Strelsau，and that Antoinette de Mauban had also left．Clearly，they had gone to Zenda．

我们得知迈克尔公爵和他的三个杀手离开了斯特莱索，安冬纳特·德·莫班也走了。很明显，他们去了曾达。

The report also said that the people were unhappy because the King had not yet asked Princess⁴ Flavia to marry him．

报告还说臣民不太高兴，因为国王还没有请求弗蕾维亚公主嫁给他。

'Yes，'said Fritz．'It's true．I've heard that the Princess loves the King and she's very sad…'

“是这样，”弗里茨说，“这是真的，我听说公主爱国王，她很伤心……”

'Well，'Sapt informed⁵ us，'I've arranged⁶ a dance at the royal⁷ palace this evening，for the Princess．'

“喂，”萨普特通知我们，“我今晚在王宫为公主安排了一个舞会。”

'Why wasn't I told？'I asked angrily．

“为什么事先不告诉我？”我生气地说。

But Sapt continued，'Everything is arranged．And tonight you must ask the Princess to marry you．'

可是萨普特继续说着：“一切都安排好了。今天你就向公主求婚。”

'No！I'll do nothing to hurt her！'I cried．

“不！我决不做任何伤害她的事！”我叫道。

'All right，my boy，'Sapt smiled gently⁸．'Just say something nice to her，then．Remember，she thinks you're the King and we don't want her to be angry with him，do we？'

“好的，我的孩子。”萨普特温和地微笑着。“那就只对她说些好听的话。记住，她以为你是国王。我们不想让她对国王生气，对吗？”

I understood，of course．If the King was saved，then Flavia must marry him．If he was not saved，then Sapt would ask me to stay and marry the Princess．Duke Michael must not be King．

我当然明白，如果国王得救了，弗蕾维亚就必须跟他结婚，如果他没得救，萨普特就会请我留下来，并且娶弗蕾维亚公主。决不能让迈克尔公爵当国王。

The dance was wonderful．Flavia was beautiful and I dancedwith her again and again．Everyone could feel our happiness⁹．

舞会好极了。弗蕾维亚很美丽。我跟她一遍又一遍地跳舞，每个人都能感到我们的快乐。

I forgot about the crowd of rich，colourful people who were watching us．I had eyes only for my beautiful Flavia．

我忘了那些有钱的，打扮得多姿多彩的人们在看着我们。我的眼里只有我美丽的弗蕾维亚。

When supper had finished，Fritz touched me on the shoulder．I stood up，took Flavia's hand and led her into a little room．

晚餐结束后，弗里茨碰了碰我的肩膀，我站了起来，拉着弗蕾维亚的手，把她带进一个小房间里,

They brought coffee to us and then the door was closed quietly．The Princess and I were alone．

他们给我们送来了咖啡，然后门就轻轻关上了，公主和我单独呆在一起。

The windows of the little room opened onto the garden．The night was fine and the room was filled with the sweet smell of the flowers outside．

小房间的窗户朝花园开着，夜色明朗，屋内充满了窗外鲜花的甜香。

Flavia sat down and I stood opposite her．I was fighting with myself…But then she looked at me-and I was lost！

弗蕾维亚坐了下来，我站在她的对面。我跟自己在斗争着……可是她看着我，我失败了。

I forgot the King，I forgot who I was，I forgot everything！I fell to my knees，took her gently in my arms and kissed her．

我忘了国王，忘了我是谁，忘了一切。我跪了下来，轻轻地搂住她，吻了她。

Suddenly she pushed me away．'Is it true？Do you really love me？'she cried．'Or is it because you're the King and you must marry me？'

突然她推开了我：“这是真的吗？你真的爱我吗？”她说，“还是因为你是国王而不得不娶我？”

'No！'I answered quietly．'I love you more than my life！'

“不！”我静静地回答：“我爱你胜过爱我的生命！”

1 chief   

n.领袖，酋长，长官，主要部分；adj.主要的，首位的

参考例句：

• Can you name the chief rivers of China?你能列举出中国的主要河流吗？
• He is my old chief.他是我的老上级。

2 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

3 duke   

n.公爵

参考例句：

• His grandfather was a royal duke.他的祖父是王室公爵。
• The duke was the king's most trusted adviser.公爵是国王最信赖的顾问。

4 princess   

n.公主，王妃，公爵夫人

参考例句：

• The princess grew up happily.公主很快乐地长大了。
• She was the people's princess.她是人民的王妃。

5 informed   

a.了解情况的；有见识的

参考例句：

• It is regrettable that the police were not informed sooner. 遗憾的是没有早些报警。
• He looked blank when he was informed of his dismissal. 当被告知自己被解雇时，他显得茫然。

6 arranged   

adj.安排的v.安排，准备( arrange的过去式和过去分词 )；把…（系统地）分类；整理；改编（剧本等）

参考例句：

• The party was arranged quickly. 聚会很快就安排好了。
• Chairs in rows are not as conducive to discussion as chairs arranged in a circle. 椅子成排摆放不如成圈摆放便于讨论。

7 royal   

adj.王室的，皇家的；堂皇的，盛大的；极大的，第一流的

参考例句：

• Most European royal families are connected with each other.欧洲大部分王室都有姻亲关系。
• His grandfather was a royal duke.他的祖父是王室公爵。

8 gently   

adv.轻轻的；温和的

参考例句：

• I should knock at the door gently.我应该轻轻地敲门。
• Push your chair in gently.轻轻把椅子推进去。

9 happiness   

n.幸福感；快乐；幸运

参考例句：

• I wish you the life of happiness and prosperity.我祝你生活幸福、万事如意。
• We all desire happiness and health.我们都想得到幸福和健康。