雙語·面紗 第四十章

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They crossed the river in a sampan. A chair was waiting for Kitty at the landing-stage and she was carried up the hill to the water-gate. It was through this that the coolies came to fetch water from the river and they hurried to and fro with huge buckets hanging from the yoke on their shoulder, splashing the causeway so that it was as wet as though it had heavily rained. Kitty's bearers gave short, sharp cries to urge them to make way.

“Of course all business is at a standstill,” said Waddington, walking by her side. “Under normal circumstances you have to fight you way through the coolies carrying loads up and down to the junks.”

The street was narrow and winding so that Kitty lost all sense of the direction in which she was going. Many of the shops were closed. She had grown used on the journey up to the untidiness of a Chinese street, but here was the litter of weeks, garbage and refuse; and the stench was so horrible that she had to put her handkerchief to her face. Passing through Chinese cities she had been incommoded by the staring of the crowd, but now she noticed that no more than an indifferent glance was thrown at her. The passers-by, scattered rather than as usual thronging, seemed intent on their own affairs. They were cowed and listless. Now and then as they went by a house they heard the beating of gongs and the shrill, sustained lament of unknown instruments. Behind those closed doors one was lying dead.

“Here we are,” said Waddington at last.

The chair was set down at a small doorway, surmounted by a cross, in a long white wall, and Kitty stepped out. He rang the bell.

“You musn't expect anything very grand, you know. They're miserably poor.”

The door was opened by a Chinese girl, and after a word or two from Waddington she led them into a little room on the side of the corridor. It contained a large table covered with a chequered oilcloth and round the walls was a set of stiff chairs. At one end of the room was a statue, in plaster, of the Blessed Virgin. In a moment a nun came in, short and plump, with a homely face, red cheeks, and merry eyes. Waddington, introducing Kitty to her, called her Soeur St. Joseph.

“C'est la dame du docteur?” she asked, beaming, and then added that the Mother Superior would join them directly.

Sister St. Joseph could speak no English and Kitty's French was halting; but Waddington, fluent, voluble, and inaccurate, maintained a stream of facetious comment which convulsed the good-humoured nun. Her cheerful, easy laughter not a little astonished Kitty. She had an idea that the religious were always grave and this sweet and childlike merriment touched her.

第四十章

他們乘著一條小舢板過了河。碼頭上有一個轎椅已經(jīng)為凱蒂備好，她被抬著上山，一直來到水閘處。在這兒，苦力們從河中取水，然后在肩上搭上軛，挑著巨大的水桶來來回回地運送著水，在堤道上濺滿了水，把小土道弄得濕漉漉的，就像剛下過一場大雨似的。凱蒂的轎夫們口中發(fā)出短促、尖聲的喊叫，催促他們讓路。

“顯而易見，所有的生意都停了下來?！蓖㈩D走在她的旁邊，跟她說道，“在過去正常的情況下，這條路上滿是肩挑背扛的苦力，上上下下地把貨物運到船上去，你得奮力跟他們搶道才能過去?！?/p>

街道狹窄而彎曲，凱蒂完全失去了前進的方向感，很多店鋪都關(guān)了門。在來湄潭府的一路上，她已經(jīng)對街道的臟亂習以為常了。但這兒，好幾個星期的垃圾已經(jīng)堆積成山，惡臭熏天，她不得不把手絹捂在口鼻處。以前經(jīng)過中國的城鎮(zhèn)時，人群對她的注目而視讓她不勝其煩，但現(xiàn)在她注意到不再有好奇的目光向她投來，路人不像通常那樣摩肩接踵地行走，而是三三兩兩地散得很開，似乎只想埋頭管自己的事情。他們?nèi)缤@弓之鳥，但又顯得無精打采。當他們經(jīng)過一座座房屋時，時不時會聽見里面?zhèn)鱽淼那描屄?，還有某些不知名的樂器傳來的刺耳而又悠長的哀怨曲調(diào)，在這些緊閉的門后，一定又有人死去了。

“我們到了?！蓖㈩D終于說道。

轎椅在一所院落的小門前被放了下來，門的上方是一個十字架，四周是長長的白色院墻。凱蒂從轎椅上走下來，威廷頓按響了門鈴。

“你別以為這兒富麗堂皇，你知道，實際上她們非常寒酸?！?/p>

一個中國女孩打開了大門，威廷頓跟她說了幾句話，她把他們引到走廊一側(cè)的一間小屋子里面。屋里放著一張大桌子，上面蓋著一個黑白格子相間的油布，墻的四周擺著一套硬木椅子，房間的一端是石膏做成的圣母瑪利亞的雕像。沒過多大一會兒，一位修女走了進來，個頭矮胖，一張面孔很樸實，紅色的臉頰，一雙歡快的眼睛。威廷頓把凱蒂介紹給了她，而把她稱為圣約瑟夫修女。

“這位是醫(yī)生的太太嗎？”[1]她笑容滿面地用法語問道。然后又補充說，院長馬上就會來見他們。

圣約瑟夫修女不會說英語，而凱蒂的法語也是磕磕絆絆。但是威廷頓用一口流利但絕非地道的法語，滔滔不絕地發(fā)表了一通滑稽的評論，引得本來就愛笑的圣約瑟夫修女捧腹大笑。她那歡快、輕松的笑聲讓凱蒂大吃一驚，她原以為教會人士總是很嚴肅的，而這種甜美、孩子般的快樂打動了她。

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[1]原文為法語。