CHAPTER XVI.

 HOW GRANDGOUSIER TRIED TO BUY PEACE WITH FIVE CART-LOADS OF BUNS.

 

King Picrochole must have been a very mean man. You will begin to think so when you know how he treated Ulrich Gallet, who was sent by good old Father Grandgousier to make peace. Ulrich left the palace with five cart-loads of splendid buns, four of these carts being for the Bunmakers, and the fifth and last cart being filled to the brim¹ with buns good enough to make any one's mouth water, being made of the purest butter, the most delicious honey, the freshest eggs, and the richest saffron and other spices ever known. As Ulrich went along the high-road, people would curl up their noses in delight, take two or three long sniffs², and then cry out: "Ah! that last cart is the best of all."

"Yes," Ulrich would answer; "the buns in that cart are sent by King Grandgousier to Marquet himself."

"Who is Marquet?"

"Why, don't you know that he is the man who struck our friend Forgier across the shins and got beaten by our Shepherds? His Majesty³ has given me seven hundred thousand and three gold crowns for him to pay the surgeon who nursed his wounds."

"Oh! how good a King we have!"

"Yes, and, what is more, His Majesty offers to give Marquet and his heirs⁴ an apple-orchard forever, so dearly does he love peace."

"Was there ever such a King as ours!" cried the people on the road, sending Ulrich on with another cart-load of blessings⁵ for each mile, so that by the time he reached King Picrochole's Court there must have been quite a train of carts.

Engraving⁶

GRANDGOUSIER'S EMBASSY⁷.

When Ulrich got near Roche-Clermaud, he began to fear that he wouldn't be allowed to get into it unless he could first show that he and his carts were the best of friends. So, just before reaching the limits, he placed all around his carts a great store of reeds⁸, canes⁹, and willow-boughs, and took good care to have every one of the drivers decorated with the same, which made them look very friendly, indeed. So great was Ulrich's desire to appear like a friend that he even held a branch of each in his own hand. At this sight, the people of Lerne did not curl up their noses with quite so much delight, nor take quite so many sniffs, as the good Shepherds who had already been enjoying the fragrance¹⁰ of the buns. But, without minding cross words and sour looks, Master Ulrich Gallet at last reached the gates of King Picrochole's Palace.

Picrochole did not want either to let him come in, or go out to meet him, but sent word to him, instead, to tell what he had to say to Captain Touquedillon. Then the good man, clearing his throat, said:—

"My lord, to take away all cause for any further trouble, and to remove any excuse for your master and mine not becoming once more the best of friends, I have brought with me the buns about which all this trouble began. Our people took from yours five dozen buns. Good!—your people were well paid for them. We love peace so dearly that we bring you five carts full of buns for the five dozen which we took. One of these is for Marquet, and, besides that, here are seven hundred thousand and three gold crowns for him, and also a deed to him and his heirs forever of one of our best apple-orchards. Let us live in peace hereafter, and do you return to your own country and leave this city, to which you have no right, as you yourself know."

Now, this Captain Touquedillon was a snakish sort of man; and when he heard honest Ulrich talk he went straight to Picrochole, and coiled and twisted what he had heard in such a way that poor Ulrich, could he have heard it, wouldn't have known it to be his own. The snakish Captain added that they had got into a trap in Roche-Clermaud, and that those five carts had come in the very nick of time for the starving soldiers.

"You say well," cried Picrochole, "seize the buns the rascal¹¹ has brought!"

"And the money?"

"Seize that too!"

Then Captain Touquedillon, without further ado, sent his men out of the gate to take the money, the buns, the oxen, and the carts.

Good Ulrich returned to Grandgousier, and told him all these things. This made the gentle old Giant very sad. He stopped telling stories of old times, and took no more pleasure in roasted chestnuts¹². He saw that there must be a war, and a bitter one. He ceased to talk, and was always sighing. All that he ever would say, after long hours of silence and sighs, was:—

"Ho, there! Has my boy Gargantua come yet?"

1 brim   

n.帽檐，（容器的）边，边缘；vi.注满，充溢

参考例句：

• The glass was full to the brim.玻璃杯中的液体已满到要溢出来了。
• She was filled to the brim with happiness.她充满了幸福。

2 sniffs   

v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的第三人称单数 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说

参考例句：

• When a dog smells food, he usually sniffs. 狗闻到食物时常吸鼻子。 来自辞典例句
• I-It's a difficult time [ Sniffs ] with my husband. 最近[哭泣]和我丈夫出了点问题。 来自电影对白

3 majesty   

n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权

参考例句：

• The king had unspeakable majesty.国王有无法形容的威严。
• Your Majesty must make up your mind quickly!尊贵的陛下，您必须赶快做出决定！

4 heirs   

继承人( heir的名词复数 )； 后嗣； （工作或传统的）继承者； 承袭者

参考例句：

• The socialists saw themselves as true heirs of the Enlightenment. 社会主义者认为自己是启蒙运动的真正继承者。
• He distributed his possessions among his heirs. 他把自己的财产分给继承人。

5 blessings   

n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福

参考例句：

• Afflictions are sometimes blessings in disguise. 塞翁失马，焉知非福。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We don't rely on blessings from Heaven. 我们不靠老天保佑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 engraving   

n.版画；雕刻（作品）；雕刻艺术；镌版术v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的现在分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中）

参考例句：

• He collected an old engraving of London Bridge. 他收藏了一张古老的伦敦桥版画。 来自辞典例句
• Some writing has the precision of a steel engraving. 有的字体严谨如同钢刻。 来自辞典例句

7 embassy   

n.大使馆，大使及其随员

参考例句：

• Large crowd demonstrated outside the British Embassy.很多群众在英国大使馆外面示威。
• He's a U.S. diplomat assigned to the embassy in London.他是美国驻伦敦大使馆的一名外交官。

8 reeds   

芦苇( reed的名词复数 )； 芦丛； 簧舌； 簧片

参考例句：

• Our roof was made of dried reeds. 我们的屋顶是用干芦苇盖的。
• Oaks may fall when reeds stand the storm. 芦苇耐风暴，橡树却会倒。

9 canes   

n.（某些植物，如竹或甘蔗的）茎( cane的名词复数 )；（用于制作家具等的）竹竿；竹杖

参考例句：

• Sugar canes eat sweet. 甘蔗吃起来很甜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I saw several sugar canes, but wild, and for cultivation, imperfect. 我还看到一些甘蔗，因为是野生的，未经人工栽培，所以不太好吃。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学

10 fragrance   

n.芬芳，香味，香气

参考例句：

• The apple blossoms filled the air with their fragrance.苹果花使空气充满香味。
• The fragrance of lavender filled the room.房间里充满了薰衣草的香味。

11 rascal   

n.流氓；不诚实的人

参考例句：

• If he had done otherwise,I should have thought him a rascal.如果他不这样做，我就认为他是个恶棍。
• The rascal was frightened into holding his tongue.这坏蛋吓得不敢往下说了。

12 chestnuts   

n.栗子( chestnut的名词复数 )；栗色；栗树；栗色马

参考例句：

• A man in the street was selling bags of hot chestnuts. 街上有个男人在卖一包包热栗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Talk of chestnuts loosened the tongue of this inarticulate young man. 因为栗子，正苦无话可说的年青人，得到同情他的人了。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说