Chapter II The New Life

 Armed, and with helmet in hand, H?el entered the hall at early dawn, only to find it deserted¹. The chapel² too was closed, for the chaplain had gone, and only the knights⁴ keeping the death-watch remained.

 

A page brought the knight³ a warm drink. He drained the cup, and as he turned to hand it back to him he saw the priest descending⁵ the stairs which led to the apartments of the Duchess.

 

“Have you seen our gracious lady? Then arrange for my admission also,” H?el said to him.

 

“Come outside with me,” replied the chaplain, much agitated⁶, “and hear what I have to say, not here where we are so near the dead, but under God’s sky.”

 

Overcome with astonishment⁷, H?el followed the chaplain as he strode forward in haste to the courtyard. As they went, a loud trumpet-blast sounded jubilantly from the battlements.

 

20

“Is the warder out of his senses? What means this fanfare⁸ in the house of the dead?” exclaimed H?el indignantly. “And what does that mean also? The black flag has been lowered on the watch-tower, and the banner with the arms of the Plantagenets floats in its place.”

 

“It means, noble knight,” replied the chaplain, “that Brittany has a new Duke,—our Lady Constance has a son.”[4]

 

The knight’s eyes glistened⁹ with delight, but it was only for an instant. With a sigh he gently said: “Poor Geoffrey! Unfortunate child!” Then he stood for a time in deep thought. “All the same,” he said at last, recovering himself, “messengers must carry the double news to all the castles and cities. The Council of the dead Duke must send ambassadors to the courts of England and France.”

 

“As King Henry is engaged in a campaign against Scotland and Queen Eleanor passes away the time among her castles in Guienne, there does not seem to be urgent need of haste,” said the chaplain.

 

21

“You are wrong. They must be informed as speedily as possible,” replied the knight. As he was in the act of mounting his steed, which a squire¹⁰ had brought, a page rushed up and summoned him to the Duchess.

 

The knight followed the messenger to an upper room, where one of the maids promptly¹¹ met him, and conducted him to a large apartment, against the rear wall of which the Duchess’s bed stood under a gilded¹² canopy¹³. The curtains were partly drawn¹⁴ back, and in the half darkness he saw the face of the Duchess among the silken pillows. H?el knelt and awaited her commands. She motioned him to rise, and said, “Show him the child, Joconde.”

 

The nurse approached, and lifted the veil from the little white bundle she was carrying, so that he might see the child. As he stooped to look at him, the little one opened its eyes and uttered a faint cry. The plaintive¹⁵ tone pierced H?el’s heart. He laid his hand upon the child’s head and said with deep emotion, “Accept my homage¹⁶, son of my brave lord and friend.”

 

22

The Duchess bade Joconde retire, and then said, “May all, worthy¹⁷ knight, like yourself, pay homage to Duke Arthur of Brittany, for it was this name my husband selected for his first son.” She gave way to her emotions for a moment, and then said with firm voice:

 

“Take this signet ring of my husband’s, show it to the members of the Council at Rennes,[5] and bid them execute my commands. The citizens of every city shall assemble; and to them and to every country it shall be proclaimed that Duchess Constance of Brittany will maintain the ducal authority, and that during the minority of her son she will rule all the possessions of the deceased Duke Geoffrey Plantagenet, with the help of God and the nobles of Brittany. Send a messenger also to the King of England and inform him of the death of his son and the birth of a grandson. But, above all, send a prudent¹⁸ man with a letter to King Philip Augustus at Paris.[6] Assure the King of our feudal¹⁹ loyalty²⁰ as a vassal²¹ of France, and tell him we shall render him our usual service in time of peace or war, and pay the customary tribute. In consideration of this he is to assist us in case of necessity against any enemy of our country or of the young Duke. Have the letter drawn up in temperate²² and friendly tone.”

 

23

“It shall be done, my lady,” replied H?el; “and what are your wishes as to the funeral of the Duke?”

 

“He shall be buried in the Cathedral at Rennes, and the chaplain must see that everything necessary is done. Now go, and God preserve you. May you quickly return for our protection.” She leaned back, wearied. The curtains were closed, and the knight left the apartment with a feeling of relief. When he reached the courtyard he summoned his people and the chaplain, who inquired what commissions the Duchess had given him. He answered curtly²³, “Chaplain, he who says women are weak and timid has never known the Duchess Constance.”

 

“But, tell me—”

 

“Only this,” said H?el, with his hand upon his horse’s bridle²⁴, “France is the watchword. She said scarcely a word about England.”

 

1 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

2 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

3 knight   

n.骑士，武士；爵士

参考例句：

• He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
• A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。

4 knights   

骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马

参考例句：

• stories of knights and fair maidens 关于骑士和美女的故事
• He wove a fascinating tale of knights in shining armour. 他编了一个穿着明亮盔甲的骑士的迷人故事。

5 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

6 agitated   

adj.被鼓动的，不安的

参考例句：

• His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定，回答全乱了。
• She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时，她十分焦虑。

7 astonishment   

n.惊奇，惊异

参考例句：

• They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
• I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。

8 fanfare   

n.喇叭；号角之声；v.热闹地宣布

参考例句：

• The product was launched amid much fanfare worldwide.这个产品在世界各地隆重推出。
• A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King.嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。

9 glistened   

v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Pearls of dew glistened on the grass. 草地上珠露晶莹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Her eyes glistened with tears. 她的眼里闪着泪花。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 squire   

n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅

参考例句：

• I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
• The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。

11 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

12 gilded   

a.镀金的，富有的

参考例句：

• The golden light gilded the sea. 金色的阳光使大海如金子般闪闪发光。
• "Friends, they are only gilded disks of lead!" "朋友们，这只不过是些镀金的铅饼！ 来自英汉文学 - 败坏赫德莱堡

13 canopy   

n.天篷，遮篷

参考例句：

• The trees formed a leafy canopy above their heads.树木在他们头顶上空形成了一个枝叶茂盛的遮篷。
• They lay down under a canopy of stars.他们躺在繁星点点的天幕下。

14 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

15 plaintive   

adj.可怜的，伤心的

参考例句：

• Her voice was small and plaintive.她的声音微弱而哀伤。
• Somewhere in the audience an old woman's voice began plaintive wail.观众席里，一位老太太伤心地哭起来。

16 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

17 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

18 prudent   

adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的

参考例句：

• A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
• You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。

19 feudal   

adj.封建的，封地的，领地的

参考例句：

• Feudal rulers ruled over the country several thousand years.封建统治者统治这个国家几千年。
• The feudal system lasted for two thousand years in China.封建制度在中国延续了两千年之久。

20 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

21 vassal   

n.附庸的；属下；adj.奴仆的

参考例句：

• Wales was a vassal kingdom at that time.那时威尔士是个附庸国。
• The vassal swore that he would be loyal to the king forever.这位封臣宣誓他将永远忠诚于国王。

22 temperate   

adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的

参考例句：

• Asia extends across the frigid,temperate and tropical zones.亚洲地跨寒、温、热三带。
• Great Britain has a temperate climate.英国气候温和。

23 curtly   

adv.简短地

参考例句：

• He nodded curtly and walked away. 他匆忙点了一下头就走了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The request was curtly refused. 这个请求被毫不客气地拒绝了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 bridle   

n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒

参考例句：

• He learned to bridle his temper.他学会了控制脾气。
• I told my wife to put a bridle on her tongue.我告诉妻子说话要谨慎。