Niou had not for a moment forgotten the dim evening light in which he had seen the girl. She would not appear to have been of the highest rank, and yet her clean grace left him deeply dissatisfied (for he was very susceptible1) that he had not had his way. He managed to work up considerable resentment2 at Nakanokimi.
“I would not have expected it of you,” he said, so frequently that she began to wonder whether she ought not to tell him the whole story.
But no. The girl had attracted the notice of someone who — though he did not, it seemed, mean to make her his principal wife — was so taken with her that he had hidden her away. It was not for Nakanokimi to reveal secrets. Besides, Niou could not be expected to sit idly by once he had learned the truth. Let him embark3 upon some fleeting4 dalliance with one of the women around him, and temptation would promptly5 lead him off to places where a prince ought not to go. The case of the girl who had been so on his mind over the days and weeks was almost certain to be troublesome. Nakanokimi could do nothing, of course, if he were to learn the facts from someone else. It would be sad for both Kaoru and Ukifune, but he would not be held back by the most persuasive6 arguments. And the effect upon Nakanokimi herself would be far more painful than the effect of all his other intrigues7 combined. Well, she would in any case make sure that she herself was guilty of no carelessness. This sulking was not easy to live with, but she would say nothing. Incapable8 of clever fabrication, she kept her peace and let him think her just another jealous woman.
Kaoru’s self-control, meanwhile, approached the unbelievable. The girl would be expecting him, he knew, but a man in his position had to have good excuses for such a journey. The road was more forbidding than if it had been proscribed9 by the gods. He would in the end do his duty by her. She would be his companion in that mountain village. He would invent some pretext11 for spending a few quiet days with her, but for the time being she must remain out of sight. When she was somewhat more settled and composed, he would arrange an acceptable sort of liaison12, one that would not damage his good name. He did not want people to be asking what this sudden development meant, and who the girl might be, and when it had all begun; his aim in visiting Uji was certainly not to attract attention. And on the other hand he would not wish Nakanokimi to think that he had turned his back on a place so rich in memories and left the past behind. With his usual care and deliberation, he turned the arguments over in his mind.
Not that he was wholly inactive: he had commenced work on the house to which he would presently bring the girl. He was a busy man, but he continued to visit Nakanokimi regularly. Though some of her women thought it all rather odd, Nakanokimi herself, more familiar now with the ways of the world, was much moved. Here was a man who did not forget, whose affections did not wear thin with the passage of time. The years seemed to improve him, even as the hopes the world had for him rose. Seeing, by contrast, how deplorably capricious and unreliable her husband was, she could only sigh at the strange, sad fate that seemed to be hers. Oigimi’s plans for her had come to nothing, and she had found herself married to a man whose chief contribution to her life was gloomy foreboding.
Yet it was difficult to receive Kaoru with the warmth she really felt. The Uji years were receding14 into the distance. People of the lower classes might presume upon such a relationship, muttered some of her women, unfamiliar15 with happenings at Uji, but it certainly was most irregular for grandchildren of emperors. In the natural course of events, then, she began to seem more distant, even though her feelings for him were as they had always been. Niou might upset her from time to time with his erratic16 ways, but the little prince was growing up, more of a delight each day. Thinking it unlikely that another lady would favor him with so pretty a child, he lavished17 great affection upon her, affection, indeed, such as the lady at Rokujō did not enjoy. In spite of everything, Nakanokimi was feeling more sure of herself.
At about noon one day early in the New Year, when Niou was playing with the child, now in its second year, a little girl came bounding in and handed the princess a rather fat letter in a fine, cream-colored envelope. With it were a small “whiskered basket” attached to an artificial seedling18 pine, and a second letter, more formally folded.
“And where might they be from?” asked Niou.
“The man said from Uji, for Madame Tayū. I didn’t know what to do with them, and I thought my lady might like to see them. She always does.” The girl was confused. “Just look at this basket, will you. Metal, and it’s colored all over. And look at this pine. Look at the branches. You might think it was real.”
She smiled, and Niou smiled back. “Yes, do let me have a look at it.”
“Take them to Tayū immediately.” Nakanokimi flushed. She did not want him to read the letters.
Would they be from Kaoru? They did look like women’s letters, but he could easily have disguised them, and Uji would have been an apt choice for their source. He took one of them up. But he too was confused. He hoped that his suspicions would not prove correct.
“I’m going to open it. Will you be angry with me?”
“It’s not good manners to look at private notes between women.” Nakanokimi managed to seem unconcerned.
“You really must let me see them. What might it be like, I wonder, a letter from one woman to another?”
“I have been very remiss20 about writing, and here we are, going into the New Year. Our gloomy mountains offer no break in the winter mists.” The hand was that of a very young woman.” These are cheap trinkets, but give them to the little prince, if you will.”
There was nothing remarkable21 about the letter. But he was curious to know who the writer might be. He took up the other. It too was, as she had said, in a woman’s hand.
“And how will our lady be, now that the New Year has come? I have no doubt that you yourself have a long list of blessings22 to count over. This is a beautiful house and we are well taken care of, and yet it seems a pity that the young lady should be shut away in the mountains. I have been telling her that she must stop brooding, that she must pick herself up and visit you from time to time; but she refuses because of that awful thing and goes on brooding. She is sending streamers to decorate the little prince’s room. Please show them to him when his father is away.”
It was not a very pleasing letter. It was wordy and complaining and not at all in keeping with the happy season. Puzzled, he read it again.
“You must tell me everything. Who is it from?”
“I am told that the daughter of a woman who was in service with us at Uji has been obliged to go back there.”
But it did not seem the hand of an ordinary maidservant, and the mention of “that awful thing” was a valuable hint. The streamers were charming, obviously the work of someone with a great deal of spare time, perhaps, indeed, too much. A branch at a fork in the pine had been strung with artificial red berries, and a poem attached to it:
“Our seedling pine has not known many years.
I see for it, withal, a pine’s long life.”
It was not a particularly distinguished23 poem. Yet he continued to read it over, sensing that it would be from a lady who had been much on his mind.
“Send off an answer. You must not be rude, and I see no need for secrecy24.” He turned to go. “I have no choice but to leave you when you are in one of your moods.”
The princess summoned her women. “A great pity,” she said softly. “You had to let them fall into the hands of an infant, did you?”
“You surely don’t think we wanted it that way! No, that child is cheeky and forward and not as bright as she might be. It doesn’t take long to sort out the ones with possibilities. The quiet ones are the ones to watch.”
“Oh, don’t be angry with her,” said Nakanokimi. “She’s so young.”
The child had been put into Nakanokimi’s service the winter before. She was a pretty little thing and Niou was fond of her.
All very strange, thought Niou, back in his own rooms. Having had reports that Kaoru continued to visit Uji, and a further report that he occasionally spent the night there, he had smiled and said to himself that his friend had strange ways, even granting the associations that Uji had for him. So a lady was hidden there!
Niou remembered a certain official, a privy25 secretary, who had been of service to him in scholarly matters and who had close friends among Niou’s retainers. He asked the man to bring anthologies for a game of rhyme guessing.
“Just leave them in the cabinet over there, if you will. By the way: they tell me that the general is still making trips to Uji. His monastery26 must be very splendid — I only wish I could go have a look at it.”
“Very splendid indeed, I understand, very dignified27. Especially the Chapel28 of the Holy Name, people tell me. I understand that he has been going more often since last fall, and his men have been spreading rumors29 about a lady there, someone he does not find at all unattractive, I’m sure. He’s told the people at his manor30 to do everything they can for her, and they post guards every night, and then he keeps sending out secret supply wagons31 from town. A very lucky lady — but she must be lonely and bored off there in the mountains. That’s what they say, or were saying along towards the end of last year.”
What a delightful32 piece of intelligence!” They haven’t said who she might be? I’ve heard that he visits a nun33 who’s lived there for a very long time.”
“The nun lives in a gallery. The lady herself is in the main hall, the new one. She gets by comfortably, I believe, with acceptable enough women to wait on her.”
“Very, very interesting. What plans might he have for her? And what sort of woman is she? He has his ways, you know, not at all like yours and mine. I hear that his good brother is always after him for overdoing34 the religious thing and spending his nights off in mountain temples. And people say that he could find plenty of other places to be religious in if he had to, and needn’t go sneaking35 off to Uji. It has to be because of the late princess, people say. So here we are. Interesting, do you not think? The saint who is so much better than the rest of us does have his little secrets.”
It was very interesting. The secretary was the son-in-law of Kaoru’s steward36 and so was apprised37 of very intimate matters. Niou wondered how to go about learning for certain whether it was the girl he had seen at Nijō. She must in any case be unusual if she had caught Kaoru’s eye. And why should she be close to Nakanokimi? It so irritated him that he could think of nothing else, the quite evident fact that Kaoru and Nakanokimi had spirited the girl away.
The archery meet and the literary banquet were over and there were no great demands on his time. The provincial38 appointments that created such a stir on certain levels were no concern of his. He could think only of slipping off to Uji. The secretary from whom he had learned Kaoru’s secret had certain ambitions, and was adept39 at currying40 favor. Niou did nothing to discourage him.
“Suppose I were to ask something really difficult of you,” he said one day. “Would you do it for me?”
The man bowed deeply.
“Well, here we are then, and I hope I won’t shock you. I’ve learned that the lady at Uji might be someone I knew for a very little while a long time ago. She disappeared, and I’ve had reports that the general may have taken her away. I can’t be really sure. I’d like to do a bit of sleuthing. Do you think something might be arranged without attracting notice?”
This would be difficult, thought the man. Still he could not refuse. “The road leads through wild mountains, but not so very far, really. If you leave in the evening you should be there by a little after ten. And it might be best to be home by dawn. No one needs to know except the men who go with you, and not even they need to know everything.
“My feelings exactly. I’ve made the trip before — but do try to keep it secret. There are always gossips who seem to think that people like me should stay at home.”
Though he knew that he was being reckless, it was now too late to withdraw. He took along two or three men who had been with him on other trips to Uji, this secretary, and the son of his old nurse, a young man who had just been promoted to the Fifth Rank for his work as a privy secretary. They were all among his closer confidants. The secretary had orders to inquire carefully into comings and goings at Sanjō, and was certain that Kaoru would not be visiting Uji in the next day or two.
Memories came flooding back. Niou found himself pulled in several directions at once. In the old days he had felt remarkably41 close to Kaoru, who had taken him by the hand and led him off to Uji. It bothered him a little to think what he was now doing to his good friend, and he was a little frightened too, for he was a prince, and even in the city his adventures were never secrets. Such were his thoughts as, in drab incognito42, he mounted his horse; but he was of an impressionable, eagerly responsive nature. His heart rose as they pushed deeper into the mountains. Would it be much longer? Would she let him see her? A tragedy indeed if he were denied even a glimpse of her!
He had come by carriage as far as the Hōshōji Temple and from there on horseback. Making very good time, he was in Uji by perhaps eight in the evening. The secretary having questioned an attendant of Kaoru’s who was familiar with the arrangements at Uji, they were able to pull up at an unguarded spot to the west of the house. Breaking through the reed fence, they slipped inside. The secretary himself was somewhat uncertain, not really knowing his way about, but the grounds did not seem to be heavily guarded. He saw a dim light and heard a rustling43 of garments at the south front of the house.
“There still seem to be people up. Come this way, please, if you will.”
Niou made his way softly up the stairs and leaned forward to take advantage of a crack he had found in a shutter44. The rustling of an Iyo blind gave him brief pause. The house was new and clean, and but roughly furnished. As if in confidence that no one would be looking in on them, the women inside had not bothered to cover the openings. The curtain beyond the shutter had been lifted back across its frame. In the bright light, three or four women were sewing. A pretty little maidservant was spinning thread. It was a face he had had a glimpse of in the torchlight at Nijō. Or was he perhaps mistaken? Then he saw the young woman who had announced herself as Ukon. Ukifune herself lay gazing into the light, her head pillowed on her arm. Her eyes, charmingly girlish and not without a certain dignity, and her forehead, thick hair spilling down over it, reminded him astonishingly of his princess at Nijō.
“But if you do go, I don’t imagine you’ll be coming back very soon.” It was Ukon, busy creasing45 a robe. “We had that messenger from the general yesterday, you know. The general will be coming on about the first of the month, we can be sure of it, once the business of the provincial appointments is out of the way. What has he said in his letters?”
Evidently sunk in thoughts of her own, the girl did not answer.
“It won’t look at all good, running off when you know he’ll be coming.”
“I think you ought to let him know about your plans,” said the woman facing Ukon. “It won’t seem very nice to go dashing off without a word to him. And I think you ought to come back as soon as you’ve had time for a prayer or two. I know this is a lonely place, but it’s a safe, quiet place too. Once you’re used to it you’ll feel more at home than you ever did in the city.”
“Don’t you think the polite thing,” said another woman, whom he could not see, “would be to wait a little while? After you’re in the city you can have a good visit with your mother. The old woman here is much too quick with her good ideas. Careful plans turn out best in the end. It is true now and it has always been true.”
“Why didn’t you stop her? Old people are such a nuisance.” These reproaches seemed to be directed at Ukifune’s nurse.
Yes, to be sure, thought Niou: there had. been a troublesome old woman with the girl. The memory of that evening had a misty46, spectral47 quality about it.
The talk went on, so open that he was almost embarrassed. “I say the lucky one is our lady in the city. The minister throws his weight about and makes a big thing of having royalty48 for a son-in-law, but since our little master was born our side has had the better of it. And there aren’t any nasty, pushy49 old women at Nijō, and our lady can do very much as she pleases.”
“Oh, but our own lady will be doing just as well if the general keeps his promises. She’ll be there with the best of them.”
“There with the best of them!” Ukifune raised herself on an elbow. “Did you have to say that? You know I don’t want you comparing me with the lady at Nijō. What if she were to hear?”
How might the two of them be related, this girl and his own lady? There was an unmistakable resemblance. The girl was no match for the other in proud, cool elegance50. She was winsome51 and pretty, no more, and her features were delicately formed. A suggestion of less than the rarest refinement52, however, was not enough to make him withdraw when he had before his eyes a girl who had been so long and persistently53 on his mind.
This first good look at her left him in an agony of impatience54 to make her his own. It would appear that she was going on a journey. And she seemed to have parents. When would he have another such chance? What might he hope to accomplish in the course of the night?
He gazed on and on, in growing agitation55.
“I’m very sleepy,” said Ukon, gathering56 up half-sewn garments and hanging them over the curtain rack. “I don’t know why, but I hardly slept at all last night. I can finish tomorrow morning. Even if your mother gets an earl y start it will be noon by the time she gets here.” Leaning on an armrest, she seemed about to doze57 off. The girl retired58 somewhat farther into the room and lay down. After disappearing into a back room for a time, Ukon reappeared and lay down at her feet. Soon she was fast asleep.
At a loss for other devices, Niou tapped on the shutter.
“Who is it?” asked Ukon.
He cleared his throat. A most genteel sound, thought Ukon. It would be Kaoru. She came to the shutter.
“Raise it, if you will, please.”
“You’ve chosen a strange hour. It must be very late.”
“I heard from Nakanobu that your lady would be going away, and I came running. It was a terrible trip, terrible. Do raise the shutter, please.” She obeyed, not guessing who it would be. He spoke59 in undertones and skillfully imitated his friend’s mannerisms. “I’m all in tatters. Something really frightful60 happened along the way.”
“It must have been, I’m sure.” Uncertain what to do, she put the light at a distance.
“I don’t want anyone to see me. Please don’t wake them.”
He was a clever mimic61. Since their voices were similar, he was able to give a convincing enough imitation of Kaoru that he was shown to the rear of the hall. How trying for the poor man, thought Ukon, withdrawing behind a curtain. Under rough travel guise19 he wore robes of a fine, soft weave. His fragrance62 scarcely if at all inferior to Kaoru’s, he undressed as if he were in his own private rooms and lay down beside Ukifune.
“Why not where you usually sleep?”
He did not answer. Ukon spread a coverlet over her mistress, and, arousing the women nearby, asked them to lie down some slight distance away. Since it was the practice for Kaoru’s men to be accommodated elsewhere, no one sensed what was happening.
“How very sweet of him, so late at night. Doesn’t she understand?”
“Oh, do be quiet.” Some people understand too well, thought Ukon. “A whisper in the middle of the night can be worse than a scream.”
Ukifune was stunned63. She knew that it was not Kaoru; but whoever it was had put his hand over her mouth. (If he was capable of such excesses at home, with everyone watching, what would he not be capable of here?) Had she known immediately that it was not Kaoru, she might have resisted, even a little; but now she was paralyzed. She had hurt him on an earlier occasion, he said, and she had been on his mind ever since; and so she quickly guessed who he was. Hideously64 embarrassed, horrified65 at the thought of what was being done to her sister, she could only weep. Niou too was in tears. It would not be easy to see her again. Might it have been better not to come at all?
And so the night sped past. Outside, an attendant coughed to warn of the approach of dawn. Ukon came out. Niou did not want to leave, for he had had far from enough of the girl’s company — and it would be difficult to come again. Very well: let them raise any sort of commotion66 they wished. He would not go back today. One loved while one lived. Why go back and die of longing67?
He summoned Ukon. “You will think it unwise, I am sure, but I propose to spend the day here. Have my men hide somewhere not too far away, and send Tokikata to the city with good excuses — maybe he can say I’m busy praying at a mountain temple.”
Ukon was aghast. Why had she not been more careful? But she was soon in control of herself once more. What was done was done, and there was no point in antagonizing him. Call it fate, that he should have gone on thinking about Ukifune after that strange, fleeting encounter. No one was to blame.
“Her mother is sending for her today. What do you intend to do? I know that some things have to be, and there is nothing anyone can do about them; but you’ve really picked a very bad day. Suppose you come again, if you still feel in the mood.”
An able woman, thought he. “No, I’ve been wandering around in a daze68 all these weeks. I haven’t cared what they might be saying about me. A man in my position doesn’t go sneaking off into the night, you know, if he’s still worried about appearances. Just tell her mother there’s been a very unfortunate defilement69, and send them back again. Don’t give them a hint that I’m here. For her sake and for mine. I don’t think that’s asking a great deal, and I won’t settle for less.”
He did seem so infatuated with the girl that he no longer worried about the reproaches he might call down upon himself.
Ukon went out to a man who had been nervously70 seeking to get Niou on his way, and informed him of these new intentions. “Go tell him, please, that this will not do. He is behaving outrageously71. I don’t care what he may be thinking, what your men are thinking is more important. Are you children, bringing him out into these wilds? Country people can be unruly, you know, and they don’t always respect rank.”
The secretary had to agree that things might be difficult.
“And which of you is Tokikata?” She passed on Niou’s orders.
“Oh, but of course,” laughed Tokikata. “Any excuse to get away from that tongue of yours. But seriously: he seems very fond of her, and I intend to do what I can, even if it means, as you say, taking childish risks. Well, I’m off. They’ll soon be changing the guard.”
Ukon was in a quandary72. How was she to keep Niou’s presence a secret?
“The general seems to have had reasons for coming incognito,” she said when the others were up. “Something rather awful happened to him along the way. He’s having fresh clothes sent out tonight.”
“Mount Kohata is a dreadful place. That’s what happens when you go around without a decent guard. How really dreadful.”
“Don’t shout about it, if you please. Give the servants a hint and they’ll guess everything.”
Ukon did not like it at all. She was not a natural liar13. And what would she find to say if a messenger were to come from Kaoru?” Please,” she prayed, bowing in the direction of Hatsuse. “Please let this day pass like all the others.”
Ukifune and her mother were to go on a pilgrimage to Ishiyama. The women had been through all the necessary fasting and purification. For nothing, it now became apparent. How very unfortunate!
The sun had risen, the shutters73 were open. Ukon stayed near her mistress. Blinds were lowered to darken the main hall and bills posted announcing a retreat. Should Ukifune’s mother ask to come in, Ukon would have to say that there had been forbidding dreams in the night. She brought water to Niou and her mistress. The morning ablutions were in no way out of the ordinary, but it seemed infinitely74 strange to him that this new girl should be waiting on him. He invited her to wash first. Used to Kaoru’s quiet ways, she now found herself with a gentleman who proclaimed himself incapable of tolerating a moment’s separation. This must be the sort of thing people meant when they spoke of love. But what if word of this new shift in her destinies — strangest of destinies — were to get abroad? What, before anything, of Nakanokimi?
He still did not know who she was. “You are being very unkind, and I can tell you that I am not at all happy. Tell me everything, everything. There’s no need to be shy. I’ll only like you better, I vow75 it, whatever you tell me. Tell me your family doesn’t amount to a thing, and I’ll still like you better.”
She remained silent despite his importunings, but on other subjects she answered with a pleasing openness. He was delighted to see that she was not ill disposed toward him.
The sun was high when a retinue76 from the city — two carriages, seven or eight mounted warriors77, rough East Country people, as always, and numbers of foot soldiers as well — arrived to escort her back. Embarrassed at their uncouth78 speech and manners, the women of the house shooed them out of earshot. What could she possibly say to them? Ukon was asking herself. That Kaoru was on the premises79? But the lie would be transparent80. Everyone knew the whereabouts of someone so prominent.
Confiding81 in none of the other women, she got off a letter to the girl’s mother: “Night before last her monthly defilement came on, and, to compound her unhappiness at having to cancel the pilgrimage, she had a bad dream last night. Complete retirement82 has seemed necessary. We are very sorry indeed — no doubt some evil spirit has been at work.”
She fed the guards and sent them on their way, and, again offering the monthly defilement as her excuse, informed the nun that they would not after all be going to Ishiyama.
Ukifune had been living in unrelieved gloom and boredom83, such as to make her wonder, looking moodily84 out into the mist that clung to the mountains, how she could go on; but today she had interesting company, and begrudged85 the passage of each moment. The day sped by, a calm spring day. There was nothing to distract Niou from present delights. Her face, at which he gazed and did not tire, was pretty and gentle, and free of anything that could be counted a blemish86. She was not, to be sure, the equal of his princess at Nijō, nor was she to be compared to his lady at Rokujō, now in the finest glow of youth. But there did come these occasions when the moment seemed sufficient unto itself, and he thought her the most charming creature he had ever seen. She, for her part, had thought Kaoru the handsomest of men, but here was a luster87, a glow, with which he could not compete.
Niou sent for an inkstone. He wrote beautifully, even though for his own amusement, and he drew interesting pictures. What young person could have resisted him?
“You must look at this and think of me when I am not able to visit you.” He sketched88 a most handsome couple leaning towards each other. “If only we could be together always.” And he shed a tear.
“The promise is made for all the ages to come,
But in these our lives we cannot be sure of the morrow.
“No. I am inviting90 bad luck. I must control myself. It will not be easy to visit you, my dear, and the thought of not seeing you makes me want to die. Why do you suppose I have gone to all this trouble when you were not at all kind to me the last time we met?”
She took up the brush, still inked, and jotted91 down a poem of her own:
“Were life alone uncertain of the morrow,
Then might we count upon the heart of a man.”
It amused him that she should be reproving him for future infidelities. “And whose heart is it that you have found so undependable?” He smiled, and pressed her to tell of her arrival at Uji and of the days that had followed.
“Why must you keep asking questions that I cannot answer?” There was an open, childlike quality about the reproach that he found enchanting92. He knew that the whole story would presently come out. Why then must he have it from her lips?
Tokikata returned in the evening. “There was a message from Her Majesty93,” he said to Ukon. “She is very angry, and so is the minister. These secret expeditions of his suggest very bad judgment94, she said, and could have embarrassing consequences. And she said — it was quite a scolding — that her own position would be impossible if His Majesty were to hear of them. I said he had gone off to visit a learned, learned man in the eastern hills.” And he added: “Women are the root of it all. Here we are, the merest bystanders, and we get pulled in, and end up telling lies.”
“How kind of you to make my lady a learned, learned man. A good deed, surely, that wipes out whatever may have been marked against you for lying. But where did he pick up his bad habits? If he had let us know in advance, well, he is a very well-placed young gentleman, and we could have arranged something. But she is right. He shows bad judgment.”
She went to transmit Tokikata’s report. True, thought Niou: they would be worried. “It is no fun,” he said to Ukifune,” living in shackles95. I wish I could run about like all the others, just for a little while. But what do you think? People will find out, whatever we do. And how will my friend Kaoru take it? We have been close friends. That is only natural. But actually we have been closer than close, and I hate to think what the discovery will do to him. As they say, he may forget that he has kept you waiting and blame you for everything. I wish I could hide you somewhere from the whole world.”
He could not possibly stay another day. “My soul,” he whispered as he made ready to go, “does it linger on in your sleeve?”
Wishing to be back in the city before daylight, his men were coughing nervously. She saw him to the door, and still he could not leave her.
“What shall I do? These tears run on ahead
And plunge96 the road I must go into utter darkness.”
She was touched.
“So narrow my sleeves, they cannot take my tears.
How then shall I make bold to keep you with me?”
A high wind roared through the trees and the dawn was heavy with frost. Even the touch of their robes, in the moment of parting, seemed co1d. He was smitten97 afresh as he mounted his horse, and turned back to her; but his men were not prepared to wait longer. In a daze of longing, he at length set out. The two courtiers of the Fifth Rank who had come with him led his horse through the mountains and mounted their own only when they had come to open country. Everything, even the clattering98 of hoofs99 on the icy riverbank, brought melancholy100 thoughts. The pull of Uji and love, and that alone, now and in the old days, had the power to bring him through wild mountains. What strange ties he did seem to have with that remote mountain village!
Back at Nijō, he went to his own rooms, hoping to rest for a time. He had another reason for wanting to be away from Nakanokimi: he was still annoyed at her for having concealed101 the other girl’s whereabouts. But he could not sleep. He was lonely, and his thoughts were too much for him. Presently he gave up and went to her wing of the house. Innocent of what had happened, she was at her most beautiful. She was more beautiful than the one who had made the night before such an unmixed delight. The closeness of the resemblance brought back the full flood of his longing. Pensively102, he went into her boudoir and lay down. She followed.
“I am not feeling well. I wonder if it might be something serious. I have been fond of you, and I am sure that if I were to disappear you would find a replacement103 in no time. He will win out in the end, I am sure.”
What a terrible thing to say — and he was not joking. “How do you suppose he will feel if he hears of these snide insinuations?” She turned away. “I have worries enough without having to defend myself against completely groundless charges.”
He looked at her solemnly. “And how will you feel if you find that I am really angry with you? I have done rather a great deal for you, I think. There are those who say I have done too much. You obviously rank me several grades below him. Well, that I can accept as fate. But it hurts me that you should seem so bent104 on keeping secrets from me.”
All the while he was marveling upon the forces of destiny that had made him seek the girl out. Tears came to his eyes. Moved to pity, Nakanokimi wondered what sort of rumors he could have picked up. She fell silent. His first visit to her had been the merest prank105, and he could not have come away with any high regard for her determination to guard her honor. The mistake had been in admitting and indeed in feeling grateful for the services of a gentleman who, though without close ties to the Uji family, had chosen to act as intermediary. It was because of the initial mistake that she must put up with these insults. She presented a charming and pathetic figure as she lay sunk in her worries. Not wanting her to know for a time that he had found Ukifune, he sought to make her think he had good reasons for berating106 her. She concluded that her apparent flirtation107 with Kaoru lay at the heart of the matter. Someone had been talking. Unable to guess what exactly he might be charging her with, she wanted to run and hide.
An unexpected letter came from the empress. Careful to go on looking displeased108, Niou withdrew to his own rooms. It said in part: “His Majesty was much upset at your absence yesterday. Unless you are indisposed, please do come today. It has been rather a long time since I last saw you myself.”
He was sorry to discommode109 his parents, but he really was not feeling well. He did not go to court. Large numbers of high-ranking courtiers came by but he stayed behind blinds the whole day. In the evening Kaoru called. Asking that he be shown in, Niou received him in dishabille.
“Her Majesty was terribly alarmed when she heard that you had not been well. What might the trouble be?”
The sight of him made Niou’s breath come more rapidly. Here I am in the presence of our resident saint, he was thinking; but he smells a little of the vagrant110 saint, I fear. Such a sweet girl, and he keeps her off in the mountains all for himself, and leaves her waiting week after week. Niou thought his friend sanctimonious111, giving assurances of his sincerity112 when nothing in the conversation seemed to call for them. Always assiduous in his search for openings, was he not to take delicious advantage of this new secret? But sarcasm113 did not fit his mood. He wished that Kaoru would go away.
“This will not do,” said Kaoru most solicitously114 as he got up to leave. “You may think it is nothing at all, but when these little complaints refuse to clear up after a few days they can be dangerous. You must take care of yourself.”
The man had a remarkable way of making one feel defeated, thought Niou. And how would the girl at Uji be rating them against each other, Kaoru and himself? So each passing incident brought her back — not that she was ever far away.
At Uji the days went by in dull procession, now that the trip to Ishiyama no longer offered relief. Niou wrote at almost tedious length of his impatience and frustration115. Knowing that he could not be too careful, he chose for his messenger a man of Tokikata’s who knew little of the situation at Uji. The man always went to Ukon.
“We were very fond of each other, once upon a time,” said Ukon to her fellows. “He discovered me here when he came with the general, and now he wants to be friends again.” She had become adept at lying.
The First Month passed. A trip to Uji was for Niou almost an impossibility, however restless he might be. He was sure that this new obsession116 was taking years from his life; and so there came thoughts of death to intensify117 the gloom.
Kaoru, meanwhile, having a brief respite118 from his duties, set off in his usual quiet way for Uji. He went first to pay his respects and offer a prayer at the monastery. In the evening, after distributing gifts to the monks119 whom he had put to invoking120 the holy name, he went on to the Uji villa10. Though incognito might have been appropriate, he had made no attempt to hide his rank. In informal but careful court dress, he was the embodiment of calm nobility. How could she possibly receive him? thought Ukifune, in near panic. The very skies seemed to reproach her. The dashing figure of his rival came back to her. Could she see him again? Niou had said that she had every chance of driving all his other ladies away and capturing his affections for herself alone. She had heard that he was ill and had sharply curtailed121 his affairs, and that his house echoed with services for his recovery. How hurt he would be when he learned of this visit! Kaoru was very different. He had an air as of unsounded depths and a quiet, meditative122 dignity. He used few words as he apologized for his remissness123 and he said almost nothing that suggested loneliness and deprivation124. Yet he did say, choosing his words most carefully, that he had wanted to see her, and his controlled earnestness moved her more than any number of passionate125 avowals could have. He was very handsome; but that aside, she was sure that he would be a more reliable support, over long years, than Niou. It would be a great loss if he were to catch word of the strange turn her affections had taken. Niou’s improbable behavior had left its mark, and she had to thank him for it; but he was altogether too impetuous. She could expect nothing of an enduring nature from him. She would be very sad indeed if Kaoru were to fling her away in anger.
She was a sad little figure, lost in the turmoil126 of her thoughts. She had matured, acquired new composure, over the months. No doubt, in the boredom of country life, she had had time for meditation127.
“The house I am building is almost finished.” His tone was more intimate and affectionate than usual. “I went to see it the other day. The waters are gentle, as different as they can be from this wild river, and the garden has all the flowers of the city. It is very near my Sanjō place. Nothing need keep us from seeing each other every day. I’d like to move you there in the spring, I think, if you don’t mind.”
Niou could scarcely have known of his friend’s plans when, in a letter the day before, he had spoken of finding a quiet place for her. She was very sorry, but she should not yield further, she knew, to his advances. And yet his image did keep floating before her eyes. What a wretched predicament to be in!
“Life was much easier and much pleasanter,” said Kaoru, “back in the days when you were not quite so given to tears. Has someone been talking about me? Would a person in my position come over such a long and difficult road if he had less than the best intentions?”
He went to the veranda128 railing and sat gazing at the new moon. They were both lost in thoughts, he of the past, of days and people now gone, she of the future and her growing troubles. The scene was perfection: the hills were veiled in a mist, and crested129 herons had gathered at a point along the frozen strand130. Far down the river, where the Uji bridge cut its dim arc, faggot-laden boats were weaving in and out. All the details peculiar131 to the place were brought together. When he looked out upon the scene it was always as if events of old were fresh before his eyes. Even had he been with someone for whom he cared nothing, the air of Uji would have brought on strange feelings of intimacy132. How much more so in the company of a not unworthy substitute for Oigimi. Ukifune was gaining all the while in assurance and discernment, in her awareness133 of how city people behaved, and she was more beautiful each time he saw her. At a loss to console her, for it seemed that her tears were about to spill over, he offered a poem:
“No need to grieve. The Uji bridge stands firm.
They too stand firm, the promises I have made you.
“I am sure that you know what I mean.”
She replied:
“The bridge has gaps, one crosses gingerly.
Can one be sure it will not rot away?”
He found it more difficult than ever to leave her. But people talked, and he would have his fill of her company once he had moved her to the city. He left at dawn. These evidences of improvement added to the sorrow of parting.
Toward the middle of the Second Month the court assembled to compose Chinese poety. Both Niou and Kaoru were present. The music was appropriate to the season, and Niou was in fine voice as he sang “A Branch of Plum.” Yes, he was the most accomplished134 of them all, everyone said. His one failing, not an easy one to forgive, was a tendency to lose himself in amorous135 dalliance of an unworthy sort.
It began to snow and a wind had come up. The festivities were quickly halted and everyone withdrew to Niou’s rooms, where a light repast was served. Kaoru was called out to receive a message. The snow, now deeper, was dimly lit by the stars. The fragrance which he sent back into the room made one think how uselessly “the spring night’s darkness” was laboring136 to blot137 it out.
“Does she await me?” he said to himself, able somehow to infuse even such tiny, disjointed fragments of poetry with sudden life.
Of all the poems he could have picked, thought Niou. His heart racing138, he pretended to be asleep. Clearly his friend’s feelings for Ukifune passed the ordinary. He had hoped that the lady at the bridge had spread her cloak for him alone, and it was sad and annoying that Kaoru should have similar hopes. Drawn139 to such a man, could the girl possibly shift her affections to a trifler like himself?
The next day, with snow drifted high outside, the courtiers appeared in the imperial presence to read their poems. Niou was very handsome, indeed at his youthful best. Kaoru, perhaps because he was two or three years o1der, seemed the calmer and more mature of the two, the model of the personable, cultivated young aristocrat140. Everyone agreed that the emperor could not have found a better son-in-law. He had unusual literary abilities and a good head for practical matters as well. Their poems read, the courtiers withdrew. The assembly was loud in proclaiming the superiority of Niou’s, but he was not pleased. How easygoing they were, he said to himself, how fortunate to have room in their heads for such trivia.
Some days later, unsettled still at Kaoru’s behavior that snowy evening, Niou made elaborate excuses and set out for Uji. In the capital only traces of snow remained, as if awaiting a companion, but in the moun- tains the drifts were gradually deeper. The road was even more difficult than he had remembered it. His men were near tears from apprehension141 and fatigue142. The secretary who had been his guide to Uji was also vice-minister of rites143. Both positions carried heavy responsibilities, and it was ridiculous to see him hitching144 up his trousers like any ordinary foot soldier.
The people at Uji had been warned, but were sure that he would not brave the snow. Then, late in the night, word was brought in to Ukon of his arrival. So he really was fond of her, thought Ukifune. Ukon’s worries — how would it all end? she had been asking herself — dropped away, at least for the night. There was no way of turning him back, and she concluded that someone else must now be made a partner in the conspiracy145. She chose the woman Jijū, who was another of Ukifune’s special favorites, and who could be trusted not to talk.
“It is most improper146, I know,” said Ukon, “but we must stand together and keep it from the others.”
They led him inside. The perfume from his wet robes, flooding into the deepest corners of the hall, could have been troublesome; but they told everyone, convincingly enough, that their visitor was Kaoru. To go back before dawn would be worse than not to have come at all; yet someone was certain to spy him out in the morning light. He had therefore asked Tokikata to have a certain house beyond the river made ready. Tokikata, who had gone on ahead to see to the arrangements, returned late in the night and reported that everything was in the best of order. Ukon too was wondering how he meant to keep the escapade a secret. She had been awakened147 from deep slumber148 and she was trembling like a child lost in the snow.
Without a word, he took Ukifune up in his arms and carried her off. Jijū followed after and Ukon was left to watch the house. Soon they were aboard one of the boats that had seemed so fragile out on the river. As they rowed into the stream, she clung to Niou, frightened as an exile to some hopelessly distant shore. He was delighted. The moon in the early-morning sky shone cloudless upon the waters. They were at the Islet of the Oranges said the boatman, pulling up at a large rock over which ever-greens trailed long branches.
“See,” said Niou, “they are fragile pines, no more, but their green is so rich and deep that it lasts a thousand years.
“A thousand years may pass, it will not waver,
This vow I make in the lee of the Islet of Oranges.”
What a very strange place to be, thought the girl.
“The colors remain, here on the Islet of Oranges.
But where go I, a boat upon the waters?”
The time was right, and so was the girl, and so was her poem: for him, at least, things could not have been more pleasingly arranged.
They reached the far bank of the river. An attendant helped him ashore149, the girl still in his arms. No one else was to touch her, he insisted.
The custodian150 of the house was wondering what sort of woman could have produced such an uncourtly uproar151. It was a temporary house, rough and unfinished, which Tokikata’s uncle, the governor of Inaba, had put up on one of his manors152. Crude plaited screens such as Niou had not seen before offered almost no resistance to the wind. There were patches of snow at the fence, clouds had come up, bringing new flurries of snow, and icicles glistened153 at the eaves. In the daylight the girl seemed even prettier than by candlelight. Niou was dressed simply, against the rigors154 of the journey. A fragile little figure sat huddled155 before him, for he had slipped off her outer robe. And so here she was, she said to herself, not even properly dressed, before a royal prince. There was nothing, nothing at all, to protect her from his gaze. She was wearing five or six white singlets, somewhat rumpled156, soft and lustrous157 to the hems158 of the sleeves and skirts, more pleasing, he thought, than any number of colors piled one upon another. He seldom saw women with whom he kept constant company in quite such informal dress. He was enchanted159.
And so Jijū too (a pretty young woman) was witness to the scene. Who might she be? Niou had asked when he saw her climbing uninvited into the boat. She must not be told his name. Jijū, for her part, was dazzled. She had not been in the company of such a fine gentleman before.
The custodian made a great fuss over Tokikata, thinking him to be the leader of the party. Tokikata, who had appropriated the next room for himself, was in good form. He made an amusing game of evading160 the questions the custodian kept putting in reverent161 tones.
“There have been bad omens162, very bad, and I must stay away from the city for a while. No one is to see me.”
And so Niou and Ukifune passed pleasant hours with no fear of being observed. No doubt, thought Niou, once more in the clutches of jealousy163, she was equally amiable164 when she received Kaoru. He let it be known that Kaoru had taken the emperor’s own daughter for his bride and seemed devoted165 to her. He declined (let us say out of charity) to mention the snatch of poetry he had overheard that snowy evening.
“You seem to be cock of the walk,” he said when Tokikata came with towels and refreshments166.” But keep out of sight while you’re about it. Someone might want to imitate you.”
Jijū, a susceptible young lady, was having such a good time. She spent the whole day with Tokikata.
Looking towards the city over the drifting snow, Niou saw forests emerging from and sinking back into the clouds. The mountain above caught the evening glow as in a minor167. He described, with some embroidering168, the horror of last night’s journey. A crude rustic169 inkstone having been brought to him, he set down a poem as if in practice:
“I pushed through snowy peaks, past icy shores,
Dauntless all the way — O daunting170 one!
“It is true, of course, that I had a horse at Kohata.”
In her answering poem she ventured an objection:
“The snow that blows to the shore remains171 there, frozen.
Yet worse my fate: I am caught, dissolve in midair.”
This image of fading in midair rather annoyed him. Yes, she was being difficult, she had to agree, tearing the paper to bits. He was always charming, and he was quite irresistible172 when he was trying to please.
He had said that he would be in retreat for two days. Each unhurried hour seemed to bring new intimacy. The clever Ukon contrived173 pretexts174 for sending over fresh clothes. Jijū smoothed her mistress’s hair and helped her into a robe of deep purple and a cloak of figured magenta175 lined also with magenta — an unexceptionable combination. Taking up Jijū‘s apron176, he had Ukifune try it on as she ladled water for him. Yes, his sister the First Princess would be very pleased to take such a girl into her service. Her ladies-in-waiting were numerous and wellborn, but he could think of none among them capable of putting the girl to shame.
But let us not look in too closely upon their dalliance.
He told her again and again how he wanted to hide her away, and he tried to extract unreasonable177 promises from her. “You are not to see him, understand, until everything is arranged.”
That was too much to ask of her. She shed a few silent tears. He, for his part, was almost strangled with jealousy. Even now she was unable to forget Kaoru! He talked on and on, now weeping, now reproaching her.
Late in the night, again in a warm embrace, they started back across the river.
“I doubt if the man to whom you seem to give the top ranking can be expected to treat you as well. You will know what I mean, I trust.”
It was true, she thought, nodding. He was delighted.
Ukon opened the side door and the girl went in, and he was left feeling utterly178 desolate179.
As usual after such expeditions, he returned to Nijō. His appetite quite left him and he grew paler and thinner by the day, to the consternation180 of the whole court. In the stir that ensued he was unable to get a decent letter off to Uji.
That officious nurse of Ukifune’s had been with her daughter, who was in confinement181; but now that she was back Ukifune was scarcely able to glance at such letters as did come. Her mother hated having her off in the wilderness182, but consoled herself with the thought that Kaoru would make a dependable patron and guardian183. The indications were that he would soon, albeit184 in secret, move her to a place near his Sanjō mansion185. Then they would be able to look the world square in the face! The mother began seeking out accomplished serving women and pretty little girls and sending them off to her daughter. All this was as it should be, Ukifune knew; yet the image of the dashing, impetuous Niou, now reproaching her, now wheedling186 and cajoling, insisted upon coming back. When she dozed187 off for a moment, there he would be in her dreams. How much easier for everyone if he would go away!
The rains continued, day after day. Chafing188 at his inability to travel that mountain road, Niou thought how constricting189 was “the cocoon190 one’s parents weave about one” — and that was scarcely a kind way to characterize the concern his royal parents felt for him. He sent off a long letter in which he set down his thoughts as they came to him.
“I gaze your way in search of the clouds above you.
I see but darkness, so dreary191 these days of rain.”
His hand was if anything more interesting the less care he took with it. She was still young and rather flighty, and these avowals of love set up increasingly strong tremors192 in response. Yet she could not forget the other gentleman, a gentleman of undoubted depth and nobility, perhaps because it was he who had first made her feel wanted. Where would she turn if he were to hear of this sordid193 affair and abandon her? And her mother, who lived for the day when he would give her a home, would certainly be upset, and very angry too. Prince Niou, judging from his letters, burned with impatience; but she had heard a great deal about his volatility194 and feared that his fondness for her was a matter of the passing moment. Supposing he were indeed to hide her away and number her among his enduring loves — how could she then face Nakanokimi, her own sister? The world kept no secrets, as his success in searching her out after that strange, fleeting encounter in the dusk had demonstrated. Kaoru might bring her into the city, but was it possible that his rival would fail to seek her out there too? And if Kaoru were to turn against her, she knew that she would have herself to blame.
Her thoughts had reached this impasse195 when a second letter came, this one from Kaoru. Ranged side by side, the two letters seemed to reproach her. She went off and lay down with Niou’s, the longer of the two. Ukon and Jijū exchanged glances: so the game was over, and Niou had won.
“Perfectly natural,” said Jijū. “I really thought I had never seen a finer man than the general, but the prince is so handsome, especially when he’s just being himself. If he ever paid that much attention to me, I can tell you, I’d be making my plans right now. I’d be looking for a place with Her Majesty, and then I could see him every day of the week.”
“I can see that you bear watching. But I don’t agree. The general is the finest of them all. I don’t care about looks. Manners and disposition196, those are the things that count. But she has worked herself into a fine predicament, on that I think we can agree. Whatever will become of her?”
Life was easier for Ukon, however. It was easier to tell lies and invent excuses now that there were two of them.
“I have been very remiss,” said Kaoru’s letter in part, “though you may be sure that you have been constantly on my mind. I would be very pleased indeed if I might have a note from you now and then. Can you have led yourself to believe that I do not care for you?
“The long, dark rains go on, one’s heart is dark.
Will it be so in yon village of rising waters?
“My longing to see you is greater with each passing day.”
It was on prim197 white paper in a formal envelope. The writing lacked subtlety198, perhaps, but suggested breeding and sensitivity.
Niou’s letter was interesting too. Long and detailed199 and intricately folded, it was as different from Kaoru’s as a letter could possibly be. She must answer it first, while no one else was with her, said one of the two women. She took up her brush — but no, she could not possibly. As if by way of practice, she set down a poem:
“‘Gloom’ is the name of Uji in Yamashiro.
It speaks of the lives of us who dwell in its compass.”
Sometimes she would take out the sketch89 Niou had made for her, and weep. His love would not last, it could not, she told herself, wishing that quiet resignation would come to her. But she wept more bitterly at the thought that she might one day be torn from him.
At length she sent an answer. He wept quite unapologetically as he read it:
“I wish to be as the cloud that darkens the peak.
Better so than aimlessly drifting through life.
“Were I to join them . . . ”
She did, after all, seem fond of him. He thought again of that pathetic little figure, huddled up as if in defense200 against its own thoughts.
And the more proper of the two suitors was meanwhile reading his note over and over. He deeply sympathized, and wanted very much to see her. This was her poem:
“The tedious days of rain, incessant201 rain,
They speak to me of me. Yet wetter my sleeves.”
“I have hesitated to mention it, not for the world wanting to offend you,” he said to his wife; “but the truth is that I have left an old friend out in the country, and she is so unhappy there that I am thinking of bringing her into town. I have always been an odd sort of man, reconciled to living an odd life; but you have made me see that I am not capable of running away from the world. And so it makes me feel sad and guilty to have these little secrets.”
“I see no reason at all to be jealous,” she replied.
“But what will people say to your father? They will talk, you know, and gossip can be a nuisance. Not that she is important enough to produce a really good scandal.”
He had a house for the girl, but he squirmed at the thought of having it said that he was readying himself a pleasant trysting place. In the greatest secrecy he commissioned paintings for the doors. And the man whom he chose to make his special confidant was the father-in-law of the secretary who had taken Niou to Uji. The news, nothing omitted, was promptly relayed to Niou.
“He has the services of artists whom he trusts completely. It is an out-of-the-way little place, but he doesn’t seem to care a thing about the expense.”
Niou saw that he must act quickly. He remembered that his old nurse had a house in the lower reaches of the city and that she would shortly be going to a remote province with her husband, who was to be governor.
“I have someone whom it seems important to keep out of sight,” he said to her.
The nurse and her family had misgivings202. What sort of woman would he be after this time? But it was not theirs to refuse what seemed important to him. Something would be arranged, they sent back, and his spirits revived. The governor was to leave towards the end of the month. Niou decided203 to move the girl into the house on the very day of his departure. Word was sent to Uji, with emphasis on the need for secrecy. It would of course be out of the question for Niou to go there himself, and word came back that there might be complications because of that overzealous nurse.
Kaoru was meanwhile making his own plans: he would send for Ukifune on the tenth day of the Fourth Month. Though Ukifune was not disposed to follow “whatever waters beckon,” she could not imagine what else she was to do with herself. Utterly distraught, she wanted only to go home, there to spend a few days in quiet thought. But the governor’s house would be overrun with priests and noisy with prayers and incantations, for the sister, the lieutenant’s wife, was in confinement. Nor would it be possible, in the circumstances, to think of a trip to Ishiyama.
One day her mother came calling.
The nurse bustled204 about playing the good hostess. “The general has been so nice about clothes and all. I would have been very glad, I’m sure, to do it all myself, but of course I’m just a woman. We women do make the worst bungle205 of things.”
Faced with all this joy, the giri could only think of impending206 disaster. The whole world would be laughing at them.
There had come yet another letter from the importunate207 Niou. He would seek her out, he declared, even if she hid behind the eightfold mountain mists. The two of them would then have no recourse but to die. Far better to slip off somewhere together.
What was she to do? In hopeless indecision, she lay down again.
“My, but you do look pale.” Her mother was openly surprised. “And I think you’ve lost weight.”
“She hasn’t been herself for days and days. She won’t eat a bite, and she seems so tired and mopish all the time.”
“Something has gotten at her. Oh, my! Could it be that, I wonder. But of course we did have to cancel the trip to Ishiyama.”
The girl looked away.
In the evening the moon was bright. She was on the edge of tears as she thought of the moon in the dawn that other night. But she must drive it from her mind.
The governor’s wife invited Bennokimi over to exchange memories of days long past. The nun spoke of Oigimi, of what a sober, deliberate lady she had been and of how, in her worries, she had faded away before their eyes.
“And if she had lived, she too would have had your daughter to share her thoughts with. What a consolation208 that would have been for them.”
What right had they to look down upon her daughter? the governor’s wife was muttering to herself. Was she not one of them? Well, if fate proved as kind as they now had reason to expect, she would be one of them.
收听单词发音 |
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susceptible
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| adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的 | |
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resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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embark
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| vi.乘船，着手，从事，上飞机 | |
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fleeting
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| adj.短暂的，飞逝的 | |
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promptly
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persuasive
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intrigues
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| n.密谋策划( intrigue的名词复数 )；神秘气氛；引人入胜的复杂情节v.搞阴谋诡计( intrigue的第三人称单数 )；激起…的好奇心 | |
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incapable
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proscribed
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| v.正式宣布（某事物）有危险或被禁止( proscribe的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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villa
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| n.别墅，城郊小屋 | |
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pretext
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| n.借口，托词 | |
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liaison
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| n.联系，（未婚男女间的）暖昧关系，私通 | |
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liar
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| n.说谎的人 | |
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receding
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| v.逐渐远离( recede的现在分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题 | |
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unfamiliar
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| adj.陌生的，不熟悉的 | |
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erratic
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| adj.古怪的，反复无常的，不稳定的 | |
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lavished
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| v.过分给予，滥施( lavish的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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18
seedling
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| n.秧苗，树苗 | |
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19
guise
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| n.外表，伪装的姿态 | |
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20
remiss
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| adj.不小心的，马虎 | |
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21
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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22
blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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23
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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24
secrecy
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| n.秘密，保密，隐蔽 | |
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25
privy
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| adj.私用的；隐密的 | |
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26
monastery
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| n.修道院，僧院，寺院 | |
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27
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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28
chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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29
rumors
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| n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷 | |
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30
manor
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| n.庄园，领地 | |
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31
wagons
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| n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车 | |
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32
delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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33
nun
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| n.修女，尼姑 | |
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34
overdoing
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| v.做得过分( overdo的现在分词 )；太夸张；把…煮得太久；（工作等）过度 | |
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35
sneaking
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| a.秘密的，不公开的 | |
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36
steward
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| n.乘务员，服务员；看管人；膳食管理员 | |
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37
apprised
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| v.告知，通知( apprise的过去式和过去分词 )；评价 | |
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38
provincial
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| adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人 | |
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39
adept
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| adj.老练的，精通的 | |
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40
currying
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| 加脂操作 | |
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41
remarkably
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| ad.不同寻常地，相当地 | |
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42
incognito
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| adv.匿名地；n.隐姓埋名；adj.化装的，用假名的，隐匿姓名身份的 | |
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43
rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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44
shutter
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| n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置 | |
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45
creasing
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| （使…）起折痕，弄皱( crease的现在分词 )； （皮肤）皱起，使起皱纹； 挑檐 | |
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46
misty
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| adj.雾蒙蒙的，有雾的 | |
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47
spectral
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| adj.幽灵的，鬼魂的 | |
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48
royalty
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| n.皇家，皇族 | |
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49
pushy
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| adj.固执己见的，一意孤行的 | |
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50
elegance
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| n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙 | |
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51
winsome
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| n.迷人的，漂亮的 | |
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52
refinement
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| n.文雅；高尚；精美；精制；精炼 | |
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53
persistently
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| ad.坚持地；固执地 | |
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54
impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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55
agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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56
gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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57
doze
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| v.打瞌睡；n.打盹，假寐 | |
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58
retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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59
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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60
frightful
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|
| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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61
mimic
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| v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人 | |
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62
fragrance
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| n.芬芳，香味，香气 | |
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63
stunned
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| adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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64
hideously
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| adv.可怕地，非常讨厌地 | |
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65
horrified
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| a.(表现出)恐惧的 | |
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66
commotion
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| n.骚动，动乱 | |
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67
longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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68
daze
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| v.(使)茫然，(使)发昏 | |
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69
defilement
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| n.弄脏，污辱，污秽 | |
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70
nervously
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| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
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71
outrageously
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| 凶残地； 肆无忌惮地； 令人不能容忍地； 不寻常地 | |
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72
quandary
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| n.困惑，进迟两难之境 | |
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73
shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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74
infinitely
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| adv.无限地，无穷地 | |
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75
vow
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| n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓 | |
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76
retinue
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| n.侍从；随员 | |
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77
warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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78
uncouth
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| adj.无教养的，粗鲁的 | |
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79
premises
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| n.建筑物，房屋 | |
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80
transparent
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| adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的 | |
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81
confiding
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|
| adj.相信人的，易于相信的v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的现在分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等） | |
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82
retirement
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| n.退休，退职 | |
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83
boredom
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| n.厌烦，厌倦，乏味，无聊 | |
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84
moodily
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| adv.喜怒无常地；情绪多变地；心情不稳地；易生气地 | |
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85
begrudged
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|
| 嫉妒( begrudge的过去式和过去分词 )； 勉强做； 不乐意地付出； 吝惜 | |
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86
blemish
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| v.损害；玷污；瑕疵，缺点 | |
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87
luster
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| n.光辉；光泽，光亮；荣誉 | |
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88
sketched
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| v.草拟（sketch的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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89
sketch
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| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
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90
inviting
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| adj.诱人的，引人注目的 | |
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91
jotted
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| v.匆忙记下( jot的过去式和过去分词 )；草草记下，匆匆记下 | |
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92
enchanting
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| a.讨人喜欢的 | |
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93
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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94
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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95
shackles
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| 手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊 | |
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96
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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97
smitten
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| 猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去分词 ) | |
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98
clattering
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的现在分词形式） | |
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99
hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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100
melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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101
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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102
pensively
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| adv.沉思地，焦虑地 | |
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103
replacement
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| n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品 | |
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104
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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105
prank
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| n.开玩笑，恶作剧；v.装饰；打扮；炫耀自己 | |
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106
berating
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| v.严厉责备，痛斥( berate的现在分词 ) | |
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107
flirtation
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| n.调情，调戏，挑逗 | |
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108
displeased
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| a.不快的 | |
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109
discommode
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| v.使失态，使为难 | |
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110
vagrant
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| n.流浪者，游民；adj.流浪的，漂泊不定的 | |
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111
sanctimonious
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| adj.假装神圣的，假装虔诚的，假装诚实的 | |
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112
sincerity
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| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
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113
sarcasm
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| n.讥讽，讽刺，嘲弄，反话 （adj.sarcastic） | |
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114
solicitously
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| adv.热心地，热切地 | |
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115
frustration
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| n.挫折，失败，失效，落空 | |
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116
obsession
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| n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感) | |
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117
intensify
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| vt.加强；变强；加剧 | |
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118
respite
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| n.休息，中止，暂缓 | |
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119
monks
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| n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 ) | |
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120
invoking
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| v.援引( invoke的现在分词 )；行使（权利等）；祈求救助；恳求 | |
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121
curtailed
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| v.截断，缩短( curtail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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122
meditative
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| adj.沉思的，冥想的 | |
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123
remissness
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| n.玩忽职守；马虎；怠慢；不小心 | |
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124
deprivation
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| n.匮乏；丧失；夺去，贫困 | |
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125
passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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126
turmoil
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| n.骚乱，混乱，动乱 | |
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127
meditation
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| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
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128
veranda
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| n.走廊；阳台 | |
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129
crested
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| adj.有顶饰的，有纹章的，有冠毛的v.到达山顶（或浪峰）( crest的过去式和过去分词 )；到达洪峰，达到顶点 | |
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130
strand
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| vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地） | |
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131
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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132
intimacy
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| n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行 | |
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133
awareness
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| n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智 | |
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134
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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135
amorous
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| adj.多情的；有关爱情的 | |
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136
laboring
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|
| n.劳动，操劳v.努力争取(for)( labor的现在分词 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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137
blot
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| vt.弄脏（用吸墨纸）吸干；n.污点，污渍 | |
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138
racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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139
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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140
aristocrat
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| n.贵族，有贵族气派的人，上层人物 | |
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141
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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142
fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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143
rites
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| 仪式，典礼( rite的名词复数 ) | |
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144
hitching
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|
| 搭乘； （免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的现在分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上 | |
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145
conspiracy
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| n.阴谋，密谋，共谋 | |
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146
improper
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|
| adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的 | |
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147
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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148
slumber
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| n.睡眠，沉睡状态 | |
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149
ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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150
custodian
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| n.保管人，监护人；公共建筑看守 | |
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151
uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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152
manors
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| n.庄园（manor的复数形式） | |
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153
glistened
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| v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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154
rigors
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| 严格( rigor的名词复数 )； 严酷； 严密； （由惊吓或中毒等导致的身体）僵直 | |
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155
huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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156
rumpled
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| v.弄皱，使凌乱( rumple的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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157
lustrous
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| adj.有光泽的；光辉的 | |
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158
hems
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| 布的褶边，贴边( hem的名词复数 )； 短促的咳嗽 | |
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159
enchanted
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| adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词 | |
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160
evading
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| 逃避( evade的现在分词 )； 避开； 回避； 想不出 | |
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161
reverent
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| adj.恭敬的，虔诚的 | |
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162
omens
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| n.前兆，预兆( omen的名词复数 ) | |
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163
jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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164
amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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165
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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166
refreshments
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| n.点心,便餐;(会议后的)简单茶点招 待 | |
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167
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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168
embroidering
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| v.（在织物上）绣花( embroider的现在分词 )；刺绣；对…加以渲染（或修饰）；给…添枝加叶 | |
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169
rustic
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| adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬 | |
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170
daunting
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| adj.使人畏缩的 | |
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171
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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172
irresistible
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| adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的 | |
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173
contrived
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| adj.不自然的，做作的；虚构的 | |
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174
pretexts
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| n.借口，托辞( pretext的名词复数 ) | |
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175
magenta
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| n..紫红色（的染料）；adj.紫红色的 | |
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176
apron
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| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
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177
unreasonable
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| adj.不讲道理的，不合情理的，过度的 | |
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178
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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179
desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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180
consternation
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| n.大为吃惊，惊骇 | |
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181
confinement
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| n.幽禁，拘留，监禁；分娩；限制，局限 | |
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182
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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183
guardian
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| n.监护人；守卫者，保护者 | |
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184
albeit
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| conj.即使；纵使；虽然 | |
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185
mansion
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| n.大厦，大楼；宅第 | |
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186
wheedling
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| v.骗取（某物），哄骗（某人干某事）( wheedle的现在分词 ) | |
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187
dozed
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| v.打盹儿，打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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188
chafing
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| n.皮肤发炎v.擦热（尤指皮肤）( chafe的现在分词 )；擦痛；发怒；惹怒 | |
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189
constricting
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| 压缩，压紧，使收缩( constrict的现在分词 ) | |
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190
cocoon
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| n.茧 | |
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191
dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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192
tremors
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| 震颤( tremor的名词复数 )； 战栗； 震颤声； 大地的轻微震动 | |
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193
sordid
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| adj.肮脏的，不干净的，卑鄙的，暗淡的 | |
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194
volatility
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| n.挥发性，挥发度，轻快，（性格）反复无常 | |
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195
impasse
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| n.僵局；死路 | |
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196
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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197
prim
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| adj.拘泥形式的，一本正经的；n.循规蹈矩，整洁；adv.循规蹈矩地，整洁地 | |
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198
subtlety
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| n.微妙，敏锐，精巧；微妙之处，细微的区别 | |
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199
detailed
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| adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的 | |
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200
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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201
incessant
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| adj.不停的，连续的 | |
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202
misgivings
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| n.疑虑，担忧，害怕；疑虑，担心，恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 )；疑惧 | |
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203
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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204
bustled
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| 闹哄哄地忙乱，奔忙( bustle的过去式和过去分词 )； 催促 | |
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205
bungle
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| v.搞糟；n.拙劣的工作 | |
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206
impending
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| a.imminent, about to come or happen | |
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207
importunate
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| adj.强求的；纠缠不休的 | |
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208
consolation
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| n.安慰，慰问 | |
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