But M. Max lay in a seemingly deathly stupor1, and from this the impassive Oriental had great difficulty in arousing him. Said, having shaken some symptoms of life into the limp form of M. Max, filled the little cup with fragrant2 China tea, and, supporting the dazed man, held the beverage3 to his lips. With his eyes but slightly opened, and with all his weight resting upon the arm of the Egyptian, he gulped4 the hot tea, and noted5 that it was of exquisite6 quality.
THEINE is an antidote7 to opium8, and M. Max accordingly became somewhat restored, and lay staring at the Oriental, and blinking his eyes foolishly.
Said, leaving the tea service upon the little table, glided9 from the room. Something else the Egyptian had left upon the tray in addition to the dainty vessels10 of porcelain11; it was a steel ring containing a dozen or more keys. Most of these keys lay fanwise and bunched together, but one lay isolated12 and pointing in an opposite direction. It was a Yale key—the key of the door!
Silently as a shadow, M. Max glided into the bathroom, and silently, swiftly, returned, carrying a cake of soap. Three clear, sharp impressions, he secured of the Yale, the soap leaving no trace of the operation upon the metal. He dropped the precious soap tablet into his open bag.
In a state of semi-torpor, M. Max sprawled13 upon the bed for ten minutes or more, during which time, as he noted, the door remained ajar. Then there entered a figure which seemed wildly out of place in the establishment of Ho-Pin. It was that of a butler, most accurately14 dressed and most deferential15 in all his highly-trained movements. His dark hair was neatly16 brushed, and his face, which had a pinched appearance, was composed in that “if-it-is-entirely-agreeable-to-you-Sir” expression, typical of his class.
The unhealthy, yellow skin of the new arrival, which harmonized so ill with the clear whites of his little furtive17 eyes, interested M. Max extraordinarily18. M. Max was blinking like a week-old kitten, and one could have sworn that he was but hazily19 conscious of his surroundings; whereas in reality he was memorizing the cranial peculiarities20 of the new arrival, the shape of his nose, the disposition21 of his ears; the exact hue22 of his eyes; the presence of a discolored tooth in his lower jaw23, which a fish-like, nervous trick of opening and closing the mouth periodically revealed.
“Good morning, sir!” said the valet, gently rubbing his palms together and bending over the bed.
M. Max inhaled24 deeply, stared in glassy fashion, but in no way indicated that he had heard the words.
The valet shook him gently by the shoulder.
“Good morning, sir. Shall I prepare your bath?”
“She is a serpent!” muttered M. Max, tossing one arm weakly above his head... “all yellow.... But roses are growing in the mud ... of the river!”
“If you will take your bath, sir,” insisted the man in black, “I shall be ready to shave you when you return.”
“Bath... shave me!”
M. Max began to rub his eyes and to stare uncomprehendingly at the speaker.
“Yes, sir; good morning, sir,”—there was another bow and more rubbing of palms.
“Ah!—of course! Morbleu! This is Paris....”
“No, sir, excuse me, sir, London. Bath hot or cold, sir?”
“Cold,” replied M. Max, struggling upright with apparent difficulty; “yes,—cold.”
“Very good, sir. Have you brought your own razor, sir?”
“Yes, yes,” muttered Max—“in the bag—in that bag.”
“I will fill the bath, sir.”
The bath being duly filled, M. Max, throwing about his shoulders a magnificent silk kimono which he found upon the armchair, steered25 a zigzag26 course to the bathroom. His tooth-brush had been put in place by the attentive27 valet; there was an abundance of clean towels, soaps, bath salts, with other necessities and luxuries of the toilet. M. Max, following his bath, saw fit to evidence a return to mental clarity; and whilst he was being shaved he sought to enter into conversation with the valet. But the latter was singularly reticent28, and again M. Max changed his tactics. He perceived here a golden opportunity which he must not allow to slip through his fingers.
“Would you like to earn a hundred pounds?” he demanded abruptly29, gazing into the beady eyes of the man bending over him.
Soames almost dropped the razor. His state of alarm was truly pitiable; he glanced to the right, he glanced to the left, he glanced over his shoulder, up at the ceiling and down at the floor.
“It is quite simple,” replied M. Max. “I asked you if you had some use for a hundred pounds. Because if you have, I will meet you at any place you like to mention and bring with me cash to that amount!”
A dew of perspiration32 was glistening33 upon his forehead, and it was fortunate that he had finished shaving M. Max, for his hand was trembling furiously. He made a pretense34 of hurrying with towels, bay rum, and powder spray, but the beady eyes were ever glancing to right and left and all about.
M. Max, who throughout this time had been reflecting, made a second move.
“Another fifty, or possibly another hundred, could be earned as easily,” he said, with assumed carelessness. “I may add that this will not be offered again, and... that you will shortly be out of employment, with worse to follow.”
“Oh, my God!” he muttered, “what shall I do? I can't promise—I can't promise; but I might—I MIGHT look in at the 'Three Nuns36' on Friday evening about nine o'clock.”...
He hastily scooped37 up M. Max's belongings38, thrust them into the handbag and closed it. M. Max was now fully39 dressed and ready to depart. He placed a sovereign in the valet's ready palm.
“That's an appointment,” he said softly.
“Good morning, sir, good morning,” muttered Soames, and covertly41 he wiped the perspiration from his brow with the corner of a towel—“good morning, and thank you very much.”
M. Max, buttoning his light overcoat in order to conceal42 the fact that he wore evening dress, entered the corridor, and followed the Egyptian into the cave of the golden dragon. Ho-Pin, sleek43 and smiling, received him there. Ho-Pin was smoking the inevitable44 cigarette in the long tube, and, opening the door, he silently led the way up the steps into the covered courtyard, Said following with the hand bag. The limousine45 stood there, dimly visible in the darkness. Said placed the handbag upon the seat inside, and Ho-Pin assisted M. Max to enter, closing the door upon him, but leaning through the open window to shake his hand. The Chinaman's hand was icily cold and limp.
“Au wrevoir, my dear fwriend,” he said in his metallic46 voice. “I hope to have the pleasure of gwreeting you again vewry shortly.”
With that he pulled up the window from the outside, and the occupant of the limousine found himself in impenetrable darkness; for dark blue blinds covered all the windows. He lay back, endeavoring to determine what should be his next move. The car started with a perfect action, and without the slightest jolt47 or jar. By reason of the light which suddenly shone in through the chinks of the blinds, he knew that he was outside the covered courtyard; then he became aware that a sharp turning had been taken to the left, followed almost immediately, by one to the right.
He directed his attention to the blinds.
“Ah! nom d'un nom! they are clever—these!”
The blinds worked in little vertical48 grooves49 and had each a tiny lock. The blinds covering the glass doors on either side were attached to the adjustable50 windows; so that when Ho-Pin had raised the window, he had also closed the blind! And these windows operated automatically, and defied all M. Max's efforts to open them!
He was effectively boxed in and unable to form the slightest impression of his surroundings. He threw himself back upon the soft cushions with a muttered curse of vexation; but the mobile mouth was twisted into that wryly51 humorous smile. Always, M. Max was a philosopher.
At the end of a drive of some twenty-five minutes or less, the car stopped—the door was opened, and the radiant Gianapolis extended both hands to the occupant.
“My dear M. Gaston!” he cried, “how glad I am to see you looking so well! Hand me your bag, I beg of you!”
M. Max placed the bag in the extended hand of Gianapolis, and leapt out upon the pavement.
“This way, my dear friend!” cried the Greek, grasping him warmly by the arm.
The Frenchman found himself being led along toward the head of the car; and, at the same moment, Said reversed the gear and backed away. M. Max was foiled in his hopes of learning the number of the limousine.
He glanced about him wonderingly.
“You are in Temple Gardens, M. Gaston,” explained the Greek, “and here, unless I am greatly mistaken, comes a disengaged taxi-cab. You will drive to your hotel?”
“Yes, to my hotel,” replied M. Max.
“And whenever you wish to avail yourself of your privilege, and pay a second visit to the establishment presided over by Mr. Ho-Pin, you remember the number?”
“I remember the number,” replied M. Max.
The cab hailed by Gianapolis drew up beside the two, and M. Max entered it.
“Good morning, M. Gaston.”
“Good morning, Mr. Gianapolis.”
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收听单词发音
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1
stupor
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| v.昏迷；不省人事 | |
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fragrant
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| adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的 | |
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beverage
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| n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料 | |
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gulped
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| v.狼吞虎咽地吃，吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 )；大口地吸（气）；哽住 | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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7
antidote
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| n.解毒药，解毒剂 | |
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8
opium
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| n.鸦片；adj.鸦片的 | |
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9
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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vessels
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| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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porcelain
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| n.瓷；adj.瓷的，瓷制的 | |
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isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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sprawled
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| v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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deferential
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| adj. 敬意的，恭敬的 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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furtive
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| adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的 | |
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extraordinarily
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| adv.格外地；极端地 | |
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hazily
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| ad. vaguely, not clear | |
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peculiarities
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| n. 特质, 特性, 怪癖, 古怪 | |
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disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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jaw
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| n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训 | |
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24
inhaled
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| v.吸入( inhale的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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25
steered
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| v.驾驶( steer的过去式和过去分词 )；操纵；控制；引导 | |
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26
zigzag
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| n.曲折，之字形；adj.曲折的，锯齿形的；adv.曲折地，成锯齿形地；vt.使曲折；vi.曲折前行 | |
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27
attentive
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| adj.注意的，专心的；关心(别人)的，殷勤的 | |
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reticent
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| adj.沉默寡言的；言不如意的 | |
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abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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nervously
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| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
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31
hush
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| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
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32
perspiration
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| n.汗水；出汗 | |
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33
glistening
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| adj.闪耀的，反光的v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的现在分词 ) | |
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34
pretense
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| n.矫饰，做作，借口 | |
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35
collapse
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| vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷 | |
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nuns
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| n.（通常指基督教的）修女， （佛教的）尼姑( nun的名词复数 ) | |
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37
scooped
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| v.抢先报道( scoop的过去式和过去分词 )；（敏捷地）抱起；抢先获得；用铲[勺]等挖（洞等） | |
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belongings
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| n.私人物品，私人财物 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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40
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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41
covertly
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| adv.偷偷摸摸地 | |
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42
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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43
sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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44
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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45
limousine
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| n.豪华轿车 | |
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46
metallic
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| adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的 | |
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47
jolt
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| v.（使）摇动，（使）震动，（使）颠簸 | |
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48
vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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49
grooves
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| n.沟( groove的名词复数 )；槽；老一套；（某种）音乐节奏v.沟( groove的第三人称单数 )；槽；老一套；（某种）音乐节奏 | |
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50
adjustable
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| adj.可调整的，可校准的 | |
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51
wryly
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| adv. 挖苦地，嘲弄地 | |
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