登陆注册
4793600000146

第146章

ROSTOV had been sent that night with a platoon on picket duty to the line of outposts in the foremost part of Bagration’s detachment. His hussars were scattered in couples about the outposts; he himself rode about the line of the outposts trying to struggle against the sleepiness which kept overcoming him. Behind him could be seen the immense expanse of the dimly burning fires of our army; before him was the misty darkness. However intently Rostov gazed into this misty distance, he could see nothing; at one moment there seemed something greyish, at the next something blackish, then something like the glimmer of a fire over there where the enemy must be, then he fancied the glimmer had been only in his own eyes. His eyes kept closing, and there floated before his mind the image of the Emperor, then of Denisov, and Moscow memories, and again he opened his eyes and saw close before him the head and ears of the horse he was riding, and sometimes black figures of hussars, when he rode within six paces of them, but in the distance still the same misty darkness. “Why? it may well happen,” mused Rostov, “that the Emperor will meet me and give me some commission, as he might to any officer; he’ll say, “Go and find out what’s there.” There are a lot of stories of how quite by chance he has made the acquaintance of officers and given them some place close to him too. Oh, if he were to give me a place in attendance on him! Oh, what care I would take of him, how I would tell him the whole truth, how I would unmask all who deceive him!” And to picture his love and devotion to the Tsar more vividly, Rostov imagined some enemy or treacherous German, whom he would with great zest not simply kill, but slap in the face before the Tsar’s eyes. All at once a shout in the distance roused Rostov. He started and opened his eyes. “Where am I? Yes, in the picket line; the pass and watchword—shaft, Olmütz. How annoying that our squadron will be in reserve …” he thought. “I’ll ask to go to the front. It may be my only chance of seeing the Emperor. And now it’s not long before I’m off duty. I’ll ride round once more, and as I come back, I’ll go to the general and ask him.” He sat up straight in the saddle and set off to ride once more round his hussars. It seemed to him that it was lighter. On the left side he could see a sloping descent that looked lighted up and a black knoll facing it that seemed steep as a wall. On this knoll was a white patch which Rostov could not understand; was it a clearing in the wood, lighted up by the moon, or the remains of snow, or white horses? It seemed to him indeed that something was moving over that white spot. “It must be snow—that spot: a spot—une tache,” Rostov mused dreamily. “But that’s not a tache … Na … tasha, my sister, her black eyes. Na … tasha (won’t she be surprised when I tell her how I’ve seen the Emperor!) Natasha … tasha … sabretache.…” “Keep to the right, your honour, there are bushes here,” said the voice of an hussar, by whom Rostov was riding as he fell asleep. Rostov lifted his head, which had dropped on to his horse’s mane, and pulled up beside the hussar. He could not shake off the youthful, childish drowsiness that overcame him. “But, I say, what was I thinking? I mustn’t forget. How I am going to speak to the Emperor? No, not that—that’s to-morrow. Yes, yes! Natasha, attacks, tacks us,—whom? The hussars. Ah, the hussars with their moustaches … Along the Tversky boulevard rode that hussar with the moustaches, I was thinking of him too just opposite Guryev’s house.… Old Guryev.… Ah, a fine fellow, Denisov! But that’s all nonsense. The great thing is that the Emperor’s here now. How he looked at me and longed to say something, but he did not dare.… No, it was I did not dare. But that’s nonsense, and the great thing is not to forget something important I was thinking of, yes. Natasha, attacks us, yes, yes, yes. That’s right.” And again he dropped with his head on his horse’s neck. All at once it seemed to him that he was being fired at. “What? what?… Cut them down! What?” Rostov was saying, as he wakened up. At the instant that he opened his eyes, Rostov heard in front, over where the enemy were, the prolonged shouting of thousands of voices. His horse and the horse of the hussar near him pricked up their ears at these shouts. Over where the shouts came from, a light was lighted and put out, then another, and all along the line of the French troops on the hillside fires were lighted and the shouts grew louder and louder. Rostov heard the sound of French words though he could not distinguish them. He could only hear: aaaa! and rrrr!

“What is it? What do you think?” Rostov said to the hussar near him. “That’s in the enemy’s camp surely?”

The hussar made no reply.

“Why, don’t you hear it?” Rostov asked again, after waiting some time for a reply.

“Who can tell, your honour?” the hussar answered reluctantly.

“From the direction it must be the enemy,” Rostov said again.

“May be ’tis, and may be not,” said the hussar; “it’s dark. Now! steady,” he shouted to his horse, who fidgeted. Rostov’s horse too was restless, and pawed the frozen ground as it listened to the shouts and looked at the lights. The shouting grew louder and passed into a mingled roar that could only be produced by an army of several thousands. The lights stretched further and further probably along the line of the French camp. Rostov was not sleepy now. The gay, triumphant shouts in the enemy’s army had a rousing effect on him. “Vive l’Empereur! l’Empereur!” Rostov could hear distinctly now.

“Not far off, beyond the stream it must be,” he said to the hussar near him.

The hussar merely sighed without replying, and cleared his throat angrily. They heard the thud of a horse trotting along the line of hussars, and there suddenly sprang up out of the night mist, looking huge as an elephant, the figure of a sergeant of hussars.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 心尖独宠:高冷总裁住隔壁

    心尖独宠:高冷总裁住隔壁

    爱与恨交织纠缠着,是豪门,更是商战,他们在恨的力量中各自成长,在爱的力量下各自强大,恨让人疯狂,爱让人发狂!!他是商界的王,俯瞰一切,冷酷残忍。她不小心撞进了他的世界,他危险的气息将她笼罩:“既然闯进来了,就别想逃!”
  • 不做王的替身妃:凤头钗

    不做王的替身妃:凤头钗

    四年前,女扮男装的独孤小九救了亡命公子的宋玉,二人相识生情。走时宋玉送给阿九一枚非同寻常的凤头钗,作为婚约之物。两年前,卫国公主国破家亡跳崖,落入川息江,崖头留下一枚凤头钗。*南风卷帘,柳絮翻飞,而许诺为我别上凤头钗的意中人,始终未见。*最遥远的距离,我在你面前,你却不认识我。*若说无情,君又为谁辗转不眠。若说无心,又是谁为卿纵身跃下。*你来了,轻易穿过我的心房,我为你放弃一片城。人生若只如初见。偶相遇,浅相识,深相思,终难忘……【轻寒公子】完结文《萌妻休夫:腹黑王爷小哑妃》新文《驯夫小野妃:腹黑王爷难搞定》
  • 让你成为最美、最可爱的女人

    让你成为最美、最可爱的女人

    人生并非苦旅,不要总是把境况看得那么糟糕。调整情绪,放飞心情,你会发现,每一天都是精彩的一天,每一天都可以过得充实而有意义。这样,连疾病都会远远地躲着你。 当然,人都会有疲倦的时候,这就需要我们适时清理自己的情绪,大声宣泄自己的不满,而不是压抑着自己的情绪。要面带微笑地对所有人说:“不用担心”。 面对激烈的竞争和全新的挑战,男人们也很少有喘息的机会,他们需要“另一半”的温柔、关心、体贴和宽容。 以上这些,你都做到了吗?
  • 节奏大陆

    节奏大陆

    一代歌王在一次演唱时掉落高台,重生进入一位五音不全的青年体内,从此开启了不一样的人生...
  • 都市玄门医圣

    都市玄门医圣

    被闪电劈中的郝浪,醒来后发现自己得到了医圣跟玄学大师传承,给御姐看病,陪小萝莉抓鬼……
  • 神医毒后

    神医毒后

    她本21世纪的绝命毒医,叱诧黑白两道,醒来却成了镇国公府上的傻小姐?王者归来,一秒钟变凶残,卑鄙无耻不忍直视!圣旨逼婚,她嫁!大婚当晚,婚房打的热火朝天,众人直呼口味太重,只是可怜了高风亮节的世子爷……
  • 酷总裁的神秘保镖(全本)

    酷总裁的神秘保镖(全本)

    陆小凤怀着激动的心情回家探视父母,本想给个惊喜,却看到爸妈居然被几个XX威胁,除暴安良是她做人的宗旨更何况被欺之人是她的爸妈,拼死也得救父母。一年的时间当他的护草使者,每天受他指指点点不说,还……冷酷的他把自已全放在事业上,遭人暗算致使鬼门关前走一遭。每天耳边有着一个女人烦人的声音,睁开又又眼,居然只是个疯女人;好像越来越离不开这个女人,为什么她偏偏是老爷子安排的人,他该如何选择。正当他下定决心要定了她,却发现,她的出现居然是带着阴谋。。。。。---------------------------------------
  • 六十种曲双珠记

    六十种曲双珠记

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 被领导的艺术

    被领导的艺术

    为了帮助你成为上级最赏识的那个人,《被领导的艺术》将管理学、处世艺术、励志成功、心理学等知识巧妙地融合在一起,从摆正下属的位置、懂得和领导交往的艺术、沟通的技巧、提升职场能力、职场情商等方面切入,对“被领导的艺术”进行了细致入微的分析与讲解。开卷有益。祝读者朋友们通过阅读《被领导的艺术》,能举一反三掌握更多“被领导的艺术”,从而实现上下级的和谐、和睦,做更好的自己。
  • Caesar and Cleopatra

    Caesar and Cleopatra

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。