Chapter 7 〇Seven in the wilderness
Well, they've just walked a few steps, said Germain, what will the family think if they don't see the little fellow come home?They would be anxious and anxious, looking for him everywhere.
You go and tell the road maintenance worker working there that you have taken the child away and ask him to tell your family members.
To tell the truth, Marie, you've thought of everything; me, I didn't think Jeanne should be there.
He happens to live right next to the farm, and he won't forget to send you a message.
After they had contemplated this thoughtful solution, Germain urged the horse to a gallop.Little Pierre was so happy that he didn't feel that he hadn't eaten for a moment; but the jolting of the horse emptied his stomach, and after a mile he began to yawn, turned pale, and confessed frankly that he was dying of hunger.
Look, here comes the trouble, said Germain, and I expected that this gentleman would be hungry and thirsty before we had gone far.
I am thirsty!said little Pierre.
Well, let's go to Madam Lebec's Hotel Dawn in Corlais, shall we?What a beautiful signboard name, what a shabby house!Well, Mary, you go to the bar for a drink too.
No, no, I don't need anything, she said, and I'll watch the horse when you go in with the little one.
But I thought, my dear girl, that this morning you gave my Pierre the bread you had for dessert, and that you were empty; and just now you refused to dine at my house, and cried all the time.
oh!I wasn't hungry then and I was so sad!I swear to you, I don't feel like eating any more right now.
You've got to eat a little, girl; or you'll be sick.We have to hurry, we can't get there, and we haven't said hello yet, just like hungry ghosts begging for bread.Me, I'd like to make a show for you, though I don't have much appetite either; but I can, because I haven't eaten after all.I saw you and your mother crying, and I was very sad.Come on, come on, I'll tie Xiaoqing to the door; come down, please come down.
The three of them walked into Mama Lebec's hotel, and within a quarter of an hour the fat, crippled woman brought them a decent plate of scrambled eggs, black bread, and light red wine.
The country people did not eat fast, and little Pierre had a strong appetite. It took a full hour before Germain thought of going on the road again.Little Mary ate a little out of good intentions at first, but gradually she too felt hungry: for sixteen-year-olds cannot be hungry for long, and the country air is appetizing.Germain's kind words and encouragement to cheer her up helped, too; she tried to convince herself that the seven months would pass quickly, and she thought about her happiness at home, back in the village, because Maurice Both Father and Germain agreed to hire her.But just as she was beginning to laugh and squabble with little Pierre, Germain had the unlucky idea to ask her to look out of the window of the hotel and see the beautiful view of the valley, which from this height gave a panoramic view. No more, the scenery is so pleasing to the eye, so green, so rich.Mary watched for a while, and asked if she could see the house in Burrell Village.
Of course you can see it, Germain said, and you can see the farm, and even your home.Look, that little gray spot, not far from Godard's big poplar tree, under the belfry.
ah!I see it.said the girl, and she began to cry again.
I shouldn't make you think of that again, said Germain, I've done nothing stupid today!Come, Mary, let us go, my girl; the day is short now, and in an hour's time it won't be warm when the moon comes up.
They started on the road again, crossing the vast wasteland, because they were afraid that the girl and the child would be tired if the horse ran too fast, so Germain had to let Xiao Qing go slowly, and waited until they left the road and walked towards the woods. The sun has gone down.
Germain knew the way to Magnier.But he thought it would be closer not to take the Avenue Chantelubet, but to go down from the village of Pressler and the ancient cemetery, which direction he had not walked when he went to the market.He made a mistake, and it took him a while to get to the woods; besides, he did not go in the right way, and he didn't notice that he turned his back on Fourche and walked up to the high slope beyond the village of Ardent.
At this time, what hindered him from distinguishing the direction was the fog rising with the night, which was a kind of fog in autumn night, and the silver-white moon made it extraordinarily hazy and confusing.The large puddles scattered in the open space in the forest were steaming thickly. When the little green horse stepped over it, it could only be noticed from the sound of the horse's hooves splashing water and the difficulty of pulling out its legs.
At last they found a good straight road, and when they came to the end, Germain tried to see where he was going, and then realized that he had lost his way.Because when old Maurice showed him the way, he told him that once he got out of the woods, he had to go down a steep slope, cross a vast meadow, and ford the river with shallows twice.Dad even told him to be careful when going down the river, because the river might have risen a little after a few heavy rains in early autumn.Germain could see neither slopes, nor meadows, nor rivers, but a wilderness, flat and white, as if covered with snow. Can't find anything.So he turned back the way he had come, and walked into the woods.The fog became thicker, the moon was completely covered, the road was very difficult, and the mud was deep.Twice Xiaoqing almost stumbled and fell down; she was so heavily loaded that she lost her courage, even though she still had the ability to discern and would not bump into a tree, she couldn't keep the rider on her from bumping into a thick branch and the branches were as high as their heads, blocking the way and being very dangerous to them.Germain lost his hat in such a bump, and had difficulty finding it again.Little Pierre fell asleep, swinging from side to side like a sack, and he got in the way of his father's arms so that Germain could not control or steer the horse.
I think we are bewitched, Germain stopped and said, because the forest is not big enough to get lost, unless we are drunk, we will walk around in it for at least two hours, no matter what stay home.Xiaoqing had only one thought, which was to go home, and it made me dizzy.If we want to go home, we just have to let it go.But we were probably not far from where we were going to spend the night, and it would be madness to abandon the plan and start over such a long walk again.But I don't know what to do.I can't see the sky or the ground, and I'm afraid the boy will get a fever if we stay in this deadly fog, and I'm afraid he'll be crushed by us if the horse falls forward.
Let us not go on so obstinately, said little Marie, let us dismount, Germain; give me the child, and I will hold him well, you are not as good as I am, and I will not let the cloak come up and show him.You hold on to the bridle and lead the horse. Let's get closer to the dry place, and you may see better.
This only kept them from falling from their horses, for the fog was spreading and seemed to cling to the wet ground.It was difficult going on, and after a while they grew weary, and at last came to a dry place under a large oak tree, and stopped.Little Mary was sweating, but she didn't complain at all, and she wasn't in a hurry.She devoted herself to the care of the child, sitting on the sand, letting him sleep on her lap, while Germain hung the young horse's bridle on a branch, and then went to look around.
But the little green horse was so tired of this trek, he swung his waist hard, broke free from the reins, broke his girdle, kicked five or six times without hesitation, kicked higher than his head, and passed The bushes ran away, making it clear that it didn't need anyone, and could find its way back.
well!Germain was in vain, unable to keep up with the little green horse, so we have to walk, and nothing can help us to get on the right track, we have to cross the river; since the road is full of water, it is certain that the river has overflowed the grass.We don't know of other passages, so we need to wait until the fog clears, which may only take an hour or two at most.Till we can see things, we'll look for another house, the first one we met on the edge of the wood; but we can't get out of the place just now; there's a ditch, a pond, and I can't make out what's ahead ; I can't tell what's behind, because I can't figure out where we came from.