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I had often wondered why that ill-assorted pair had married, but just that explanation had never occurred to me. That was perhaps the cause of the peculiar quality of Dirk's love for his wife. I had noticed in it something more than passion. I remembered also how I had always fancied that her reserve concealed I knew not what; but now I saw in it more than the desire to hide a shameful secret. Her tranquillity was like the sullen calm that broods over an island which has been swept by a hurricane. Her cheerfulness was the cheerfulness of despair. Strickland interrupted my reflections with an observation the profound cynicism of which startled me.
原先我就一直奇怪，這一對無論從哪一方面講都不相配的人是怎么湊到一塊兒的，但是我從來沒有想過竟會是這么一回事。戴爾克對他妻子的愛情與一般夫妻的感情很不相同，原因也許就在這里。我發現他對她的態度有一些超過了熱情的東西。我也記得我總是懷疑勃朗什的拘謹沉默可能掩藏著某種我不知道的隱情。現在我明白了，她極力隱藏的遠遠不止是一個令她感到羞恥的秘密。她的安詳沉默就象籠罩著暴風雨侵襲后的島嶼上的凄清寧靜。她有時顯出了快活的笑臉也是絕望中的強顏歡笑。我的沉思被思特里克蘭德的話聲打斷了，他說了一句非常尖刻的話，使我大吃一驚。
"A woman can forgive a man for the harm he does her," he said, "but she can never forgive him for the sacrifices he makes on her account."
“女人可以原諒男人對她的傷害，”他說，“但是永遠不能原諒他對她做出的犧牲。”
"It must be reassuring to you to know that you certainly run no risk of incurring the resentment of the women you come in contact with," I retorted.
“你這人是不會引起同你相識的女人惱恨的，這一點你倒可以放心。”我頂了他一句。
A slight smile broke on his lips.
他的嘴角上浮現起一絲笑容。
"You are always prepared to sacrifice your principles for a repartee," he answered.
“你為了反駁別人從來不怕犧牲自己的原則。”他回答說。
"What happened to the child?"
“那個孩子后來怎么樣了？”
"Oh, it was still-born, three or four months after they were married."
“流產了，在他們結婚三、四個月之后。”
Then I came to the question which had seemed to me most puzzling.
這時我提出了最使我迷惑不解的那個問題。
"Will you tell me why you bothered about Blanche Stroeve at all?"
“你可以不可以告訴我為什么你要招惹勃朗什·施特略夫？”
He did not answer for so long that I nearly repeated it.
他很久很久沒有回答，我幾乎想再重復一遍我的問題了。
"How do I know?" he said at last. "She couldn't bear the sight of me. It amused me."
“我怎么知道？”最后他說，“她非常討厭我，幾乎見不得我的面，所以我覺得很有趣。”
"I see."
“我懂了。”
He gave a sudden flash of anger.
他突然一陣怒火上撞。
"Damn it all, I wanted her."
“去他媽的，我需要她。”
But he recovered his temper immediately, and looked at me with a smile.
但是他馬上就不生氣了，望著我，微微一笑。
"At first she was horrified."
“開始的時候她簡直嚇壞了。”
"Did you tell her?"
“你對她說明了嗎？”
"There wasn't any need. She knew. I never said a word. She was frightened. At last I took her."
“不需要。她知道。我一直沒有說一句。她非常害怕。最后我得到了她。”
