双语小说连载:纯真年代 The Age of Innocence(4)

"Oh--" Mrs. Welland murmured, while the young man, smiling at his betrothed, replied: "As soon as ever it can, if only you'll back me up, Mrs. Mingott."
“哦——”韦兰太太嗫嚅道。年轻人却朝未婚妻露出笑脸，回答说：“越快越好，明戈特太太，只要你肯支持我。”

"We must give them time to get to know each other a little better, mamma," Mrs. Welland interposed, with the proper affectation of reluctance; to which the ancestress rejoined: "Know each other? Fiddlesticks! Everybody in New York has always known everybody. Let the young man have his way, my dear; don't wait till the bubble's off the wine. Marry them before Lent; I may catch pneumonia any winter now, and I want to give the wedding-breakfast."
“妈妈，我们得给他们时问，让他们互相多了解一点，”韦兰太太插言说，同时又恰如其分地装出一副不情愿的样子。老祖母回言道：“互相了解？瞎说！在纽约，谁不了解谁！让年轻人按他自己的方式去办吧，我亲爱的，可别等得美酒走了味。大斋节前就让他们成婚。到了冬天我哪一天都可能染上肺炎，可我还想给他们举办婚礼喜宴呢。”

These successive statements were received with the proper expressions of amusement, incredulity and gratitude; and the visit was breaking up in a vein of mild pleasantry when the door opened to admit the Countess Olenska, who entered in bonnet and mantle followed by the unexpected figure of Julius Beaufort.
对她接二连三的表态，客人相宜作出了喜悦、怀疑、感激的反应。正在这时，门被打开，迎进来了奥兰斯卡伯爵夫人。她戴着帽子和面纱进了屋，身后还跟着个不期而至的朱利叶斯·博福特。温和愉悦的叙谈气氛中断了。

There was a cousinly murmur of pleasure between the ladies, and Mrs. Mingott held out Ferrigiani's model to the banker. "Ha! Beaufort, this is a rare favour!" (She had an odd foreign way of addressing men by their surnames.)
夫人与小姐愉快地说起表姐妹间的悄悄话，明戈特太太则把费里加尼款式的戒指拿给银行家看。“哈！博福特，这可是难得的优待！”（她用奇特的异国方式直呼男士的姓。）

"Thanks. I wish it might happen oftener," said the visitor in his easy arrogant way. "I'm generally so tied down; but I met the Countess Ellen in Madison Square, and she was good enough to let me walk home with her."
“多谢多谢，我希望这种事多有几次，”客人妄自尊大地从容说道。“我老是脱不开身；在麦迪逊广场遇上了埃伦伯爵夫人，她十分客气地要我陪她回家。”

"Ah--I hope the house will be gayer, now that Ellen's here!" cried Mrs. Mingott with a glorious effrontery. "Sit down--sit down, Beaufort: push up the yellow armchair; now I've got you I want a good gossip. I hear your ball was magnificent; and I understand you invited Mrs. Lemuel Struthers? Well--I've a curiosity to see the woman myself."
“啊——既然埃伦回来了，我希望这个家热闹起来！”明戈特太太毫无顾忌地大声说。“请坐——请坐，博福特：把那把黄扶手椅推过来；既然你来了，咱们就要好好聊一聊。听说你家的舞会叭叭叫，据我所知，你还邀请了勒姆尔·斯特拉瑟斯太太？哎——我倒很想亲自见见那个女人。”