Cherish the clothes as early as possible,

Take advantage of your reputation.

　　--proverb

　　Joined the Guards and became captain tomorrow.

　　Don't do that, let him fight as a soldier.

　　As the saying goes: tell him to suffer first before watching...

　　………………………………………

　　But who is his Lao Tzu?

　　——Knishnin

　　My father Andrei Petrovich Griniov served as a lieutenant colonel under Count Minich when he was young, and was discharged from the army in 17××. Since then he has lived in Simbirsk’s own country estate and married Avdogya Vasilievna I, the daughter of a local poor nobleman. There are nine brothers and sisters in total. They died very young.

　　① Knishnin (1742-1791), Russian poet, the inscription here is quoted from his comedy "The Braggart".

　　②Minich, the Russian marshal, commanded the war against Turkey from 1735 to 1739.

　　When I was still in the womb, I registered as early as possible to join the Semenov regiment and became a sergeant. This incident is thanks to the care of my relatives, Duke E, Major of the Guards. If my mother is unfortunate enough to give birth to a girl, then my dad would have declared that the unborn sergeant is dead, and the incident would have ended. . Before I graduated from school, I was considered a soldier who took a long vacation. At that time, our way of receiving karma was different from now. From the age of five, we handed me over to Mavsawirich, and because he didn't drink, we offered him the right to be my guardian. Under his supervision, I learned to recognize Russian characters when I was twelve years old, and I was very good at communicating with each other. At this time, my father hired me a French teacher, Mr. Popler.

　　This person ordered from Moscow together with enough olive oil and wine for a year. He came, and Savelitch was very upset. "Thank God!" Saviglich grumbled to himself, "It seems that this kid already knows how to wash his face, comb his hair, and eat. Why spend money to hire a foreigner, it seems that he is not good at it!"

　　Popler was a barber in his home country, and later served as a soldier in Prussia, and later as a teacher in Russia. As for the meaning of the word "teacher", he didn't know much about it. He is a good boy, but too frivolous. His main fault lies in his love for women too much. He was full of tenderness and needed catharsis, so he was beaten from time to time, and sighed all day and night after being beaten. In addition, according to his statement, he is not the enemy of wine bottles, according to the Russians, that is, he likes to drink a few cups. However, I saw that my family only served wine for lunch on weekdays, and only a glass, and the servant sifted the wine and sometimes forgot this gentleman. Therefore, my Popler quickly became addicted to Russian medicinal liquor, and even felt the taste. Infinite, more powerful than his own country's wine, privately thought it could really clear the spleen and invigorate the stomach. In this way, my husband and I got along well immediately. Although, according to the contract, he was supposed to teach me French, German and various sciences, but he thought it was the best policy to talk a few words of Russian as early as possible. After that, he and I went on our own. We are really good at it. No matter how good other teachers are, I don’t care much. However, destiny soon broke us apart for the following reasons:

　　① The original text is in French.

　　One day, the laundry maid Barahika, a chubby girl with pockmarked faces, and the milking maid, the one-eyed Akulka, somehow knelt down in front of my mother, condemning the crime of weak will, weeping bitterly, and accusing the gentleman, because He took advantage of the young ignorance of the girls to seduce them. When my mother heard it, it was pretty good! She told her father. Father is always happy. He immediately sent someone to call the French gangster. The servant reports that my husband is giving me a lesson. Father rushed into my room. At this moment Mr. Popler was sleeping on the bed, wandering in his dreamland. And I am doing my business vigorously. I have to clarify that I ordered a large map from Moscow before. It's useless to hang on the wall. It's long and wide and the paper is good. I've long been attracted by it. I decided to use it to make a kite, and at the moment when my husband was asleep, I started to do it. When my father entered the house, I was attaching a bark tail to the Cape of Good Hope. When my father witnessed my geography homework, he stretched out his hand and grabbed my ears, then rushed to Popler, woke him up unceremoniously, and then yelled at him like a cannon. Popler panicked and tried to stand up, but couldn't do it, because the unfortunate Frenchman was so drunk and paralyzed. Don't do it, don't stop. Father grabbed him by the collar, dragged him out of the bed, pushed him out of the door, and drove him out of the door that day. This made Savelitch happy.

　　And my education came to an end.

　　I became an idle boy in pantyhose, drove the pigeons, played a game of jumping back, and spent the whole day huddling with the children of the servants. Unknowingly, he was sixteen years old.

　　At this time my destiny changed.

　　One day in the fall, my mother was making candied fruit in the living room. I swallowed my mouth and licked my tongue, staring at the boiling foam in the pot.

　　Father read his "Sheng Dynasty Yearbook" in front of the window, which he subscribed every year. This book has always had a great influence on him. He never tires of reading, and every time he reads, he must be full of emotions, and every time he reads, he must lose his temper. His mother knew his temperament and hobbies, and always tried every means to hide the hapless book so that he could not find it as much as possible. Therefore, the "Sheng Dynasty Yearbook" sometimes could not show up in front of his father for several months. However, once he found the book, he would sit there for a few hours and would not let it go. On this day, his father happened to be reading the "Sheng Dynasty Yearbook" again. He shrugged his shoulders from time to time and murmured softly: "He actually became a lieutenant general!... In our company, he was just a sergeant!... …Won two Russian medals!...Not long ago we also..." Finally he threw the yearbook on the sofa and sat in a trance. That was not a good sign.

　　Suddenly he turned his head and said to his mother: "Avdogya Vasilievna! Petrusha is a teenager this year?"

　　"I'm seventeen years old," the mother replied. "The year Peter was born, Aunt Nastasia Gerasimovna was blind in one eye, and that year there was still..."

　　"Come on!" her father interrupted, "it's time to send him to work as a errand! He's got enough in the girl's room and pigeon nest."

　　At the thought of leaving me, my mother was taken aback, and dropped the spoon into the pot, and a drop of tears ran down her face. Contrary to her, I was so happy that I was indescribable. The thought of military service mixed with freedom in my mind, and that was the joy of life in Petersburg. I imagined that I became an officer of the Guards. I thought that was the pinnacle of human happiness.

　　My father never liked to change his plan, and he always worked vigorously. The day I go out is set. One day before going out, my father said that he wanted to write a letter to me and bring it to my future officer. He asked for a pen and paper.

　　"Andre Petrovich!" said his mother, "don't forget to say hello to Duke E; just say, I ask him to take care of Petrusha."

　　"Nonsense!" Father frowned and replied, "Why should I write to Duke E?"

　　"Didn't you just say that you want to write to the chief of Petrusha?"

　　"Oh! So what?"

　　"The chief of Petrusha is Duke E. Petrusha is registered in the Semenov regiment!"

　　"Signed up! Signed up, what does it have to do with me? Anyway, Petrusha doesn't go to Petersburg. What can he learn from joining the army in Petersburg? He will only spend money to learn to be a wanderer! That's not good! Let him go to the team, do hard work, smell the smell of gunpowder, be a private soldier, don't be foolish. What's the use of registering in the Guards! Where is his ID card? Find it!"

　　My mother found out my ID card, which was placed in her box with the undershirt when I was baptized, and she held it in her trembling hand and gave it to my father. Father read it carefully, put his ID card on the table, and started to write a letter.

　　The unknown situation makes me distressed: If I don't go to Petersburg, where should I be sent? My eyes were fixed on my father's pen tip, but it moved too slowly. When he finished writing, he put his ID card and letter into an envelope and sealed it, took off his glasses, called me over, and said, "You hand this letter to Andre Karlovic P. He is mine. Old colleagues and old friends.

　　You go to Orenburg to serve and be his subordinate. "

　　With this, all my glorious hopes were shattered! There is no part in the happy life of Petersburg, and what is waiting for me will be the boring and boring life in the desolate remote area. Serving in the military, thinking about it a minute ago was still full of enthusiasm. At this time, it seemed to me to suffer alive. However, it is useless to fight. The next morning, a warm-top sleigh drove up to the steps; put in a suitcase, a food box with tea sets, a bag of pies and sugar confectionery, that was the last sign of family spoils. My parents blessed me. My father said to me, "Farewell! Peter! To the man who swore to him, you must be faithful and fulfill your duties. Listen to the chief, don't please the chief. Don't take errands, don't shirk work. Remember an old saying: Cherish the clothes as early as possible, and protect the name festival as early as possible." My mother was always tearful and told me to take care of my body, and again and again to Savelitch to take good care of the child. They put on a rabbit fur coat and a fox fur coat. I got on the sled and went on the road with Saveritch, and my tears were welling up.

　　We rushed to Simbirsk that night and stayed here for a whole day and night in order to buy some necessities. This was done by Shaverich in advance. I stay in the hostel. Saveritch has been running the store since early on. Looking at the dirty little alley outside the window, I was so bored that I wandered around the various rooms of the hostel. Stepping into the billiard room, I met a tall gentleman, about thirty-five years old, with black lips and beards, wearing a robe, holding a billiard cue in his hand, and a pipe in his mouth. He is playing with the billiard scorer. If the scorer wins, he has a glass of soju; if he loses, he should crawl across the table on all fours.

　　I watch them play. The longer they play, the more fools they can crawl on all fours, until the scorer is paralyzed under the table and can't move. That gentleman condescendingly uttered a few spells that he chanted during the burial. How powerful! Then he suggested that I also come to bet a few games with him. I declined and said no, which probably surprised him. He looked me up and down disapprovingly, but we still talked. I learned that his name was Ivan Ivanovich Zolin, a captain of the Hussar regiment, and Simbirsk had come to conscript on a business trip, and he lived in this hotel. Zorin invited me to have lunch, what to eat, according to the way soldiers eat. I happily agreed. We sat down at the dining table. Zorin drank a lot and also toasted me. He enlightened me that I should learn how to be a soldier. He also told me many anecdotes in the army, which made me laugh and hurt my belly. When we finished eating, we became good friends. He immediately offered to teach me to play billiards.

　　"This thing is indispensable to our soldier brothers!" He said, "For example, during the march, you came to a small place-what are you doing? You know, you can't always beat up the jews! No! The way, you just walk into the hostel and play billiards; if you want to play, you have to learn first!"

　　I was thoroughly persuaded, so I concentrated on learning. Zorin praised me loudly and was amazed at my rapid progress. After a few rounds of practice, he proposed to bet with me for money. Every time I bet on a copper plate, the goal is not to win or lose. Don't bet on empty gambling. Listen to his tone. That is the most unpromising bad habit. To bet on money, I agree. Zorin ordered the fruit wine to come, and persuaded me to try a few sips, and repeatedly enlightened me that we must learn the style of the soldier; and without fruit wine, the style of the soldier is worth a lot!

　　I listened to him. At this time, we continue to gamble. I picked up the jar and sipped it bit by bit. The more I drank, the more courage I got. The balls I play fly off the table from time to time. I got angry and scolded the scorer. God knows how he scored. My bet is getting bigger and bigger. In a word, I really acted like a wild boy who broke free of control. Time passed unconsciously. Zolin looked at his watch, put down his pool cue, and told me that I had lost a hundred rubles. This makes me a little embarrassed. All my money is on Savelitch. I beg him for forgiveness. Zorin interrupted me and said:

　　"Don't worry! Please don't worry. I can wait, let's go to Alen Rushka now!"

　　What can I say? This night, just like the morning, I also passed away in confusion.

　　We have dinner at the girl's house in Alin Ruhika. Zuolin kept sifting my wine, and then repeatedly enlightened me, saying that I should learn how to be a soldier. When I got up after eating, I almost couldn't stand still. Zolin sent me back to the hotel in the middle of the night.

　　Saveritch greeted us on the steps. He sighed after seeing the remarkable results of my enthusiastic study of military style. "What did you do, Master?" He said pitifully, "Where did you pour the yellow soup? Goodness! What a sin, you haven't been born before!"

　　"Shut up! Old fellow!" I said with a slippery tongue, "It looks like you are drunk yourself, go to bed;...wait for me to lie down."

　　When I woke up the next day, I had a headache and vaguely remembered what happened yesterday. Savelitch came in with a cup of tea and interrupted my thoughts.

　　"It's too early! Peter Andreich!" He said to me, shook his head, "You are too early! See who you look like? Your father and your grandfather are not drunks. Not to mention your mother. A: I have never drunk anything except Kvass in my life.

　　Who is to blame for you doing this? Blame the Frenchman who suffered a thousand swords. From time to time, he slipped to Anji Bevna and said:'Ma Dan! Hot horse ignored, Vodka. '①This time I'll give you a'Rewubuli'! Nothing to say, this is a good thing he taught! This bastard!

　　You shouldn't have hired a cultist as a teacher, as if you were not good at it in the old man's house. "

　　①Transliteration of French "Madam! Please give me Vodka".

　　I feel ashamed. I turned around and said to him, "Go, Savelitch! I don't want tea."

　　But once Savelitch speaks, then you can't stop him. "Look, Peter Andreich! What good results do you have for being so slutty! Headache, dizziness, and appetite. If you are addicted to drinking, that person can't do anything... You just drink some sour king with honey Melon hydrolyzes the bar! It's best to drink half a cup of medicated wine. Would you like?" At this time, a child walked into the room and handed me a note written by Zolin. I unfolded and saw the following sentences:

　　Dear Peter Andreich! Please bring me the one hundred rubles that I lost yesterday to my boyfriend. I really need money.

　　For you forever

　　Ivan Zolin

　　There is no way. Pretending to be indifferent, I turned my face to look at Saviglich, the head of my money, clothes, and various affairs, and ordered him to pay the boy one hundred rubles.

　　"What?" Savelitch asked, surprised.

　　"I owe him money." I replied, speaking as indifferently as possible.

　　"You owe money?" Savelich retorted, becoming more and more worried, "But, when, master, you owe him money? Something is wrong. Master! Whatever you do, anyway, I don’t. Give money."

　　I thought for a while, at this point, if I don't subdue this grumpy old man, it will be difficult to get rid of his restraints in the future. I glared at him and said, "I am your master, and you are my slave. The money is mine. I lost the money because I am willing to lose. I advise you not to be smart, and do whatever you tell you to do. !"

　　Hearing what I said, Savelitch was taken aback, he slapped his hands, and was stunned.

　　"Why are you standing in a daze?" I cried angrily.

　　Savelitch cried.

　　"My little master Peter Andreich!" He murmured, with a trembling voice, "Don't torture me to death. My good fellow! Hear what my old man said! Hurry up and write a letter to that one. Robber, you said you were playing with him. You don’t have that much money at all. One hundred rubles! Lord, don’t commit crimes! You tell him that your parents are firmly prohibited from gambling. Unless you bet with walnuts..."

　　"Stop nonsense!" I interrupted him severely, "Bring the money, or else, watch me choke your neck and blow you out!"

　　Savelitch glanced at me and was so sad that he had to settle my debt. I pity the old man privately. But if I want to get rid of the shackles, I have to show it to him, because I am not a kid anymore. The money was paid to Zolin. Savelitch hurriedly let me leave this hapless hotel. He informed me that the horse was ready. My conscience was disturbed, I confessed silently and left Simbirsk without saying goodbye to my mentor, nor thinking about meeting him in the future.