.” "Ay!" He sighed, with a twist of a smile.

“没关系！”看到他一言不发地远远坐着，她上前握住他的手，安慰道。“尽力就好。”“唉！”他苦笑着，叹了口气。

She slipped over to him, and into his arms, as he sat there before the fire.

他坐在炉火前，她走到他身旁，偎入他的怀中。

"Forget then!" She whispered. "Forget! He held her close, in the running warmth of the fire. The flame itself was like a forgetting. And her soft, warm, ripe weight! Slowly his blood turned, and began to ebb back into strength and reckless vigour again.

“别再想了！”她低语道。“忘掉吧！”他紧紧搂着她，炉火喷出的热气扑面而来。火焰本身似乎拥有让人遗忘的魔力。而她那成熟的肉体更是那样柔软温暖，让他感到实实在在的重量！他的血液慢慢开始转变，变得充满力量与无尽的生气。

"And perhaps the women really wanted to be there and love you properly, only perhaps they couldn't. Perhaps it wasn't all their fault," she said.

“或许那些女人都是真心实意想和你相处，想好好爱你，只是她们做不到而已。或许这并不都是她们的错。”她说。

"I know it. Do you think I don't know what a broken-backed snake that's been trodden on I was myself!” She clung to him suddenly. She had not wanted to start all this again. Yet some perversity had made her.

“我知道。难道你认为我已经遗忘，忘记自己像条被任意践踏的蛇，连脊背都已折断！”她突然紧紧拥着他。她本不愿再挑起这个话题。但却抑制不住自己的情绪，任性胡为起来。

"But you're not now," she said. "You're not that now: a broken-backed snake that's been trodden on.” "I don't know what I am. There's black days ahead.” "No!" she protested, clinging to him. "Why? Why?" "There's black days coming for us all and for everybody," he repeated with a prophetic gloom.

“可你现在不再是了。”她说。“不再是一条折断脊背的蛇，不再允许任意践踏。”“我不知道我现在是什么。前途一片黑暗。”“不！”她抗议道，死命搂住他。“为什么？为什么？”“黑暗的时代即将降临，你我，乃至所有人都无法幸免。”他重复着，说话时的忧伤口吻，活像位预言家。

"No! You're not to say it!” He was silent. But she could feel the black void of despair inside him. That was the death of all desire, the death of all love: this despair that was like the dark cave inside the men, in which their spirit was lost.

“不！别说这种话！”他不再做声。但她仍感觉得到其心底绝望的深渊。那是所有欲望的坟墓，所有情感的坟墓，那种绝望就像存在于人类内心的黑洞，灵魂在其间迷失方向。

"And you talk so coldly about sex," she said. "You talk as if you had only wanted your own pleasure and satisfaction." She was protesting nervously against him.