第四章

　　The lift was crowded with men from the Alpha Changing Rooms, and Lenina's entry wars greeted by many friendly nods and smiles.

　　电梯里满是从阿尔法换瓶间里来的人。列宁娜一进门就有好几个人向她点头微笑，打着招呼。

　　She was a popular girl and, at one time or another, had spent a night with almost all of them.

　　这个姑娘人缘很好，几乎和他们每个人都偶尔睡过觉。

　　They were dear boys, she thought, as she returned their salutations.

　　都是些可爱的小伙子，她回答他们的招呼时心想。

　　Charming boys! Still, she did wish that George Edzel's ears weren't quite so big

　　迷人的小伙子！不过，她仍然希望乔治·艾泽尔的耳朵没有那么大

　　(perhaps he'd been given just a spot too much parathyroid at Metre 328?).

　　（他也许是在三百二十八公尺时多接受了一点甲状腺素？），

　　And looking at Benito Hoover, she couldn't help remembering that he was really too hairy when he took his clothes off.

　　而看见本尼托·胡佛时她又不禁想起他脱光衣服后身上的毛的确太多。

　　Turning, with eyes a little saddened by the recollection, of Benito's curly blackness,

　　她转过因想起本尼托鬈曲的黑毛而显得不高兴的目光，

　　she saw in a corner the small thin body, the melancholy face of Bernard Marx.

　　在一个角落里看见了伯纳·马克思的瘦削的身躯和忧郁的脸。

　　"Bernard!" she stepped up to him.

　　“伯纳！”她向他走近了一步

　　"I was looking for you." Her voice rang clear above the hum of the mounting lift.

　　我刚才还在找你。”她清脆的声音压过了电梯的嗡嗡声。

　　The others looked round curiously. "I wanted to talk to you about our New Mexico plan."

　　“别人好奇地转脸看着他们。“我想和你谈谈我们去新墨西哥的计划。”

　　Out of the tail of her eye she could see Benito Hoover gaping with astonishment.

　　她在眼角扫见了本尼托·胡佛惊讶得张大了的嘴，那嘴叫她。

　　The gape annoyed her. "Surprised I shouldn't be begging to go with him again!" she said to herself.

　　心烦。“他没有想到我没有再约他去！”她。心想。

　　Then aloud, and more warmly than ever, "I'd simply love to come with you for a week in July," she went on.

　　然后她放开了嗓子，比任何时候都热情地说，“我就是喜欢在六月份跟你去过一个礼拜。”她说下去。

　　(Anyhow, she was publicly proving her unfaithfulness to Henry.

　　（总之，她在公开表示出对亨利的不忠实，

　　Fanny ought to be pleased, even though it was Bernard.)

　　范尼应该高兴了，即使表示的对象是伯纳。）

　　"That is," Lenina gave him her most deliciously significant smile, "if you still want to have me."

　　“没有错，”列宁娜对他露出了她最含情脉脉的美妙的微笑，“如果你还想要我的话。”

　　Bernard's pale face flushed. "What on earth for?" she wondered, astonished, but at the same time touched by this strange tribute to her power.

　　伯纳苍白的脸泛起了红晕。“干吗脸红？”她有些莫名其妙，也惊讶，却也为自己的魅力引来的这种礼赞所感动。

　　"Hadn't we better talk about it somewhere else?" he stammered, looking horribly uncomfortable.

　　“我们俩另外找个地方谈谈如何？”他结结巴巴地说，表情不自然得可怕。

　　"As though I'd been saying something shocking," thought Lenina. "

　　“好像我说了什么吓人的话似的，”列宁娜想道，

　　He couldn't look more upset if I'd made a dirty joke–asked him who his mother was, or something like that."

　　“哪怕我开了个肮脏的玩笑——比如问起他的母亲是谁什么的，他也不会更生气的。”

　　"I mean, with all these people about …" He was choked with confusion.

　　“我的意思是说，当着这么多人的面……”他慌乱得说不出话来。

　　Lenina's laugh was frank and wholly unmalicious. "How funny you are!" she said; and she quite genuinely did think him funny.

　　列宁娜的笑很坦然，毫无恶意。“你多么好笑！”她说；她的的确确觉得他好笑。

　　"You'll give me at least a week's warning, won't you," she went on in another tone. "

　　“请你提前一个星期通知我，好吗？”她换了一种口气。

　　I suppose we take the Blue Pacific Rocket? Does it start from the Charing-T Tower? Or is it from Hampstead?"

　　“我估计我们是乘蓝色太平洋号火箭？从切林T字口大厦起飞，是吗？要不然是从汉浦斯泰德起飞？”

　　Before Bernard could answer, the lift came to a standstill.

　　伯纳还没有来得及回答，电梯已经停了。

　　"Roof!" called a creaking voice.

　　“屋顶到了！”一个刺耳的声音叫道。

　　The liftman was a small simian creature, dressed in the black tunic of an Epsilon-Minus Semi-Moron.

　　电梯工长得像猴，小个子，穿黑短褂，那是半白痴爱扑塞隆减们穿的。