🔊 Nothing stirred in the drawing-room or in the dining-room or on the staircase. Only through the rusty hinges and swollen sea-moistened woodwork certain airs, detached from the body of the wind (the house was ramshackle after all) crept round corners and ventured indoors. Almost one might imagine them, as they entered the drawing-room, questioning and wondering, toying with the flap of hanging wallpaper, asking, would it hang much longer? When should they fall? And then, peacefully, tranquilly, they might be brushed aside; but imperceptibly, steadily, they mounted the staircase, and entered the bedrooms. One had the feeling that the house was a ship at sea, that there were waves of air, and that the open windows were the portholes. Little airs, little whispers, from every corner of the house, from the beds, from the chairs, from the curtains, from the very floor itself, were pushing, pressing, invading. The house was empty; the house was deserted; it was left like a shell on a sandhill to fill with dry salt grains, to be fretted by the tide, to be forgotten. But Nature had her revenge. The house was left to itself; the house, no longer guarded by human hands, fell into decay. The garden was overgrown; the paths were lost; the roses ran wild; the flowers dropped their petals in the untidy grass. The only sound was the waves beating on the shore. And then the nights came; the nights of darkness and of storm. The wind blew; the rain fell; the house groaned and shivered. But inside, in the empty rooms, nothing moved. The furniture stood covered in dust-sheets; the pictures were hidden; the books were piled on the tables. And the silence was deep, like the silence of the grave. And then the lights went out, one by one, as the last inhabitant left. And the house was left to darkness and to time.

客厅里、餐厅里、楼梯上,没有任何动静。只有穿过生锈的铰链和被海水浸胀的木构件,几缕从风的整体中分离出来的气流（这房子终究是破败的）悄悄绕过角落,大胆地溜进室内。几乎可以想象,当它们进入客厅时,是如何询问着、思索着,拨弄着垂下的墙纸翘起的一角,问它还能挂多久？何时才会掉落？然后,它们可能平和、宁静地被拂开；但不知不觉间,它们又稳步登上楼梯,进入卧室。人们会有一种感觉:这房子是海上的船,空气是层层波浪,敞开的窗户就是舷窗。阵阵微风,声声低语,从房子的每个角落,从床铺、椅子、窗帘,乃至地板本身,推挤着、压迫着、侵入着。房子空无一人；房子被遗弃了；它被丢弃在那里,像沙丘上的贝壳,等着装满干盐粒,被潮水侵蚀,被世人遗忘。但大自然自有其报复。房子被放任自流,不再有人手守护,走向衰败。花园荒草丛生,小径消失,玫瑰疯长,花瓣凌乱地落在杂草丛中。唯一的声音是海浪拍打岸边。然后夜晚降临,那是黑暗和风暴的夜晚。风在呼啸,雨在倾泻,房子呻吟颤抖。但在屋内,空荡荡的房间里,没有任何动静。家具上蒙着防尘布,画作被遮盖,书籍堆在桌上。寂静深沉,如同坟墓的寂静。然后,随着最后一位居民离去,灯光一盏接一盏地熄灭。房子留给了黑暗,留给了时间。

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ramshackle /ˈræmʃækəl/

adj. 摇摇欲坠的,破旧不堪的➕

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imperceptibly /ˌɪmpərˈsɛptəbli/

adv. 察觉不到地,极细微地➕

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tranquilly /ˈtræŋkwɪli/

adv. 平静地,安宁地➕

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portholes /ˈpɔːrthoʊlz/

n. 舷窗（飞机或船上的圆形窗户）➕

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fretted /ˈfrɛtɪd/

adj. 被侵蚀的,磨损的（常指被水、风等）➕

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decay /dɪˈkeɪ/

n. 腐烂,腐朽,衰退➕

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overgrown /ˌoʊvərˈɡroʊn/

adj. 杂草丛生的,植物疯长的➕

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groaned /ɡroʊnd/

v. 呻吟,发出吱嘎声（这里指房子发出声响）➕

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inhabitant /ɪnˈhæbɪtənt/

n. 居民,居住者➕

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ventured /ˈvɛntʃərd/

v. 冒险,敢于去（某处）➕

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toying /ˈtɔɪɪŋ/

v. 玩弄,摆弄（这里指风轻抚墙纸）➕

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flap /flæp/

n. 折边,盖片（如信封盖、墙纸垂边）➕

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mounted /ˈmaʊntɪd/

v. 登上,爬（楼梯等）➕

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whispers /ˈwɪspərz/

n. 低语声,沙沙声➕

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invading /ɪnˈveɪdɪŋ/

v. 侵入,涌入➕

Time Passes – Chapter two (第二章)

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