附录一: 槐园梦忆(第10/27页)
婚礼定在下午四时举行,客人差不多到齐了,新娘不见踪影。原来娶亲的马车到了女家,照例把红封从门缝塞进去之后,里面传话出来要递红帖,“没有红帖怎行?我们知道你是谁?”事先我要求亲迎,未被接纳,实不知应备红帖。僵持了半天,随车的人员经我父亲电话中指示临时补办,到荣宝斋买了一份红帖请人代书,总算过了关。可是彩车到达欧美同学会的时候暮霭渐深。这是意外事,也是意中事。
我立在阶上看见季淑从二门口由两人扶着缓缓地沿着旁边的游廊走进礼堂,后面两个小女孩牵纱。张禹九用胳膊肘轻轻触我说:“实秋,嘿嘿,娇小玲珑。”我觉得好像有人在我耳边吟唱着彭士(Robert Burns)的几行诗:
She is a winsome wee thing,She is a handsome wee thing,She is a loe come wee thing,This sweet wee wife o'mine.
她是一个媚人的小东西,她是一个漂亮的小东西,她是一个可爱的小东西,我这亲爱的小娇妻。
事实上凡是新娘没有不美的。萨克令(Sir John Suckling)的一首《婚礼曲》(A Ballad upon a Wedding)就有几节很好的描写:
The maid-and thereby hangs a tale,For such a maid no Whitsun-ale,Could ever yet produce;No grape,that's kindly ripe,could be,So round,so plump,so soft a she,No rhalf so full of juice.
Her finger was so small the ring,Would not stay on.which they did bring,it was too wide a peck;And to say truth(for out it must),it looked like the great collar(just)About our young colt's neck.
Her feet beneath her petticoat,Like little mice stole in and out,As if they feared the light;But oh,she dances such a way,No sun upon an Easter dayIs half so fine a sight!
Her cheeks so rare a white was on,No daisy makes comparison;(Who sees them is undone),For streaks of red were mingled there,Such as are on a Katherene pear,(The side that's next the sun).
Her lips were red,and one was thin,Compared to that was next her chin(Some bee had stung it newly);But,Dick,her eyes so guard her faceI durst no more upon them gaze,Thanonthesuninjuly.
Her mouth so small,when she does speak,Thou'dst swear her teeth her words did break,That they might passage get;But she so handled still the matter,They came as good as ours,or better,And are not spent a whit.
讲到新娘(说来话长),像她那样的姑娘,圣灵降临的庆祝会里尚未见过;没有树熟的葡萄像她那样红润,那样圆,那样丰满,那样细嫩,汁浆有一半那样的多。
她的手指又细又小,戒指戴上去就要溜掉,因为太松了一点;老实说(非说不可),恰似小驹的颈上套着一只大的项圈。
她裙下露出两只脚,老鼠似的出出进进地跑,像是怕外面的光亮;但是她的舞步翩翩,太阳在复活节的那一天也没有那样美的景象!
她的两颊白得出奇,没有雏菊能和她相比;(令人一见魂儿飞上天了),因为那白里还带着红色,活像是枝头的小梨一个,(朝着太阳的那一边)。
她的唇是红的;一片很薄,挨近下巴的那片就厚得多(必是才被蜜蜂螯伤);但是,狄克,她的两眼保护着脸我不敢多看一眼,有如对着七月的太阳。
她的嘴好小,说起话来,她的牙齿要把字儿咬碎,以便从嘴里挤送出去;但是她处理得很得法,谈吐不比我们差,而且一点也不吃力。
季淑那天头上戴着茉莉花冠。脚上穿的一双高跟鞋,为配合礼服,是粉红色缎子做的,上面缝了一圈的亮片,走起路来一闪一闪。因戒指太松而把戒指丢掉的不是她,是我,我不知在什么时候把戒指甩掉了,她安慰我说:“没关系,我们不需要这个。”
证婚人说了些什么话,根本就没有听进去,现在一个字也不记得。我只记得赞礼的人喊了一声礼成,大家纷纷涌向东厢入席就餐。少不了有人向我们敬酒,我根本没有把那小小酒杯放在眼里。黄淑贞突然用饭碗斟满了酒,严肃地说:“季淑,你以后若是还认我做朋友,请尽此碗。”季淑一声不响端起碗来汩汩地喝了下去,大家都吃一惊。
回到家中还要行家礼,这是预定的节目。好容易等到客人散尽,两把太师椅摆在堂屋正中,地上铺了红毡子,请父母就座,我和季淑双双跪下磕头,然后闹哄到午夜,父母发话:“现在不早了,大家睡去吧。”
罗赛蒂(D.G.Rossetti)有一首诗《新婚之夜》(The Nuptial Night),他说他一觉醒来看见他的妻懒洋洋地酣睡在他身旁,他不能相信那是真的,他疑心是在做梦。梦也好,不是梦也好,天刚刚亮,季淑骨碌爬了起来,梳洗毕换上一身新装,蓝袄红裙,红缎绣花高跟鞋,在穿衣镜前面照了又照,侧面照,转身照。等父母起来她就送过去两盏新沏的盖碗茶。这是新媳妇伺候公婆的第一幕。早餐罢,全家人聚在上房,季淑启开她的箱子把礼物一包一包地取出来,按长幼顺序每人一包,这叫做开箱礼,又叫做见面礼,无非是一些帽鞋日用之物,但是季淑选购甚精,使得家人皆大欢喜。我袖手旁观,说道:“哎呀!还缺一份!——我的呢?”惹得哄堂大笑。