marvelous rosaline

10

It's not difficult to sneak into Gatsby's party.

Located in the mansion in West Egg, Long Island, there will be a very grand banquet every weekend, and people from all over New York who are willing to show their faces will appear in his mansion.Politicians, businessmen, actors, and all kinds of speculators, those with and without invitations, all regard Gatsby's banquet as a paradise, and they will make noise in it until the sky is half bright.

— These are the news Tiago Mara told Rosalind.

"It doesn't matter if you don't have an invitation card," he uncomfortably straightened his own dress and bow tie, "after a while, he said that we are people who have been helped by Mr. Gatsby. If we want to visit him, it happens to be a banquet, and someone will let us in... Damn, I hate formal clothes."

Rosalin turned to look at the "male companion" beside her.

In order to sneak into the banquet, both of them put on decent formal attire.And Thiago, who put on a suit and tie, seemed to have almost written "I'm uncomfortable" on the baby's face.Even if he stood still, he couldn't stop moving around, as if he had attracted lice.

"Because of Detective Kaqi, you have to bear with it." Rosalin advised friendlyly.

"I know."

Thiago wanted to raise his hand to grab his hair again, but he had to stop when he touched the hairspray, and instead touched the bridge of his nose in embarrassment: "You look good in this outfit..."

Rosalin raised the corner of her mouth.

"Never mind," she said, "we're not here for a party."

Thiago immediately put away his embarrassment: they came here to follow the clues, and the beautiful clothes were just a disguise.

"I don't know where his money comes from."

Thiago couldn't adapt to such an environment, and he couldn't help muttering: "New York's newspapers are full of headlines, businessmen and politicians are talking about him, and Gatsby has become a very important person in this city overnight." An indispensable big man, but no one knows his details, he seems to have fallen from the sky."

"Generally," said Rosalind, "upstarts are bootleggers."

"Many old-fashioned capitalists say that." Thiago echoed.

In the original book, Gatsby's "rival in love" Tom Buchanan also commented in this way.

Rosalin felt that he was right.The novel does not directly explain how Jay Gatsby made his fortune, and the source of his wealth is a vague mystery.But combined with the reality, Rosalin thinks this is a good inference.

Prohibition in the United States lasted until 1933, during which time smuggling alcohol was an illegal but lucrative business.

"Some people say that his money is not clean," Tiago added, "that he did a lot of shady things in his youth to get it."

Thiago pointed to the dazzling banquet in front of him.

This is New York.

A week ago she was in a confined space with eight women in the third-class cabin of a cruise ship, and a week later she was standing on the same dance floor with movie stars and business moguls.

"When the cleanliness of a dress can determine the life and death of two families," said Rosalind, "none of the guests present has a clean source of property."

"what?"

"It's nothing."

Rosalin just thought of the smell of blood and soot on the Olympic.

"Let's split up," she suggested.

"You inquire at the banquet," Thiago said. "It's much more convenient for a pretty girl to inquire about clues with a smile. I'll look for his office."

"Okay, be careful."

The two split up.Rosalin watched Thiago go to a place where there were few people in the room, and when his back disappeared, she took the initiative to squeeze into the crowd.

Before coming to New York, Rosalind attended many balls.Most of them are with grandma, she always introduces Rosalin to all kinds of people, and personally teaches Rosalin how to get along with these people and keep a distance to facilitate escape; a small part is with grandpa, at this time Rosalind was much more relaxed, because not many people actually invited Grandpa to the dance floor.

This was the first time Rosalin attended a banquet by herself.

I don't know whether the banquets in New York are different from those in Europe, or whether Mr. Gatsby's banquets are so exaggerated.As described in "The Great Gatsby", Gatsby's mansion is luxurious and luxurious, with banquet glasses, music and dance, and champagne beauties.The outdoor garden swimming pool and the indoor dance floor restaurant are full of people. The feasting and feasting of the Jazz Age described by Scott Fitzgerald, the bustling chaos seems to have directly changed from words to pictures, and scenes flashed in front of Rosalind.

As Thiago said, it is always easier for pretty girls to scout out information at a banquet.No matter Rosalin walked to the long table or to the dance floor, fashionable men and women would always strike up a conversation.

"Her dress is beautiful."

"The gold veil on the headdress covers the face. It's such an ingenious design. Whose handwriting did it come from?"

"Judging from her tone, she seems to know Mr. Gatsby, is he a distinguished guest?"

Rosalin let these whispers surround her, she asked all the way, but got nothing.

Jay Gatsby's mansion banquet is extravagant and pompous, full of people, frivolous and simple pleasures.But after Rosalin asked for so long, none of these people who enjoyed happiness in the mansion knew Gatsby in a real sense.

In the end, Rosalin stood still at the stairs on the second floor.

Downstairs is the fountain, and in front of the fountain is a dance floor.The gushing water droplets refract the brilliant lights into more complex colors, and countless men and women dance to the mesmerizing music. The bustling and noisy, almost condenses the most glamorous and crazy side of New York in this era.

Rosalind took a deep breath.

The air is filled with the smell of every kind of perfume, as well as drinks, food, and flowers and plants in the garden grass.The artificial flavor and natural flavor were mixed together, almost overwhelming all of Rosalin's senses.And it is precisely because these chaotic smells weave a fine net that the smell that is completely different from any system stands out from it.

She detected a faint hint of apple brandy in it.

This smell does not come from the smell kingdom in Rosalin's heart, but exists objectively in reality-as we all know, in the United States in 1925, the prohibition of alcohol was still in effect.Those who can be contaminated with the smell of alcohol for a long time must be people who have been exposed to alcohol all year round.

Rosalin immediately turned around following the smell.

At the fence of the terrace, among the laughing and carnival crowd, she saw a lonely figure from the back.

It was a man with broad shoulders and a straight back, in a dark blue suit.There were no friends or girlfriends around him, he just stood there quietly watching the dance floor.This kind of quietness made him draw a clear boundary with the noisy environment around him, making him seem a little out of place.

"Sir." Rosalind walked to the fence of the terrace.

The man turned around, and the strong smell of corpses and cologne came to his face.

The former comes from Rosalin's heart, while the latter composes a harmonious and steady movement with the taste of brandy.The movement evokes the mature charm of a man in his prime: his face is well-shaped, his features deep-set, his dark blond hair is short and slightly curly, carefully groomed.Under the full forehead, a pair of light blue eyes are crystal clear.

A rich, respectable handsome gentleman.And that stench of corpses gave him a bit of sharpness and determination after passing through the battlefield.Even though he was wearing a suit, his standing posture, his imposing manner, and his deliberately concealed command tone made Mr. Gatsby look more like a soldier than a nobleman.

"What's the matter, miss?" he asked politely.

Rosalin stared straight at him, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly: So the real Jay Gatsby doesn't look very much like Leonardo DiCaprio.

——A rich young man in his 30s who has experienced World War I, made his fortune from bootlegging, and deliberately dressed up as an aristocrat.

Rosalin thought, even in New York, a place full of rich businessmen, there are very few people who meet this characteristic.

"You look lonely, sir," said Rosalind, "won't you go to a dance?"

The other party smiled.

For a rich man with a mysterious identity, Mr. Gatsby's smile is a bit too clean. His lip line is very clear. If you don't look carefully, it might be regarded as a pre-painted one.The beautiful lip peak goes all the way down from the top, and when it reaches the underestimation of the corner of the lip, it turns up slightly. When he genuinely smiles, the upturned arc makes him look sincere and enthusiastic.

"How do you like the ball, miss?" he said.

"very good."

Rosalin replied honestly: "This is the most prosperous and lively dance party I have ever attended, but—"

"but?"

"I doubt very much whether my hosts are enjoying it," said Rosalind. "Otherwise, why would you look so lonely, Mr. Gatsby?"

Ladies of the Jazz Age always made a fuss about tiaras when they attended a banquet.Rosalin likes these flourishing and exaggerated headgears very much. Today she matched the dress with a wooden hair accessory. The rustic hair accessory is hung with a long golden yarn. The hazy yarn is loose and loose around her slender neck, half covering her fair skin. faces.

This also makes her face hidden in the shadows.

She could see Gatsby's half-surprise, but Mr. Gatsby couldn't recognize the identity of the girl in front of him.

There was a quick flash of sharpness and scrutiny that could be called impolite in those blue eyes, but it was quickly hidden.

"Miss, did we—"

"—Mr. Gatsby."

Before the words of his inquiry had fully landed, a man in a work suit came over and whispered something in his ear.

The smile on Gatsby's handsome face disappeared immediately.

"Sorry, Miss," he said to Rosalind, "I have to go back to the office, it won't be long, if you want, can you come here and wait for me in half an hour?"

Back to the office?

Thiago touched Gatsby's office, what if he was caught?

Rosalin said badly to herself.Gatsby was right in front of her right now, and she had to find a way to prevent him from going back to the office no matter what!

Seeing the tall gentleman about to turn around and leave, Rosalin made a decision in an instant.

"Wait, sir!"

She stretched out her hands directly.

When Rosalin wrapped her arms around Jay Gatsby's neck, she could clearly feel the man's shoulders stiffen in place.The last distance was gone, and Rosalin's senses were completely overwhelmed by the mellow apple brandy.

Rosalin rushed directly into Gatsby's arms.

She turned her head slightly, and leaned into the other's ear: "I have a very important secret to tell you."