"Bravo, that suits me."
"And I, too—I'll go," cried Iakov.
"Who invited you?" asked Serejka, screwing up his eyes.
The sound of a cracked bell called the men to work.
"She will invite me," said Iakov.
He looked defiantly at Malva.
"I? what need have I of you?" she replied, surprised.
"Let us he frank, Iakov," said Serejka. "If you annoy her, I'll beat you to a jelly. And if you as much as touch her with a finger, I'll kill you like a fly. I am a simple man."
His face, all his person, his knotty and muscular arms proved eloquently that killing a man would be a very simple thing for him.
Iakov recoiled a step and said, in a choking voice: