sittng in the wicker rocking chair with her interrupted work in her lap, amaranta watched aureliano, josé , his chin covered with foam, stropping his razor to give himself his first shave. his blackheads bled and he cut his upper lip as he tried to shape a mustache blond fuzz when it was all over he looked the same as before, but the laborious process gave amaranta the feeling that she had begun to grow old at that moment.
"you look just like aureliano when he was your age," she said. "you're a man now."
he had been for a long time, ever since that distant day when amaranta thought he was still a child and continued getting undressed in front of him in the bathroom as she had always done, as she had been used to doing ever since pilar ternera had turned him over to her to finish his upbringing. the first time that he saw her the only thing that drew his attention was the deep depression between her breasts. he was so innocent that he asked her what had happened to her and amaranta pretended to dig into her breasts with the tips of her fingers and answered: "they gave me some terrible cuts." some time later, when she had recovered from pietro crespi's suicide and would bathe with aureliano josé again, he no longer paid attention to the depression but felt a strange trembling at the sight of the splendid breasts with their brown nipples. he kept on examining her, discovering the miracle of her intimacy inch by inch, and he felt his skin tingle as he contemplated the way her skin tingled when it touched the water. ever since he was a small child he had the custom of leaving his hammock and waking up in amaranta's bed, because contact with her was a way of overcoming his fear of the dark. but since that day when he became aware of his own nakedness, it was not fear of the dark that drove him to crawl in under her mosquito netting but an urge to feel amaranta's warm breathing at dawn. early one morning during the time when she refused colonel gerineldo márquez, aureli-ano josé awoke with the feeling that he could not breathe. he felt amaranta's fingers searching across his stomach like warm and anxious little caterpillars. pretending to sleep, he changed his position to make it easier, and then he felt the hand without the black bandage diving like a blind shellfish into the algae of his anxiety. although they seemed to ignore what both of them knew each one knew that the other knew, from that night on they were yoked together in an inviolable complicity. aureli-ano josé could not get to sleep until he heard the twelve-o'clock waltz on the parlor dock, and the mature maiden whose skin was beginning to grow sad did not have a moments' rest until she felt slip in under her mosquito netting that sleepwalker whom she had raised, not thinking that he would be a palliative for her solitude. later they not only slept together, naked, exchanging exhausting caresses, but they would also chase each other into the corners of the house and shut themselves up in the bedrooms at any hour of the day in a permanent state of unrelieved excitement. they were almost discovered by úrsula one afternoon when she went into the granary as they were starting to kiss. "do you love your aunt a lot?" she asked aureli-ano josé in an innocent way. he answered that he did. "that's good of you," úrsula concluded and finished measuring the flour for the bread and returned to the kitchen. that episode drew amaranta out of her delirium. she realized that she had gone too far, that she was no longer playing kissing games with a child, but was floundering about in an autumnal passion, one that was dangerous and had no future, and she cut it off with one stroke. aureli-ano josé, who was then finishing his military training, finally woke up to reality and went to sleep in the barracks. on saturdays he would go the soldiers to catarino's store. he was seeking consolation for his abrupt solitude, for his premature adolescence with women who smelled of dead flowers, whom he idealized in the darkness changed into amaranta by means of the anxious efforts of his imagination.
a short time later contradictory news of the war began to come in. while the government itself admitted the progress of the rebellion, the officers in macondo had confidential reports of the imminence of a negotiated peace. toward the first of april a special emissary identified himself to colonel gerineldo márquez. he confirmed the fact to him that the leaders of the party had indeed established contact with the rebel leaders in the interior and were on the verge of arranging an armistice in exchange for three cabinet posts for the liberals, a minority representation in the congress, and a general amnesty for rebels who laid down their arms. the emissary brought a highly confidential order from colonel aureli-ano buendía, who was not in agreement with the terms of the armistice. colonel gerineldo márquez was to choose five of his best men and prepare to leave the country with them. the order would be carried out with the strictest secrecy. one week before the agreement was announced, and in the midst of a storm of contradictory rumors, colonel aureli-ano buendía ten trusted officers, among them colonel roque carnicero, stealthily arrived in macondo after midnight, dismissed the garrison, buried their weapons, and destroyed their records. by dawn they had left town, along with colonel gerineldo márquez and his five officers. it was such a quick and secret operation that úrsula did not find out about it until the last moment, when someone tapped on her bedroom window and whispered, "if you want to see colonel aureli-ano buendía, come to the door right now." úrsula jumped out of bed and went to the door in her night-gown and she was just able to see the horsemen who were leaving town gallop off in a mute cloud of dust. only on the following day did she discover that aureli-ano josé had gone with his father.
ten days after a joint communiqué by the government and the opposition announced the end of the war, there was news of the first armed uprising of colonel aureli-ano buendía on the western border. his small and poorly armed force was scattered in less than a week. but during that year, while liberals and conservatives tried to make the country believe in reconciliation, he attempted seven other revolts. one night he bombarded riohacha from a schooner and the garrison dragged out of bed and shot the fourteen best-known liberals in the town as a reprisal. for more than two weeks he held a customs post on the border and from there sent the nation a call to general war. another of his expectations was lost for three months in the jungle in a mad attempt to cross more than a thousand miles of virgin territory in order to proclaim war on the outskirts of the capital. on one occasion he was lea than fifteen miles away from macondo and was obliged by government patrols to hide in the mountains, very close to the enchanted region where his father had found the fossil of a spanish galleon many years before.
visitación died around that time. she had the pleasure of dying a natural death after having renounced a throne out of fear insomnia, and her last wish was that they should dig up the wages she had saved for more than twenty years under her bed and send the money to colonel aureli-ano buendía so that he could go on with the war. but úrsula did not bother to dig it up because it was rumored in those days that colonel aureli-ano buendía had been killed in a landing near the provincial capital. the official announcement-the fourth in less than two years-was considered true for almost six months because nothing further was heard of him. suddenly, when úrsula and amaranta had added new mourning to the past period, unexpected news arrived. colonel aureli-ano buendía was alive, but apparently he had stopped harassing the government of his country and had joined with the victorious federalism of other republics of the caribbean. he would show up under different names farther and farther away from his own country. later it would be learned that the idea that was working on at the time was the unification of the federalist forms of central america in order to wipe out conservative regimes from alaska to patagonia. the first direct news that úrsula received from him, several years after his departure, was a wrinkled and faded letter that had arrived, passing through various hands, from santiago, cuba.
"we've lost him forever," úrsula exclaimed on reading it. "if he follows this path he'll spend christmas at the ends of the earth."
the person to whom she said it, who was the first to whom she showed the letter, was the conservative general josé raquel moncada, mayor of macondo since the end of the war. "this aureli-ano," general moncada commented, "what a pity that he's not a conservative." he really admired him. like many conservative civilians, josé raquel moncada had waged war in defense of his party and had earned the title of general on the field of battle, even though he was not a military man by profession. on the contrary, like so many of his fellow party members, he was an antimilitarist. he considered military men unprincipled loafers, ambitious plotters, experts in facing down civilians in order to prosper during times of disorder. intelligent, pleasant, ruddy-faced, a man who liked to eat and watch cockfights, he had been at one time the most feared adversary of colonel aureli-ano buendía. he succeeded in imposing his authority over the career officers in a wide sector along the coast. one time when he was forced by strategic circumstances to abandon a strong-hold to the forces of colonel aureli-ano buendía, he left two letters for him. in one of them quite long, he invited him to join in a campaign to make war more humane. the other letter was for his wife, who lived in liberal territory, and he left it with a plea to see that it reached its destination. from then on, even in the bloodiest periods of the war, the two commanders would arrange truces to exchange prisoners. they were pauses with a certain festive atmosphere, which general moncada took advantage of to teach colonel aureli-ano buendía how to play chess. they became great friends. they even came to think about the possibility of coordinating the popular elements of both parties, doing away with the influence of the military men and professional politicians, and setting up a humanitarian regime that would take the best from each doctrine. when the war was over, while colonel aureli-ano, buendía was sneaking about through the narrow trails of permanent sub. version, general moncada was named magistrate of macondo. he wore civilian clothes, replaced the soldiers with unarmed policemen, enforced the amnesty laws, and helped a few families of liberals who had been killed in the war. he succeeded in having macondo raised to the status a municipality and he was therefore its first mayor, and he created an atmosphere confidence that made people think of the war as an absurd nightmare of the past. father nicanor, consumed by hepatic fever, was replaced by father coronel, whom they called "the pup," a veteran of the first federalist war. bruno crespi, who was married to amparo mos. cote, and whose shop of toys and musical instruments continued to prosper, built a theater which spanish companies included in their itineraries. it was a vast open-air hall with wooden benches, a velvet curtain with greek masks, and three box offices in the shape of lions' heads, through whose mouths the tickets were sold. it was also about that time that the school was rebuilt. it was put under the charge don melchor escalona, an old teacher brought from the swamp, who made his lazy students walk on their knees in the lime-coated courtyard and made the students who talked in class eat hot chili with the approval of their parents. aureli-ano segundo and josé arcadio segundo, the willful twins of santa sofía de la piedad, were the first to sit in the classroom, with their slates, their chalk, and their aluminum jugs their names on them. remedios, who inherited her mother's pure beauty, began to be known as remedios the beauty. in spite of time, of the superimposed periods of mourning, and her accumulated afflictions, úrsula resisted growing old. aided by santa sofía de la piedad, she gave a new drive to her pastry business and in a few years not only recovered the fortune that her son had spent in the war, but she once more stuffed with pure gold the gourds buried in the bedroom. "as long as god gives me life," she would say, "there will always be money in this madhouse." that was how things were when aureli-ano josé deserted the federal troops in nicaragua, signed on as a crewman on a german ship, and appeared in the kitchen of the house, sturdy as a horse, as dark and long-haired as an indian, and with a secret determination to marry amaranta.
when amaranta, saw him come in, even though he said nothing she knew immediately why he had come back. at the table they did not dare look each other in the face. but two weeks after his return, in the presence úrsula, he set his eyes on hers and said to her, "i always thought a lot about you." amaranta avoided him. she guarded against chance meetings. she tried not to become separated from remedios the beauty. she was ashamed of the blush that covered her cheeks on the day her nephew asked her how long she intended wearing the black bandage on her hand, for she interpreted it as an allusion to her virginity. when he arrived, she barred the door of her bedroom, but she heard his peaceful snoring in the next room for so many nights that she forgot about the precaution. early one morning, almost two months after his return, she heard him come into the bedroom. then, instead of fleeing, instead of shouting as she had thought she would, she let herself be saturated with a soft feeling of relaxation. she felt him slip in under the mosquito netting as he had done when he was a child, as he had always done, and she could not repress her cold sweat and the chattering of her teeth when she realized that he was completely naked. "go away," she whispered, suffocating with curiosity. "go away or i'll scream." but aureli-ano josé knew then what he had to do, because he was no longer a child but a barracks animal. starting with that night the dull, inconsequential battles began again and would go on until dawn. "i'm your aunt," amaranta murmured, spent. "it's almost as if i were your mother, not just because of my age but because the only thing i didn't do for you was nurse you." aureli-ano would escape at dawn and come back early in the morning on the next day, each time more excited by the proof that she had not barred the door. he had nit stopped desiring her for a single instant. he found her in the dark bedrooms of captured towns, especially in the most abject ones, and he would make her materialize in the smell of dry blood on the bandages of the wounded, in the instantaneous terror of the danger of death, at all times and in all places. he had fled from her in an attempt to wipe out her memory, not only through distance but by means of a muddled fury that his companions at arms took to be boldness, but the more her image wallowed in the dunghill of the war, the more the war resembled amaranta. that was how he suffered in exile, looking for a way of killing her with, his own death, until he heard some old man tell the tale of the man who had married his aunt, who was also his cousin, and whose son ended up being his own grandfather.
"can a person marry his own aunt?" he asked, startled.
"he not only can do that, a soldier answered him. "but we're fighting this war against the priests so that a person can marry his own mother."
"it's not just that," amaranta retorted. "any children will be born with the tail a pig."
aureli-ano josé was deaf to all arguments.
"i don't care if they're born as armadillos," he begged.
early one morning, vanquished by the unbearable pain of repressed virility, he went to catarino's. he found a woman with flaccid breasts, affectionate and cheap, who calmed his stomach for some time. he tried to apply the treatment of disdain to amaranta. he would see her on the porch working at the sewing machine, which she had learned to operate with admirable skill, and he would not even speak to her. amaranta felt freed of a reef, and she herself did not understand why she started thinking again at that time about colonel gerineldo márquez, why she remembered with such nostalgia the afternoons of chinese checkers, and why she even desired him as the man in her bedroom. aureli-ano, josé did not realize how much ground he had lost on, the night he could no longer bear the farce of indifference and went back to amaranta's room. she rejected him with an inflexible and unmistakable determination, and she barred the door of her bedroom forever.
a few months after the return of aureli-ano josé an exuberant woman perfumed jasmine appeared at the house with a boy of five. she stated that he was the son of colonel aureli-ano buendía and that she had brought him to úrsula to be baptized. no one doubted the origins of that nameless child: he looked exactly like the colonel at the time he was taken to see ice for the first time. the woman said that he had been born with his eyes open, looking at people with the judgment of an adult, and that she was frightened by his way of staring at things without blinking. "he's identical," úrsula said. "the only thing missing is for him to make chairs rock by simply looking at them." they christened him aureli-ano and with his mother's last name, since the law did not permit a person to bear his father's name until he had recognized him. general moncada was the godfather. although amaranta insisted that he be left so that she could take over his upbringing, his mother was against it. úrsula at that time did not know about the custom of sending virgins to the bedrooms of soldiers in the same way that hens are turned loose with fine roosters, but in the course of that year she found out: nine more sons of colonel aureli-ano buendía were brought to the house to be baptized. the oldest, a strange dark boy with green eyes, who was not at all like his father's family, was over ten years old. they brought children of all ages, all colors, but all males and all with a look of solitude that left no doubt as to the relationship. only two stood out in the group. one, large for his age, made smithereens out of the flowerpots and china because his hands seemed to have the property of breaking everything they touched. the other was a blond boy with the same light eyes as his mother, whose hair had been left to grow long and curly like that of a woman. he entered the house a great deal familiarity, as if he had been raised there, and he went directly to a chest in úrsula's bedroom and demanded, "i want the mechanical ballerina." úrsula was startled. she opened the chest, searched among the ancient and dusty articles left from the days of melquíades, and wrapped in a pair of stockings she found the mechanical ballerina that pietro crespi had brought to the house once and that everyone had forgotten about. in less than twelve years they baptized the name aureli-ano and the last name of the mother all the sons that the colonel had implanted up and down his theater of war: seven-teen. at first úrsula would fill their pockets with money and amaranta tried to have them stay. but they finally limited themselves to giving them presents and serving as godmothers. "we've done our duty by baptizing them," úrsula would say, jotting down in a ledger the name and address of the motthe place and date of birth the child. "aureli-ano needs well-kept accounts so that he can decide things when he comes back." during lunch, commenting with general moncada about that disconcerting proliferation, she expressed the desire for colonel aureli-ano buendía to come back someday and gather all of his sons together in the house.
what general moncada knew and what he did not wish to reveal at lunch was that colonel aureli-ano buendía was already on his way to head up the most prolonged, radical, and bloody rebellion all those he had started up till then.
the situation again became as tense as it had been during the months that preceded the first war. the cockfights, instituted by the mayor himself, were suspended. captain aquiles ricardo, the commander of the garrison, took over the exercise of municipal power. the liberals looked upon him as a provocateur. "something terrible is going to happen," úrsula would say to aureli-ano josé. "don't go out into the street after six o'clock." the entreaties were useless. aureli-ano josé, just like arcadio in other times, had ceased to belong to her. it was as if his return home, the possibility of existing without concerning himself with everyday necessities, had awakened in him the lewd and lazy leanings of his uncle josé arcadio. his passion for amaranta had been extinguished without leaving any scars. he would drift around, playing pool, easing his solitude with occasional women, sacking the hiding places where úrsula had forgotten her money. he ended up coming home only to change his clothes. "they're all alike," úrsula lamented. "at first they behave very well, they're obedient and prompt and they don't seem capable killing a fly, but as soon as their beards appear they go to ruin." unlike arcadio, who had never known his real origins, he found out that he was the son of pilar ternera, who had hung up a hammock so that he could take his siesta in her house. more than mother and son, they were accomplices in solitude. pilar ternera had lost the trail of all hope. her laugh had taken on the tones of an organ, her breasts had succumbed to the tedium of endless caressing, her stomach and her thighs had been the victims of her irrevocable fate as a shared woman, but her heart grew old without bitterness. fat, talkative, with the airs of a matron in disgrace, she renounced the sterile illusions of her cards and found peace and consolation in other people's loves. in the house where aureli-ano josé took his siesta, the girls from the neighborhood would receive their casual lovers. "lend me your room, pilar," they would simply say when they were already inside. "of course," pilar would answer. and if anyone was present she would explain-:
"i'm happy knowing that people are happy in bed."
she never charged for the service. she never refused the favor, just as she never refused the countless men who sought her out, even in the twilight of her maturity, without giving her money or love and only occasionally pleasure. five daughters, who inherited a burning seed, had been lost on the byways of life since adolescence. of the two sons she managed to raise, one died fighting in the forces of colonel aureli-ano buendía and the other was wounded and captured at the age of fourteen when he tried to steal a crate chickens in a town in the swamp. in a certain way, aureli-ano josé was the tall, dark man who had been promised her for half a century by the king of hearts, and like all men sent by the cards he reached her heart when he was already stamped the mark of death. she saw it in the cards.
"don't go out tonight," she told him. "stay sleep here because carmelita montiel is getting tired of asking me to put her in your room."
aureli-ano josé did not catch the deep feeling begging that was in the offer.
"tell her to wait for me at midnight" he said. he went to the theater, where a spanish company was putting on the dagger of the fox, which was really zorzilla's play with the title changed by order of captain aquiles ricardo, because the liberals called the conservatives goths. only when he handed in his ticket at the door did aureli-ano josé realize that captain aquiles ricardo and two soldiers armed with rifles were searching the audience.
"be careful, captain," aureli-ano josé warned him. "the man hasn't been born yet who can lay hands on me." the captain tried to search him forcibly aureli-ano josé, who was unarmed, began to run. the soldiers disobeyed the order to shoot. "he's a buendía," one of them explained. blind with rage, the captain then snatched away the rifle, stepped into the center of the street, and took aim."
"cowards!" he shouted. "i only wish it was colonel aureli-ano buendía."
carmelita montiel, a twenty-year-old virgin, had just bathed in orange-blossom water and was strewing rosemary leaves on pilar ternera's bed when the shot rang out. aureli-ano josé had been destined to find with her the happiness that amaranta had denied him, to have seven children, and to die in her arms of old age, but the bullet that entered his back and shattered his chest had been directed by a wrong interpretation of the cards. captain aquiles ricardo, who was really the one destined to die that night, did indeed die, four hours before aureli-ano josé. as won as the shot was heard he was brought down by two simultaneous bullets whose origin was never established and a shout of many voices shook the night.
"long live the liberal party! long live colonel aure-liano buendía!"
at twelve o'clock, when aureli-ano, josé had bled to death and carmelita montiel found that the cards showing her future were blank, more than four hundred men had filed past the theater and discharged their revolvers into the abandoned body of captain aquiles ricardo. a patrol had to use a wheelbarrow to carry the body, which was heavy with lead and fell apart like a water-soaked loaf of bread.
actually, colonel aureli-ano buendía had been in the country for more than a month. he was preceded by conflicting rumors, supposed to be in the most distant places at the same time, and even general moncada did not believe in his return until it was officially announced that he had seized two states on the coast. "congratulations, dear friend," he told úrsula, showing her the telegram. "you'll soon have him here." úrsula was worried then for the first time. "and what will you do?" she asked. general moncada had asked himself that same question many times.
at dawn on the first of october colonel aureli-ano buendía attacked macondo with a thousand well--armed men and the garrison received orders to resist to the end. at noon, while general moncada was lunching with úrsula, a rebel cannon shot that echoed in the whole town blew the front of the municipal treasury to dust. "they're as well armed as we are," general moncada sighed, "but besides that they're fighting because they want to." at two o'clock in the afternoon, while the earth trembled with the artillery fire from both sides, he took leave of úrsula with the certainty that he was fighting a losing battle.
"i pray to god that you won't have aureli-ano in the house tonight," he said. "if it does happen that way, give him an embrace for me, because i don't expect ever to see him again."
that night he was captured when he tried to escape from macondo, after writing a long letter to colonel aureli-ano buendía in which he reminded him of their common aim to humanize the war and he wished him a final victory over the corruption of the militarists and the ambitions of the politicians in both parties. on the following day colonel aureli-ano buendía had lunch with him in úrsula's house, where he was being held until a revolutionary court-martial decided his fate. it was a friendly gathering. but while the adversaries forgot the war to remember things of the past, úrsula had the gloomy feeling that her son was an intruder. she had felt it ever since she saw him come in protected by a noisy military retinue, which turned the bedrooms inside out until they were convinced there was no danger. colonel aureli-ano buendía not only accepted it but he gave strict orders that no one should come closer than ten feet, not even úrsula, while the members of his escort finished placing guards about the house. he was wearing an ordinary denim uniform with no insignia of any kind and high boots with spurs that were caked with mud and dried blood. on his waist he wore a holster with the flap open and his hand, which was always on the butt of the pistol, revealed the same watchful and resolute tension as his look. his head, with deep recessions in the hairline now, seemed to have been baked in a slow oven. his face, tanned by the salt of the caribbean, had acquired a metallic hardness. he was preserved against imminent old age by a vitality that had something to do the coldness of his insides. he was taller than when he had left, paler and bonier, and he showed the first symptoms of resistance to nostalgia. "good lord," úrsula said to herself. "now he looks like a man capable of anything." he was. the aztec shawl that he brought amaranta, the remembrances he spoke at lunch, the funny stories her told were simple leftovers from his humor of a different time. as soon as the order to bury the dead in a common grave was carried out, he assigned colonel roque carnicero the minion setting up courts--martial and he went ahead with the exhausting task of imposing radical reforms which would not leave a stone of the reestablished conservative regime in place. "we have to get ahead of the politicians in the party," he said to his aides. "when they open their eyes to reality they'll find accomplished facts." it was then that he decided to review the titles to land that went back a hundred years he discovered the legalized outrages of his brother, josé arcadio. he annulled the registrations with a stroke of the pen. as a last gesture of courtesy, he left his affairs for an hour and visited rebeca to bring her up to date on what he was determined to do.
in the shadows of her house, the solitary widow who at one time had been the confidante of his repressed loves and whose persistence had saved his life was a specter out of the past. encased in black down to her knuckles, with her heart turned to ash, she scarcely knew anything about the war. colonel aureli-ano buendía had the impression that the phosphorescence of her bones was showing through her skin and that she moved in an atmosphere of saint elmo's fire, in a stagnant air where one could still note a hidden smell of gunpowder. he began by advising her to moderate the rigor of her mourning, to ventilate the house, to forgive the world for the death of josé arcadio. but rebeca was already beyond any vanity. after searching for it uselessly in the taste of earth, in, the perfumed letters from pietro crespi, in the tempestuous bed of her husband, she had found peace in that house where memories materialized through the strength of implacable evocation and walked like human beings through the cloistered rooms, leaning back in her wicker rocking chair, looking at colonel aureli-ano buendía as if he were the one who looked like a ghost out of the past, rebeca was not even upset by the news that the lands usurped by josé arcadio would be returned to their rightful owners.
"whatever you decide will be done, aureli-ano," she sighed. "i always thought and now i have the proof that you're a renegade."
the revision of the deeds took place at the same time as the summary courts-martial presided over by colonel gerineldo márquez, which ended with the execution of all officers of the regular army who had been taken prisoner by the revolutionaries. the last court-martial was that of josé raquel moncada. úrsula intervened. '"his government was the best we've ever had in macondo," she told colonel aureli-ano buendía. "i don't have to tell you anything about his good heart, about his affection for us, because you know better than anyone." colonel aureli-ano buendía gave a disapproving look.
"i can't take over the job of administering justice," he replied. "if you have something to say, tell it to the court-martial."
úrsula not only did that she also brought all of the mothers of the revolutionary officers who lived in macondo to testify. one by one the old women who had been founders of the town, several of whom had taken part in the daring crossing of the mountains, praised the virtues of general moncada. úrsula was the last in line. her gloomy dignity, the weight of her name, the convincing vehemence of her declaration made the scale of justice hesitate for a moment. "you have taken this horrible game very seriously and you have done well- because you are doing your duty," she told the members of the court. "but don't forget that as long as god gives us life we will still be mothers and no matter how revolutionary you may be, we have the right to pull down your pants and give you a whipping at the first sign of disrespect." the court retired to deliberate as those words still echoed in the school that had been turned into a barracks. at midnight general josé raquel moncada was sentenced to death. colonel aureli-ano buendía, in spite of the violent recriminations of úrsula, refused to commute the sentence. a short while before dawn he visited the condemned man in the room used as a cell.
"remember, old friend," he told him. "i'm not shooting you. it's the revolution that's shooting you."
general moncada did not even get up from the cot when he saw him come in.
"go to hell, friend," he answered.
"you know better than i," he said, "that all courts--martial are farces and that you're really paying for the crimes of other people, because this time we're going to win the war at any price. wouldn't you have done the same in my place?"
general moncada, got up to clean his thick horn-rimmed glasses on his shirttail. "probably," he said. "but what worries me is not your shooting me, because after all, for people like us it's a natural death." he laid his glasses on the bed and took off his watch and chain. "what worries me," he went on, "is that out of so much hatred for the military, out of fighting them so much and thinking about them so much, you've ended up as bad as they are. and no ideal in life is worth that much baseness." he took off his wedding ring and the medal of the virgin of help and put them alongside his glasses- and watch.
"at this rate," he concluded, "you'll not only be the most despotic and bloody dictator in our history, but you'll shoot my dear friend úrsula in an attempt to pacify your conscience."
"but i didn't send for you to scold you," he said. "i wanted to ask you the favor of sending these things to my wife."
colonel aureli-ano buendía put them in his pockets.
"is she still in manaure?"
"she's still in manaure," general moncada confirmed, "in the same house behind the church where you sent the letter."
"they can bring him out now," he ordered.
阿玛兰塔坐在柳条摇椅里，把刺绣活儿放在膝上，望着奥雷连诺.霍塞；他给脸颊和下巴都涂满了肥皂沫，就在皮带上磨剃刀，有生以来第一次剖脸了。他为了把浅色的茸毛修成一撮胡于，竟将一个小疹疱弄出了血，而且割破了上唇，然而一切完毕之后，他还是原来的样儿；复杂的刮脸手续使阿玛兰塔觉得，正是从这时起，奥雷连诺·霍塞长大成人了。
“奥雷连诺（注：指奥雷连诺上校长）象你现在这个岁数的时候，跟你一模一样，”她说。“你已经是个男子汉啦。”
其实，他很早很早以前就成为男子汉了，那时阿玛兰塔还把他当做一个孩子，在浴室里照常当着他的面脱衣服。从皮拉。苔列娜把孩子交给她抚养以来，她是惯于这么做的。第一次，他感到兴趣的只是她那两个乳房之间的深凹之处，他甚至那么天真地问阿玛兰塔，她为什么是那种样儿，她回答说：“刨呀，刨呀，就刨出坑凹啦。”——接着用手表示如何刨法。过了许久，她在皮埃特罗·克列斯比死后恢复了常态，又跟奥雷连诺。霍塞一块儿洗澡，他已经不去注意那个深凹之处，可是她那酥软的乳房和褐色的乳头却使他奇怪地发颇。他继续观察她，逐渐发现了她那最最隐秘的奇迹，而且由于这种宜观，他觉得自己的皮肤起了一层鸡皮疙瘩，就象她的皮肤接触冷水时出现的那种疙瘩。奥雷连诺·霍塞还是个小孩儿的时候，就养成了天刚微明就从自己的吊铺钻进阿玛兰塔卧榻的习惯，因为趴她接触可以驱除他对黑暗的恐惧。然而，自从那一大他注意到了她的裸体之后，促使他从蚊帐下面钻进阿玛兰塔卧榻的，已经不是对黑暗的恐惧，而是渴望黎明时闻到她那温暖的气息了。有一天拂晓时——这件事正好发生在阿玛兰塔拒绝了格休列尔多·马克斯上校的时候——奥雷连诺。霍塞醒了过来，觉得自己喘不过气。他感到阿玛兰塔的手指，活象急切、贪婪的小虫子，悄悄地摸他的肚子。奥雷连诺·霍塞假装睡着了，翻身仰卧，让她的手指摸起来更方便一些。这一夜，他和阿玛兰塔建立了狼狈为奸的牢固关系，尽管两人都装作不知道两人已经知道的事，正象其中一个知道另一个已经明白一切那样。现在，奥雷连诺·霍塞不听到音乐钟响起十二点的华尔兹舞曲就不能人睡，而这个容颜已衰的女人呢，除非她养大的梦游者钻进她的蚊帐，并且成为她治疗孤独病的临时药剂，她就没有片刻的安宁。随后，他俩不仅赤身露体地一块儿睡觉，弄得疲惫不堪，而且白天也在房中各处互相追逐，或者关在卧宝里，经常处于无法止息的兴奋状态。有一天下午，乌苏娜差点儿发现了他们的秘密——她突然走进库房，他俩刚刚开始接吻。“你很爱自己的姑姑吧？”她天真地问了孙子一句。他作了肯定的回答，“你干得好呀！”乌苏娜说着，量出了做面包的面粉，就回厨房去了。这下子使得阿玛兰塔清醒了过来。她明白自己作得过头了，已经不光是跟小孩子玩玩接吻的游戏，还陷进了恋爱的泥潭，这种恋爱是危险的、没有好结果的，于是她马上坚决地结束了这种勾当。这时完成了军事训练的奥雷连诺·霍塞，不得不忍受这件事情的痛苦，开始住在兵营里。每逢星期六，他都和士兵们一块儿去卡塔林诺游艺场。他过早成熟，而且陷入了孤独，就向那些发出萎谢的花味儿的女人寻求安慰：在黑暗中，他把她们理想化，而且凭热烈的想象把她们当做阿玛兰塔。
过了不久，传到马孔多的战争消息就变得互相矛盾了。尽管政府本身公开承认起义者取得了接二连三的胜利，可是马孔多的起义军官们仍然拥有难免投降的机密情报。四月初，有个特使来找格林列尔多·马克斯上校。他证实，自由党领袖们的确跟内部地区起义部队的头头们进行了谈判，很快就要和政府签署下述条件的停战协定：自由党人取得三个部长职位，在议会里成为少数派；赦免放下武器的起义者。特使带来了奥雷连诺上校十分机密的指示：他不同意停战条件。他命令格林列尔多·马克斯上校挑选五个最可靠的人，准备跟他们一起离开国内。命令是极端秘密地执行的。在正式宣布停战之前一个星期，各种互相矛盾的谣言涌到马孔多的时候，奥雷连诺上校和十个忠于他的军官，其中包括罗克·卡尼瑟洛上校，在夜色的掩护下，秘密地来到了马孔多，造散了警备队，埋藏了武器，销毁了档案。黎明时分，他们同格林列尔多·马克斯上校和他的五个人一起离开了马孔多。这次行动是迅捷无声的，乌苏娜直到最后一分钟才知道情况，当时不知是谁轻轻地敲了敲她的卧室窗子，低声说：“如果你想见见奥雪连诺上校，就赶快出来。”乌苏娜从床上一跃而起，穿着睡衣奔到街上，可是已经看不见什么人，只听到黑暗里传来疾驰的马蹄声－－支马队在尘土飞扬中离开了马孔多。乌苏娜第二天才发现，奥雷连诺·霍塞跟他父亲一块儿走了。
政府和反对派发表了结束战争的联合公报之后十天，传来了奥雷连诺上校在西部边境发动第一次起义的消息。起义部队人数不多，装备很差，不到一个星期就溃败了。但在一，年之中，正当自由党人和保守党人尽量让全国相信他们的和解时，奥雷连诺上校又组织了七次武装起义。有一天夜呕，他队一条纵帆船上向列奥阿察开炮，列奥阿察警备队的回答是：把城内最著名的十四个自由党人从床上拖出，就地枪决。奥雷连诺上校占领了边境的海关哨所两个多星期，从那几向全国发出了开始全民战争的号召。另一次，他在丛林里游荡了三个月，柯算实现一个最荒唐的计划——在原始丛林垦走过将近一千五百公里，到首都郊区去展开军事行动。有一次，他出现在距离马孔多下到二十公里的地方，可是政府军把他逼进了山里——到了距离一个魔区很近的地方，许多年前他的父亲曾在那儿发现过西班牙大帆船的骨架。
就在这时，维希塔香死了。她是象她希望的那样自然死亡的，由于害怕失眠症使她过早死去，她曾离开了自己的家乡。这个印第安女人的遗愿，是要乌苏娜从她床下的小箱子里掏出她二十多年的积蓄，送给奥雷连诺上校去支援战争。可是，乌苏娜并没去碰这些钱，因为听说奥雷连诺上校似乎在省城附近登陆时牺牲了。大家认为，关于他已死亡的正式报导——最近两年中的第四次——是可靠的，因为几乎六个月来再也没有听到他的消息。尽管以前的大事还没过期，乌苏娜和阿玛兰塔又宣布了新的丧事，然而今人震惊的消息却突然传到了马孔多。奥雷连诺上校还话着，可是显然停止了跟本国政府的战斗，而同加勒比海其他国这节节胜利的联邦主义者联合了起来。他已改名换姓，离噶自己的国家越来越远。后来知道，他当时的理想是把中美洲所有联邦主义者的力量联合起来，推翻整个大陆——从阿拉斯加到巴塔戈尼亚（注：阿根廷地名）——的保守派政府。乌苏娜直接从儿子那里接到了第一个信息，是他离开马孔多几年之后捎来的——那是一封揉皱了的。字迹模糊的信，一直从古巴的圣地亚哥经过不同的手传递来的。
“我们永远失去奥雷连诺啦，”乌苏娜读了信，悦道。“如果他这样走下去，再过一年就到天边啦。”
这些活是乌苏娜向一个人说的，而且她首先拿信给他看——这个人就是保守党的霍塞·拉凯尔·蒙卡达将军，他在战争结束之后当上了马孔多镇长，“唉，这个奥雷连诺，可惜他不是保守党人，”蒙卡达将军说。他确实钦佩奥雷连诺上校。象保守党的许多丈职人员一样，霍塞·拉凯尔·蒙卡达为了捍卫党的利益，参加了战争，在战场上获得了将军头衔，尽管他不是职业军人。相反地，象他的许多党内同事一样，他是坚决反对军阀的。他认为军阀是不讲道义的二流于、阴谋家和投机分子；为了混水摸鱼，他们骚扰百姓。霍塞·拉凯尔·蒙卡达将军聪明、乐观，喜欢吃喝和观看斗鸡，有一段时间是奥雷连诺上校最危险的敌人。他在沿海广大地区初出茅庐的军人中间很有威望。有一次从战略考虑，他不得不把一个要塞让给奥雷连诺上校的部队，离开时给奥雷连诺上校冒下了两封信。在一封较长的信里，他建议共同组织一次用人道办法进行战争的运动。另一封信是给住在起义者占领区的将军夫人的，在所附的一张字条上，将军要求把信转给收信人。从那时起，即使在最血腥的战争时期，两位指挥官也签订了交换俘虏的休战协议。蒙卡达将军利用这些充满了节口气氛的战个间隙，还教奥雷连诺上校下象棋。他俩成了好朋友，甚至考虑能否让两党的普通成员一致行动，消除军阀和职业政客的影响，建立人道主义制度，采用两党纲领中一切最好的东西。战争结束之后，奥雷连诺上校暗中进行曲折、持久的破坏活动，而蒙卡达将军却当上马孔多镇长。蒙卡达将军又穿上了便服，用没有武器的警察代替了士兵，执行特赦法令，帮助一些战死的自由党人的家庭。他宣布马孔多为自治区的中心，从镇长升为区长以后，在镇上创造了平静生活的气氛，使得人们想起战争就象想起遥远的、毫无意义的噩梦。被肝病彻底摧垮的尼康诺神父，己由科隆涅尔神父代替，这是第一次联邦战争中的老兵，马孔多的人管他叫“唠叨鬼”。布鲁诺·克列斯比跟安芭萝·摩斯柯特结了婚，他的玩具店象以往一样生意兴隆，而且他在镇上建了一座剧场，西班牙剧团也把马孔多包括在巡回演出的路线之内。剧场是一座宽敞的无顶建筑物，场内摆着木板凳，挂着丝绒幕，幕上有希腊人的头像；门票是在三个狮头大的售票处——通过张得很大的嘴巴——出售的。那时，学校也重新建成，由沼泽地带另一个市镇来的老教师梅尔乔尔·艾斯卡隆纳先生管理；他让懒学生在铺了鹅卵石的院子里爬，而给在课堂上说话的学牛吃辛辣的印度胡椒 ——这一切都得到父母们的赞成。奥雷连诺第二和霍.阿卡蒂奥第二——圣索菲娅.德拉佩德的任性的孪生子，是最先带着石板、粉笔以及标上本人名字的铝杯进教室的；继承了母亲姿色的雷麦黛丝，已经开始成为闻名的“俏姑娘雷麦黛丝”。尽管年岁已高、忧虑重重，而且不断办理丧事，乌苏哪仍不服老。在圣索菲怔。德拉佩德协助下，她使糖果点心的生产有了新的规模——几年之中，她不仅恢复了儿子花在战争上的财产，而且装满了几葫芦纯金，把它们藏在卧室里。“只要上帝让我活下去，”她常说，“这个疯人院里总有充足的钱。”正当家庭处在这种情况下的时候，奥雷连诺·霍塞从尼加拉瓜的联邦军队里开了小差，在德国船上当了一名水手，回到了家中的厨房里——他象牲口一样粗壮，象印第安人一样黝黑、长发，而且怀着跟阿玛兰塔结婚的打算。
阿玛兰塔一看见他，就立即明白他是为什么回来的，尽管他还没说什么。在桌边吃饭时，他俩不敢对视。可是回家之后两个星期，在乌苏娜面前，奥雷连诺·霍塞竟盯着阿玛兰塔的眼睛，说：”我经常都想着你。”阿玛兰塔竭力回避他，不跟他见面，总跟俏姑娘雷麦黛丝呆在一起。有一次，奥雷连诺·霍塞问阿玛兰塔，她打算把手上的黑色绷带缠到什么时候，阿玛兰塔认为侄子的话是在暗示她的处女生活，竟红了脸，但也怪自己不该红脸。从奥雷连诺·霍塞口来以后，她就开始闩上自己的卧窒门，可是连夜都听到他在隔壁房间里平静地打鼾，后来她就把这种预防措施忘记了。在他回来之后约莫两个月，有一夭清晨，阿玛兰塔听到他走进她的卧室，这时，她既没逃跑，也没叫嚷，而是发呆，感到松快，她觉得他钻进了蚊帐，就象他还是小孩几时那样，就象他往常那样，于是她的身体渗出了冷汗；当她发现他赤身露体的时候，她的牙齿止不住地磕碰起来。“走开，”她惊得喘不上气，低声说。“走开，要不我就叫啦。”可是现在奥雷连诺·霍塞知道该怎么办，因为他已经不是一个孩子，而是兵营里的野兽了。从这一夜起，他俩之间毫无给果的搏斗重新开始，直到天亮。“我是你的姑姑，”阿玛兰塔气喘吁吁地低声说，“差不多是你的母亲，不仅因为我的年龄，也许只是没有给你喂过奶。”黎明，奥雷连诺走了，准备夜里再来，而且每次看见没有闩上的房门．他就越来越起劲。因他从来没有停止过对她的欲念。在占领的城镇里，在漆黑的卧室里，——特别是在最下贱的卧室里——他遇见过她：在伤者绷带上的凝血气味中，在面临致命危险的片刻恐怖中，在任何时候和任何地方，她的形象都出现在他的眼前。他从家中出走、本来是想不仅借助于遥远的距离，而且借助于令人发麻的残忍（他的战友们把这种残忍叫做“无畏”），永远忘掉她：但在战争的粪堆里，他越污损她的形象，战争就越使他想起她。他就这样在流亡中饱经痛苦，寻求死亡，希望在死亡中摆脱阿玛兰塔，可是有一次却听到了有个老头儿讲的旷古奇闻，说是有个人跟自己的姑姑结了婚，那个姑姑又算是他的表姐，而他的儿子原来是他自己的祖父（注：一种乱婚）。
“难道可以跟亲姑姑结婚吗？”惊异的奥雷连诺·霍塞问道。
“不仅可以跟姑姑结婚，”有个士兵胡说八道地回答他。“要不，咱们为啥反对教士？每个人甚至可以跟自己的母亲结婚嘛。”
这场谈话之后过了两个星期，奥雷连诺·霍塞就开了小差。他觉得，阿玛兰塔比以前更苍白了，也更抑郁和拘谨了，已经成熟到了头，但在卧室的黑暗里，她却比以前更加热情。虽然勇敢地抗拒，但又在激励他。“你是野兽，”被他追逼的阿玛兰塔说。“难道你不知道，只有得到罗马教皇的许可才能跟姑姑结婚？”奥雷连诺。霍塞答应前往罗马，爬过整个欧洲，去吻教皇的靴子，只要阿玛兰塔放下自己的吊桥。
“问题不光是许可，”阿玛兰塔反驳。“这样生下的孩子都有猪尾巴。”
对她所说的道理，奥雷连诺·霍塞根本听不进去。
“哪怕生下鳄龟也行，”他说。
有一天清晨，他因欲望没有得到满足而觉得难受，就到卡塔林诺游艺场去。他在那儿找了一个廉价、温柔、乳房下垂的女人，这女人暂时缓和了他的苦恼。现在，他想用假装的轻蔑未制服阿玛兰塔了，他走过长廊时，看见她在缝纫机上异常灵巧地干活，他连一句话也没跟她说。阿玛兰塔觉得如释重负，她自己也不明白怎么回事，突然下新想到了格休列尔多·马克斯上校，怀念起了晚间下棋的情景，她甚至希望在自己的卧宗里看见上校了。奥雷连诺.霍塞没有料到，由于自己错误的策略，他失去了许多机会。有一大夜里，他再也不能扮演无所谓的角色了，就来到了阿玛兰塔的房间。她怀着不可动摇的决心拒绝了他，永远门上了门。
奥雷连诺。霍寒回来之后过了几个月，一个身姿优美、发出茉莉花香的女人来到马孔多乌苏娜家里，还带来了一个约莫五岁购孩子，女人说这孩子是奥雷连诺上校的儿子，希望乌苏娜给他命名。这无名孩子的出身没有引起仟何人的怀疑：他正象当年第一次去参观冰块的上校。女人说，孩子是张开眼睛出世的，而且带者成年人的神情观察周围的人，他一眨不眨地凝视东西的习惯，叫她感到惊异。“跟他父亲一模一样，”乌苏娜说。“只差一点：他的父亲只要用眼睛一瞧，椅了就会自己移动。”孩子给命名为奥雷连诺，随母亲的姓，——根据法律，他不能随父亲的姓。除非父亲承认他。教父是蒙卡达将军。阿玛兰塔要术把孩子留给她抚养，可是孩子的母亲不同意。
就象拿母鸡跟良种公鸡交配一样，让姑娘去跟著名的军人睡觉，这种风习是乌苏娜从没听说过的，们在这一年中，她坚决相信确有这种风习，因为奥雷连诺上校的其他九个儿子也送来请她命名。其中母大的已经超过十岁，是个黑发、绿眼的古怪孩子，一点也不象父亲。送来的孩子有各种年龄的，各种肤色的，然而总是男孩，全部显得那么孤僻，那就无可怀疑他们和布恩蒂亚家的血统关系了。在一连中该子中，乌苏娜记住的只有两个。一个高大得跟年岁不相称的小孩儿，把她的一些花瓶和若下碟子变成了一堆碎片．因为他的手似乎具有碰到什么就粉碎什么的特性。另一个是金发孩子，氏着母亲那样的灰蓝色眼睛，姑娘一般的长鬃发。他毫不腼腆地走进房来，仿佛熟悉这里的一切，好象他是在这里长大的，径直走到乌苏哪卧室里的一个柜子跟前，说：“我要自动芭蕾舞女演员，”乌苏娜甚至吓了一跳。她打开柜子，在梅尔加德斯时期留下的、乱七八糟的、沾满尘土的东西中间翻寻了一阵，找到了一双旧长袜裹着的芭蕾裤女演员——这是皮埃特罗·克列斯比有一次拿来的，大家早就把它给忘了，不过十二年工夫，奥雷连诺在南征北战中跟一些女人个在各地的儿子——十七个儿子——都取了奥雷连诺这个名字，都随自己母亲的姓。最初，乌苏娜给他们的衣兜都塞满了钱，而阿玛兰塔总想把孩了留给自己，可是后来，乌苏娜和阿玛兰塔都只送点礼品，充当教母了。“咱们给他们命了名，就尽了责啦，”乌苏娜一面说，一面把每个母亲的姓名和住址、怯子出小的日期和地点记在一本专用册千里。“奥雷连诺应当有一本完整的账，因为他回来以后就得决定孩子们的命运。”在一次午餐中间，乌苏娜跟蒙卡达将军谈论这种引起担忧的繁殖力时，希望奥雷迁诺上校有朝一日能够回来，把他所有的儿子都聚到一座房了里。
“您不必操心，大娘，”蒙卡达将军神秘地回答。“他会比您预料的回来得早。”
蒙卡达将军知道一个秘密，不愿在午餐时透露，那就是奥雷连诺上校已在回国的路上，准备领导最长久的、最坚决的、最血腥的起义，一切都超过他迄今发动过的那些起义。
局势又变得紧张起来，就象第一次战争之前的几个月一样。镇长本人鼓励的斗鸡停止了。警备队长阿基列斯·里十多上尉实际上掌握了民政大权。自由党人说他是个挑拨者。“可怕的事就要发生啦，”乌苏娜向奥雷连诺·霍塞说。“晚上六点以后不要上街。”她的哀求没有用处。奥雷连诺·霍塞象往日的阿卡蒂奥一样，不再属于她了。看来，他回到家里，能够无忧无虑地生活，又有了他的怕怕霍·阿卡蒂奥那种好色和懒惰的倾向。奥雷连诺.霍塞对阿玛兰塔的热情已经媳灭，在他心中没有留下任何创痕。他仿佛是在随波逐流：玩台球，随便找些女人解闷，去摸乌苏娜密藏积蓄的地方；有时回家看看：也只是为了换换衣服。“他们都是一个样，”乌苏娜抱怨说。“起初，他们规矩、听话、正经，好象连苍蝇都不欺负，可只要一长胡子，马上就去作孽啦。”阿卡蒂奥始终都不知道自己的真实出身，奥雷连诺.霍塞却跟他不同，知道他的母亲是皮拉.苔列娜。她甚至在自个儿屋里悬了个吊铺给他睡午觉。他俩不仅是母亲和儿子，而且是孤独中的伙伴。在皮拉·苔列娜心中，最后一点希望的火星也熄灭了。她的笑声已经低得象风琴的音响；她的乳房已经由于别人胡乱的抚弄而耷拉下去；她的肚子和大腿也象妓女一样，遭到了百般的蹂躏；不过，她的心虽已衰老，却无痛苦。她身体发胖，喜欢叨咕，成了不讨人喜欢的女人，已经不再用纸牌顶卜毫无结果的希望，而在别人的爱情里寻求安宁和慰藉了。奥雷连诺·霍塞午休的房子，是邻居姑娘们和临时的情人幽会之所。 “借用一下你的房间吧，皮拉，”她们走进房间，不客气他说。“请吧，”皮拉回答。如果是成双结对而来的，她就补上一句：“看见别人在床上快活，我也快活嘛。”
替人效劳，她向来不收报酬。她从不拒绝别人的要求，就象她从不拒绝男人一样；即使她到了青春已过的时候，这些男人也追求她，尽管他们既不给她钱，也不给她爱情，只是偶尔给她一点快乐。皮拉·苔列娜的五个女儿象母亲一样热情，还是小姑娘的时候就走上了曲折的人生道路。从她养大的两个儿子中，一个在奥雷连诺上校的旗帜下战死了，另一个满十四岁时，因为企图在沼泽地带购另一个市镇上偷一篮鸡，受了伤，被捉走了。在一定程度上，奥雷连诺·霍塞就是半个世乡己中“红桃老k”向她预示的那个高大、黝黑的男人，但他象纸牌许诺给她的其他一切男人一样，钻到她的心里人迟了，因为死神已在他的身上打上了标记。皮拉·苔列娜在纸牌上是看出了这一点的。
“今晚别出去，”她向他说。“就睡在这儿，卡梅丽达，蒙蒂埃尔早就要我让她到你的房间里去了。”
奥雷连诺·霍塞没有理解母亲话里的深刻涵义。
“告诉她半夜等我吧，”他回答。
接着他就前往剧场，西班牙剧团在那儿演出戏剧《狐狸的短剑》，实际上这是索利拉的一出悲剧，可是阿基列斯·里卡多上尉下令把剧名改了，因为自由党人把保守党人叫做“哥特人”。奥雷连诺·霍塞在剧场门口拿出戏票时发现，阿基列斯·里卡多带若两名持枪的士兵正在搜查入场的人。“当心点吧，上尉，”奥孟连诺·霍塞提出警告，“能够向我举手的人还没出世咧。”上尉试图强迫搜查他，没带武器的奥雷连诺·霍塞拔腿就跑。士兵们没有服从开枪的命令。“他是布恩蒂亚家的人嘛，”其中一个士兵解释。于是，狂怒的上尉拿起一支步枪，冲到街道中间，立即瞄准。
“全是胆小鬼！”他怒吼起来。“哪怕这是奥雷连诺上校，我也不伯！”
卡梅丽达·蒙蒂埃尔是个二十岁的姑娘，刚在自己身上洒了花露水，把迷迭香花瓣撒在皮拉·苔列娜床上，就听到了枪声。从纸牌的占卜看来，奥雷连诺·霍塞注定要跟她一块儿得到幸福（阿玛兰塔曾经拒绝给他这种幸福），有七个孩子，他年老以后将会死在她的怀里，可是贯穿他的脊背到胸膛的上一颗子弹，显然不太理解纸牌的顶示。然而，注定要在这天夜里死亡的阿基列斯.里卡多上尉真的死了，而且比奥雷连诺。霍塞早死四个小时，枪声一响，上尉也倒下了，不知是谁向他射出了两颗子弹，而且许多人的叫喊声震动了夜间的空气。
“自由党万岁！奥雷连诺上校万岁！”
夜里十二点，当奥雷连诺·霍塞流血致死，卡梅丽达。蒙蒂埃尔发现纸牌向她预示的未来十分渺茫的时候，有四百多人在剧场前面经过，又用手枪朝阿基列斯·里卡多的尸体叭叭地射出一些子弹。把满身铅弹的沉重尸体搬上车子，需要好几个士兵，这个尸体象浸湿的面包一样瓦解了。
对政府军的卑劣行怪感到恼怒的霍塞.拉凯尔.蒙卡达将军，运用自己的政治影响，重新穿上制服，掌握了马孔多的军政权力。但他并不指望自己调和的态度能够防止不可避免的事情。九月里的消息是互相矛盾的。政府声称控制了全国，而自由党人却接到了内部地区武装起义的秘密情报。只有在宣布军事法庭缺席判决奥雷连诺上校死刑时，政府当局才承认故争状态。哪一个警备队首先逮住上校，就由哪一个警备队执行判决。“可见，他回来啦，”乌苏娜向蒙卡达将军高兴他说。然而，蒙卡达将军还没有这样的情报。
其实，奥雷连诺上校一个多月前已经回国。他的回国引起了各种各样的谣言；根据这些谣言，他同时出现在相距几百公里的好几个地方，所以，在政府宣布奥雷连诺上校占领了沿海两州之前，甚至蒙卡达将军自己也不相信他已回国。“祝贺您，大娘，”蒙卡达将军向乌苏娜说，并且拿电报给她看。“您很快就能在这里见到他了。”这时乌苏娜才第一次感到不安。“可您怎么办呢？”她问。蒙卡达将军已经多次向自己提出过这个问题。
“象他一样：履行自己的职责。”
十月一日拂晓，奥雷连诺上校率领一千名装备精良的士兵进攻马孔多。警备队奉命抵抗到底。晌午，蒙卡达将军跟乌苏娜一起吃饭时，起义者的排炮象雷一样在整个市镇上空隆隆地响，把地方金库的门面轰毁了。“他们的武器不次于我们，”蒙卡达将军说，“而且战斗意志更强。”下午两点，双方的炮击震撼大地的时候，将军就跟乌苏娜告别了，他完全相信自己正在进行一场注定失败的战斗。
“奥雷连诺上校也许今晚就在这座房子里了，”他说。“如果真是那样，请您替我拥抱他，因为我以为再也见不到他了。”
这天夜里，蒙卡达将军打算逃出马孔多的时候被捕；他事先写好了一封给奥雷连诺上校的长信，信中提到了他俩想使战争变得更加人道的共同心愿，并且希望他在对军阀的腐败和两党政客的野心的斗争中，取得最后胜利。第二天，奥雷连诺上校就跟蒙卡达将军在乌苏娜的宅千里共进午餐了，因为将军是拘押在这儿，等待革命军事法庭决定他的命运的。这是一次友好的聚会。然而，当两个敌对者忘掉战争、回忆住事的时候，乌苏娜摆脱不了一种阴暗的感觉：他的儿子是象强盗一样回国的
