she were joking; "although you don't eat at all badly now, you don't get
fatter. Your food doesn't seem to do you any good."

At this Quenu laughed aloud, and tapping his brother's stomach,
protested that the whole contents of the pork shop might pass through it
without depositing a layer of fat as thick as a two-sou piece. However,
Lisa's insistence on this particular subject was instinct with that same
suspicious dislike for fleshless men which Madame Mehudin manifested
more outspokenly; and behind it all there was likewise a veiled allusion
to the disorderly life which she imagined Florent was leading. She
never, however, spoke a word to him about La Normande. Quenu had
attempted a joke on the subject one evening, but Lisa had received it so
icily that the good man had not ventured to refer to the matter again.
They would remain seated at table for a few moments after dessert, and
Florent, who had noticed his sister-in-law's vexation if ever he went
off too soon, tried to find something to talk about. On these occasions
Lisa would be near him, and certainly he did not suffer in her presence
from that fishy smell which assailed him when he was in the company of
La Normande. The mistress of the pork shop, on the contrary, exhaled an
odour of fat and rich meats. Moreover, not a thrill of life stirred her
tight-fitting bodice; she was all massiveness and all sedateness.
Gavard once said to Florent in confidence that Madame Quenu was no doubt
handsome, but that for his part he did not admire such armour-plated
women.

Lisa avoided talking to Quenu of Florent. She habitually prided herself
on her patience, and considered, too, that it would not be proper to
cause any unpleasantness between the brothers, unless some peremptory
reason for her interference should arise. As she said, she could put up
with a good deal, but, of course, she must not be tried too far. She had