Wafd. And then we see this 'devil' become a member of the negotiating team, posing as a nationalist liberal.'
Fuad replied, 'Circumstances required a united front, one that would have been incomplete had it not included this 'devil' and his supporters. It's the end result that counts.'
Fuad lingered there for some time, sipping coffee, while Kamal examined his friend, noticing the elegant white silk suit, which had a red rose decorating its lapel, and the forceful personality that he had acquired to match his position. Deep inside, Kamal felt that, in spite of everything, he would be happy to have this young man ask for Na'ima's hand, but Fuad did not touch on this subject. He seeined ready to depart and soon told al-Sayyid Ahmad, 'It must be time for you to leave for the store. I'll stay and chat with Kamal, but I'll visit you before going to Alexandria. I've decided to spend the rest of August and part of September at the beach'. Then he rose, said goodbye to his host with a handshake, and left the room, preceded by Kamal.
They climbed the stairs to the top floor and settled themselves in the study. Fuad smiled as he looked around at the books on the shelves. He asked, 'May I borrow a book from you?'
Hiding his lack of enthusiasm, Kamal answered, 'I'd be delighted. What do you normally read during your free time?'
'I have the poetry collections of Shawqi, Hafiz Ibrahim, and Mutran as well as some books by al-Jahiz and al- JVla'arri. I'm especially fond of al-Mawardi's Culture for This World and the Next, not to mention works of contemporary authors. This, along with a few books by Dickens and Conan Doyle … but my commitment to the law consumes most of my time.'
Fuad rose to walk around and inspect the books, reading their titles. Completing his circle, he snorted, 'A purely philosophical library! There's nothing to interest me here. I read al-Fikr magazine and have followed your essays in it over the years. But I don't claim to have read all of them or to remember anything from them. A philosophical discussion isheavy reading, and a public prosecutor is burdened with work. Why don't you write on popular topics?'
Kamal had heard his works belittled so often that he had almost grown accustomed to it and felt little distress about it. For him, doubt devoured everything, including any sorrow over such criticism. What was fame? What was popularity? Kamal was actually pleased to hear that Fuad found the articles useless for diversion in his spare time.
Kamal asked, 'What do you mean by 'popular topics'?'
'Literature, for example.'
'I've read many charming works since we were together, but I'm not a novelist or a poet.'
Fuad laughed and said, 'Then stay in philosophy, all by yourself. Aren't you a philosopher?'
'Aren't you a philosopher?' This expression had been etched into his mind ever since A'ida's lips had tossed it at him on Palaces Street. He shuddered from the terrifying impact it still made on his heart but concealed his emotional turmoil by laughing loudly. He remembered the days when Fuad had been devoted to him, following him around like a shadow. Now Kamal was looking at an important man, who deserved his affection and loyalty.
'What have you done with your life?' he asked himself.
Fuad was examining his friend's mustache. Suddenly he laughed and said, 'If only…' When Kamal's eyes inquired what this meant, Fuad continued: 'We're both almost thirty, and neither of us has married. Our generation is rife with bachelors. It's a crisis generation. Are you still resolutely opposed to marriage?'
'I haven't budged.'
'I don't know why, but I believe that you will never marry.'
'You've always been very perceptive.'
Smiling warmly as though to apologize in advance for what he was going to say, Fuad commented, 'You're an egotistical man. You insist on maintaining total control over your life. Brother, the Prophet married, and that did not prevent him from having a sublime spiritual life'. Then, laughing, he emended his statement: 'Excuse me for using the Prophet as an example. I almost forgot that you … But not so fast. You're no longer the same old atheist. Now you even doubt atheism. This represents a gain for belief.'
Kamal replied calmly, 'Let's skip the philosophizing. You don't enjoy it. Tell me why you haven't married yet, since this is what you think of the single life.'
He immediately sensed that he should not have brought up this topic, for fear his friend would consider it a hint to ask for Na'ima's hand. But Fuad gave no sign of having understood his words in this manner. Instead, he laughed aloud although without abandoning his dignified demeanor and answered, 'You know, I've only recently started to enjoy the seamy side of life.
Unlike you, I wasn't corrupted early in life. I haven't had enough fun yet.'
'Will you marry when you have?'
As if to brush aside the temptation to prevaricate, Fuad waved his hand backwards through the air and confessed, 'Since I've waited this long, I need to be patient a little longer, until I become a judge, for example. Then I'll be able to marry the daughter of a cabinet minister if I want.'
'You son of Jamil al-Hamzawi!' Kamal exclaimed to himself. 'The bridegroom of a cabinet official's daughter… her mother-in-law would be from the working-class district of al-Mubayyada. Even though he justified the presence of evil in the world, I defy Leibniz to justify this.'
Kamal said, 'You consider marriage a…'
Before he could complete this statement, Fuad laughingly interrupted: 'At least that's better than not considering it at all.'
'But happiness…'
'Don't philosophize! Happiness is a subjective art. You may find bliss with the daughter of a cabinet minister and nothing but misery with a girl from your own background. Marriage is a treaty like the one al-Nahhas signed yesterday. It involves haggling, realistic appraisals, shrewdness, perspicacity, gains and losses. In our country this is the only door to advancement. Last week a man not yet forty was appointed a senior judge for the appeals court, while I could devote a lifetime of diligent and tireless service to the judicial system without ever attaining such an exalted position.'
What was the primary-school teacher to say? He would spend his entire life at the sixth level of the civil service, even if philosophy did fill his head to overflowing.
'Your position should save you from having to resort to such stratagems.'
'If it weren't for strategic alliances of this kind, no prime minister would ever be able to assemble a cabinet.'
Kamal laughed lifelessly and observed, 'You're in need of some philosophy. You would benefit from a spoonful of Spinoza.'
'Sip as much of it as you want, but spare us. Tell me where a man can have a good time and find something to drink. In Qena I had to take my pleasures cautiously, on the sly. A position like mine forces a man to be discreet and private. The constant struggle between us and the police means that we must be extra careful. A public prosecutor has a tedious and sensitive job.'
'We're returning to talk that threatens to make me explode with bitterness,' Kamal noted to himself. 'Compared to yours, my life seems disciplined and refined, but it's also the greatest possible test in life for my skeptical philosophy.'
'My circumstances,' Fuad continued, 'bring me together with many important people, and they invite me to their mansions. I feel obliged to refuse their invitations in order to avoid any possible conflict of interest in the performance of my duties. But their mentality is such that they don't understand this. All the leading citizens of the region accuse me of being a snob, although I am entirely innocent of the charge.'
Although saying 'Yes' agreeably to his friend, Kamal thought, 'You're a conceited snob who is solicitous about his position.'
'For similar reasons I lost favor with the police force. Dissatisfied with their crooked procedures, I attempted to entrap them. I had the law on my side, while they had the brutality of the Middle Ages on theirs. Everyone hates me, but I'm right.'
'You're right,' Kamal reflected. 'That's what I've always known about you. You're shrewd and honest. But you don't and can't love anyone. You don't cling to what's right simply because it is right but out of conceit, pride, and a feeling of inferiority. This is what men are like. I run into people like you even in lowly callings. A man who is both pleasant and forceful is a myth. But what value does love have? Or idealism? Or anything?'
They talked for a long time. When preparing to leave, Fuad leaned toward Kamal and whispered, 'I'm new in
