A playmate of his childhood, and his fellow-pupil at the Cadet Corps; Serpukhovskoy, who belonged to the same social circle, and who had finished the same year as himself and had been his rival in the classroom, at gymnastics, in mischief, and in ambitious dreams, had just returned from Central Asia, where he had gained two steps in official rank and had won a distinction rarely awarded to so young a General.
Un amico d’infanzia, della stessa cerchia, dello stesso ambiente, e suo compagno al corpo dei paggi, Serpuchovskoj, licenziatosi con lui e suo rivale in classe e in ginnastica, in birbonate e in sogni ambiziosi, era tornato in quei giorni dall’Asia centrale, dopo aver ricevuto due promozioni e una ricompensa che era data di rado a generali così giovani.