Duroy drank a glass of beer with his new comrades, and then said to his friend: “What am I to do now?”
“I have nothing for you today. You can go if you want to.”
“And our—our—article, will it go in tonight?”
“Yes, but do not bother yourself about it; I will correct the proofs. Write the continuation for tomorrow, and come here at three o’clock, the same as today.”
Duroy having shaken hands with everyone, without even knowing their names, went down the magnificent staircase with a light heart and high spirits.