ten o'clock in the evening
He got back into the carriage , then walked again . The new idea the doctor had imparted to him seemed to have overwhelmed him , to have poisoned him ; he was distracted , shattered in body and soul , and when he got back to the town he said good-bye to the doctor , declining to stay to dinner though he had promised the doctor the evening before to dine with him . BETROTHED IT was ten o'clock in the evening and the full moon was shining over the garden . In the Shumins ' house an evening service celebrated at the request of the grandmother , Marfa Mihalovna , was just over , and now Nadya -- she had gone into the garden for a minute -- could see the table being laid for supper in the dining-room , and her grandmother bustling about in her gorgeous silk dress ; Father Andrey , a chief priest of the cathedral , was talking to Nadya 's mother , Nina Ivanovna , and now in the evening light through the window her mother for some reason looked very young ; Andrey Andreitch , Father Andrey 's son , was standing by listening attentively . It was still and cool in the garden , and dark peaceful shadows lay on the ground . There was a sound of frogs croaking , far , far away beyond the town .