What did the man expect to find under the stairs?
那人想在楼梯下面找到什么？
After her husband had gone to work,
她丈夫去上班后,
Mrs.Richards sent her children to school and went upstairs to her bedroom.
理查兹夫人送她的孩子上学，上楼到她的卧室。
She was too excited to do any housework that morning,
那天早上她太兴奋了，做不了任何家务,
for in the evening she would be going to a fancy-dress party with her husband.
因为到了晚上，她要和丈夫去参加一个化装舞会。
She intended to dress up as a ghost
她打算打扮成鬼
and as she had made her costume the night before,she was impatient to try it on.
由于她在前一天晚上做了她的服装，她不耐烦地试穿。
Though the costume consisted only of a sheet,it was very effective.
虽然这套服装只有一张纸,但效果很好.
After putting it on, Mrs.Richards went downstairs.
穿上后，理查兹夫人下楼去了。
She wanted to find out whether it would be comfortable to wear.
她想知道穿起来是否舒服。
Just as Mrs.Richards was entering the dining-room,
就在理查兹太太走进餐厅的时候,
there was a knock on the front door.
前门有人敲门.
She knew that it must be the baker.
她知道那一定是面包师。
She had told him to come straight in if ever she failed to open the door
她告诉他，如果她不开门，就直接进来
and to leave the bread on the kitchen table.
把面包放在厨房的桌子上。
Not wanting to frighten the poor man,
不想吓唬这个可怜的人,
Mrs.Richards quickly hid in the small storeroom under the stairs.
理查兹太太赶紧躲进楼梯下的小储藏室。
She heard the front door open and heavy footsteps in the hall.
她听到前门开着，大厅里有沉重的脚步声。
Suddenly the door of the storeroom was opened and a man entered.
突然，库房的门被打开了，一个男人进来了。
Mrs.Richards realized that it must be the man from the Electricity Board
理查兹夫人意识到，这一定是从电板的人
who had come to read the metre.
他是来读米的。
She tried to explain the situation,saying 'It's only me',but it was too late.
她试图解释情况，说'这只是我'，但为时已晚。
The man let out a cry
那人叫了一声
and jumped back several paces.
然后跳回了几步。
When Mrs.Richards walked towards him, he fled,slamming the door behind him.
当理查兹夫人向他走来时，他逃跑了，砰地关上了身后的门。
