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Ответ от Sagitta[гуру]
Nikolay Evgraphovich Almazov went (straight)into his study without taking his coat off. When his wife saw his gloomy face, she realized that something terrible MUST HAVE HAPPENED (had happened surely). Without saying a word, she followed her husband (in) to talk to him in private.
Almazov, a young officer of modest means, WHO attended lectures at the General Staff Academy came home/returned (from there) just a couple of minutes BEFORE. He had managed to PASS all the examinations except the LAST one. It was terrible/a disaster! Only Almazov and his wife knew HOW DIFFICULT IT WAS FOR HIM to enter the Academy. Almazov had failed the entrance examinations twice. He would have given up the idea of making the third attempt long ago but for his wife: Vera always cheered him up and never refused to help him. Last year he succeeded in joining the Academy at last, and on that joyless day/now...
Almazov SAT silently on the sofa for a few minutes, staring at his own shadow. Vera started a conversation herself/ventured first.
- How`re you getting on with your work? Not too well?
- You`re right as ever/always. A failure! And everything`s because of THE spot.
В тексте, где часть повествования относится к давно прошедшему (Past Perfect), не обязательно все глагольные формы выдерживать в этом времени, это слишком громоздко. Достаточно задать time frame, употребив его в первый раз, а потом пользоваться Past Indefinite, особенно, если есть последовательность действий в этом прошлом.