World Literature Classics Library: The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 32 The third attack (1)
The treasure, which the Elder had contemplated for so long, could now be used to secure the future happiness of Dantès, whom he loved as his own son, made it twice as valuable in Faria's eyes.Every day he talked endlessly about the number of those treasures, explaining to Dantès that in this era, if a person has a huge wealth of 1300-1400 million, how can he benefit his friends.However, Dantès' face darkened.Because the oath of revenge he had already made resurfaced in his mind, and what he thought about was in this era, how a person with a huge fortune of 1300 million or 1400 million can attack his enemies.

The elder didn't know where the island of Monte Cristo was, but Dantès knew that he used to pass by the island, which was 25 nautical miles from Pianozza, between Corsica and Elba, and he also Came here to park once.It has been an uninhabited desert island since ancient times, but it is actually a huge cone-shaped rock, as if it was lifted from the bottom of the abyss to the surface of the sea by a volcanic eruption during a certain catastrophe.Dantès drew a map of the island and showed it to Faria, and Faria gave Dantès advice on how to find the treasure.But Dantès was far less enthusiastic than the old man, much less confident than him.Of course, Dantès now fully believes that Faria is not crazy, and the elder has made a discovery that others deride as crazy, and his insight makes Dantès even more admired.However, as far as the treasure was indeed there before, Dantès felt that it might not be there now. Although he didn't think it was a mirage, he always felt that the treasure was no longer there.

However, fate seemed to deliberately deprive the two prisoners of their last ray of hope, as if to make them understand that both were sentenced to life imprisonment, and a new bad luck had befallen them.The corridor by the sea has been in danger of collapsing for a long time, and now it has been renovated once, the wall foundations have been completely repaired, and many large stones have filled up the hole that Dantès has half blocked.Readers still remember that the elder asked Dantès to temporarily block it just in case, otherwise their bad luck would be worse, and the prison would discover their attempt to escape, and the two of them would have to be separated.After the renovation of the corridor, there was another door in front of the two of them, stronger and more ruthless than before.

"You see," said the young man to Faria, with a touch of sadness in his tone, "you say that I have a heart for you, but God will not even give me such a good name. I promise I've been with you forever, and now I can't even break my promise. Neither you nor I can get that treasure, because neither of us can get out. But you know, my friend, my real treasure Not under the gloomy rocks of Monte Cristo, but in the fact that I can see you, in that we can live together five or six hours a day after the guards come over. My treasure is the light of wisdom that you have poured into my brain, it is that you have Several languages ​​have been cultivated in my memory, and all kinds of philosophies have taken root in my heart. You understand all kinds of scientific knowledge extremely deeply, and you can reduce it to very clear principles, so you help me lightly Grasp mastery, this is my treasure, my dear friend, with all this you have made me rich and happy. You should trust me, and you should be comforted. To me, all this is more than tons The gold in the box and the diamond in the whole box are more precious. Of course, these gold and silver jewels are not illusory, not the kind of clouds floating on the sea that you see in the morning, it seems to be land, but when you get closer, the clouds gradually fade Bo, finally disappeared. The longer you are by my side, the better. I can hear your beautiful voice, my body and mind are enriched, my heart is tempered, and my body is exercised. Once I am free Now, you can make big plans and shock people. I have been tempered from body to body, so despair, although it made me lose my willpower when I first met you, has completely disappeared from me now. This is my wealth. A very real treasure. You gave me all this, and all the kings of the world, not even Julius Caesar, can take it from me."

Therefore, although the following days were not happy times for these two unfortunate people, at least they passed quickly day after day.For so many years Faria had kept silent about the treasure, but now she spoke of it at every opportunity.Sure enough, as he expected, his right arm and leg were paralyzed and unable to move. He also felt that there was almost no hope of recovery, but he was always looking forward to the release of the young prisoner or the successful escape from prison.He was worried that one day the will might not be found or even lost, so he asked Dantès to memorize it by heart, and Dantès was able to memorize it from beginning to end.In this way, Faria destroyed the second half of the paper, and he was relieved. Even if someone found and took the first half, he would not be able to guess the real content.There were times when Faria spent hours advising Dantès, who would surely benefit from it when he was freed.Once he was free, he should think of one thing from that day, that hour, that moment, and that was to find a way to get to Monte Cristo, and to stay alone under some pretext that would not arouse any suspicion.Once there, as soon as he was alone, he had to try to find the two magical caves and dig in the places that had been identified.The so-called cleared place, as I have already said, is the innermost corner of the second hole.

During these days, although the time can't be said to pass quickly, it is at least bearable.We have already said that Faria's hands and legs did not recover, but his sanity had recovered so clearly that, in addition to the moral teachings we have detailed, he taught the young fellow how to be a patient man. And the noble prisoner, how to find something to do out of nothing.So they always have endless things to do. In Faria, they don’t want to see themselves getting older, and in Dantès, they don’t want to recall the past that has almost disappeared. Now it has been buried deep in his memory. The past is just as erratic as a distant light in the dark night.Time flies, as if life has never been disrupted by bad luck, but under the guardianship of God, it flows mechanically but calmly.

But this tranquility is only outward; in the heart of the young man, perhaps also in the heart of the old man, so many passions are suppressed, so many sighs are silenced, only when Faria is alone, only when Edmond returns to his cell. Only when the passion is unrestrained and the sigh can be expressed.

One night Edmond woke up suddenly, feeling as if someone was calling him.He opened his eyes and tried his best to look around in the darkness.He heard his name being called, or rather, a mournful voice calling his name.When he got up from the bed, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and he listened again, without any further hesitation, the groan came from his fellow prisoner's dark cell.

"My God," murmured Dantès, "could it be..."

He moved the bed, removed the stones, jumped into the tunnel, and walked to the opposite end, where the stone slab at the entrance of the cave had been lifted.By the flickering light of the crude lamp of which we have already spoken, Edmund saw that the old man's face had turned ashen, and that he could stand only by holding tightly to the bed frame with his hands, but his whole face was convulsed into disfigurement.Edmund was overwhelmed when he first saw these symptoms, but now he knew what was going on.

"Ah, my friend!" said Faria helplessly, "you see it already, don't you? I needn't explain it to you anymore?"

Edmund cried out in pain. He had completely lost his senses. He rushed to the prison door and shouted again: "Save me! Save me!"

Fortunately, Faria still had the strength. She stretched out her hand to hold Edmund, and said, "Shut up! Otherwise you will be finished. Now I can only take care of you, my friend, and find a way to make you passable in prison." , or escape. What I have done here, it would take you years to do it all by yourself, but once the guards know that we are secretly together, it will be for naught. And, don't worry, my friend, This dark cell won't be empty for a long time after I'm gone. There will be other unfortunate people coming after me. You are his rescue angel. He may be like you, young, strong and patient, and can help you escape together , but I can only be in your way. You don't have to drag a half-dead person around so that you can't move. Obviously God has finally taken care of you. God has given you more than He has taken away. It's time."

Edmund could only clasp his hands and shout: "Oh, my friend, my friend, don't say that!" Although the sudden blow made him flustered for a moment, although the old man's words made his heart tremble. His courage plummeted suddenly, but at last he regained his strength and courage, so he said: "Oh, since I have saved you once, I can save you a second time!" He raised the foot of the bed, took out the vial, and contained There is still one third of the red liquid medicine left. "You see," he went on, "there's still some life-saving medicine left. Come on, tell me what to do this time. Is there anything else I should pay attention to? Come on, my friend, you're talking." ah."

"There is no hope," Faria replied while shaking his head, "but it doesn't matter. Since God created man and deeply planted a love for life in man's heart, God certainly hopes that man can cherish life. For life, though sometimes very painful, is always very precious."

"Oh, yes, yes," cried Dantès, "I will save you, don't worry."

"Okay, let's try it! I feel cold all over, and the blood is rushing to my head. Look, I'm shaking so badly, even my teeth are chattering, and my skeleton seems to be falling apart. Shivering, the sickness will attack in five minutes, and I will be a dead body in a quarter of an hour."

"Oh!" cried Dantès, who was heartbroken with agony.

(End of this chapter)