World Literature Classics Library: The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 41 Stranger

Dantès waited helplessly for a long time before seeing the light of day. As soon as the dawn broke, he got up and hurriedly climbed up to the highest cliff of the island to look around. A shadow.

Edmund came down from the cliff to the entrance of the cave, lifted the stones, entered the cave, filled his pockets with precious stones, put the boards together as best he could, added iron hoops, buried some earth on them, and After stepping on it, a layer of sand was sprinkled at the end, and the turned place returned to its original appearance exactly like the ground next to it.Then he walked out of the cave, covered the entrance of the cave with stone slabs, and laid large and small stones on it, filled the gaps with soil, transplanted some myrtle trees and thorns, and watered them, and it looked like the original one. Nothing is different there.Then he erased all the footprints walking around on this piece of land, so he began to wait anxiously for his companions to come and pick him up.He cannot always be here looking at these gold and diamonds, nor can he stay on this island of Monte Cristo, guarding these meaningless treasures like a dragon.Now, he has to go back to his life, get along with others, and ask for status and power from the society. In this world, as long as a person has money, he can also have power and power.

On the sixth day, the smuggler came back to fetch him.Dantès saw the "Genemelia" sailing into the small harbor on the island from a distance, and he pretended to be the injured Philoctet, a figure in ancient Greek mythology, a famous archer in the Trojan War, who was once killed by the Greeks because of his injuries. abandoned.He walked to the small harbor with difficulty, and at this time the boat just docked.He told them that he was still in pain, but better than before, and listened to their stories of their adventures.This trip was not in vain, it is true.But the ship had just finished unloading when they heard the wind that a smuggler's brig from Toulon had left the port and was heading their way.So they ran away quickly, but it was a pity that Dantès was not in command of the ship, otherwise the speed of the ship could be much faster.Sure enough, it didn't take long before they saw the anti-smuggling boat catch up. Fortunately, it was night, and they bypassed the Corsica Strait to throw off the anti-smuggling boat.Generally speaking, the journey went smoothly. Everyone, especially Jacopo felt sorry for Dantès. If he followed along, he could get a bonus of 50 piastres.Edmund never showed his face, nor did he smile when his companions told him how much he would gain if he did not stay on the island. The "Genemely" had come to Monte Cristo purely to fetch him, and he embarked that very evening, and went with the captain to Leghorn.

When he arrived in Livorno, he went to a jewelry store run by a Jew and sold the four smallest diamonds for 5000 francs each.The Jewish boss should have asked a sailor how he got these things, but he didn't want to bother, because he made 1000 francs per diamond.The next day, Dantès bought a brand new sailboat for Jacopo and gave him 100 piastres to recruit crew members. Dantès only asked for one thing: Jacopo sailed to Go to Marseilles and inquire about an old man named Louis Dantès who lives in the Lane Maihang and a young woman named Mercedes who lives in the village of Catalunya.Jacopo thought he was dreaming, and couldn't believe it. Dantès told him that his family refused to give him money, so he became a sailor out of anger, but when he arrived in Leghorn, he got his uncle's inheritance. He is the only heir to his uncle's estate.Dantès was well-bred, and his words sounded completely credible, so Jacopo had no doubt that the man who was his partner yesterday would not tell the truth.In addition, Edmond's contract on the "Genemely" had expired, so he bid farewell to the captain. The captain still wanted to keep him at first, but later, like Jacopo, he also heard about the inheritance The story of the story also dispelled the idea of ​​trying to persuade the former sailor to continue working.The next day Jacopo sailed to Marseilles, agreeing to meet Edmond at Monte Cristo on the way.On the same day, Edmond bid farewell to all the sailors of the "Genemely", and did not say where he was going, but he gave everyone a generous gift, and promised the captain that he would tell him any news in the future.

Dantès went to Genoa.When he arrived in Genoa, a speedboat ordered by the British was being tested.The Englishman heard that Genoa built the best boats in the Mediterranean Sea, and offered 4 francs to order a speedboat in Genoa.Dantès said that as long as the boat was handed over to him that day, he would pay 6 yuan.The British took advantage of the time before the delivery of the ship to go to Switzerland, and it would take three or four weeks before he came back. The owner of the shipyard decided that he could build another one if he had this time, so he agreed.Dantès took the owner of the shipyard to a shop opened by a Jew, and when he entered the back room of the shop, the Jew counted 6 francs to the owner of the shipyard.The owner of the shipyard said that he could help and find a crew for Dantès, but Dantès politely declined, saying that he has always sailed alone, and now he has only one request. Please install a secret cabinet next to the bed in the cabin, and there must be three in the cabinet. For the secret compartment, he gave the size of the secret compartment, and the secret cabinet and the secret compartment were all ready the next day.

Two hours later, Dantès sailed out of the port of Genoa in a speedboat, attracting a group of onlookers.I want to see this Spanish lord who likes to sail alone.Dantès handled the boat very well. As long as he held the helm and swung it back and forth, the boat could move according to various requirements. , Dantès himself is convinced that the Genoese are indeed the world's top shipbuilders.The onlookers kept watching the boat sail away, and when it was out of sight, they began to discuss where it was going. Some said it was going to Corsica, some said it was going to Elba Island, and some said it was going to Spain.There is also a talk about going to Africa, but no one has thought that there is a small island called Monte Cristo.

However, the place where Dantès is going is Monte Cristo.He arrived in the evening of the next day. The speedboat was indeed a remarkable sailing ship, and the distance from Genoa to Monte Cristo was covered in thirty-five hours.Dantès was already very familiar with the coastal conditions of the island, so he did not go to the small harbor where the boats usually moored, but sailed to that hidden small inlet before anchoring.The island was still deserted and deserted. After Dantès left, it didn't look like anyone had been there.He went ashore to walk around his treasure, and all was as he had left it.The next day, all his huge property was moved onto the speedboat and packed into three compartments of the secret cabinet.Dantès waited another week.He happened to use this week to drive the speedboat around the island to see how the ship was doing, just like a man who is proficient in riding is studying his mount. Be clear, and prepare to further improve performance and fix deficiencies in the future.

On the eighth day, Dantès saw a sailboat sailing towards the island with full sail, and he recognized Jacopo's sailboat, so he sent a signal, and Jacopo returned the signal.Two hours later the sailboat moored beside the skiff.The circumstances of the two men Dantès wanted to know were sad, the elder Dantès was dead and Mercedes was missing.Edmund listened to these two messages with a calm face, but immediately got out of the boat, and would not allow anyone to follow him ashore.Two hours later he returned to the ship, and two sailors from the Jacopo sailed into the yacht to steer Dantès, and he ordered to sail straight to Marseilles.He had already expected his father's death, but Mercedes, what about her life and death?
If the secret was not revealed, it would be impossible for Edmond to explain the request clearly, and it would be difficult to ask someone to inquire.In addition, there are some things he wants to know, and only he can find out by himself.He had looked in the mirror in Leghorn and knew that he was in no danger of being recognized, and that now he had all the means at his disposal to disguise himself.So on a certain morning, the speedboat and the sailboat that followed it sailed into the port of Marseilles generously, and the two ships anchored together.It was from the pier directly ahead that he had been escorted to the dinghy on that ill-fated night which he will never forget, and taken to the Château d'If.Dantès trembled when he saw a gendarme drawing a quarantine boat towards him.But now Dantès already has the self-sustaining ability to take it calmly, and he handed over the British passport he bought in Leghorn to the gendarmerie.In France at that time, foreign passports were more popular than our own passports, so with this pass, Dantès went ashore very smoothly.

As soon as Dantès stepped onto the Rue Carnabier, he caught sight of a crew member of the King of Egypt.This person used to be his sailor, and now he is automatically sent up to let Dantès see how much he has changed.He walked straight up to the man and asked several questions.The man answered one by one. As for whether he still remembered seeing the person who was talking to him now, neither the way he spoke nor the expression on his face showed the slightest surprise.Dantès rewarded the sailor with a coin for his answer, but he soon turned away when he heard the honest man running after him and calling to him.

"Excuse me, sir," said the sailor, "you must have misunderstood it. You intended to give me a forty sous, but you actually gave me a double Napoleon, the name of the old French currency. A Napoleon equals twenty francs."

"Ah, yes, yes, my friend," said Dantès, "I was really mistaken, but your honesty deserves a reward. I will give you a double Napoleon gold coin. Please accept it and invite yours." Have a drink for my health, friend."

The sailor looked at Edmund in astonishment, and couldn't even think of a word of thanks. He just watched Edmund gradually go away, and finally said to himself: "He is a big man who came back from India after making a fortune." rich man."

Dantès continued on his way, overwhelmed by a new feeling at every step.Every corner of the square, every turn of the street, and every corner of the crossroads, all of them evoke the indelible memories of his childhood, which are always lingering in his mind.He had come to the end of the Rue Noailles, and as soon as he saw the Lane Maihang, he felt his knees go weak, and he almost fell under the wheels of a carriage.Finally he walked to the house where his father lived, and the nasturtiums and other flowers and plants that the old man carefully wrapped around the tiger panes on the roof were gone.

Dantès leaned against a tree and pondered for a moment, his eyes fixed on the top floor of the poor little building.Then at last he stepped forward, pushed open the door of the building, stepped over the threshold, and asked if there were any vacancies in the building.He was told that the rooms in the building were full, but he insisted on going up to the rooms on the sixth floor.The porter had no choice but to go upstairs and ask the tenant on the sixth floor if he could let a stranger look at the two rooms.The occupants of these two small rooms were a young couple who had just married a week before, and Dantès could not help sighing when he saw them.There is nothing in the house that reminds Dantès that this is the house his father lived in back then. The wallpaper has been changed, and the old furniture has been with him day and night in his childhood. Every table and chair are deeply embedded in his memory. Among them, they are all gone now, but the walls on all sides are still the original walls.Dantès turned his face to the side where the bed was placed. The bed was still placed where the old man slept.Seeing this, Edmund could no longer control his emotions, and his eyes were filled with tears. It was at this place that the old man died calling his son's name.

The young couple looked at the stranger in amazement, only to see that he had a serious face, with two big teardrops streaming down his cheeks, but his whole face was very calm.Any grief is sentimental, and the two young men had no intention of asking the stranger, so they quietly retreated back and let him sob to his heart's content.They were with him when he withdrew, and told him he could come back anytime, that he was always welcome in their humble dwelling.Edmund stopped at the door of a room on his way down the fifth floor, and asked Cuderos the tailor if he still lived here. A small inn opened on the road to me.

Dantès went downstairs, asked for the address of the owner of the small building in Maihang Lane, and then rushed there, announcing that he was Lord Weimar (this is the name and title used in his passport), and bought it for 2.5 francs. Get off this small building.This price is at least 10000 francs more than the real price of the house, but even if it is 50, Dantès will pay this money.On the same day, the notary informed the young couple on the sixth floor that the deed stipulated that they could choose a room in the building at will, and the rent would never be increased, but they had to give up the two rooms they lived in now.For a whole week, people in Maihang Lane talked about this strange incident with great enthusiasm. There were all kinds of guesses, but none of them were right.

But what was even more strange and incomprehensible to everyone was that at first they saw the stranger come to the small building on Maihang Lane, and at night they saw him go for a walk in the small village of Catalunya. He also walked into a dilapidated fisherman's house and stayed there for an hour. The person he inquired had either passed away or moved away fifteen or sixteen years ago.The family he had gone to inquired received the next day a brand new Catalan fishing boat, two drag nets and a trawl net.The family would have liked to thank this man who gave gifts generously upon inquiry, but he had been seen to mount a horse and leave Marseilles by the Porte d'Aix after giving a few orders to a sailor.

(End of this chapter)