World Literature Classics Library: The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 73 The Guest (3)
"Then please tell me. It seems that I will not be able to go to the House of Representatives. I must make up for this loss."

"I'm in Rome for Carnival this year."

"We know," Beauchamp said.

"Yes, but what you don't know is that I was kidnapped by robbers."

"Where's the robber?" said Debray.

"Indeed, there are robbers, and they are very odious, that is to say, admirable, for I find them terribly lovely."

"Oh, my dear Albert," said Debray, "you will admit it honestly, your cook is delayed, and the oysters have not yet come from the oyster farms on the Atlantic coast of the south-west of France in Malena. Or Ostende By the way, you are like Madame de Mantenon, and want to serve your stories. My dear friend, you must tell the truth. We are all educated people, we can forgive you, and no matter how absurd your stories may be, We'll all listen."

"And I will tell you that although the story is absurd, what I am going to tell you is true from beginning to end. The bandits took me captive and took me to a very gloomy place called San Sebas Stian's Mausoleum."

"I've been to this place," said Chateau-Renaud, "and almost had a fever."

"I've done more than that," Mosef said, "because I've been really sick. They say I'm a prisoner, but they will let me go if I pay a ransom. Money is nothing. 4000 Roman crowns For 4000 piastres. That is 2.6 livres minted in Tours. Unfortunately, I only have 1500 left. When I came back from my trip, the money orders were exhausted. I wrote a letter to Franz Letter. Ah, by the way, Franz was there, so you can ask him if I'm lying. I wrote to Franz and told him that if he couldn't bring 6 crowns at 4000 o'clock in the morning Arrive, at 6:10 I shall join the ranks of the Blessed Saints and Glorious Martyrs, and I am more than honored to be in their company. Monsieur Luge Wampa, that is the name of the chief of robbers, he will never treat me Will show favoritism, must say the same thing."

"But did Franz arrive with 4000 crowns?" said Chateau-Renaud. It's not hard to get 4000 ecu."

"No one brought money, he was just accompanied by the guests I was talking about, and I hope to introduce you to know."

"Ah, there is such a thing! So, this gentleman is the thief who killed Kargus in ancient Greek mythology, and was killed by him for stealing Hercules' cattle. Hercules, rescue Onde Perseus of Romedes In ancient Greek mythology, the Ethiopian princess Ondromede was killed, and the warrior Perseus rescued her, and the two became married.?"

"No, he is a human being, and his body is similar to my own."

"Armed to the teeth?"

"He doesn't have a knitting needle on him."

"But he processed your ransom?"

"He whispered a few words to the bandit leader, and I was free."

"The robber even apologized to him and said he shouldn't have kidnapped you?" Beauchamp said.

"Exactly," Mosef said.

"Ah, isn't this person the Italian poet Ariosto (1477-1533), who is said to have served as governor of a region ravaged by robbers?"

"No, he is the Count of Monte Cristo, that's all."

"There is no Count of Monte Cristo," said Debray.

"I can't think of anyone who has seen the Count of Monte Cristo anywhere." Chateau-Leno said calmly, as if he knew the genealogy of European nobles completely.

"He may have come from the Holy Land, which is Palestine. Come, someone of his ancestors may have taken Calvary, as the Montemarites took the Dead Sea."

"Excuse me," said Maximilian, "but I think I can help you to unbutton this, gentlemen. Monte Cristo is a small island, which I have often heard my father's sailors talk about, a grain in the Mediterranean Sea. Sand, an atom in the universe."

"Exactly, monsieur," said Albert, "I am referring to this grain of sand, the lord and king of this grain of atoms, whose decree may have been bought in some Tuscan office. "

"Then he is rich, your count?"

"Of course I do."

"However, I always feel that seeing is believing, right?"

"You are mistaken, Debray."

"I do not know what you mean."

"Have you read The Thousand and One Nights?"

"Of course! What a great question!"

"Well, tell me, are the characters in the story rich or poor? Aren't their grains of wheat also rubies or diamonds? They are like poor fishermen, aren't they? You think so too, and suddenly they open up for you. Some mysterious cave with enough treasure to buy all of India."

"and then?"

"Then my Count of Monte Cristo was such a fisherman that he even named himself Samba the Sailor because of it, and had a cave full of gold."

"Have you seen the cave, Mosef?"

"No, Franz has. But, mind you, you can't say that in his presence. Franz went in blindfolded, and was served by dumb slaves and beauties, compared with those beauties, Cleopater, one of the seven queens of Egypt, can only be regarded as a cheap bone. However, he is dubious about whether these beauties are real or not, because they came in after he tasted marijuana. It is very likely that what he said Women are nothing more than a row of statues of beauties."

The young men were all staring at Mosev, as if they were saying: "Ah, my dear friend, have you lost your mind, or are you just teasing us?"

"Yes," said the pensive Morrel, "I have heard an old sailor named Penelon tell such a thing, exactly as Mr. Mocerf said."

"Ah!" said Albert, "it is very kind of M. Morrel to save me; he has pointed out a clue to the riddle, and you are not pleased, are you?"

"Forgive me, my dear friend," said Debray, "but your story is too unbelievable..."

"Ah, yes, because the ambassadors and consuls you send out won't tell you about such things. They don't have time. They're all torturing their compatriots who are traveling abroad."

"Ah, look, you're mad at our poor envoys. Oh, my God, say what they'll protect you with: the House is cutting their salaries every day, so they're getting nothing now Not anymore. Do you want to be an ambassador, Albert? I can send you to Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey.)."

"No. Once I show support for Muhammad-Ali, the governor of Egypt (1769-1849), who once united with France in an attempt to replace the Ottoman sultan, the sultan will send me a rope and let the secretary of the embassy strangle me die."

"You see very well," said Debray.

"Yes, so my Count of Monte Cristo is real."

"Of course, everyone is real, what a miracle!"

"Everyone is a real person, yes, but the conditions are different from person to person. Not all people have black slaves, magnificent underground palaces, countless weapons, horses that cost 6000 francs each, and Greeks. mistress."

"Have you seen the Greek mistress?"

"Yes, I saw her and heard her. I saw her at the theater, and one day at lunch at the Count's I heard her again."

"You strange person also eat?"

"Of course he has to eat, but so little that it hardly counts."

"Look, everyone, this is a ghost that comes out of the grave at night and eats human blood."

"You can make fun of it as you please. The Countess of Guernsey also said the same thing. Everyone knows that she knows Lord Rosswain."

"Oh, wonderful!" said Beauchamp. "Vampires, wonderful. To a non-journalist, this is exactly the same as the sea snake that the "Constitutional Gazette" talks about."

"Light-brown eyes with pupils that can dilate or shrink at will," said Debray. "A sharp-edged face, large forehead, pale complexion, black beard, sharp white teeth, and good manners."

"Oh, that's right, Lucien," said Mocerf, "perfectly described, yes, polite, but surly and pungent, a man who used to make me shudder. We watched executions together one day, and he Talking about torture in various countries coldly and calmly, I feel more uncomfortable seeing his expression and listening to his voice than watching the executioner execute the sentence and hearing the cry of the dead criminal."

"Did he take you to the ruins of the arena and suck your blood, Mosef?" Beauchamp asked.

"Or, after you got rescued, did he have a biblical story like Esau being forced to relinquish his primogeniture to his brother Jacob for a plate of lentils. Forced you in the fire Sign on the red parchment and sell your soul to him?"

"Laugh, you can laugh all you want, gentlemen!" said Mocerf, a little annoyed, "you are all Parisian ladies and gentlemen who walk the boulevards of Ghent and the Bois de Boulogne. Looking at you, and thinking about that person, oh, I can't help but feel how different we are."

"I am deeply honored," Beauchamp said.

"However," said Chateau-Renoir, "your Count of Monte Cristo, apart from a little association with Italian bandits, is, after all, a noble and refined man."

"Alas, there are no robbers in Italy!" said Debray.

"There are no vampires either!" said Beauchamp.

"There is no Count of Monte Cristo," said Debray. "Attention, Albert, it is striking ten-thirty."

"Just admit it, you just had a nightmare, we should go to lunch." Beauchamp said.

However, before the bell rang, the living room door was opened, and Germain reported: "His Excellency the Count of Monte Cristo has arrived."

Everyone in the living room stood up involuntarily. It seemed that Albert's story had indeed caught everyone's attention, and Albert himself couldn't help feeling the suddenness.Just now no one heard the sound of carriages on the street, nor the sound of footsteps entering the waiting room, and the door was opened quietly.The count came to the door, he was dressed very simply, but even the playboy who loves to find fault most could not fault his attire.Coats, hats and underwear, everything is elegant and elegant, all from the hands of famous masters.It seemed that he was only thirty-five years old, and everyone was amazed that his appearance was very similar to what Debray had just described.The count came to the center of the living room with a smile on his face, and then walked towards Albert, who immediately reached out to meet him.

"I think," said the count, "that one of our princes has asserted that punctuality is a king's courtesy. Yet punctuality is not always attained, however well-intentioned a traveler may be. My dear viscount, I thought I was two or three seconds late for this appointment, and I hope to forgive my sincerity. Four thousand miles are bound to be troublesome, especially in France, where it seems impossible to flog the coachman at the post-post."

"Monsieur," replied Albert, "I am telling some friends of your presence. I take this opportunity to invite them here, thanks to your honor, and I will now introduce you. These gentlemen Yes, Monsieur de Chateaux-Renoir, whose title dates back to the 12 nobles (that is, the original nobles of France.), whose ancestors have a seat at the round table of nobles; Mr. Lucien Debray, private secretary to the Secretary of the Interior; Mr. Beauchamp, the great A journalist who can make the French government feel a thorn in the back, but although he is famous in France, you may not have heard of it in Italy, because his newspaper is not published in Italy. This is Maximilian Morrel , Captain of the Cavalry in North Africa."

The count was courteous, agreed to them all, but had the same air of indifference and indifference as the Englishman, but when he heard the name of Morrel, he couldn't help taking a step forward, and his pale cheeks suddenly flashed like lightning. A slight blush. "Monsieur," he said, "you are handsome in the uniform of the French army, which was recently conquered by North Africa, which occupied Algiers in 1830 and all of Algeria until 1847." What emotion caused the count's voice to tremble so deeply, and made his handsome, calm, and clear eyes sparkle involuntarily, as when he had no intention of concealing them.

"You have never seen our African soldiers, sir?" asked Albert.

"Never," answered the count, who was completely at ease.

"Ah, sir, beneath this uniform beat the best and noblest hearts in our soldiers."

"Oh, Monsieur Count," interrupted Morrel.

"Listen, Captain. . . Just now," continued Albert, "we have heard of a deed so heroic by this gentleman that I beg him to grant me the honor, although I am meeting him for the first time today. He introduces you as my friend."

When Albert spoke these words, Monte Cristo's eyes could once again be seen to be unusually solemn, and his eyelids were faintly flushed and quivered slightly, showing a certain passion in him. "Oh, sir, you have a noble heart," said the count, "how good it is!"

This admiration did not seem to be an introduction to Albert, but rather a response from the count's inner thoughts. Everyone was surprised, especially Morrel, who looked at Monte Cristo in surprise.But the tone was so submissive, almost so melodious, that Monte Cristo's admiration, however quaint, could not be displeasing.

"Why is he suspicious?" Beauchamp said to Chateau-Renoir.

"Really," said Chateau-Renaud, who, with his experience in the social world and his aristocratic insight, had already seen through everything that Monte Cristo could see through, "really, Al Bey has told us the truth, and the count is indeed a marvel, don't you think, Morrel?"

"Of course," said Morrel, "he has a broad eye and a warm voice, and though his feelings about me are incomprehensible, I think he is very good."

"Gentlemen," said Albert, "Germain tells me that lunch is ready. My dear count, allow me to show you the way."

Everyone came to the restaurant in silence, and then everyone sat down.

"Gentlemen," said the Count, as he took his seat, "permit me to apologize in advance for my possible indecency. I am a stranger, a stranger from the land, and this is the first time in my life. Paris. I am utterly ignorant of the French way of life, and the way of life I have followed hitherto has been almost entirely oriental, at odds with the fine traditions of Paris. In view of this, if you find me too Turkish in some ways, too Neapolitan or too Arab, I still hope Haihan. Everyone, please have a meal now."

"What a wonderful speech!" Bo Shang whispered, "There is no doubt that this is a noble man."

"Yes, my lord," said Debray.

"Great lord of the world, Monsieur de Bray," said Chateau-Renoir.

(End of this chapter)