World Literature Classics Library: The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 77 Introduction (2)
"Hey," the stranger went on, no doubt trying to dispel the imperceptible cloud of what he had said just now on Mosef's forehead, "we in Italy are not like that. Father shade, do not think about making progress, and often spend his whole life in mediocrity."

"But, sir," said Count Mecerf, "to a man of your stature, Italy is a ruin, but France opens her arms to you. France calls to you. France is not good to her children. But it is not always ungrateful to the world, and France generally treats foreign guests with sweeping couch."

"Oh, father," said Albert, smiling, "it is evident that you do not know the Count of Monte Cristo. His pleasures are not in worldliness, nor in fame. He is content with a title in his passport."

"That's right, it's the fairest thing I've ever heard about myself."

"Sir, you are always in control of your own destiny," said Count Messef. "The path you have chosen is rich in flowers."

"Exactly, monsieur," replied Monte Cristo, with a smile on his face that was beyond the reach of a painter, nor could a psychologist know how to analyze it.

"If I had not feared that Monsieur the Count might be fatigued," said the General, evidently pleased by the presence of Monte Cristo, "I would have taken you with me to the Chamber, and today's session will be attended by anyone who is not acquainted with our modern Senate. Look, it must be very interesting."

"If you are so kind to mention it another day, sir, I would be very grateful. However, thanks to Yu Yun today, I am eagerly looking forward to meeting the countess, so I should stay for now."

"Ah, here comes my mother!" cried the Viscount.

Monte Cristo turned hastily, and he saw Mrs. Mocerf coming to the door of the drawing-room, where she was standing, opposite the door by which her husband had entered.But seeing her stand still, her face pale, for some reason, her hand rested on the door frame, and it was not until Monte Cristo turned around that it fell limply.She had stood there some time when she heard the last words of Monte Cristo.Monte Cristo stood up and bowed to the countess, who bowed and said nothing.

"Ah, madam, are you not well?" said the count, "or is the room too hot for you?"

"Are you not well, mother?" cried the vicomte, leaping towards Mercedes.

"No," she thanked them with a small smile.She said to the count: "It was the first time I saw the man who rescued us from our sorrow and grief, and I felt something in my heart, Your Excellency."

Mercedes walked over slowly, and continued, "You are my son's savior, and in view of this kindness, I bless you. Now, I would also like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to express my gratitude to you in person. My gratitude, like my blessings, comes from the heart."

The Count of Monte Cristo bowed again, deeper and lower than before, and his face was paler than Mercedes'. "Madame," said he, "is a trifle, and the thanks of Mr. and Mrs. Countess are too polite. To save a man's life from the sorrow of the father and the sorrow of the mother, is by no means an act of charity, but only an act of kindness." acts of humanity."

These few words were tactfully and courteously spoken, and Mrs. Mocerf replied earnestly: "My son is very lucky to have a friend like you, sir, and I thank God for this arrangement." Mercedes raised her eyes. Seeing her beautiful eyes, looking up to the sky with infinite gratitude, the Count of Monte Cristo felt as if he saw two tears falling from those eyes.

Mr. Moserf approached her. "Madame," he said, "just now I have asked Mr. Earl's forgiveness for not being able to accompany me, and I hope Madam will apologize to him again. The parliament meets at two o'clock, and it is now three o'clock, and I still have to speak."

"Go away, sir, I will do my best to make our honored guest forget that you are not here," said the countess, with the same sentimentality in her voice, "monsieur," she continued, turning to Monte Cristo, "will you Appreciate the light, spend today in the house?"

"Thank you, ma'am. You see, please believe me, I am extremely grateful for your kindness, but today I came from a long way and got off the carriage directly at the gate of the Zunfu. I don't know how to settle down in Paris, I just barely Know where you live. It’s an unspoken concern, I know, but it’s critical.”

"Then, at least we will have the honor in the future, can you agree?" asked the countess.

Monte Cristo did not answer, but only bowed, which may be regarded as a promise.

"Then I will not detain you, sir," said the countess, "because I don't want to be rude or forceful out of gratitude."

"My dear count," said Albert, "the kindness which you have shown me in Rome, I shall do my best to return in Paris. If you will not dislike me, my hansom may be delivered to you until your own carriage is ready." You dispatch."

"I fully appreciate your kindness, Viscount," said Monte Cristo, "but I think I have set aside four and a half hours for Beticio, which he will use reasonably, so I think I can find a car at the door. Ready to park the carriage."

Albert was already used to the Earl's style, so he knew that the Earl would be like King Nero, and he could not turn his preferences into abilities, so Albert did not feel any surprise.However, he still wanted to see for himself how Monte Cristo's orders were carried out, so he accompanied the guests to the door of the mansion.As expected, Monte Cristo was right. As soon as he returned to the waiting room of Count Mosef, a servant—the servant who gave the count’s business card to the two young men in Rome and announced the count’s visit—appeared from the corridor. so that the eminent traveler did find his carriage waiting for him when he came up his front steps.It was a two-seater four-wheeled carriage produced by Keller's Carriage Shop. The horse and harness originally belonged to Drake. All the dandies in Paris knew that he would not sell it for eighteen thousand francs yesterday.

"Monsieur," said the count to Albert, "you don't have to send me there; the house I can show you now must have been furnished improvised, and you know I'm notorious for such improvisations. So it's time I hope you will be tolerant for a day, and I will invite you another day, then I think I will definitely not be ill-received."

"You want me to wait a day, Monsieur Count, and I'm relieved, because what you want to show me is not just a residence, but a palace. You must have some god at your disposal."

"Well, if one thinks so, let it be," said Monte Cristo, stepping up the velvet steps of his splendid carriage, "and it will do me good in the presence of the ladies." Yet He jumped into the carriage briskly, the door was closed afterward, and the carriage galloped away immediately.But it was not really swift, for when Mrs. Moserf was left alone in the drawing-room, the curtains of the drawing-room moved slightly, though imperceptibly, so that Monte Cristo could be seen from the carriage.

Albert went back to his mother, and found her in the ladies' drawing-room, where she was buried alone on a large velvet armchair.The small living room was dimly lit except for the spangles dotted on a wig and in the frame of a gilt mirror.The Countess's hair was tied up with a thin piece of gauze, which looked like a halo in the mist, and the gauze covered her face at this moment. Albert could not see clearly, but he felt that his mother's voice changed. .The scent of roses and crape myrtle wafted from the flowerpot stand, and through the scent of flowers Albert smelled a pungent scent of smelling salts.One of the several carved cups on the fireplace contained the Countess's smelling bottle. The cotton leather cover on the bottle had been untied, and the young man felt uneasy when he saw it. "Are you ill, mother?" cried Albert, as he entered; "did you feel ill while I was out?"

"I'm not well? No, Albert. But, you know, these roses, tuberose, and orange-blossom smell too strongly when it's hot, and it's unacceptable."

"Then, mother," said Moserf, pulling at the bell, "the flowers must be taken to your anteroom. You must be ill, for you were very pale when you entered the drawing-room."

"Do you mean that I am pale, Albert?"

"White is white, but you look more beautiful, mother, but father and I are always a little worried when we see each other."

"Did your father tell you too?" Mercedes asked anxiously.

"No, ma'am. But, come to think of it, my father made a point to you."

"I can't remember," said the countess.

A servant came in--he had heard Alberta's bell call for an inquiry.

"Move these flowers to the waiting room, or to the bathroom," said the Viscount. "The countess smells uncomfortable."

The servants began to move the flowers.There was silence in the room for a long time, and neither mother nor son spoke until the flowers were moved.

"What is the name of Monte Cristo?" asked the countess after waiting for the servant to remove the last pot of flowers. "Is it a family name, or a fief name, or is it just a title?"

"I think it's a title, nothing else, mother. He bought an island in the Tuscons, and he managed to turn it into a fief, you know, Sant'Etienne in Florence, as he said this morning. , Palmer's Italian place name. St. George-Constantinian, and even the Knights of Malta are like this. Moreover, he has no extravagant expectations for the title of nobility. The title of earl is just called casually, but the Romans People say the Count is a great nobleman."

"He has not been with us very long," said the countess, "but, as far as I can tell, he is, at least, well-behaved."

"Oh! it is perfect, mother, so perfect, so to speak; although the nobles of England, Spain and Germany are called the three noblest nobles in Europe, the most aristocratic people I have ever seen among them are as good as him. All of them pale in comparison.”

The countess thought for a moment, then hesitated a little, and said: "My dear Albert, I think you will understand that the question I am going to ask you now is the question that a mother must ask. You have known M. Monte Cristo. You have a sharp eye, are good at communicating, and are more measured than the average peer, do you think the Earl actually matches his appearance?"

"What about his appearance?"

"You said it yourself just now, a great nobleman."

"Mother, I mean everyone sees it that way."

"What do you think of yourself, Albert?"

"I'll tell you the truth, I don't know anything about him, except that he's a Maltese."

"I don't ask you where he is from, I ask you how other people are."

"Oh, what about him, that's another matter. I know a lot of strange things about him, and if you want me to tell you what I think, I can tell you that I really want to think of him as a worshiper. One of Lun's characters, a man doomed to doom, like Manfred, Lera, Wiener, in short, like a remnant of some ancient family, though not inherited by the ancestors, but with a gift for adventure. They have made a fortune, so this kind of person ignores the laws of society."

"You mean..."

"I want to say that Monte Cristo is a small island in the Mediterranean Sea, uninhabited, without a garrison, where smugglers from all over the world and pirates from all over the world often come to settle. Who knows that these respectable and well-earned fellows don't pay their noble lords protection fees? "

"That is possible," said the countess thoughtfully.

"However," continued the young man, "whether he is a smuggler or not does not matter to us. Now that you have seen him, mother, I am sure you will agree that the Count of Monte Cristo is a man of the world, and will certainly be admired in Parisian society." Great success. You see, when he was a guest at my place this morning for the first time, he was amazing, even Chateau-Renaud."

"How old is the Count?" Mercedes asked, apparently paying attention to the question.

"35 years old, mother."

"So young! Impossible." Mercedes said, not only answering Albert's words, but also answering the questions in her heart.

"However, there's nothing wrong with that. Three or four times he told me about his past, which of course wasn't preprogrammed, about when he was five, when he was ten, and when he was 5. I don't know Out of curiosity, I have been paying more attention to these details. I strung together the dates, but I really didn't find any inconsistencies. This strange man has no age, but if you want to say his age, I'm sure he is 10. In addition, Consider, mother, how quick his eyes are, how dark his hair is, and his forehead, though pale, shows no wrinkle. He is not only physically strong, but also young."

The countess seemed to be deeply sentimental and her heart was surging, she couldn't help but lower her head. "Is he very friendly to you, Albert?" she asked, with a nervous tremor.

"I think so, ma'am."

"So what about you, do you like him?"

"I think it's all right, but Franz Epinet has his own story, and he's always said before me that the man came from another world."

The countess seemed a little creepy. "Albert," said her voice in a changed voice, "I have always warned you to be cautious in making friends. Now that you are grown up, you can advise me, but I will say this to you, Take care, Albert."

"My dear mother, whether advice is good or not, I must first know what to beware of. The count is no gambler, and drinks only water mixed with a little Spanish wine. It's ridiculous, he will never come to borrow money from me. So, what do you want me to beware of him?"

"You are quite right," said the countess; "my fears are very foolish, and this is the man who has saved your life. By the way, did your father receive him well, Albert? We must not treat the count." It's just decency. Mr. Moserf is so busy sometimes that his own business has made him worry, so it's possible that he didn't realize that..."

"My father is very considerate, madame," interrupted Albert, "and I am not only saying that, but my father seems to have been pleased with two or three compliments from the count, which were also very good. Well, and it was also time, as if he had known his father for thirty years. Every little arrow of flattery he shot seemed to tickle his father," said Albert, laughing again, "and so they parted By that time, he had become the best friend in the world, and Mr. Mocerf even wanted to take the Earl to the House of Commons to hear him speak."

The countess didn't say anything more, she was completely lost in thought, and gradually closed her eyes.The young man stood in front of her, looking at her with tenderness and meekness, with such love for his mother as Albert's, and the love of those children for their own still young and beautiful mothers pales in comparison.Then he saw his mother close her eyes, and listened to her breathing again, and after a while he felt that her mother had fallen asleep, went away on tiptoe, and carefully closed the door, leaving the countess there to sleep.

"This man is really amazing," he said to himself, shaking his head. "I told him when I was there that he would be a sensation in society. I used this thermometer to test him. He gave me His mother has made a deep impression on him, so he is indeed outstanding." He went downstairs to the stables, not without a secret annoyance, because the Count of Monte Cristo, although he did not mean to, had lost Albert's horses after he bought the carriage. Claret horses have been reduced to second-rate in the eyes of experts. "There is no doubt," said he, "that men are not equal, and I should beg my father to explain this to the House of Lords."

(End of this chapter)