World Literature Classics Library: The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 89 Controversy (1)
Had the Count of Monte Cristo been well acquainted with Parisian society, he would have seen the full significance of M. de Villefort's visit.

Whether the reigning king is from the line of the eldest son or the line of the second son, whether the ministers in power are doctrinaires (a political faction during the restoration of the French dynasty in 1814, which advocated the reconciliation of the bourgeois revolution and royal power.), liberals or Conservative, M. de Villefort was always a politician.Generally, people who are politically successful and infallible are regarded as shrewd and capable people, so Villefort is recognized as shrewd and capable.Many hated him, and a few zealously defended him, but no one liked him. He held high judicial positions and, like the French judge of Arlais (1536-1619), was president of the Supreme Court.He Mollet French judge (1584-1656), once served as the president of the Supreme Court and the Lord Seal.Stand alone.Although his living room was redecorated by his young wife and his daughter who had just turned 18, it is still a simple living room in Paris, which not only advocates tradition but also pays attention to the rules of etiquette.Grace and resignation, an unwavering adherence to the principles of government, a contempt for theory and theoreticians, and an abhorrence of idealists, were the elements of M. de Villefort's public and private life.

M. de Villefort was not only a judge, but also a diplomat.With his relationship with the former dynasty, he won the respect of the current royal family, and whenever he talked about the former dynasty, he always put on a dignified and solemn look.He knows so many things, others not only give in to him, but sometimes have to ask him for advice.If people can get rid of M. de Villefort, the situation may not be like this, but he has his own strong and indomitable city like a feudal prince who dares to fight against the king.His city is the position of prosecutor, and he has skillfully obtained all the benefits he can get from the position. He will never resign from this position, and he will never let go of the existing neutrality and become an opposition party. Run for parliament.

As a rule, M. de Villefort seldom visited or returned visitors, but his wife made the visits for him. This has been recognized in society. It is the essence of nobility.He lived by the credo that "be proud of yourself before you are respected by others," a maxim that is a thousand times stronger in our society than the Greek maxim that "one should know oneself."Today, we don't want to work so hard, but also want to get more benefits, so we should replace it with "spying on others".To friends M. de Villefort is a mighty protector, to enemies he is a cunning and omnipotent adversary, and to those who are neither friend nor foe he is a living being of the law. The statue has a haughty look, expressionless face, dull and dull eyes or aggressive, sharp and relentless pursuit.This is the man who deftly passed through the four successive revolutions, laid a foundation for himself, and continued to strengthen it.Monsieur de Villefort, known as the least curious and least touched by vulgar tastes in France, gave only one ball a year, and appeared himself for a quarter of an hour, that is to say, forty-five minutes less than the king's appearance at the royal ball. .He was never seen going to the theater, to a concert, or to any place of public entertainment.Occasionally, but this time is extremely rare, he plays Wester (a poker game.) At this time, he must carefully choose for him a card player who matches his status, just ambassadors, archbishops, princes, The president of the society or the widowed duchess are eligible.

It was this man who drove up to the door of Monte Cristo's house.When the servant came to announce M. de Villefort's visit, the count was leaning over a large table, looking up the route from St. Petersburg to China on a map.The prosecutor walked in with solemn and cautious steps as if he was stepping into a courtroom.He was the same man we had met before, acting as prosecutor in Marseilles, or more correctly, the man who had entered the second half of his life.Nature follows its inherent laws and does not reshape it due to the passing of time. He just changed from thin to thin, his face changed from white to pale, and his deep-set eyes are now even more deeply sunken. The gold-rimmed glasses seemed to be part of the face.Except for the snow-white bow tie, his whole body is black. The only difference from the mourning clothes is a thin, imperceptible red scroll on the buttonhole, like a streak of blood drawn by a paintbrush.Monte Cristo, who had received him, looked curiously at him, while bowing in return.And this judge is suspicious by nature, and he doesn't easily believe in the miracles that are hyped up by the society. Now he wants to see this noble foreigner - Monte Cristo, who is already called by someone, is he here to show his talents again? The charlatan who sneaked back in violation of the exile order, the prince of the temple, the sultan in "Arabian Nights".

"Monsieur," said Villefort, in a tone as sharp as the judge's oration, which these men are unable or unwilling to change in ordinary conversation, "sir, I have learned that yesterday, in the last chapter, Villefort died on the night of the accident. Calling on Monte Cristo. You feel obliged to thank you personally for the journey of my wife and son, and I have come to fulfill this duty, and I offer you my gratitude." As the judge said this, he The stern gaze was as arrogant and haughty as ever.Moreover, he said these words with the clang of a prosecutor, and his neck and shoulders were so tense that we might as well say it again, that his flatterers make him a living statue of the law.

"Sir," replied the count icily, "I am glad that a mother has preserved her son, and motherly love is known to be the most sacred of affections. It has happened to my good fortune, sir, to perform a task for you." Obligation, of course, and I take pride in it. I know that M. de Villefort's love for me will never be generous, but however precious this love is, it is still not enough to satisfy my heart."

Villefort did not expect to hear such an answer, and he couldn't help being startled, like a soldier who feels his armor being hit by someone, his haughty lips curled slightly, it seems that he did not think the Count of Monte Cristo was at first. A courteous gentleman.He looked around, trying to find something to talk about, because the current topic seemed to be in pieces and could not be picked up anymore.He saw the map that Monte Cristo was looking at when he entered. "You study geography? Monsieur? It is a very interesting study, especially for you, it is said, that you have been to all the places marked in this atlas."

"Yes, sir," replied the count, "I want to study the problems of man in general, which is what you study every day in concrete cases, that is to say, the physiology of man. It is easy to reach the part, but difficult to go from the part to the whole. This is an algebraic axiom, that is, to find the unknown from the known, not to find the known from the unknown... Oh, please sit down, sir." Monte Cristo stretched out his hand towards a chair He pointed, so the prosecutor had to go by himself, and there was only one chair that could sit behind Monte Cristo, which was the one on which he was kneeling and looking at the map when the prosecutor came in.Thus, with his side turned to his guests, his back to the window, and his elbows resting on the map which was becoming the topic of conversation, the posture of the conversation, though not necessarily in terms of situation, at least in terms of character, was the same as he had been at the Moserfs' and at The conversation at Tangla's house was exactly the same.

"Ah, you are studying philosophy," continued Villefort, after a moment's silence, in which he gathered his strength like an athlete confronted with a formidable opponent. "Oh, sir, if I had nothing to do like you , what I am looking for to do will definitely not be so boring."

"Yes, sir," said Monte Cristo, "man is but an ugly caterpillar under a daylight microscope. I thought you said I had nothing to do, so do you think you have anything to do? Or, to put it more clearly, Do you think what you're doing is worthwhile?"

The second blow of this strange foreigner was so violent that Villefort was still more astonished. For a long time the judge had not heard such a strange talk speak with such force, or rather, it was in his life. Heard it for the first time.Prosecutors then began to go all out. "Sir," said he, "you are a foreigner, and I believe you have said yourself, that you have spent part of your life in Eastern countries, so that you cannot know that the laws of mankind are It's so hasty, but here we are extremely careful and careful."

"I know, sir, I know, the ancients said pede claudo (Latin: to blame.) I know all this. I have studied the laws of various countries especially, and compared the criminal procedure of various countries with the law of nature, and finally I should Say, sir, I find the law most consistent with the will of God, or the law of primitive peoples, the law of equal vengeance."

"If such a law were adopted, sir," said the prosecutor, "our code would be greatly simplified, so that, as you have just said, we judges would not have much to do."

"There may be such a thing," said Monte Cristo. "You know, human inventions have moved from compound to single, and the single is always perfect."

"And now, sir," said the judge, "the present code of our country contains contradictory clauses, some derived from the ancient peoples of Gallic France. Customary laws, some derived from Roman law, and others invoked from the ancient nations of Frankish France. Therefore, to master these various methods, you must agree that you must work hard for a long time, you must study for a long time to obtain this knowledge, and once the knowledge is mastered, you must have a strong memory ability so that you will not forget it. .”

"I agree with that, sir, but I know as much as you have about the French codes, and I am as familiar with the laws of other countries as English, Turkish, Japanese, and Indian. So I was quite right when I said it, relatively—you know everything is relative, sir, you have very little to do compared with what I have done, and you have nothing to do with what I know. The knowledge that should be learned is still vast.”

"But what is your purpose in all this?" asked Villefort, astonished.

Monte Cristo smiled. "Ah, sir," said he, "I think that, although you are praised as a superior person, you still observe things from the commonplace point of view of society, which begins with man and ends with man, that is to say, with human wisdom. The most restrictive, narrowest point of view.”

"Please explain, monsieur," said Villefort, who was becoming more and more astonished, "I do not understand what you mean...."

"I mean, sir, your eyes are on the social structure of the nations, so that you only see the power of the machine, not the noble worker who drives it. I mean, you are among the people behind you, around you , only recognize people in different positions, because they have a letter of commission issued by the minister or the king. Above these people with positions and positions, above the ministers and the king, God has appointed others, and God has given To their mission, instead of sending them to fill the seat, yet you can't see it because of short-sightedness. This kind of weakness is inherent in human beings with low organs and incompleteness. Tobias is a figure of Christian legend. Bring over to restore the sight The angel is regarded as an ordinary young man, and all countries regard Attila, the ancient Hun king (434-453) who will destroy them, who captured the Eastern Roman Empire and other places in 441. As an ordinary conqueror, only in After they revealed their mission, people will know their truth, and only after one of them said: 'I am an angel sent by the Lord', and the other said: 'I am the hammer of God', their divinity Only then will it be revealed to the world.”

"Then," said Villefort, who was more and more astonished, and could not help feeling that the man who was speaking to him was either a man of religious visions or a madman, "do you consider yourself to be that extraordinary spirituality of which I have just spoken?"

"Why not?" said Monte Cristo indifferently.

(End of this chapter)