World Literature Classics Library: The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 91 Edai (1)
The reader will remember that in the rue de Melle lived the Count of Monte Cristo's new acquaintances, or rather his old acquaintances, Maximilian, Julie, and Emmanuel.The count thought that he was about to visit them pleasantly, that he was going to spend a good time, and that the rays of heaven were about to shine into the hell into which he had voluntarily thrown himself, so when he saw Villefort disappear from his sight, his face turned The most beautiful and moving serenity is revealed on the face.Ali rushed over when he heard the bell, and seeing the rare joy on the count's face, he couldn't help tiptoeing, and retreated quietly, holding his breath, as if he felt that his master was immersed in beautiful contemplation and should not disturb his thoughts.It was twelve o'clock at noon, and the count allowed himself an hour to look at Eddie.It should be said that joy is about to come to the heart that has been destroyed for a long time, so once there is real joy, the heart must first have a preparation process, just like other hearts must prepare before receiving strong joy or sorrow Same.

We have already said that the Greek lady's apartment was completely separate from that of the count.The flats in which she lived were all furnished in an oriental fashion, that is to say, with a thick Turkish carpet on the floor, satin hangings on the walls, and divans and sofas along the walls in each room. There are cushions that can be moved at will.Eddie had three French maids and one Greek maid.Three French maids were always waiting in a small room. As soon as a small and exquisite golden bell rang, they would come over immediately and serve according to the orders of the Greek slaves.The Greek slave could speak a little French, enough to convey the mistress' orders to the three French maids.Monte Cristo had commanded the French maids that they must serve Eddie as reverently and reverently as they treated the queen.

The Greek woman was now in the innermost room of the suite.This is a circular room, a bit like a small living room for entertaining ladies.At the top are rose-tinted stained-glass windows, from which the whole room is lighted.Edai was sitting on the floor, and the cushions under her body were all blue satin cushions embroidered with silver thread. Her upper body was leaning on the couch, with her plump and soft right arm supporting her head, and her left hand holding a The thin coral tube held in her mouth was inserted with a Turkish hookah hose. When she took a puff, the mist of benzoin rose from the water and passed through the tube into her mouth.Her current posture is very natural for an oriental woman, but if it is a French girl, it will inevitably be a little artificial.

She is dressed entirely in the ancient Greek place name of Epirus, located in what is now southern Albania and northwestern Greece.The lower body is white satin rose-colored embroidered trousers, revealing a pair of small and exquisite feet, if not for the slippers on the feet, it can be said that they are feet carved from marble, and the slippers are also very small and elegant. The tip is turned up, and the upper is not only inlaid with gold, but also inlaid with beads.He wears a blue and white striped blouse with wide sleeves and slits at the bottom. The buttonholes are trimmed with silver thread, and the buttons are all made of pearls.The blouse is covered with a corset, the sweetheart neckline exposes the neck and the upper part of the breast, and the hem is fastened with three diamond buttons.Under the bodice, and over the trousers, was entirely concealed by a girdle of bright colours, from which dangled silk tassels enough to make our Parisian beauties envious.On her head was a little round hat embroidered with gold and inlaid with pearls, and the hat was tilted slightly on one side, and on the side where the brim was slightly tilted, there was a purple rose in her hair, which was black and blue.Her beautiful face fully embodies the typical ideal of Greek beauty, but there are a pair of big black eyes, a straight nose, coral lips, and pearly white teeth.And on top of this harmonious and beautiful beauty, there is a radiance and fragrance of cardamom years.Edai was only nineteen or twenty.

Monte Cristo called out the Greek maid, and told her to ask Ede if she could see him now.Edai didn't speak, but just motioned to the maid to lift the hanging curtain on the door, and then, like a charming picture frame, there was a reclining young girl under the door frame.Monte Cristo went in.Ede propped herself up with the arm holding the straw, stretched out her hand towards the count, smiled slightly, and then said in the clear language spoken by Spartan and Athenian women: "Why did you call me before you came in?" Is it okay for people to ask? Are you no longer my master, and am I no longer your slave?"

Monte Cristo also smiled. "Ede," he said, "you know..."

"Why don't you tell me about you as usual?" interrupted the Greek woman. "Have I done something wrong? If so, punish me, but don't tell me about you."

"Ede," continued the count, "you know we are in France now, so you are free."

"What is freedom for?" asked the girl.

"You are free to leave me."

"Leave you! . . . Why should I leave you?"

"What can I know? We're going into society."

"I don't want to see anyone."

"You'll meet some nice young men, and if you see someone who suits your fancy, I won't be unreasonable to-"

"I have never seen a man more beautiful than you. I only love my father and you in my life."

"Poor boy," said Monte Cristo, "it is because you have hardly spoken to any man but your father and me."

"Oh, do I have to talk to the others? My father calls me his darling, you call me your baby, and you both call me your boy."

"Do you remember your father, Eddie?"

The girl smiled. "Here and here," she said, pointing to her eyes and her heart.

"And me, where am I?" asked Monte Cristo, smiling.

"You," she said, "you're everywhere."

Monte Cristo took Ede's hand to kiss, but the simple child withdrew it, and pushed his forehead forward.

"And now, Eddie," said Monte Cristo, "know that you are free, that you are master and queen. You may wear as you please, or not, and stay here as you please, Go out if you want. There is a carriage ready for you at any time, and wherever you go, Ali and Mirto will follow you and obey your orders. There is only one thing, I ask you to promise me."

"You say it."

"Your birth should be kept secret, and your past should never be mentioned, and the names of your famous father and your poor mother should not be mentioned on any occasion."

"I've told you, master, that I don't want to see anyone."

"Listen to me, Eddie, the oriental reclusiveness may not be possible in Paris, you must continue to familiarize yourself with life in our northern countries, just like you did when you were in Rome, Florence, Milan and Madrid, no matter what you do in the future Whether you stay here long or go back to the East, it will be of use to you."

"Or should we go back to the East, you should say so, should you not, my lord?"

"Yes, maiden," said Monte Cristo, "you know very well that I never want to leave you. A tree never leaves its flowers, and only the flowers leave the tree."

"I will never leave you, master," said Ede, "because I know I cannot live without you."

"Poor boy! I'll be old in 10 years, but you'll be young in 10 years."

"My father had a long, white beard, but that didn't stop me from loving him. My father lived to be 60. In my opinion, he was prettier than any young guy I've ever seen."

"Then tell me, do you think you're comfortable here?"

"Can I see you?"

"See you every day."

"Ah, then what do you mean by asking me, master?"

"I was afraid you would be bored."

"No, master, because in the morning I will think about your coming, and in the evening I can reminisce about your coming. Moreover, I have many important things to remember. I will see the huge picture again, and I will see Pindus in the distance. The mountains of central Greece. And the vastness of Mount Olympus. Also, the three emotions I always have in my heart and never get bored are sadness, love and gratitude."

"You are worthy of being a good girl from Epirus, Eddie, you are elegant and full of poetic charm. It can be seen that you are a descendant of the gods in your country. Don't worry, girl, I will definitely keep you young, because, If you love me like a father, I love you like a daughter."

"You are wrong, master. I love my father differently than I love you. My love for you is another kind of love. My father has passed away, but I am not dead, and you, I will die when you die."

The count smiled tenderly, and held out his hand to the girl, who took it and kissed it as usual.At this time, the earl was in the right mood to meet Morrel and his family, so he left Ede and chanted the ancient Greek poet Pindar (518-438 BC) softly while walking.The poem: "Youth is beautiful like a flower, which bears the fruit of love; the happy fruit picker, sees the sweet fruit gradually ripen before picking it."

According to the count's orders, the carriage was ready.The count got into the carriage, and the carriage drove off at once, as usual.

The Mozhanglers

In just a few minutes, the Earl arrived at No. 7 Melai Street.This is a small white and beautiful building. There is a courtyard in front of the building, and two small flower beds have been built, full of beautiful flowers.The count recognized Cocles as the porter who opened the door for him.But, the reader will recall, Cocles had only one eye, and the sight of that eye had been so much diminished for nine years that he did not recognize the Count.When the carriage drove to the gate of the building, it had to turn a corner first, and bypass the fountain piled with rockery.This embellishment is very gorgeous, and the residents in this area are very envious, so this small building has the reputation of "Little Palace of Versailles".Needless to say, groups of goldfish swim around in the pool, leisurely.

The basement floor of the small building is the kitchen and the cellar. In addition to the ground floor, there are rooms on the second floor and a top floor above.When the house was bought, there were attached buildings, including a large art workshop and two small buildings in the back half of the garden.Emmanuel saw at a glance that such a layout was a good profit. He reserved the main building and the front half of the garden for his own use, and separated them separately, that is, built a wall to separate the part he used from the workshop. Separated, the workshop, two small annex buildings and the garden on the side are rented out, so that they can not only live at a low cost, but also have their own private house like the most exquisite property owners in Saint-Germain.The dining room of the small building is paneled with oak, the drawing room has mahogany and blue velvet curtains, and the bedrooms are lemon wood and green brocade.There is also Emmanuel's study, but he is not a person who reads and writes, and Julie has her music parlor, but she does not understand music.The entire third floor was used by Maximilian. The layout of the room was exactly the same as that of his sister, except that the one in the dining room was converted into a billiard room for him to meet friends.

When the count's carriage pulled up at the door, Maximilian was smoking a cigar while attending to the servants washing his horse.As we have just said, Cocles opened the door, and Baptistan jumped out of the car and asked M. and Mrs. Ebo and Mr. Maximilian Morrel if they could see the Count of Monte Cristo.

"The Count of Monte Cristo!" cried Morrel, throwing away his cigar, and hastening to greet his visitor, "of course we want to see him! Oh, thank you, thank you very much, Monsieur Count, and thank you for remembering your promise." The matter." The young officer shook hands with the earl with enthusiasm, and the earl knew that it was all sincere, and he saw that they had long expected him and now received him with eagerness. "Come, come," said Maximilian, "I have come to introduce you. A guest like you should not be informed by a servant. My sister is pruning dead roses in the garden, and my brother-in-law is reading his La Presse and La Debate, they are together, where there is Mrs. Ebo, you will see Mr. Emmanuel within four meters, and vice versa, the Polytechnical School loves to say that. "

After hearing footsteps, a young woman looked up.She was about 20 or 25 years old, and she was wearing a satin nightgown, carefully pruning a beige rose.She was the lovely Julie, who was now the wife of Emmanuel Ebo, as the representatives of Thomson & French had predicted.She yelled when she saw someone new coming, which made Maximilian laugh. "Don't panic, sister," Maximilian said, "Mr. Earl has only been in Paris for two or three days, but he already knows the Marsh faction, the middle faction in the National Assembly during the French bourgeois revolution in the 18th century, also known as the "Plain faction". What kind of life should the wife of the annuity be like, if he doesn't know, you can come and tell him."

"Ah, monsieur," said Julie, "my brother brought you here regardless of my life or death, and he shows no kindness to his poor sister... Penelon! Penelon!"

An old man who was digging the soil for a Bengal rosebush dug his shovel into the soil, held his peaked cap in his hand, squeezed his mouth tightly, and pushed the chewing cigarette he was chewing to his cheek as far as possible.He still had thick hair, only a few strands had turned gray, his face was dark, and his eyes were resolute and piercing. At a glance, he could tell that he was an old sailor with a purple complexion after suffering from the equatorial sun and the stormy sea. "I seem to hear you calling me, Miss Julie," he said, "what's the matter?" Penelon continued to address his employer's daughter as Miss Julie, in accordance with the old habit, and always called Mrs. Ebo.

"Penelon," Julie said, "go and tell Monsieur Emmanuel that we have a distinguished guest. Maximilian, take the guest to the living room first." Then she turned to Monte Cristo and said, "Sir , please allow me to hide for a minute, okay?" But before the earl could answer, she quickly walked around behind the flower bed, and hurried upstairs from a side path.

"Oh, my dear Monsieur Morrel," said Monte Cristo, "I am sorry to think that I have made trouble in your house."

"Look over there," said Maximilian with a smile, "you see her husband is taking off his civilian clothes for a dress. Oh, you are known to the Rue de Melai, so you have already been notified. Believe me, I say." It's the truth."

"I can see, sir, that your family is very happy." The earl said along his own train of thought.

"Yes, you are quite right, Monsieur Count. There is nothing to say about it; they are already perfect and very happy. They are young, happy, and in love with each other. With an annuity of twenty-five thousand livres a year, they feel—in fact , they just brush aside thousands of warehouses and thousands of boxes, and they feel as rich as Rothgiard."

"A pension of twenty-five thousand livres is not much," said Monte Cristo, in such a gentle and gentle tone that Maximilian heard it, and it came to his heart like a father's voice, "but they still want to carry on the past, and they are still young." , will become a millionaire. Is your brother-in-law a lawyer or a doctor?"

(End of this chapter)