Count of Monte Cristo Chapter 066 Marriage Plan Tenglar attacked the interior with excitement and fierceness

The day after this scene, at the time when Debray had come to visit Madame Tenglar as usual on his way to his office, his two-man carriage did not appear in the vestibule. At about half past twelve, Madame Tenglar ordered the carriage to go out. Danglar hid behind a window curtain, watching the outing he had expected. He instructed his servants to come and inform Madame Tenglar as soon as she returned home, but she did not return until two o'clock. So he ordered the horse to ride to the House of Commons, and wrote his name on the speech form. From twelve o'clock to two o'clock he stayed in his study, unwrapped the letters, stacking the numbers one by one, and his heart became more and more depressed. He received a number of guests, among them Major Cavalcanti. The Major was still as old-fashioned and rigorous as he usual, and he happened to come to visit at the agreed time the night before to settle his business with the banker. Tenglar appeared unusually agitated at the meeting, attacking the Interior Ministry more violently than usual, and then, when leaving the House of Commons and getting into the carriage, he told the coachman to drive to twenty Champs Elysées.

Monte Cristo was at home, but he was talking to a guest and asked Tenglar to wait in the living room for a while. While waiting, the door opened and a priest in a long robe came in, who was undoubtedly more familiar with the master than he was, and he did not wait, but bowed, and continued to the room inside. A minute later, the door where the priest had entered opened again, and Monte Cristo came out. "I'm sorry," he said, "my dear Baron, my friend Father Bouchani, maybe you just saw him passing by here, he had just arrived in Paris. Since I haven't seen him for a long time, I talked to him for a while, and you waited for a long time. Hope you understand this excuse. ”

"Nothing," said Tenglar, "it was my fault, I chose the wrong time to visit, and I voluntarily withdrew." ”

"Please don't go, on the contrary, please sit." What's wrong with you? You look preoccupied. I'm worried about you! For when a capitalist is worried, like the appearance of a comet, it heralds some kind of catastrophe in the world. ”

"I've had bad luck these days," Said Tenglar, "and I've always heard only bad news." ”

"Ah, really!" Monte Cristo said, "Have you planted another heel in the stock exchange?" ”

"No, I can at least get a little compensation for that. My current troubles are caused by the collapse of a bank in Trieste. ”

"Really!" Is the bank you're referring to that collapsed one Yagb Manfrey's? ”

"A good point. If you think about it, this gentleman and I have been in business for an unknown number of years, and the amount of annual transactions reaches eight or nine hundred thousand. There was never a mistake or a delay in date, and the payment was as cheerful as a prince. Well, I paid him a million in advance, and now my good gentleman, Jacob Manfrey, has deferred the payment! ”

"Really?"

"Such unfortunate things are unheard of. I took six hundred thousand livres from him, and my ticket was not converted into cash and was returned. In addition, I have in my hand the bills of exchange for which he has issued four hundred thousand francs, which expire at the end of this month and are accepted by his Paris Commissioner. Today is the thirtieth day. I sent someone to him to cash in, and when I saw it, the commissioner was gone! This incident, coupled with the blow that the events in Spain struck me, made my situation at the end of this month worth seeing. ”

"So did you really lose a lot in that Spanish incident?"

"Yes, I lost seven hundred thousand francs.

"Well, how could you have taken the wrong step, an old fox spirit like you?"

"Oh, it's all my wife's fault. She dreamed that Monsieur Carlos had returned to Spain, and she believed it. It's a magnetic phenomenon, she said. When she dreamed of something that was bound to happen, she informed me. In this belief, I allowed her to do speculative business. She had her bank and her securities broker, and she speculated and lost money. Of course, the money she speculated on was her own, not mine, but you know that when the seven hundred thousand francs left his wife's purse, the husband always knew it. Haven't you heard anyone talk about it? Hmm, this has made a lot of noise that no one knows! ”

"Yes, I've heard it, but I don't know the details. No one can be more ignorant of what's going on the stock exchange than I am. ”

"So you don't do speculative business?"

"Me? I'm troublesome enough just to manage my income, so why bother to speculate? In addition to my housekeeper, I had to hire an accountant and a young fellow, and as for the Spanish affair, I suppose, the story of Mr. Carlos's return, the baroness was not entirely a dream. It was talked about in the newspapers too, wasn't it? ”

"So do you trust the newspaper?"

"Me? I don't believe it at all, but I think the faithful Izvestia is an exception, and all it publishes is true news, news from the Urgent Press. ”

"By the way, that's why I don't understand that," replied Tenglar, "and the news of Mr. Carlos's return is indeed from the Emergency Bureau. ”

"Well," said Monte Cristo, "you lost almost one and a half million francs this month!" ”

"Honestly, it's not almost the same, I did lose so much."

"Oops!" Monte Cristo said sympathetically, "This is a very powerful blow to a third-class rich man." ”

"Third-class rich man," said Tenglar, feeling a little humiliated, "what do you mean by that?" ”

"Of course Rom," said Monte Cristo, "I divide the rich into third class, first class, second class, third class. Whoever has treasure in his hands, who has minerals, fields, and immovable property in countries such as France, Austria, and England, and whose total treasure and property is about ten million or so, I call them the richest men of the first class. Whoever is a major shareholder of a manufacturing or joint-stock company, a governor with a certain heavy responsibility, a small prince, with an annual income of one and a half million francs and a total asset of about fifty million, is called a second-class rich man. Finally, all the small shareholders whose assets are scattered in various enterprises, who make money by his will or opportunity, who cannot withstand the collapse of banks, who cannot withstand the rapid changes in the times, whose increase or decrease of property depends solely on speculation, who are dominated by the law of nature in which big fish eat small fish, and whose total virtual real capital is about fifteen million or so, and I call them third-class richmen. I guess your situation is probably the last one, right? ”

"It's bad here!" yes! Tenglar replied.

"Then, in another six months like this," said Monte Cristo quietly, "a third-class rich man will despair." ”

"Oh," said Tenglar, his face turning very pale, "how fast are you talking!" ”

"Let us imagine these seven months," Continued Monte Cristo in the same calm tone, "tell me, have you ever thought that seven times one hundred and seventy thousand is almost twelve million?" No? Well, you're right, because if you reflect on it this way, you will never risk your capital, because it is like the skin and flesh of civilized people to speculators. We all wear clothes, and some people's clothes are more gorgeous than others'. - This is something we can see for all to see. But when a man dies, he is left with only flesh and skin. Similarly, when you leave the mall, you will only have five or six million real money left, because the actual assets of the third-class rich man will never exceed a quarter of what he appears to be. Like the locomotive on a railway, it is particularly large because of the volume surrounded by soot and vapor. Well, of your five or six million real money, you've just lost almost two million, and that's bound to reduce your credit and fictitiousness accordingly, and according to my analogy, your flesh is already cracking and bleeding. If you repeat this three or four times, you will die. yes! You must pay attention to it, my dear Mr. Tenglar. Do you need money? Do you want me to lend you some? ”

"Your words as a calculator are truly disheartening," said Tenglar loudly, trying to pretend not to care, and to prop himself up with all kinds of optimistic thoughts. "I also have successful speculative trading to make money, and I can increase nutrition to make up for the loss of heavy bleeding." I lost the war in Spain, I lost a lot in Trieste, but my navy would capture large merchant ships in India, and my Mexican advance team would find mineral deposits. ”

"Superb! Great! But the wound is still there, and the old disease will recur as soon as it is lost. ”

"No, it won't! "Because I only make ten-for-ten deals," Tenglar replied with the cheap eloquence of a charlatan blowing conch. "To bring me down, three governments must fall."

"Hey, this kind of thing has happened too!"

"It must be in the dirt that can't grow crops!"

"Remember the story of seven years of harvest and seven years of famine."

"It must be the sea that suddenly withers dry, as it was in the days of the Pharaohs. But there are still many seas, and even if you encounter such accidents, you can change the boats into vehicles. ”

"That's fine! "I wish you well, my dear Mr. Tenglar," said Monte Cristo. "I think I made a mistake, you should be listed as a second-class rich man."

"I suppose I might get that honor," said Tenglar, smiling a little, reminiscent of monte Cristo the kind of sick moon that painters often liked to paint along with the ruins. "Now that we're talking about business," he added, glad to have been given a chance to change the subject, "tell me, what should I do with Mr. Cavalcanti?" ”

"Give him money, if the note he gives you seems reliable."

"Very reliable! He himself this morning brought a cheque for forty thousand francs, which Was written to you by Father Bouchani and forwarded to me after you signed it. It was a cheque that was paid on hand, and I immediately gave him the number of bills of forty thousand francs. ”

Monte Cristo nodded in approval.

"And," said Tenglar again, "he opened an account in my bank for his son. ”

"May I ask him how much money he allowed the young man to spend?"

"Five thousand francs a month."

"Sixty thousand francs a year." I expected Cavalcanti to be a miserly person. How does a young man live for five thousand francs a month? ”

"You know, if that young man wanted to have a few thousand more."

"Don't overdraft him, the old one will never admit it." You don't understand the temper of these Italian rich men, they are complete scrooges. Which bank issued the power of attorney? ”

"Oh, it was opened by the Bank of Forji, which is the best credit in Florence."

"I'm not saying you're going to suffer, but I have to remind you that you have to stick to the terms of the commission."

"So don't you trust Kavalkanti?"

"Me? Oh, as long as he signs a word, I don't have a problem paying him six million in advance. I'm just referring to the second-class rich guys we just mentioned. ”

"Although he is very rich, he is so plain and simple! I always thought he was just a major. ”

"You're complimenting him, because it's true that, as you say, he's not very personable. When I first met him, I thought he looked like an old lieutenant. But the Italians are like this, and when they are not as radiant as the saints of the East, they look like old Jewish men. ”

"That young man is better." Tenglar said.

"Yeah, maybe a little neurotic, but by and large, he seems perfect. I'm a little worried about him. ”

"Why?"

"Because it is said that the day you met him at my house, he was still the first time he stepped into the social world. He used to travel, always with a very strict governess, and had never been to Paris. ”

"These Italian aristocrats all intermarried with each other in their own class, didn't they?" Tenglar asked casually, "They like door-to-door marriages." ”

"Of course Ronaldo, generally speaking, is like this, but Cavalcanti is a man of extraordinary vision, and he is different from others in everything. I thought he had brought his son to France to choose a daughter-in-law. ”

"Do you think so?"

"I'm sure so."

"Have you ever heard anyone mention his property?"

"I always hear people talk about that, but some people say he has millions, while others say he doesn't even take advantage of the eldest son."

"What do you think?"

"I shouldn't have influenced you, because that's just my personal feeling."

"Well, your opinion is"

"My opinion is that these border generals, these thrifty envoys. It should be known that Cavalcanti once commanded a large army and sat in several provinces. Their millions of possessions were hidden in secret corners, and this secret was passed down only to his eldest son, who passed it on from generation to generation, and the evidence was that they were all dry and withered, like the gold coins of the Republic, and the more they looked, the more they looked. ”

"Of course, Luo," said Tenglar, "another piece of evidence is that they don't own even an inch of land." ”

"Or, to say, very little, I don't know if he has any other property besides his mansion in Lucca."

"Ah! Does he have a great summer? Tenglar chuckled and said, "Oh, that's worth a few bucks." ”

"Yes, even better, he rented it out to the Finance Minister while he himself lived in a very simple house. oh! I've said to you before that I think that nice guy is very stingy! ”

"Well, don't brag about it for him."

"I can almost say I don't know him. I remember seeing him three times in my life. Everything about him was told to me by Father Bouchani and himself. The priest told me this morning about the plan that Cavalcanti had made on behalf of his son, and that Cavalconti did not want his property to be lost in Italy any longer, that it was a dead place, and that he was anxious to find a way to go to France or England and turn over his millions. Remember, although I have great trust in Father Bouchani, I am not responsible for the truth or falsity of this news. ”

"It's okay, thank you for introducing me to customers. He added a lot to my list of customers. When I explained Cavalcanti's identity to my cashier, he was also proud. Slowly, by the way, I have a question for you, when someone like him marries his son, do they want to give them a little property? ”

"Oh, it depends. I know an Italian prince who is as rich as a gold mine and one of the noblest nobles in Tuscany. If his son's marriage was in accordance with his wishes, he would give them millions, and if their marriage was something he did not approve of, he would give them only thirty abodes a month. If Andrei's marriage had been in keeping with his father's wishes, he might have given him a million, two million, or three million. For example, it was the daughter of a banker, and he could invest something in his own bank. And if the future daughter-in-law doesn't like him, then goodbye. The old man of Cavalcanti would take the key, and his little silver vault would be locked firmly, so that Monsieur André would have to live by playing cards and rolling dice, as the idiots of Paris did. ”

"Ah! The lad would find a Bavarian or Peruvian princess, and he wanted a very rich and famous nobleman. ”

"No, these great nobles on the other side of the Alps often intermarried with commoners, and like Jupiter, they liked interracial marriages. But, my dear Mr. Tenglar, you have asked so many questions, do you want to marry Andrey? ”

"Tell the truth!" "This speculative business doesn't seem to be bad, and you know I'm a speculator," Mr. Tenglar said. ”

"I suppose you are not referring to Miss Tenglar." You wouldn't want to see that poor Andre cut his throat by Albert, would you? ”

"Albert!" Tenglar shrugged and said, "Ah, yes, I think he doesn't care much about it. ”

"But isn't he already engaged to Ling Ai?"

"Of course, Mr. Marsef and I had talked about the marriage, but Madame Marcefe and Albert..."

"Wouldn't you say it wasn't a door-to-door pair?"

"Indeed, I suppose Miss Tanglar is no less than Monsieur Malcerf."

"There is no doubt that Miss Tenglar's possessions will not be less in the future, especially if nothing goes wrong with the Emergency."

"Oh! I'm not just referring to her possessions, but please let me know..."

"What?"

"Why don't you invite the Malcerfs?"

"I asked, but he pushed back that Madame Marcefe had to go to Dieppe to breathe the fresh seaside air and therefore could not come."

"Yes, yes," said Danglar with a laugh, "that would be of great benefit to her." ”

"Because that's the air she breathed in her youth." Monte Cristo pretended not to notice the words that shook his heartstrings and let it slip past.

"But suppose Albert is not as rich as Miss Tenglar," said the Count, "you must admit that their men are very good, right?" ”

"His door is good, but my one is not bad either."

"Of course, Your last name is common, and you have a knighthood, but you are a wise man, and of course you will not be unaware: there is a deep-seated prejudice that a nobleman with a history of five centuries is more famous than a nobleman of only twenty years of history."

"It is for this very reason," said Tenglar with a self-righteous ironic smile, "that I would rather have Monsieur Andrei Kavalconti than Mr. Albert Marsef." ”

"But I don't think Marcef is inferior to Khavar kandi."

"Marsef! "Come slowly, my dear Count," said Tenglar, "you are also a wise man, are you?" ”

"That's what I think myself."

"Do you know genealogy?"

"A little bit of understanding."

"Oh, look at my coat of arms, it's more valuable than Marseff."

"How could it be?"

"Because, although I am not a hereditary baron, at least I am really surnamed Tenglar."

"Well, so what?"

"And his last name is not Marsef."

"What, not Marseuff?"

"It's not touching at all."

"Oh, please be clear!"

"My baron is a baron, so I'm a baron." And he was the earl he called himself, so he was not a count at all. ”

"It's simply impossible!"

"Listen to me, my dear Count, that Marsef is my friend, to be more precise, an old acquaintance of mine for the past thirty years. You know, I'm fighting for my fame and my status, but I've never forgotten where I came from. ”

"It's a very humble or very arrogant demeanor." Monte Cristo said.

"Well, when I was a company clerk, Marcef was just a fisherman."

"He was called..."

"Fernando."

"Just Fernando?"

"Fernando Montego."

"Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

"I don't think I could go wrong! Because I bought a lot of fish from him, I knew his name. ”

"Then why did you think of giving Ling Ai to his son?"

"Because both Fernando and Tenggral were upstarts, both became aristocrats and became rich, so they were all the same, but in some things, some people mentioned him, but never talked about me." 」

"What?"

"Oh, nothing!"

"Ah, yes! Your words remind me of a story about Fernando Montego as a man. I heard about it in Greece. ”

"Did that matter concern Governor Ali?"

"A good point."

"It's a mystery," Said Tenglar, "and I confess that I am willing to find out the truth about it at any cost." ”

"If you really want to do that, it's easy."

"You probably have a bank in Greece, right?"

"Absolutely."

"What about Yaninah?"

"Everywhere."

"That would be easy, write a letter to your bank in Yanina and ask them what role a Frenchman named Fernando Montego played during the time of Ali Tiebelin's death."

"You're right," said Tanglar, standing up at once, "I'll write it today." ”

"Write it."

"I'll write it."

"If you hear something that is truly dishonorable..."

"I'll tell you."

"Thank you."

Tenglar hurried out of the room and jumped into his carriage.