old man goriot

Chapter 26
"Who reported on me?" Ke Leng asked, scanning the crowd with terrifying eyes, and finally fell on Miss Mixunuo: "It's you," he said, "Old witch, you plot against me, what a stroke! In a word, your head will move in a week. But I'll spare you, I'm a Christian. Besides, it wasn't you who betrayed me. So who? Hey! Hey! You search upstairs," he said. Hearing the police officers rummaging through boxes and taking his things, he said loudly. "The bird moved its nest and flew away yesterday. You can't find anything. My account books are all here," he said, patting his forehead. "I know now who betrayed me. It can only be that bastard Silk Thread. Don't you, Mr. Captain?" he asked the Commissioner. "What a coincidence that our bills are here temporarily. There's nothing left, little spies. As for that fellow Silk Thread, he's going to die in a fortnight, and you sent all the gendarmes to protect him." No use. What did you give her, this Michnot chick?" He asked the policeman, "About three thousand francs? I was worth more than that at the time. Venus of the cemetery. If you send me a letter, you can get six thousand francs. Humph! You didn't expect that, old man who sells human flesh, I would rather do that. Yes, I would rather pay the money and save it It’s a hassle and a waste of money to travel all the way,” he said as he ordered people to put on handcuffs. "These fellows are going to have fun, and they'll drag me on and on. If I'm put in a cell right now, I'll be back to my old job in no time, and I won't be bothering with those fellows in Aufevre-sur-Pier. Brother over there. Even if they turn their souls upside down, they will let their benevolent elder brother, a good ghost, be fooled and fly away! Is there one of you like me, who has tens of thousands of brothers who are willing to work for you at any time?" He asked proudly. "There's still good here," he said, patting his heart. "I've never betrayed anyone! Now, witch, you see," he said to the old maid, "they all look at me in terror, but you can only Disgusting them. Go get your bounty."

He paused for a while, looking at the guests.

"Don't you stay, you people! Have you never seen a convict? A convict as strong as I, Corin, here, right in front of me, is not as spineless as others; the social contract proposed by Rousseau, someone Disappointed, I object to this; I am a Rousseauian, and I am proud of it. In short, the government and the courts, the gendarmes, the budgets up and down, I fight them single-handedly, and make them go round."

"Hey!" said the painter, "he is so beautiful that he can be painted."

"Tell me, you servant of the lord the hangman, you superintendent of the widow," (the widow was the terrible and poetic name given to the guillotine by the convicts), and turning to the prefect of police, he said, "be a good boy. Come on, tell me, is it the silk thread that betrayed me? I don't want him to suffer for someone else, it's not fair."

At this moment, the police officers, after rummaging through boxes and cabinets in his room and taking stock of everything, turned back and whispered to the leader of the operation.The transcript has been written.

"Gentlemen," said Collin to his guests, "they're taking me away. I'll remember the kindness everyone treated me when I lived here. Now I bid you farewell. I'll give you Sending figs from Provence." He took a few steps and looked back at Rastignac. "Good-bye, Eugene," said his voice, which was kind and forlorn, quite different from the rough tone of his tirade. "If you have any difficulties, I have left you a loyal friend." Although he was handcuffed, he could still put on a posture, just like a swordsmanship teacher, shouting: "One, two!" Then Take a step forward. "If you have any bad luck, just look for it. People and money are at your disposal."

The eccentric's last words were so comical that no one understood them except himself and Rastignac.After the gendarmes, sergeants, and policemen withdrew from the house, Sylvie looked at the stunned guests while rubbing vinegar on the temples of the mistress.

"Well," she said, "he was a good man after all."

The scene just now caused everyone to have mixed feelings, and they stood there in a daze, only to wake up when they heard Sylvie's words, they looked at me and I looked at you with scrutiny, and then they all saw Miss Mixunuo in unison. On her body, she was thin and cold, like a mummy, huddled next to the stove, her eyes drooping, for fear that the shadow of the brim of the hat would not cover the expression of her eyes.Everyone hated this face for a long time, and now they suddenly understood the reason.A murmur hummed in the room, in unison in voice and unanimity in disgust.Miss Mi Xunuo heard it, but stayed still.Bianchon was the first to turn sideways and whispered to the people next to him:

"If this woman eats at our table again, I'll have to move."

In a blink of an eye, everyone except Poiret agreed with the medical student's opinion, and Bianchon, seeing the support of everyone, walked towards the old tenant.

"You have a special friendship with Mademoiselle Michnot," he said to Poiret. "Go and tell her to move out at once."

"Soon?" repeated Poiret in surprise.

Then he came to the old girl and whispered something in her ear.

"I have paid all the money that should be paid. I am paying to live here, just like everyone else." She said and gave all the guests a poisonous look.

"It's nothing, we'll just pay you back," said Rastignac.

"Sir helping Coron," she echoed, casting a vicious and questioning glance at the student, "it's not hard to see why."

Eugene jumped up when he heard this, as if he was about to throw himself on the old girl and strangle her to death.He fully understood the sinisterness in Mi Xunuo's eyes, and those eyes had already illuminated his inner world extremely brightly.

"Don't pay attention to her," said the guests loudly.

Rastignac folded his arms and said nothing.

"We're going to settle with Mademoiselle Judas," said the painter to Madame Vauquer. "Madam, if you don't throw Michno out, we'll all move out and tell everyone that you live here either as spies or fugitives. On the contrary, we can keep silent about this matter, after all, it's the best thing to do." It is inevitable in other places, unless the foreheads of the convicts are tattooed, so that they cannot pretend to be citizens of Paris, and cannot make a fool of themselves like they are now."

Hearing these words, Madame Vauquer was surprisingly excited again. She stood up, embraced her arms, and opened a pair of bright eyes without any trace of tears.

"Well, my dear sir, do you want my apartment to be closed? And now M. Vautrin... oh my God," she said to herself, breaking off, "he is pretending to be a good man, and I am Blunted it!" She said again, "I have already vacated one house, and you want me to vacate two more for rent, everyone is set to live in this season."

"Gentlemen, let's put on our hats and go to the restaurant Friguteau on the Sorbonne," said Bianchon.

As soon as Madame Vauquer rolled her eyes, she figured out the best strategy, and hurriedly came to Miss Michno.

"Well, dear little beauty, you're not going to bring my flat down, are you? Look at these gentlemen, I'm cornered; you go upstairs to your room tonight."

"No, no," cried the guests, "we want her to move out at once."

"She hasn't even eaten, poor lady," said Poiret pitifully.

"She can eat wherever she likes," several voices cried.

"Get out, female spy!"

"All spies get out!"

"Gentlemen," cried Poiret, plucking up his courage like a ram in heat, "you must respect women."

"What gender is the secret agent?" the painter asked.

"What a Sex Rama!"

"Get out of Rama!"

"Gentlemen, this is outrageous. You have to be polite to ask someone to walk. We have paid the money, but we will not go." Poiret put on his peaked cap and sat down on a chair next to Mademoiselle Michno; Mrs. Gai was trying to persuade her from the side.

"You are wicked," said the painter to Poiret in a sly manner, "you little rascal, to hell with you!"

"Okay, if you don't go, then let's go." Bianxun said.

The guests rushed towards the living room in a swarm.

"What do you want, Mademoiselle?" cried Madame Vauquer. "I'm bankrupt. You can't stay, they'll come."

Miss Mixuno stood up.

"She's leaving!"

"She won't go!"

"She's leaving!"

"She won't go!"

These two sentences were yelled in turn, and everyone began to insult her, forcing Miss Mixunuo to negotiate with the landlady in a low voice, and had to leave.

"I'm going to Madame Binot's apartment," she said menacingly.

"You can go wherever you like, madam," said Madame Vauquer. She felt that the other party's choice was a great insult to herself. The apartment was her competitor, so she hated it very much. "Go to Pinot's place." Let's go drink the wine that even jumps up the goats, and eat the vegetables bought at the food stalls."

All the guests stood in two rows in silence.Poiret looked affectionately at Mademoiselle Michno, hesitating and naive, not knowing whether he should go with her or stay.All the guests were very happy to see that Miss Mixunuo was leaving, but now they saw him like this again, so you looked at me and I looked at you, and laughed loudly.

"Hey, hey, hey, Poiret," cried the painter to him, "come, go, go!"

The museum staff sang the beginning of a famous lyrical song in a strange voice:
handsome young dunoit,
Off to Syria...

"Go ahead, you're so excited, trahit sua quemque volupt as[78]," said Bianchon.

"This famous poem by Virgil, translated into the vernacular, means that everyone follows his lover." The tutor said.

Mademoiselle Michnot looked at Poiret, and made a gesture to take his arm; Poiret, unable to resist the call, went to the old maid for support.Immediately, everyone applauded vigorously and laughed loudly.

"Well done, Poiret!"

"That old Poiret!"

"Lord Poiret!"

"Boalai, God of War!"

"Brave Poiret!"

At this moment a servant came in and handed Madame Vauquer a letter.After reading the letter, she slumped on the chair.

"My flat nearly burned down. What a thunderbolt. Tayfan's son died at three o'clock. I wished for those two ladies and cursed the poor boy, and now I've got what I deserve." Mrs. Teal and Vedole asked me for my luggage to move to her father's. Mr. Tayfan agreed that his daughter should keep Widow Couture as company. Four flats are empty and five less tenants!"

She sat up straight as if she was about to cry.

"Unlucky star has entered my door!" she shouted.

Suddenly there was the sound of a carriage coming to a stop in the street.

"It's bad luck again," Sylvie said.

Goriot suddenly appeared, radiant and beaming, as if rejuvenated.

"Goriot in the car!" said the guests, "it's the end of the world."

Eugene was dreaming in a corner at this time, and Old Man Goriot went straight to him and took his arm. "Come on." Old Man Gao said to him excitedly.

"You don't know what has happened, do you?" Eugene said to him. "Vautrin is a fugitive who has just been arrested; Taipan's son is dead."

"Hey! What does this have to do with us?" Old Man Goriot continued. "I want to eat with my daughter. I'm with you. Do you hear me? She's waiting for you. Come!"

He tugged on Rastignac's arm as if he had taken him as a mistress.

"Let's eat," cried the painter.

At this point everyone pulls out their chairs and sits down at the table.

"Oh," said the fat Sylvie, "everything is not going well today, and my roast lamb with green beans is sticking to the pan. Forget it! Just eat the burnt ones, bad luck!"

Madame Vauquer saw that only ten people were seated at the usual table of eighteen people, and she had no courage to speak; but everyone tried to comfort her and make her happy.At first the hostess talked about Vautrin and the events of the day, and soon the conversation moved on to duels, penal camps, justice, prison cells, laws to be revised, and so on.Speaking of later, with Jacques Collin, Vidoline and her brother, they have already left thousands of miles away.Ten of them screamed louder than twenty, which seemed to be more than usual; the difference between today and yesterday's dinner was nothing more than that.This selfish group has returned to its indifferent normalcy, and will find another target in the daily events of Paris tomorrow.Even Madame Vauquer hoped to calm down at the words of fat Sylvie.

The day and the evening seemed to Eugene a series of grotesque visions; for though he was strong in character and clear in his mind, he did not know how to organize his thoughts; Beside old man Goriot, the old man talked endlessly, with unusual joy, and those words reached his ears, as if he heard them in a dream.

"Everything is ready this morning. The three of us are going to dine together, together! Do you understand? I haven't dined with my Danfina in four years, my little Danfina Now I've had her all evening. We've been with you since morning, and I take off my coat and work like a laborer; helping to move the furniture. Ah! Ah! You don't know she's at the dinner table How cute it is, she would greet me: 'Here, Daddy, you eat this, it's delicious.' But I can't eat it. Oh! It's been so long, I haven't been able to talk to her like tonight Together!"

"Why," said Eugene to him, "is the world really turned upside down today?"

"What turned around?" said old man Goriot, "but the world has never been better. All I see on the street are happy faces, everyone shaking hands and hugging; everyone is happy, as if they are going to have their daughter It’s like having a nice meal at home; she is my manager who orders dishes for the English Café. Hey! By her side, Coptis chinensis will be as sweet as honey.”

"I feel like I'm alive again." Eugene said.

"Hey, coachman, let's go," the old man Gao opened the front glass window and shouted, "Run faster, you know the place, I will deliver it in ten minutes, and I will give you five francs for the drink." The coachman heard him drive At this point, he drove through the city of Paris at a fast speed.

"He can't walk, the coachman." Old Man Gao muttered.

"Where are you taking me?" Rastignac asked him.

"Go to your place." Old Man Gao said.

The carriage stopped at the Rue d'Artois.The old man got out of the car first and threw ten francs to the coachman. He spent a lot of money.

"Well, let's go up to the house." And he led Rastignac across a courtyard to the back of a beautiful new house and up to a doorway on the fourth floor.

Old Man Goriot did not need to ring the bell. Therese, Madame de Nucingen's maid, opened the door for them.Eugene found himself in an exquisite bachelor's suite, consisting of an entrance hall, a small living room, a bedroom, and a study facing the garden.The furnishing of the small drawing-room fully rivals that of the prettiest and most elegant drawing-rooms.Under the candlelight, Eugene saw Dafina stand up from the double sofa by the fireplace, put the heat insulating fan in his hand on the mantelpiece, and said to him affectionately:
"I still have to pick it up, sir, I really don't understand the reason."

Therese walked out.The college student threw his arms around Danfina and hugged him tightly, weeping with joy.The many stressful events of the day had exhausted him physically and mentally, and in contrast to what he saw, Rastignac had a nervous breakdown.

"I've known for a long time that he loves you." Old Man Goriot whispered to his daughter; at this moment, Eugene collapsed on the sofa exhaustedly, unable to utter a word, and could not understand what the last vision was. How did it come about.

"Come and see," Madame de Nucingen said to him, and taking him by the hand, she led him into a bedroom whose carpet, furniture, and details reminded him of that of Danfina. , but scaled down.

(End of this chapter)