His Excellency the Count of Grandet

In Saumur in mid-November, the weather is already very cold.Although it is not to the extent that dripping water turns into ice, it has reached the time stipulated by Grandet's father that a fireplace can be built at home to keep warm.

Eugenie was sitting in her little armchair, her face flushed in the light of the fire.At first glance, it looks like she is embroidering a cross-stitch collar; but in fact, as long as you notice her fluttering eyelashes, you will know that her mind has long since stopped sewing.

After Charles left, Eugenie and Madame Grandet would go to the Abbey of Noires every year to help Nanon harvest the grapes.This period of time is very busy, so she doesn't have much time to think about other things.

It was not until the grapes were in the cellar that Eugenie resumed her usual sewing.Her heart and eyes are full of Charles, a fashionable and polite young Parisian who fits all her fantasies about the other half.Especially in the sharp contrast with the sloppy, staid and boring mainlanders, Shire's image is even more outstanding.

So in the past two months, the only thing she cared about was when her dear cousin would return to Paris.If the time is right, maybe her cousin can accompany her on her birthday!She didn't care about other things, such as Papa's grape business, the courtesies of Cruchot's and Grassin's.

We have to say that this kind of unrequited love and expectation not only did not make Eugenie become haggard, but made her radiant day by day-although she is no longer a girl in terms of age; but in fact In reality, her first love relationship was so clean and pure that she looked much younger and more cheerful.Slowly becoming likable is a process that is difficult to describe, but it is displayed perfectly in her from the inside out.

Even the picky Mrs. Grassin had to admit in private that the current Eugenie really has some qualities that make a man's heart beat - which man doesn't enjoy being loved by a woman wholeheartedly?Besides, Eugenie just doesn't know how to dress up (mainly because she doesn't have the conditions), and she isn't really ugly.

"It's not a good thing," she said to her husband, "that little Eugenie is completely captivated by her cousin. How long has that pompous Parisian boy been here?"

Mr. Grassin, a tall and strong man, was from the army. He didn't think much about it, so he didn't take it seriously. "A Parisian like him has seen eight hundred if not a thousand women, all of whom are eloquent and well-dressed. How could he fall in love with Eugenie? Besides, Father Grandet doesn't let his daughter marry so easily. go out."

The latter sentence is the complete truth.If it weren't for Grandet's intention to hang their appetites, why did the Cruchots and the Grassinists have been fighting openly and secretly for many years? "That's true," she said with a nod, happily. "It seems that the boy has wasted his time." She inquired about the gift from Charles from Mrs. Grandet. Of course, he thought that Charles was trying to please his uncle's family.

Mr. Grassin let out a heavy breath through his nose, and snorted: "I don't know the heights and depths of the boy! Throwing the meat into Grandet's mouth is better than throwing it into the water! At least the ones behind can still hear it!"

The residents of the entire city of Saumur have suffered more or less from Grandet, and so has Mr. Grassin.But even so, in order for his son to marry Eugenie and obtain that large fortune, he would never show his face to Grandet at this time.

Madame de Grassin could not have agreed more with this statement. "It's true. But then again, do we still have to wait for Shire to come back? If it's any later, I'm afraid those foreigners on the pier will leave." Women don't care about things, and she knows that this is rare .

The Grassin family is one of those vineyard owners who are hoarding goods to wait for the price to rise; Mr. Grassin feels that the sale of Shire is so sure that there is no need to consider it at all.So his answer to this was: "Isn't Father Grandet also watching? Follow him, that's right."

So Madame de Grassin completely let go of her heart and began to prepare for Eugenie's birthday party - this is the only chance in a year for their family and the Cruchot family to receive an invitation and enter the Grandet's house in a legitimate way.Everyone knows that this is the best time to show her best in front of Eugenie. Of course, she can't let her son lose to the nephew of the president of the Cruchot family!

But neither the couple could have expected that on the day after their conversation, Grandet sold all the wine in his hand at two hundred francs a barrel.The buyer was from the Netherlands and was already the only foreigner who persisted to the end in Saumur.The remaining buyers are small customers with almost negligible purchasing power.

The entire city of Saumur was in an uproar, and it is not an exaggeration to describe it as an earthquake.

Did you agree that everyone would not sell it together?Grandet actually secretly sold the wine before them, again!Can you still have fun?

At this time, some people still have a kind of meager expectation in their hearts, that is, Shire who has not yet appeared.But on the day the Dutch set sail, heartbreaking news came from the West—

Charles bought four vineyards in Bordeaux, covering an area of ​​more than one hundred hectares!Among them, a manor had already signed a contract in September, and it was only because it was not suppressed when it was purchased again in October that it spread along with it.

I bought a lot of vineyards secretly, so what if the wine is also bought secretly?

Just as Charles expected, the hoarding vineyard owners panicked after hearing the news, and the price of wine fell again and again, approaching the one hundred franc mark.Saumur, who had suffered a double blow, fell especially hard, and the price of the barrel was now less than ninety francs.

After selling his wine, Father Grandet had already seen this scene happen.His hobby now is to go to the market every day (his face is invulnerable), and then inform his wife and daughter of the latest prices-he makes no secret of his schadenfreude in front of his family.

"I think they are very difficult to sell," he said to Madame Grandet that day, with a smug tone, "no one bought it! They are all waiting for Charles, but I want to say that I am willing to believe in a Paris who has just grown up. If you are a kid, you are doing it yourself!"

According to his thinking, Charles didn't say where to buy wine; this time, it was definitely Bordeaux.Buying wine in Bordeaux is expensive and difficult to transport, no smart person would do it - but it's Shire's money, so what does it matter to him?

Madame Grandet never understood business, and when she heard it, she could only silently cross herself for Saumur and the others.Eugenie didn't care at first, but when her father mentioned Charles, she pricked up her ears: "If my cousin came back at this time, wouldn't he be able to buy cheap wine?" Saumur was all the rage, and of course she knew it.The innocent girl doesn't understand the stakes at all, she just hopes that everything goes well for her sweetheart.

After a big business deal, Grandet can be happy for a month.So he didn't notice the tendency in his daughter's words at this time, and only said happily: "I think he has forgotten what he said. Maybe my good nephew stayed so comfortably in Bordeaux that he forgot the time to go back ; At that time, he may have to run all the way back to Paris, maybe!"

Eugenie paled instantly.She had heard Charles say that he would go back to Saumur!How could her cousin lie to her?impossible!

If it weren't for the concern that Grandet was walking around near her, her reaction would definitely be more than that.Sensing her mood, Madame Grandet held her hand quietly, both as a reminder and as a comfort.

After a momentary blankness, Eugenie collected herself. "He hasn't come back yet," she said, trying to find reasons to refute Grandet from all aspects she could think of, "but it doesn't take much time to pass by Saumur!" She didn't ask for more, just Just let her look at Charles; is this wish also in vain?

"Come on," Grandet sneered at his daughter's naive thoughts, "do you see how his servant's nostrils are turned upside down? He's still staying in a hotel - imagine Charles' reaction to our family! To him What is the attraction of Saumur?"

Eugenie found herself unable to refute.Because that's what she's always worried about, that she's totally unworthy of Shire.But she still didn't give up, she opened her mouth and said slowly, "Didn't he want to buy wine?"

"I'm afraid I bought it in Bordeaux long ago?" Grandet poked mercilessly. "I must say that if he wants to collect wine, now is a good time; but he is still thousands of miles away..."

The words stopped abruptly.Grandet was like a duck whose trachea was suddenly choked, with his tongue gaping and his eyes wide open.Three seconds later, he cursed loudly and went out at once.He left in such haste that he forgot to put on his duffel wide-brimmed priest cap which he never left.

Charles is not in Saumur, yes; but he is not the only one who can buy wine!

This change was so sudden that Grandet, mother and daughter looked at each other in blank dismay.Eugenie secretly prayed in her heart that her father's anger would not affect Charles, but neither she nor Madame Grandet expected at this time that Charles was shrewd enough to make the name of Grandet famous throughout the country, so how could it be true? What about his uncle who is afraid of him?