Miss Eugenie Grandet

Amidst the discussions among the residents of Saumur, Eugenie set off again and boarded the carriage to Paris.After arriving in Paris, she rejected Mirell's move to send her to the Elysee Palace, which was originally called the Bourbon Mansion, which became the residence of Napoleon's brother-in-law during the First Empire.According to Mirell, the Elysee Palace is now vacant, and the emperor had intended to give it to the Duke of Montebello, but he seemed not very interested and did not accept the reward.

Like the previous few times, Eugenie still stayed at the Polly Hotel.Now, everyone in the hotel, from the manager to the porter, knew Eugenie.Knowing that she is not only in contact with the Rochelle family, but also the guest of the Duke of Montebello, who is the most popular in Paris social circles recently-the last time a few months ago, if she could stay in Paris for a few more days, she would have already Received an invitation to a banquet from the Duke of Montebello.

The doorman opened the door for her respectfully, and Rant ran over quickly to help her carry her luggage, and led her to the room where she stayed.

After arriving in Paris, Eugenie knew that she had come early.The award ceremony in the palace will be held a week later. At that time, some people like her will accept the emperor's canonization as new nobles.As for why she was invited here so early, according to Mirell, it was to give her time to fully prepare - when he said this, he tried not to show any strange expression, but his eyes passed over Eugenie When wearing that skirt, he still slightly revealed his thoughts at the moment.

Eugenie naturally understood what he was thinking—she was indeed not prepared to become the focus of attention of the entire palace because of what she was wearing, so before the ceremony started, she had to get herself an outfit that could meet the general aesthetic taste of the upper class , is still very necessary.

When we arrived that day, it was already night.Eugenie was also very tired from the bumpy journey of the past few days.After taking a bath, she lay down early to sleep.

Everything was normal, until when she was asleep, she was suddenly awakened by a dull explosion that seemed to come from the ground.

When the explosion reached the floor where she lived, the sound was not loud, but it still alarmed almost the entire hotel—considering that during the First Empire, there were bombings caused by the opposition all over Paris. It is natural for everyone to be alarmed at breaking the precedent of various celebrations.When Eugenie opened the door, she saw many disturbed residents running around in a panic in the corridor, and a certain gentleman was even naked, with only a sheet wrapped around him...

The hotel manager quickly came up to apologize, saying that it was just an accident in the basement boiler room that provided laundry and hot water for the entire hotel—it was just a small accident, and he had already dealt with it quickly. Please don’t panic, just go back to your room.

Amidst the complaints of the residents, Eugenie closed the door and went back to sleep.

The next morning, Rant brought breakfast to Eugenie's room.Eugenie asked him which women's clothing store in Paris was more famous, and Lante immediately recommended it warmly, saying that there was a row of high-end tailors on Rue Richelieu, and he was very happy to take her there.

"Miss Grandet, I can assure you that with Mrs. Diderot's haute couture, you will definitely become the most eye-catching lady in the palace - I will never deceive you, even though her price is high It’s a little bit, but many ladies and first-timers have their clothes made by her.”

Eugenie thanked him for his advice—she knew that hotel bellboys like Lant were usually associated with a certain Parisian fashion house, and when he succeeded in infusing the longings of a foreigner into a Parisian fashionable When the money country woman is sent to the tailor shop, the tailor shop will usually pay him a fee according to the amount consumed by the customer-however, she doesn't mind letting Rand earn this little money, after all, she does provide herself with convenience.

Lante was very happy, and served more attentively, "Miss, were you also shocked by the explosion last night? I'm really sorry. But I can guarantee that such things will never happen again in the future. The guy who caused the accident has been fired by the manager!"

Eugenie snorted, "The commotion was really loud, what happened at that time?"

Seeing Miss Grandet's question, Lante immediately explained.

It turned out that the cause of the accident was a poor fellow named Bernard.He is in his 30s.Although he has always claimed to be an engineer, the reality is that he is penniless except for his pile of blueprints that no one wants to look at. He has to work several jobs at the same time to make ends meet. One of his jobs is tending the boiler in the basement.But this guy, when he was on duty last night, because he was too obsessed with his drawings, he forgot to take care of the boiler, which caused the explosion, which was his fate. It must be impossible to keep it, the angry manager has told him to leave.

"Miss, this guy is a pure liar! He claims all day long that he can build a locomotive instead of a carriage, and finds people everywhere to distribute blueprints so that someone who is deceived by his rhetoric will pay him. The manager has long disliked customer Qian's complaint. Now that something like this has happened, everyone thinks he deserves it..."

"Wait, what did you just say?"

The absent-minded Eugenie was suddenly attracted and asked a question.

Rand was taken aback.

"Well, everyone thinks he deserved his dismissal..."

"Not this one, but the one before it. You said just now that he can build locomotives?"

"Oh, yes!" Rand said hastily, "He didn't take a good look at the boiler, and he was caught several times drawing his own drawings while working...it was a mess... none of us believed it. If he said it, they all thought he was a liar..."

"Where does he live?"

asked Eugenie.

Rand groaned.After Eugenie asked again, she finally scratched her hair inexplicably, "If you must know, I will go and find out for you."

----

The address was quickly asked.

18 rue du Forguiere.

Under Lante's extremely disappointed eyes, Eugenie temporarily put aside her plan to go to the tailor's shop, took a taxi, and went straight to Rue du Forguiere.

----

British Stephen Sun is now working on locomotives.But it was not until five years later that his first train carrying guests and goods rolled on the tracks.In other words, if she wants to develop the French railway, she will have to wait until then at the soonest—without technology, no amount of money will be of use.

But now, Lante's unintentional words suddenly triggered a thought in her.

Since Watt invented the steam engine, there are not a few people who have devoted themselves to the study of locomotives like Stephenson.It's just that Stephenson was the first to succeed.Now, Mr. Bernard, who was fired for causing an accident last night, aroused her interest.He sounds like an avid locomotive researcher looking for investment everywhere.

If he really can build a locomotive that can be put into actual operation as he claimed, then it will become possible to realize the advent of the train early without waiting for another five years-this is why she decided to go to Duforgier. The purpose of the street is to find out whether Mr. Bernard is the liar that Rand said, or a really talented but unlucky engineer.

----

Rue Duforguiere is located in a poor area.

Paris in this era has not yet built the sewer system that Parisians will be proud of half a century later. Citizens are free to pour sewage or even feces liquid wherever they find it convenient.Especially in the slums, there is black water and stench.

Although it was early winter, the narrow alley in front of us was still filled with a disgusting stench.After inquiring about Bernard's house from a house, Eugenie found the door.

This is a typical slum dwelling.The dilapidated wooden door with scratches, the black and greasy wall covered with moss, and the pool of black and green sewage beside the door wall all show the embarrassment and hardship of the living conditions of the family.

She knocked on the door, and after a long time, just when she thought there was no one inside, the door finally opened, and a little girl's face appeared.

She has big eyes.But at this moment, those eyes were full of fear and uneasiness.

The girl's name was Allie, and she was Bernard's daughter.She was evidently alarmed by Eugenie's visit, and at first even mistook her for the Polly's who had come to demand compensation from her father for the damage done the night before.

Eugenie handed her a food basket she had prepared in advance, containing bread and other food she had bought from a bakery she passed.

"Is your father there?" she asked Ellie, smiling. "I've come to see him."

The little girl's eyes immediately turned red, and tears welled up.

"He's sick and injured, but we don't have money for a doctor and he's probably dying."

In this world, there are not many people who live poorly by guarding gold like Grandet's father.When I followed the little girl in, everything I saw showed the poverty and despair of this family, but there was one decoration that was incompatible with this place.

On a huge table, there are many mechanical parts.One of the most striking is a circular model of miniature railroad tracks.On the rails, there is a locomotive model made of iron sheets.

Seeing the guest's gaze resting on the model locomotive, Ellie whispered: "My father said that he could really make it run. I believe it, but my mother didn't believe it, so she left us and ran away..."

Allie's words were not exaggerating.When he saw Bernard, he was lying on the bed.A few balls of blood-stained towels were scattered in front of the bed. On his face and neck were scars from the explosion last night. His face was pale and his eyes were empty.When he heard that the purpose of this strange female guest was related to his motorcycle, he immediately became excited, struggled to sit up from the bed, coughed violently, and asked Allie to fetch his drawings.

"Miss! Please believe me, I am not a liar, nor a lunatic! I followed my father in the mine to maintain the steam engine since I was a child. Look, this is the locomotive I designed! All the details, even the position of a screw, I've already figured it out! In my head, it's been turned on countless times! I dare to guarantee you with my life that as long as I have a sum of money to support my research, I can make it work within a year become reality!"

Maybe it was because of illness, or maybe he was too excited. After he finished speaking, he coughed violently.

Under Bernard's gaze full of hope and fear, Eugenie flipped through his thick stack of drawings.

To be honest, she couldn't quite understand the mechanical structure marked on the blueprint.

Obviously, her expression was also noticed by the designer of the blueprint.He immediately fell into a deep despair.

"Miss - I beg you, be kind, just give me a chance - I swear, I will never waste your money - I can really build a locomotive that can haul people and goods forward quickly - —”

Eugenie put down the drawing, and looked at Ellie who was looking up at her eagerly.

"Mr. Bernard, I would like to give you this chance. But before we start, I think you should call for a doctor. When you recover, please come to me at the Polly Hotel."

She handed a purse into the little girl's hand, which contained five gold louis worth a total of one hundred francs. After stroking the little girl's head, she turned and left.

If Bernard could really build locomotives comparable to the British, there is no doubt that France would replace Britain and build the first railway that would change the world.

When Eugenie returned to the Polly Hotel, the receptionist of the hotel respectfully handed over a bronzing invitation card that smelled of perfume.

"Miss Grandet, you have received an invitation from the Duchess of Guastalla."

The Duchess of Guastalla is named Bo Lina, who is Napoleon's sister and was once a French princess.Among Napoleon's many brothers and sisters, she was also the one who treated him best after his downfall.She had married two husbands, she was beautiful, and she was known as the most beautiful woman in Europe.

Eugenie took the post, opened it and took a look.

The Duchess will hold a small ball at the mansion tonight, cordially inviting Mademoiselle Eugenie Grandet from Anjou.If she can show up at that time, it will be a great honor for the master.