Chapter 5 chapter Five

The little man Grenouille was the first to remove the cork from the pot-bellied glass bottle of alcohol.With difficulty he lifted the heavy glass bottle.He had to be held almost as high as his head because the mixing bottle was placed too high and had a funnel on it, and he poured the alcohol directly from the pot-bellied glass bottle into the funnel without a measuring cup.Baldini was horrified by so much incompetence: this fellow had completely reversed the process of making perfume by making solvents without the concentrate to be dissolved, and not only that, but he was almost physically incompetent!He was shaking violently, and every moment Baldini imagined that the heavy, pot-bellied glass bottle would fall and crack and everything on the table would crumble.Candle, he thought, God bless the candle!There will be an explosion soon, and he will burn my house down...!He really wanted to rush over and snatch the pot-bellied glass bottle from the hands of the little madman, but at that moment Grenouille himself had put it down, put it on the ground without incident, and put the cork on.The light, clear liquid swirls in the formulation bottle—every drop counts.Grenouille rested for a while, with a satisfied expression on his face, as if he had passed the most difficult stage of the experiment.In fact the experiments went on with a speed that Baldini's eyes could not keep up with, let alone see the order of the experiments or some regular process.

On the surface, it seems that Grenouille is indiscriminately moving the row of bottles of essence, pulling out the stopper of the glass bottle, holding it under the nose to smell for a second, and then pouring it out from this bottle and from another bottle. Drop a little from one bottle, pour a little from a third vial into a funnel, and so on.liquid tube, test tube.Measuring cups, spoons and stir sticks - all these instruments are used by perfume experts in the complex preparation process, but Grenouille did not touch them once, as if he was just playing, tapping like a child Pat it, mix it with water, boil the water and garbage into foul-smelling sewage, and then insist that it's a pot of soup.Yes, like a child, Baldini thought.Suddenly, he looked like a child, too, although his hands were clumsy, his face was scarred, and his nose was lumpy like an old man's.Baldini always thought he was older than he was, but now he felt younger than he was, three or four years old, like those inaccessible, incomprehensible, stubborn little apes.These ape-men are said to be innocent, thinking only of themselves, and wanting to conquer everything in the world, if they were allowed to be arrogant, and not gradually disciplined by the strictest measures of education, leading them to be like perfect men Control yourself, they do.The young man was still a fanatical child, his eyes were red as fire, and he stood at the table, completely oblivious to everything around him, and hardly knew that there was anything else in the workshop but himself and these bottles. .With a deft movement he carried the bottles to the funnel in order to prepare his absurd concoctions, which he would insist afterwards--and did think--that this was the fine perfume"Amor and Psyche Click".Watching in flickering candlelight this man who was so different, who operated with such confidence, Baldini shuddered: someone like him—he thought so.All at once sad, bitter, and indignant again as in the afternoon, when he looked out at the city reddened by sunset—no one like him had ever been there before; it was a specimen of an entirely new type.Can only be born in this languid, morally depraved age...but he should learn his lesson, the arrogant little fellow!At the end of the farce, he'll tell him to go away as huddled and wretched as he came.bad guy!You simply can't hang out with anyone these days because the world is full of bad guys!

Baldini was so immersed in his inner anger and aversion to time that when Grenouille suddenly stopped all the bottles, pulled out the funnel from the preparation bottle, grasped the neck of the bottle with one hand, and sealed the mouth of the bottle with the palm of his left hand. And when he shook it violently, he didn't even understand what it meant.It wasn't until the bottle spun through the air several times that the expensive contents rushed like fruit soda from belly to neck and back again that Baldini let out a cry of anger and terror. "Stop!" he screamed. "That's enough! Stop now! It's over! Put this bottle on the table now and stop shaking it, do you understand? Stop shaking it! I'm going to go crazy if I listen to your nonsense Yes. Your way of doing things, your rude behavior, your ignorance tell me you're a half-assed, a savage half-assed, and an extremely wanton little rascal. An ordinary licorice water merchant, let alone a perfume expert! I am grateful, I should be satisfied! But don’t come again, did you hear me? Don’t step over the threshold of a perfume expert again.”

Baldini said so.He also said that by this time the air around him was already filled with the aroma of "Amor and Psyche".The persuasive power of this scent is much stronger than words, witnessed feelings and desires.The persuasive power of this aroma is irresistible, it is like the air we breathe up to our lungs, it pours into us, filling us so full that we cannot resist. ．Grenouille had put the bottle down.Remove your perfume-wet hands from the infusion area of ​​the bottle, and wipe dry on the hem of your garment.He took a step or two back, and under Baldini's stern reprimand, he pulled his body together to the left, and the crackling noise created a wave in the air, enough to spread the newly acquired fragrance around.No more is necessary.Baldini was still raging, shouting, and invective, but with each breath he took, the outward rage found less and less inner support.He had a presentiment that he had been refuted, so that his words came to nothing but empty fervor.After he fell silent for a while, there was no need to listen to Grenouille's words: "It's done!" He already knew it anyway.

Nevertheless, even though he was surrounded by the strong smell of "Amor and Psyche" in all directions at this time, he went to the old forest table to examine it.From the left pocket of his coat he drew a new, snow-white handkerchief, unfolded it, and with his long eyedropper drew a few drops of perfume from the dispensing bottle on it.He swung the handkerchief on his outstretched arm to diffuse the scent, and with skillful, graceful motions passed it under his nose while inhaling it.He let the fragrance flow out in bursts, and sat down on a stool by himself.His face, which had previously been flushed with anger, suddenly turned pale. "It's unbelievable," he murmured to himself in a low voice. "By God, it's unbelievable!" Again and again he put his nose up to the little handkerchief, shook his head, and murmured, "Unbelievable!" It was indeed "Amor and Psyche," unmistakably "Amor and Psyche," a hideously wonderful mixture of scents, imitated with such precision that even Nor could Pelissier himself have been able to distinguish it from his own product. "It's unbelievable..." The great Baldini sat on a stool, shrunken and pale, holding his little handkerchief in his hand, with a ridiculous appearance, like a girl with a cold Like wiping your nose with a handkerchief.At this point he was completely speechless.Instead of saying "unbelievable", he kept nodding his head slightly, staring at the perfume in the formulated bottle, and just uttered a monotonous "um, um, um... um, um... um, um, um , um..." After a while, Grenouille came over, quietly walking to the table like a shadow.

"It's not a good perfume," he said. "It's a very badly made, kind of. Perfume." "Um, uh, uh," Baldini said.Grenouille continued: "With your permission, master, I would like to improve it. Please give me a minute, and I will use it to make a decent perfume for you!" "Um, uh, uh," Baldini said, nodding.It's included because he's approving, but because he's listless and powerless at the moment, and can't help but say "um, um, um" and nod to everything.He continued to nod his head and muttered "um, um, um" as Grenouille began to make the second time, pouring the alcohol from the pot-bellied glass bottle into the mixing bottle for the second time, adding to what was already in the bottle He was not prepared to intervene the second time he seemed to be pouring the contents of the vials into the funnel, regardless of the order or quantity.Until the preparation process came to an end - Grenouille did not shake the bottle this time, but gently shook the bottle like a French brandy. Maybe he considered Baldini's sensitive feelings, maybe because he thought the perfume was more delicate this time. Expensive -- and by this point, Baldini had just woken from his torpor when the perfume was swirled in the bottle when it was made.He stood up, of course still holding his nose with a small handkerchief, as if preparing himself to resist a new attack on his heart.

"It's done, master," said Grenouille, "and now it's a pretty good perfume. "Yes, yes. Very good, very good," Baldini replied, waving his free hand in refusal. "Would you like to examine it?" Grenouille continued cooing vaguely, "wouldn't you like to examine it, master?" "Wait a minute," Baldini said, "I don't want to test right now...I have other things on my mind. You go now! Come with me!" He picked up a candlestick, walked towards the door, and entered the shop.Grenouille followed behind him.They came to the narrow corridor leading to the servants' entrance.The old man kicked and giggled toward the little door, and unlatched it, and opened it.He took a step to the side and let the boy go out.

"Now allow me to work here, master, will you allow me?" Grenouille asked, who was already standing on the threshold, curled up again, showing expectant eyes. "I don't know," said Baldini, "I've got to think it over. You go!" Then Grenouille suddenly walked away and disappeared without a trace, as if swallowed by darkness.Baldini stood, staring blankly at the night sky, with the candlestick in his right hand and the handkerchief in his left, like a man with a bleeding nose, full of fear.He hastily bolted the door.Then he took the protective handkerchief off his face, stuffed it in his pocket, and walked back across the shop to the workshop.

The scent was so wonderful that Baldini's eyes filled with tears.He didn't need to test, just stood at the workbench and sniffed in front of the preparation bottle.This fragrance is so beautiful.Comparing it with "Amor and Psyche", it is like the contrast between a symphony and a violin playing alone.Not only that.Baldini closed his eyes and saw the most delicate memories come to life in his mind.He saw himself as a young man roaming the parks of Naples in the evening; he saw himself lying in the arms of a woman with black hair, saw the silhouette of a rosebush on the windowsill through which a night wind was blowing; He heard scattered birds sing, he heard music from a tavern on a distant quay; he heard whispers close to his ears, he heard "I love you," and found himself bristling with happiness. Vertical, right now, at this very moment!He opened his eyes and sighed with delight.The fragrance is unlike anything one has seen so far.This is not a perfume that repels bad smells, it is not a toiletry product!It's something completely new that can create a whole world, a magically rich world, where people instantly forget about the disgusting things around them and feel how rich, how happy, how free, how wonderful they are ...

The bristling hairs on Baldini's arms softened, and an enchanting peace of mind took hold of him.He took the leather, the goatskin, which was lying on the edge of the table, and with a knife he cut it open.He put the cut piece of leather into a glass basin and poured new perfume on it.He covered the basin with a glass plate, pumped the remaining perfume into two vials, and labeled the bottles with the name: "Napolitan Night".Then he turned off the lights and left. He didn't say anything when we dined upstairs at the lady's.He didn't say a word about the sacred decision that had been made in the afternoon.His wife said nothing.Because she found that he was very happy, so she was satisfied.Nor did he go to Notre Dame again, to thank God for strengthening his character. "Indeed, for the first time that day he even forgot his evening prayers.

The next morning, Baldini went straight to Grima, and first of all he paid for the goatskin, and he did so without nagging or haggling.He then invites Grima to drink a bottle of white wine at the "Tower d'Argent" and redeems Grenouille from him.Of course, he didn't reveal why he redeemed him, why he was needed.He lied that he had accepted a large order of fragrant leather, so he needed a helper who was not yet full of teachers, and he needed a contented young man to do the most ordinary work for him, cutting leather and so on.He ordered another bottle of wine and offered twenty livres as compensation for the inconvenience caused by Grimal's absence of Grenouille.Twenty livres is a lot of money!Grima agreed immediately.So the two went to the tannery together.It was strange that Grenouille was already packed and waiting.Baldini paid twenty livres, and took him away immediately, with the smug feeling that he had made the best deal of his life. Grima, on the other hand, was also convinced that he had made the best deal of his life, and he returned to the "Silver Tower" and drank two more bottles of wine.Then, about noon, he changed to the "Golden Lion" hotel on the other side of the river, where he got drunk, and later in the evening he tried to change back to the "Silver Tower" hotel, but Geoffroy La The Rue Nière was confused with the Rue Nonnadierre, and instead of going straight to the Pont Marie as he wished, he reached the Quay d'Orm, from where he plunged headfirst into the water with a snap. , as if jumping on a soft bed.He instantly drowned.The shallow water carried him away, past the moored small cargo ship, to the middle of the river, where the current was stronger, and it took a long time until the next morning, when Grima the Tanner, or rather It was his wet corpse that drifted west. Grenouille went to bed just twenty meters above him as he passed the Bridge of Trade without hitting the pier.He had built a plank bed which he owned in a corner behind Baldini's workshop, while his former master was floating down the Seine on all fours.Grenouille curled up comfortably, like a tick.He began to sleep peacefully, sinking deeper and deeper into himself, triumphantly entering the fortress of his heart, where he dreamed that he was participating in a celebration of scents, a cigarette in his own honour. And a great orgy of myrrh. With the participation of Grenouille, Giuseppe Baldini's shop began to rise to a shop with national and even European prestige.The Persian bells are no longer silent, and the mandarin ducks in the shops on the Exchange Bridge begin to spit out perfume again. On the first night, Grenouille concocted another "Naples Night" in a pot-bellied glass bottle, and sold more than 80 bottles in small perfume bottles the next day.The reputation of the perfume spread with astonishing speed.Chenier counted the money until his eyes became glazed over, and his back ached from having to bow at ninety degrees all the time, because it was all noble ladies and gentlemen who were here, or at least noble ladies and gentlemen. servant.On one occasion, the door even flew open with a rattling sound, and the valet of the Count of Argençon entered, shouting like the other valet that he needed five new bottles of perfume, and Chenier trembled with fear afterward. For a quarter of an hour, because this Count of Argençon was His Majesty's high official and minister of defense, the strongman in Paris. While Chenier was alone in the shop dealing with the throngs of customers, Baldini and his new apprentice were shut up in the workshop.He always justified the situation to Chenier with the so-called "division of work and rationalization" as an excuse.He hoped that, for years, he had patiently watched Pélissier's mainstream guild-hostile guys lure customers away from him, and business slumped.Now he couldn't take it anymore.Now he accepts the challenge to fight back against these presumptuous upstarts, and fights back in their own way: every tourist season, every month, and if necessary, every week, throwing out new perfumes and other specials. fun!This requires him to make full use of his creative talents.So he felt that he had to - only with the support of assistants who did not have a full teacher - to carry out the production of perfume, while Chenier was responsible for sales.With this modern method, we can open a new chapter in the history of cosmetic stores, wipe out competitors, and become millionaires—the reason why he consciously emphasizes "people" is because he thinks that for these millionaires, His old buddy also had a definite contribution. A few days ago, if Maester Baldini had said such things, Chenier would have taken it as a sign of the beginning of madness. "Now he's sick and blind," he might think, "until he finally lets go of the dress, which won't be long." But he doesn't think about it now.He hardly had time to think, he was too busy.He has his hands full all day.As a result, every night due to exhaustion, I am unable to clear the money in the cash box and keep my own.He would not have dreamed of suspecting that it was not surprising that Baldini had a new perfume formulated almost every day from his workshop. What perfumes and cosmetics are they!There are not only the most advanced perfumes, but also emollient powder and soap.Shampoos, lotions, oils—everything that's supposed to smell, now smells new, different, and better than it used to be.For everything, indeed everything, even the perfumed headbands that Baldini produced one day out of exuberant emotion, customers rushed to buy them like a maniac, without asking the price.Everything Baldini produced became a bestseller.This achievement produced such a great effect that Chenier regarded it as a natural event and no longer explored its origin.Say the new apprentice, for instance, that clumsy dwarf who lives in the workshop like a dog, and when the master comes out, he can be seen standing in a secondary place at the back, cleaning glasses and bowls--if one is told Chénier would not believe that the legendary prosperity of the business had something to do with this fellow. Of course the dwarf had something to do with it all.The cosmetics that Baldini sent to the shop for Chenier to sell were only part of what Grenouille prepared behind closed doors.It was too late for Baldini to rely on his sense of smell.Sometimes he has to choose among the wonderful perfumes that Grenouille has created, which is really nerve-wracking.This magic apprentice can provide formulas for all the perfume experts in France, and never repeat, are high-quality products, not inferior or generic products-that is, he can not provide them with formulas-that is, Molecular formulas, because Grenouille still formulates his perfumes in that chaotic, totally unprofessional way, and Baldini has seen that he seems to mix various ingredients together in a haphazard manner.Even if this irregular operation cannot be checked, at least it must be understood, so one day Baldini asked Grenouille that he must use scales, measuring cups and droppers when preparing mixtures, even if he thought it unnecessary; He was also asked to develop a habit of not using alcohol as a spice, but as a solvent, which must be mixed later; finally, he was asked to take it slowly.Take your time.Truly operate like a craftsman in one piece. Grenouille complied.For the first time, Baldini was able to observe the magician's operations and record them.He sat next to Grenouille with a dip pen and paper to take notes, and repeatedly reminded him to slow down and find out how many grams of this thing, how many scales of that thing, how many drops of the third ingredient, and then put it into the preparation bottle.In this particular way, by analyzing a process after the fact in the same way, Baldini finally mastered the procedure of synthesis which would have been impossible without the use of this method in the past.How Grenouille was able to formulate perfume without synthetic procedures is still a mystery to Baldini, or rather a miracle, but he has now at least formulated this miracle, and because in a way It was a consolation to his rule-hungry heart, and saved his perception of perfume from a complete breakdown. Baldini gradually made Grenoye tell the formulas of all the perfumes he had invented so far, and finally even forbade him to observe carefully with the eyes of a hundred-eyed giant without bringing a dip pen and paper in Baldini, and step by step. Formulate new perfumes with recorded conditions.He copied his notes—soon to be dozens of molecular formulas—with the utmost care in two different little notebooks, one of which he locked in a fireproof cash drawer, and the other He always carried one with him, and took it to bed at night.Now as long as he wants to, he can see Greno's miracle for himself.When he experienced these miracles for the first time, he was very excited.He believed that now with his notebook of molecular formulas he could dispel the dreadful creative confusion that had arisen from the mind of his apprentice.Even the fact that he was no longer bumbling and amazed, but carefully observing and recording, participating in creative activities, had a soothing effect on Baldini and strengthened his confidence.After a while I even thought that I had made no small contribution to the success of these exquisite perfumes.Now that he had entered the perfumes in his little book and kept them in the till and on his breast, he no longer doubted that they were entirely his own. But Grenouille also benefited from the methodical approach to work that Baldini forced on him.He himself does not rely on this method of working though, in order to reproduce a fragrance weeks and months later, he never consults an old formula because he never forgets the smell.But he had picked up the language of the cosmetics store when he was forced to use measuring cups and scales, and he felt instinctively that a knowledge of this language would be of use to him.In just a few weeks, he not only mastered the names of all the perfumes in Baldini's workshop, but he was also able to write down the molecular formulas of perfumes himself, or, conversely, translate other people's formulas and descriptions into perfumes and other perfume products.Not only that!After he learned to use grams and drops to express his idea of ​​making perfume, he no longer needed the intermediate step of experimentation.If Baldini asked him to make a new perfume, whether it was for handkerchiefs, sachets or powders, Grenouille would no longer fetch small perfume bottles and powders, but simply sat at the table and wrote down the molecular formula. down.He learned how to expand from his mind's idea of ​​a scent to a perfume by listing molecular formulas.For him, this is a detour.In the eyes of the world, that is, Baldini's eyes, this is progress.The miracle of Grenouille remains unchanged.But now that he knows how to make perfume, he has no reason to be afraid anymore. This is because the more familiar Grenouille is with the essentials of craftsmanship and working methods, the more normal he expresses it in the idiomatic language of a cosmetics store, Barr Deeney felt less fear and suspicion about him.Before long, Baldini, although he still considered him an extraordinary gifted scent expert, no longer regarded him as a second Frangipani or a terrible magician, and Grenouille was very satisfied. .He uses the code of craftsmanship as a disguise of popularity.When weighing ingredients, shaking the mixing bottle and dabbing the white handkerchief of the experiment, he was cajoling Baldini with his own model methods.He could shake the handkerchief gracefully, almost like a master, and make it fly past his nose deftly.Occasionally, in the intervals between well-dosed doses, he made mistakes, so that Baldini had to point out: he forgot to filter, the balance was not calibrated, he wrote the molecular formula for an astonishingly high percentage of ambergris. . . Mistakes are to be corrected in a targeted manner in the future.In this way he succeeds in indulging Baldini in fantasies: that is how everything works in the end.He really didn't want to frighten Baldini.He really wants to learn from him.Not to learn how to make perfume, not to learn the correct composition of a perfume, certainly not in this respect, there is no one in the world who can teach him, and the existing ingredients in Baldini's shop are far from enough to enable him to realize it. A vision of a truly great fragrance.What he had helped Baldini achieve in terms of smell was child's play compared with what he himself imagined he would one day realize.But he knows that for this he needs two indispensable prerequisites: one is the cloak of citizenship, at least a buddy, with the protection of which he can indulge his original passion and realize his original passion without interference. The goal.The other is the knowledge of the artisanal methods, the working methods by which people make, isolate, concentrate, preserve and render perfumes to higher uses.For Grenouille, despite the fact that he has the best nose in the world, both analytically and precognitively, has not yet been able to possess smells as objects. therefore.He enjoyed having himself taught these techniques: boiling soap in lard, sewing gloves from washable leather, making dusting powder from ground barley, almond and violet root, using charcoal, potassium nitrate and sandalwood Sawdust rolled into incense candles, oriental pills pressed from myrrh, benzoin and glass powder, incense shellac and cinnamon bark squeezed into incense balls, sieved and prepared from crushed rose leaves, chrysanthemum flowers and cascarella bark Into "Emperor's Powder", mixing powders white and blue like blood vessels, making lipsticks, mixing water to make the finest nail powders and minty tooth powders, making wig potions, corn potions, skin brighteners for freckles, belladonna for eyes , foaming ointment for men’s pimples and venomous vinegar for women…produces all lotions, powders, hygiene and beauty products, but also teas and spice mixes, liqueurs, brain juices, etc., in short, Baldini taught him Although Grenouille did not have any special interest in learning these all-encompassing ancestral knowledge, he did not complain and learned it very well.—In contrast, Baldini taught him to make ingredients, dips and essences with special enthusiasm.He would painstakingly crush the bitter almond kernels with a screw press, mash the coriander granules, split the ambergris tubers with a kitchen knife, rub the violet roots into crumbs with a magnetic bed, and macerate the crumbs with the finest alcohol .He learned to use a separating funnel with which to separate the pure oil from the lemon husks from the cloudy pulp.He learned to shade-dry herbs and flowers on a grate, and to preserve rustling leaves in jars and boxes, sealed with wax.He learned the techniques of isolating pomades and making, filtering, concentrating, purifying and rectifying liniments. Of course, Baldini's workshop was not yet suitable for mass production of flower and grass oils.It is also true that there are not enough fresh plants in Paris.Sometimes the market can buy cheap fresh rosemary, sage, mint or capsicum, or there is a good deal of ducktail bulbs, collards roots, and parsley, nutmeg macros or dried lilacs, Baldini's The chemist's veins boiled, and he brought out his large copper alembic with a condenser - a so-called Moor's head, as he proudly said - forty years ago , in which he once distilled lavender in the wild on the southern slopes of the Ligurian hills and the Luberon plateau.When Grenouille chopped up the flowers and plants to be distilled, Baldini very quickly-because rapid processing is the key to doing this kind of work-lighted a fire in the built-in stove, and the copper pot was placed on the stove.Put enough water in the pot.He tossed the chopped plants into the pot, fitted the double-walled Moorish head still to the casing, and connected the two hoses for the water intake and the drain.This device for purifying cooling water, he said, was installed by himself later, because people in the wild naturally just used fans for cooling.Then he blows up the fire. The pot began to drain the water.After a while, it slipped out of the wave and first slowly entered the sea.Drip, then trickle like a thin thread from the third tube of the Moorish head still into the Florentine jug that Baldini had connected.At first the distillate was not pretty, like a thin, cloudy soup.But gradually, mainly after the filled bottles were replaced with new ones and set aside, the distillate separated into two distinct liquids: the water of the flowers or grass below, and a thick layer of oil floating above.If the softly scented nectar was carefully removed from the spout of the Florentine jug, what was left was pure oil, the essence of the plant, a very strong perfume. Grenouille was fascinated by the process.If ever in his life there had been a passion in his heart--not overtly, of course, but hidden, like a passion burning in a cold flame--it was with Fire, water, steam, and hollowed-out instruments. Methods of extracting the fragrant soul of all things.This perfumed soul, the perfumed oil, was the quintessence of these things, the only thing that interested him.And the rest: flowers, leaves.The shell, the fruit, the color, the beauty, the vigor, and the superfluous matter hidden in them, he cared nothing for.It's just shell and cumbersome.This is to be thrown away. Sometimes, when the distillate was as clear as water, they took the still from the fire, uncovered it, and poured out the boiled stuff.These things look limp, as gray as soaked weeds, like the white bones of birds, like overcooked vegetables, cloudy, scattered into filaments, rotten into mud, and can hardly see their original shape; Nauseous as a corpse stinks, completely without its own smell.They poured the rotten stuff out the window into the river.Then they filled it with fresh plants, filled it with water, and put the still on the stove.The pot started to boil again.The waves of plants flowed into the atmosphere of Florence - often working all night like this.Baldini tended the stove, Grenouille watched the Florentine jug, and there was nothing more to do in the time between the changes. They sat on stools around the fire, both fascinated by the clumsy log, both fascinated, though for different reasons.Baldini admired the blazing fire, the flames, and the red gleam of copper, he loved the crackling of burning logs, and the sound of water flowing in the alembic, because it was the same as before, when people could have fun!He brought a bottle of wine from the shop, and as the heat made him thirsty, he drank it, as before.Then he began to tell the story of the year, and he told it endlessly.He spoke of the Spanish war for the succession to the throne, in which he had fought on the side of Austria against Austria and played a decisive role.He spoke of the Garmisards, with whom he had disturbed the Cevennes, and of the daughter of a Huguenot at Estrel, who had been drugged with a sedum and devoted herself to him. and it is true that he nearly started a forest fire which, if it had taken hold, would have engulfed nearly the whole of Provence, for a strong north-west wind was blowing at that time.He also spoke of distillation, and always spoke repeatedly of being out at night in the fields, drinking wine by moonlight and listening to the cicadas.He told of an oil of velvet that he produced so exquisitely and invigorating that some would buy it for silver; of his studies in Genoa, of the wandering years and of the city of Grasse, where perfume bars Families are as well prepared as shoemakers elsewhere, some of whom are wealthy and live like princes, living in luxurious houses surrounded by leafy gardens, with flat roofs and wainscoting dining-room where they dined in china basins with gold utensils, etc. . . . Old Baldini told these stories and drank the wine, his cheeks flushed from the drink, from the blazing fire, and from relishing his own stories.But Grenouille sat mostly in the shadows, absent-minded.He was not interested in old stories, only in the new process before him.He stared intently at the small tube at the top of the still from which the distillate was streaming like a thin ray of light.他凝视着，仿佛觉得自己就是一只蒸馏锅，正像眼前的锅里一样在沸腾，锅里流出一种类似这儿的蒸馏液，只不过更美、更新、更不平常，是他自己栽种在心里的精美植物的蒸馏液，这些植物在那儿开花，除了他自己以外别人嗅不出，它们以其独特的香水可以使世界变成一个散发芳香的伊甸园，他觉得园中的生活对他的嗅觉来说是可以忍受的。使自己成为一个可以用自己生产的蒸馏液来淹没所有人的大蒸馏锅，这就是格雷诺耶所抱的梦想。 但是正当巴尔迪尼乘着酒兴，讲着关于往昔的越来越离题的故事，越来越狂放不羁地陷入自己的幻想时，格雷诺耶却很快就放弃了他那古怪的幻想。他首先把对于大蒸馏锅的想象从脑子里驱逐出去，思考着如何把刚学到的知识用于更容易理解的目的。 没过多久，他就成了蒸馏方面的专家。他发现--他的鼻子比巴尔达尼的规则更管用…火验放度对于蒸停液的质量具有决定性影响。每一种植物、每一朵花、每一块木头和每一种油料作物都要求特殊的程序。有时要求特别强的蒸气，有时需要适当煮沸，而有些花朵，只有用文火蒸馏，才能收到最佳的效果。 加工方法也同样重要。薄荷和黄衣草可以整把蒸馏。其他的在放进铜锅前，必须细心挑拣、剥碎、剁碎、擦成屑。捣碎或甚至拌成糊状。但有些东西根本就不能蒸馏，这使格雷诺耶伤透了脑筋。 巴尔迪尼看出格雷诺耶已经可靠地掌握了整套装置，就放手让他操作蒸馏锅。格雷诺耶充分利用给他的自由。他白天配制香水，制作其他芳香产品和香料产品，夜里则独自潜心钻研蒸馏技术。他的计划是生产全新的香料，以便至少能用这些香料制作出几种他心里设想过的香水。起初他也小有收获。他成功地生产了一种尊麻花油和独行菜籽油，用接骨木刚削下的皮和紫杉枝条生产一种溶液，其蒸馏液固然在香味上还像原始材料，但是依然足以使他有兴趣去对它们继续加工。当然也有些材料应用这种工作方法是完全无能为力的。比方说格雷诺耶试图蒸馏玻璃的气味，即光滑的玻璃像粘土一样凉爽的气味，这气味普通人是觉察不到的。他弄来了窗玻璃和瓶玻璃，把它们加工成大块碎片、碎语带粉状一旦是毫去线急他蒸馏了黄铜、瓷器、皮革、谷物和砾石。他蒸馏了纯净的土、血、木材、新鲜的鱼、他自己的头发。最后，他甚至蒸馏水，塞纳河的水，他觉得这河水的独特气味值得保存。他相信，借助蒸馏锅可以像从百里香、薰衣草与和兰芹籽中提取香味那样，从这些材料中提取独特的香味。他根本不知道，蒸馏无非是把混合起来的物质分离成容易挥发和不易挥发的成分，而对于化妆品行业，只能是把某些植物易于挥发的芳香油同无香味和没多少香味的剩余物分离开来。对于那些已经丧失芳香油的物质，蒸馏的方法当然毫无意义。我们今天的人学过物理，人家一提我们就明白。可是对于格雷诺耶来说，这种认识却是经历了一连串令人失望的试验辛苦得来的结果。他一连数月熬夜坐在蒸馏锅旁，想方设法尝试用蒸馏法生产人世间尚无浓缩状态的新的香水。除了馆出了一点令人可笑的植物油以外，什么收获也没有。他的想象尽管像并那么深，那么不可估量，但是他却无法从中汲出一滴在他脑海里经常浮现的那种具体的香精，搞不出一个原子来。 当他明白失败后，他就停止了试验，生了一场大病。 他发高烧，最初几天还伴随着出汗，后来出了无数脓疮，仿佛皮肤上的毛孔都不够用似的。格雷诺耶的身体布满了这些红色的小水疮，其中许多破裂了，流出水状的脓，然后又重新胀满，其他的则发展成疖子，肿胀得大大的，呈红色，像火山口一样裂开，喷出粘稠的脓和带有黄色粘液的血来。过了一阵，格雷诺耶看上去活像个从里边被用石头砸死的殉难者，身上有一百处伤口在流脓。 巴尔迪尼当然感到忧虑。正当他准备把自己的生意扩展到首都以外，甚至全国以外的时候，偏偏失去了自己宝贵的学徒，这无疑使他非常不快。因为事实上，对于这些使巴黎倾倒的新型香水，不仅来自省里，而且来自外国宫廷的订货也越来越多。为了满足市场的需要，巴尔迪尼已经设想在圣安托万市郊开个分店，一个真正的手工工场，那里将大批配制最时兴的香水，并成批装入令人可爱的小香水瓶里，再由可爱的小姑娘包装，发往荷兰、英国和德意志帝国。对于一位定居在巴黎的工匠师傅来说，这样的冒险举动并非合法，但是他最近获得了上层社会的保护，他提炼的香水给他创造了这种保护，不仅高级官员，而且重要人物，例如巴黎的关税承包人先生、王家财政部要员、繁荣经济事业的促进者费多·德·布鲁先生都可以成为他的保护人。德·布鲁先生甚至可望得到王室的特权，即人们所能期望的最佳情况，这个特权就是不受一切国家和阶层管束的一种通行证，是摆脱一切做生意方面的困扰和获得稳固的、毫无疑义的富裕的一种永恒的保证。 后来，巴尔迪尼脑子里又酝酿了另一个计划，即一个可爱的计划，一个与圣安托万手工工场相反的规划，按照这规划，工场不是大批量地进行生产，而是生产供给个人的产品：他想为一小批上流社会的顾客设计个人用的香水，更确切地税，是要像裁剪适合一个人穿戴衣服叫约设计只供一个人用的香水，这香水采用高贵的名称。他设想一种"德·拉塞尔内侯爵夫人香水"、一种"德·拉维拉尔元帅香水"、一种"达阿基荣公爵香水"等等。他梦想一种"蓬皮杜侯爵夫人香水"，甚至一种"国王陛下香水"，这些香水装在磨得非常精致的玛璃制的香水瓶里，瓶子有雕花的金边，在瓶脚内侧不显眼处镌刻"吉赛佩·巴尔迪尼，香水专家"的字样。国王的名字和他的名字同时在一件东西上！巴尔迪尼竟敢想象得如此美妙！但如今格雷诺耶生病了！当年格里马一上帝保佑他进天堂！ --曾经发过誓，能顶住一切的人永远不损失什么，他甚至可以把瘟疫弄到别处！而他如今竟要在我这儿病死！万一他死了呢？How terrible!那么，手工工场、可爱的小姑娘、特权和国王香水的宏伟计划也完蛋了！ 于是巴尔迪尼决定，千方百计地挽救他学徒的宝贵生命。他安排人把格雷诺耶从工场的木板床搬到楼房里的一张洁净的床上。他叫人给这张床铺上绸被。他亲自协助把病人抬上楼梯，尽管他对脓疙和化脓的疖子感到难以形容的厌恶。他吩咐妻子煮葡萄酒鸡汤。他派人去请本地区一个名叫普罗科帕的最著名的医生，预先付给他二十法郎作车马费。 大夫来了，用指尖挑开床单，朝着看上去像被豆粒子弹射穿的格雷诺耶的身体只瞥子一眼。连皮包也不打开就离开房间，他的皮包一直由踉在后面的助手拿着。这病情．他开始对巴尔迪尼民非常清楚。这是万种梅毒性疮疮变异症，并且并发了晚期化脓性麻疹。大夫认为，病人没有必要治疗，因为他的身体正在腐烂，像一具尸体，不像活着的机体，因此根本不可能在这身体上按照要求地装好放血的器械。他说，尽管现在还闻不到这种病症典型的瘟疫般的恶臭--这当然令人感到惊奇，从严格的科学观点来看确实是件小小的怪事--但病人在四十八小时内必死无疑。这就如他叫普罗科帕大夫一样确实。他又要求为他这次出诊和作出预后诊断付出二十法郎--其中有回扣五法郎，用作别人把这典型症状的病人托他诊断的用途--然后告辞。 巴尔迪尼气得要命。他悲叹着，绝望地叫着。他为自己的命运愤愤不平，咬着自己的手指。他的宏伟计划在接近目的时又一次成了泡影。当初，佩利西埃和他的伙计一个发明接着一个发明。如今这个少年在新的气味方面已拥有取之不尽的知识，这个用金子根本买不到的肮脏小鬼，偏偏现在，在事业正向上的时候，害了梅毒性毒疮和晚期化脓性麻疹，偏偏现在，为什么不在两年后？为什么不在一年后？到那时我早就像掠夺一座银矿和一只金驴子一样把他的油水榨光了。一年以后他满可以放心地死去。但是现在，在四十八小时内，他可不能死，仁慈的上帝啊！ 存-瞬间，巴尔迪尼曾想到会圣母·院那里进香，条上一支蜡烛，祈求圣母让格雷诺耶恢复健康。但随后他又放弃了这个念头，因为时间太紧迫了。他跑出去拿了墨水和纸，把妻子从病人的房间里赶走。，他要独自在此守候。然后他坐到床边的椅子上，把记笔记的纸放在膝盖上，手里拿着蘸水笔，等待格雷诺耶作香水方面的忏悔时作笔记。愿上帝保佑他不至于悄悄地把他生命中所拥有的宝贝带走！但愿他在生命的最后时刻里能够把遗嘱留给可靠的人，以便后世可以了解各个时代最美的香水！他，巴尔迪尼，将忠实地掌握这份遗嘱，一切最香的香水的分子式，并使之发扬光大。他将把这不朽的荣誉归于格雷诺耶名下，的确，他将--在此他向所有神明发誓！--把这些香水中最好的香水装在一个玛璃制的香水瓶里献给国王，瓶上雕着金花和刻着题词："让一巴蒂斯特·格雷诺耶，巴黎香水专家奉献"。巴尔迪尼这么说着，或者更确切地说，巴尔迪尼对着格雷诺耶的耳朵发誓地、恳求地、恭维他、不停地悄声细语着。 But all this is in vain.格雷诺耶只是一个劲儿淌着水状的分泌物和脓血。他默不作声地躺在绸被里，尽管流出这令人作呕的液体，并没有留下他的宝贝，说出他的知识，连一个香水分子式也没说出来。若是事情成功有望……若是与他的基督教博爱的观点不那么明显地相抵触的话。巴尔达尼真想把他扼死，真想把他打死，或从他那垂死的身体内把那些宝贵约秘密打出来！ 他继续用甜蜜的语调对病人低声细语，抚摩着他，用凉凉的手帕--即使这要他克服恐惧的心理--轻轻地给他擦去额头上的汗湿和伤口流的脓血，用汤匙把葡萄酒送进他嘴里，以期使他说话，整夜都这么做着，但是毫无效果。拂晓时他终于罢手了。他疲惫不堪地坐到房间另一头的一张单人沙发上，两眼发直，不再愤怒只是听天由命地凝视着对面床上格雷诺耶那瘦小的濒于死亡的身体，既无力挽救他，也不能从他嘴里得到什么，只好眼睁睁地看着他死去，犹如一个船长看着一艘船连同船上的一切财物往深海里沉没。 突然，这垂死的病人张开嘴唇，用异常清楚和坚定、丝毫没有预感到自己面临死亡的嗓音说："请您告诉我，师傅，为了取得一个物体的香味，除了压榨和蒸馏外，还有别的办法吗？" 巴尔迪尼以为这声音来自他的幻觉或是天国，便机械地回答："是的，有办法。" "哪种办法？"床上发出声音问道，巴尔迪尼睁开疲倦的眼睛，格雷诺耶躺在床上一动也不动。是尸体在说话吗？ "哪种办法？"又一个声音问道，这次巴尔迪尼认出格雷诺耶的嘴唇在动。"现在完了。"他想，"现在他完了，这是高烧性请妄或回光返照。"他站起身子，走到床边，俯下身看着病人。病人睁开双眼，以同样奇特的期望的目光瞧着巴尔迪尼，他们第一次见面时，他就是用这种目光来看巴尔迪尼的＿＿"哪种办法？"他问道。 这时巴尔迪尼终于下定决心--他不想拒绝一个垂死的人的最后一个要求--答道："我的孩子，有三种办法：热提取法、冷提取法、油提取法。它们在许多方面都胜过蒸馏法，人们使用这些方法可以得到一切芳香中最美的芳香：茉莉花、玫瑰花和楼花的芳香。" "在哪里？"格雷诺耶问。 "在南方，"巴尔迪尼回答，"主要在格拉斯市。" "好的。"格雷诺耶说。 他说着闭起眼睛。巴尔迪尼缓缓地站起来。他垂头丧气。他把记笔记用的纸集中到一起，这些纸没有哪一张写上了一行字。他吹灭蜡烛。外面已经天亮。他累极了。必须叫人去找一个教士，他想。他随手用右手草草地划了个十字，走了出去。 格雷诺耶并没有死。他仅仅是睡得非常熟，梦得很沉；他的血液又回到了身上。他皮肤上的疤疹已经枯萎，脓口开始收干，他的伤口开始愈合。不到一个星期，他的病体就完全康复了。 格雷诺耶真想立即离开这儿，到南方去，在那儿他可以学习苦头儿对他说的新技术。但是这谈何容易厥他无非是个学徒，而学徒是个微不足道的人。严格地说，巴尔迪尼对他说--他是在自己对格雷诺耶恢复健康最初感到的高兴过去以后说的--严格地说他比微不足道的人还要微不足道，因为一个正派的学徒的出身必须是无可指摘的，即必须是婚生后代，有合乎身份的亲戚关系，有艺徒学习合同，而这一切地都不具备。若是他，巴尔迪尼，有一天要成全他，给他一张满师证书，那无非是考虑到他还有些才能，考虑到他今后的行为会规规矩矩，同时也是因为他--巴尔迪尼--心地无限善良的缘故，即使这样的好心常常给他带来损失，他也从来不会违背的。 当然，这种好心的诺言摘了好长时间，即将近三年后才兑现。在这期间，巴尔迪尼依靠格雷诺耶的帮助，实现了他的雄心勃勃的梦想。他在圣安托万市郊建起了手工工场，在宫廷打开了高级香水的销路，获得了王室的特权。他的精致香料产品远销彼得堡、巴勒莫、哥本哈根。含有席香的化妆品甚至在君士坦丁堡也很受欢迎。谁都知道，那里盛产B己的香料。在伦敦城的账房间里，在帕尔马的宫廷里，在华沙的宫殿里以及利浪一德特莫尔德的伯爵宫殿里，都散发出巴尔迪尼的香水气味。巴尔迪尼在已经心甘情愿地准备去墨西拿穷困潦倒地度过晚年之后，如今却以七十高龄成了欧洲最大的香水专家和巴黎最富有的市民之一。 一七五六年初--在此期间，他已经在交易桥上原来的房屋旁又造了一幢房子专供居住，因为老房子直到屋顶都堆满了香料制品和香料--他坦率地对格雷诺耶说，他如今准备给予他自由，当然附有三个条件：第一，在巴尔迪尼这里生产的一切香水，不许他自己制造，也不许把它们的分子式传给第三者；第二，他必须离开巴黎，在巴尔迪尼有生之年不得再来；第三，他必须对前两个条件绝对保密。这一切地必须向所有圣者、向他母亲的在天之灵并以自己的荣誉发誓。 格雷诺耶既不相信荣誉和圣者，也不相信他母亲可怜的灵魂，他宣了誓。他对这一切都宣誓。他接受巴尔迪尼的每个条件，因为他想要这张可笑的满师证书，这张证书将使他可以不引人注意地生活，不受阻碍地旅行和寻找工作。他觉得其他事都无所谓。这些究竟是什么条件呀！不得再来巴黎？他为什么要来巴黎！他对巴黎很熟悉，就连发出臭气的角落都熟悉，他无论走到哪里，都把它带在身边，多年来他拥有巴黎。不生产巴尔迪尼的名牌香水，不把分子式传给别人？就仿佛他发明不了一千种别的同样优良和质量更佳的香水似的，只要他愿意！但是他根本不想这么做。他根本不想同巴尔迪尼或随便哪个市民香水专家竞争。他根本不想靠自己的手艺来发财，若是有别的方式可以生活的话，他甚至不想靠它来生活。他想转让他的内心．这不是历历在目的。而是他又发比沙部世界所提低的，一切更为美妙的内心。因此，格雷诺耶觉得巴尔迪尼的条件不是什么条件。 春天里，五月的一天清晨，他出发了。他从巴尔迪尼那里拿到一只旅行背包，另加一件衬衣、两双袜子、一大条香肠、一条将羊毛毯和二十五法郎。巴尔迪尼说，这比他应该给的要多得多，尤其是格雷诺耶对于自己所接受的渊博教育，并没有付过一个苏的学费。他认为自己只须给二法郎路费，别的就不是他的责任了。但是他觉得自己不能违背自己的良心，不能违背自己多年来在心中积累的对善良的让一巴蒂斯特的深切同情。他祝他旅途上幸福，再次提醒他不要忘记自己的誓言。于是他把他带到佣人入口处门内--他从前就是在这儿接待他的--打发他离去。巴尔迪尼没有跟他握手，他的同情并没有到这种程度。他从来就不跟他握手。他出于一种无恶意的厌恶，一向避免触摸他，仿佛自己有被传染和弄脏的危险。他只干巴巴地说了声"再见"。格雷诺耶点点头，身子蜷缩着离开了。马路上一个人也没有。 巴尔迪尼目送着他，望着他拖拖沓沓地从桥上过去，朝着岛那里过去，身体矮矮的，弯着腰，背包放在背上，像是驼着背似的，从后面看他活像个老头。在国会大厦那边，小巷拐了个弯，巴尔迪尼目送到看不见他了，心情感到特别轻松地取过他终于可以承认了。他从来就没喜欢过这个小家伙。他安顿他同自己住在一幢房屋里，从他身上把香水分子式挤出来，在这段时间里他并不觉得好过。他的心绪不佳，如同一个品行端庄的人第一次做了违禁的事，用不许可的手段玩了个把戏一样。当然，人们识破他的诡计的危险并不大，而成功的前景却是巨大的，但是精神不安和良心上的自责也同样巨大。事实上在过去这些年里，没有哪一天他是在摆脱不愉快的想像中度过的，他想像自己与这个人交往，一定会以某种方式为代价。他再三忧心忡忡地祷告，但愿事情顺利！但愿我成功地获得这种冒险的果实，无须支付什么代价！但愿我取得成功！诚然，我这么做并不合适，但是上帝会睁一眼闭一眼的，他一定会这样！他在我的一生中无缘无故地多次惩罚我，把我整得够呛，若是他这次能够友好相待，这也是在理的。如果我有过失的话，那么过失究竟在哪里？充其量无非是，我在行会规定之外稍有活动，我利用了一个未受过专门训练的人的奇异天才，并把他的才能冒充为自己的。充其量无非是，我稍稍偏离了手工业者职业道德这一传统道路。充其量无非是，我今天做出了我在昨天还诅咒过的事。这是一种罪过吗？别人一辈子都在行骗。我只不过是这几年有点不老实。何况在这方面我这唯一的一次机会也纯属偶然。或许这根本不是偶然、或许是投渡且把这位廉法师送到＿我家，以便补偿我被佩利西埃及其同伙侮辱的那段时间。或许上帝的安排压根儿不是针对我，而是针对佩利西埃的！这是非常可能的！若是上帝想惩罚佩利西埃，不通过抬高我，又有什么别的方法？因此我的幸福就是上帝的正义的手段，我不仅可以而且必须接受下来，受之无愧，丝毫用不着懊悔…… 巴尔迪尼在过去几年里经常这么想。上午，每逢他下楼梯到店堂里时，晚上，每逢他带着钱箱上楼，数着沉重的金币和银币放进自己的钱柜里时，夜里，每逢他躺在发出鼾声的妻子身旁，由于害怕自己的幸福而不能成眠时，他都这么想。 但是现在，这些闷闷不乐的思想终于一去不复返了！这个可怕的客人走了，永远不再回来。可是财富却留了下来，未来有了保障。巴尔迪尼把一只手放在胸脯上，透过外衣的料子感觉到放在心口上的小本本。本子上记录了六百个分子式，几代香水专家将把它们付诸实施。即使他现在失去一切，那么光靠这个奇妙的小本本，他在一年之内又可以成为一个富翁。确实如此，他还有什么更高的要求！ 早晨的阳光落在对面房子的山墙上，把墙上染黄，同时又暖融融地照在他的脸上。巴尔迪尼仍一直望着南方朝国会大厦方向去的马路--再也看不见格雷诺耶，太令人高兴了！--并且决定，出于感激的激动之情今天过河到圣母院去朝拜圣母，往捐献箱里丢一个金币，点燃三支蜡烛，跪着感谢天主给他这么多的幸福并保护他免于遭人报复。 但是这时他遇上了一件令人恼火的事、下午。当他正想动身去教堂时，谣言传开了，说什么英国人已经对法国宣战。这本来就是件令人不安的事。因为巴尔迪尼恰好在这几天想发一批香水到伦敦去，他就把到圣母院朝拜圣母的事推迟了，而是到城里去打听消息，接着到圣安托万市郊他的手工工场去，第一件事就是撤回发往伦敦的货。夜里他躺在床上，在入睡前不久，他想到一个绝妙的主意：考虑到面临着争夺新大陆殖民地的战争，他想生产一种香水投放市场，这香水取名为"魁北克的魔术"，是一种含树脂的英雄香水，它的成功--这是确定无疑的--将补偿英国这笔生意的损失，而且绰绰有余！他把头轻松地枕在枕头上，感到枕头下压着的分子式小本本，心里乐滋滋的。巴尔迪尼师傅就在他的胡涂而年老的脑袋里装着这甜蜜的念头，渐渐沉入了梦乡，而且再也没有醒来。 这天夜里发生了一场小小的灾难，这灾难导致了国王在适当的拖延后发布命令：巴黎所有桥上的所有房屋都必须逐步拆除。事情就是在交易桥的西侧，第三和第四桥墩之间原因不明地坍塌了。两幢房子坍入河里，整个房子陷下去，而且那么突然，所以屋里的人没有哪个得救。幸好屋里只有两个人，即吉赛佩·巴尔迪尼和他的妻子秦蕾萨。佣人们有的得到允许，有的没有得到允许，都离开了房子。谢尼埃说是想回店，因为房子已经不在那儿--精神上彻底崩溃了。他三十年来一直抱有希望，这个没有子嗣和亲戚的巴尔达尼将在遗嘱里立他为继承人，如今全部遗产、房里、．商店、原料、工场、巴尔迪尼本人，甚至对手工工场的财产或许还有指望的遗嘱，这一切一下子都完了！ 什么也没有找到，两具尸体、钱柜、记录六百个分子式的小本本都没有找到。这个欧洲最大的香水专家吉赛佩·巴尔迪尼留下的唯一的东西就是席香、栓皮、醋、素衣草和一千种别的香料的混合香味，这香味在从巴黎到勒哈弗尔的塞纳河河道上空又飘了数星期之久。