Chapter 18 Chapter two

Sailing into the port of Tunis is far from the city of Tunis.In the past, the town of Goulet could be reached by small boat or local galleon. In fact, this is not a port.Only sailboats and small fishing boats can moor there because even low-tonnage ships cannot approach the docks.Galleons, cruise ships, etc. can only drop anchor on the high seas.The mountains formed a barrier, which happened to block the east wind, and the ship was protected, but was attacked by strong west and north winds.It is necessary to build a port capable of accommodating various types of ships and warships, or to expand the port of Bisser on the north shore of Regens, or to split the small island lying between Lake Baila and the sea. Digging a 10 km long canal.

Although Master Antiphere and his partners came to the town of Goulet, they have not yet entered Tunisia.They will also take the Rubardino train operated by the Italian public, passing through the foot of the Carthage hill, and walking around the lake, on which stands the French Church of Saint-Louis. Our travelers crossed the pier and came to the town.There is a wide road in the town, and the mayor's apartment, Catholic church, cafes and private houses can be seen on both sides of the street.All Europeanization and the most modern buildings can be seen here.It was not until the seaside villa where the king lived for summer that he saw a little oriental color.

However, Pierre Servant Marlowe was not concerned with these, nor with the legends of Regulus, Sipion, Caesar, Carton, Marius and .He didn't know the names of these great people very well. Like Tregoman, he only had the honor of his hometown in his heart, which was enough to satisfy his self-esteem. Perhaps Jeweler would still remember these historical relics, but he was troubled by the troubles in front of him.Orientals often say: "He is looking for a donkey while riding a donkey." It is true that Jewell is exactly like this at the moment, and what he is looking for is his fiancée who is far away.

Antifel, the captain of the barge, and Juel carried their travel bags through the town of Goulet—and then took a tour of Tunisia—to the station to wait for the first train.Boo Omar kept a distance from Najem and followed closely behind.Antiphere said nothing.The others knew nothing about the banker, but Kamilk arranged for them to meet him ingeniously.This at least made the notary more trouble, because he could only get paid if the treasure was found.As far as Savuk was concerned, he was not dealing with a single person at this moment.But two property heirs.Who will this new heir be? Half an hour later, the travelers boarded the train.The train stopped for a few minutes at the next station, from which the hills of Carthage could be seen.and the Abbey of Abbe Blanc, known for its archaeological museum. 40 minutes later, the train arrived in Tunisia, and they walked along Marino Street towards the European District, and arrived at the French Hotel. First, they booked a room—three bedrooms, high ceilings, empty, and equipped with mosquito nets.The dining room is on the first floor, very spacious and elegant, comparable to high-end restaurants in Paris.Here, there is no breakfast, and you can eat at noon and evening.But none of that mattered, our St. Malo folks didn't want to live there.

Antiphere did not even take the time to take a look at his room, saying: "I'll be right here waiting for you." "Go, my friend. Don't ruin your business," said the barge captain.All he was worried about was that he would screw up, and he really had no intention of playing tricks with an heir the way Bo Omar had done with him.Although his personality is strong, he is honest and upright.He decided to go straight to the point and not to play around with the banker, and he was going to say to him: "Here's what I brought you... In exchange, you know what to do? Well, you understand. Well, let's hit the road!"

Besides, the banker should know that there is a Frenchman named Antifel who will give him a longitude, so as to locate the isle where the treasure is buried.The bankers will not be surprised by the visit. However, Master Antifel was still uneasy - would the heir speak French?If he knows English, they can deal with each other through Jewell.If he does not understand both English and French, does he still have to use a translator?Then, the secrets related to the wealth worth hundreds of millions of francs will be leaked to a third party... Antiffel left the hotel without saying where he was going.Moments later, he and a guide disappeared around the corner of the street off Marino Plaza.

When he was gone, the captain of the barge said: "Why doesn't he even need us..." "Let's go for a walk, I'll post a letter first." Jewell replied. In this way, they left the post office next to the hotel and walked towards Babbar and Haimen, planning to take a circle along the wall of the city.The crenels of the city wall are like a belt around the inner city of Tunisia, which is two miles long. A hundred paces away from the hotel, Maester Antifel said to his guide and Fan Ze: "Do you know Zambo the Banker?" "Everybody here knows him."

"Where does he live?" "Live down town, in the Maltese quarter." "Take me there..." "Yes, Your Excellency." In these western countries, it is as common to call you your Excellency and Mr. Untilfield walked down town.He ignored all the curiosities on the roadside: there was a mosque—there were hundreds of them in the city, all crowned with beautiful towers; there were Roman and Islamic ruins, a Beautiful square, full of figs and palms, lush and shaded.There are also those small alleys with rows of houses on both sides, which can face each other across the street.The dark shops are of different heights and unevenness, and there are all kinds of food, clothing and antiques in them.The patrons were French, Italian, Jewish, and Maltese.Pierre, Selvan, and Marlowe had no intention of patronizing all this, but only thought of this visit imposed on him by Camilac, and only thought of the reception he would receive... It would be smooth sailing, he was convinced of it. suspect!Give that man 50 million francs, and if he dares to stop him, he will be warmly received.

After walking for half an hour, we arrived in the Malta district.This is by no means the neatest neighborhood in a city with a population of 150,000, especially in the old part of the city, where there is no tidy cityscape.Besides, the Mandate had not yet imposed the French flag on the city. At the end of an alley in this business district, the guide stopped in front of an unremarkable house.Like all Tunisian houses, the whole building is like a huge stone, with a platform and no external windows. It is an Arabian courtyard, from which the surrounding rooms get some sunlight. Looking at the appearance of the house, Maester Antifel felt that the banker was not rich.That's good, he thought, to make sure the plan worked out.

"Does that Zambugo live here?" he asked the guide. "Your Excellency, it is here." "Is it his bank office?" "yes." "He has no other residence?" "No, sir." "Is he rich?" "A millionaire." "Damn it!" cried Maester Antiphere. "It's an iron cock..." added the guide. "Damn it!" cried Maester Antiphere again. After speaking, he sent the guide away, and the man went back along the road leading to the hotel. Savuk has been watching them from behind.Now he knew where Zambugo lived.Will he have the upper hand against the banker?If there is a chance to reconcile with him, wouldn't he just exclude Master Antifel?Once the two heirs disagree, can they profit from it?Damn it, on the small island No. 1, Antifel only pronounced Zambugo's name, but didn't reveal the new longitude at all.If Savuk knew, he would definitely take the first step and come to Tunis first, promising the banker a big reward to lure him into the bait, and it might cost nothing to defraud him of his secrets! ...But, on second thought, Antiphere was appointed in the letter, not someone else. If that's the case, then fine!Savuk acted on his own course, mercilessly, and when the Maltese and Saint-Maloians took possession of the fortune, he still managed to wrest it from them both.

Pierre Servan Marlowe went into the banker's house, and Savuk was waiting outside. The room on the left is an office, and the courtyard is empty. The whole house was deserted, as if the banker had closed down this morning because he couldn't pay. Don't worry, though, Zambogo isn't broke. The Tunisian banker is of medium build, about 60 years old, thin and nervous; his eyes are stern but intelligent and elusive; his face is unshaven and parchment-like; his hair is gray and he wears a felt hat that seems to be glued to his skull. The waist is slightly thick and round; the hands are wrinkled, and the fingers are long and pointed; the mouth is full of healthy teeth, which are exposed to the outside of the two thin lips from time to time.Even Maester Antiphere, who was not very observant, realized that this man had no sympathy.He thought it would be no fun negotiating with this old man. In fact, the banker was a true loan shark, a pawnbroker, probably a Jew, and later acquired Maltese nationality.There are as many as 5-6 thousand such Maltese in Tunisia. It is estimated that Zambugo has accumulated a considerable amount of wealth through various unknown ways-this way is to hold on to the money and not let it go.The man was indeed rich and proud of it, but he also said that he was not rich because there is no limit to riches.Some people say that his furniture can be counted as a few millionaires, which is true, but his mansion looks like a humble house. Master Antiphere was deceived by this illusion.It also shows how frugal and stingy Zambugo is.His needs are so few that he instinctively saves money and eliminates expenses as much as possible.Seeing that he has an eye for money, he uses all means to occupy gold and silver treasures, the more the better.His whole life was devoted to this unrighteous way of making money.At present, there are millions of wealth locked in his safe, even if there is no interest, it is enough. It would be strange, even paradoxical, if such a man were not a bachelor.Preferring to be a bachelor, Zambugo never thought of getting married.No wonder some local people often joked, "How happy it would be to be his wife!" No one has heard that he has any brothers or three relatives, only one sister.The ancestors of the Zambugo family left this single seedling.He lives alone in the house, guarding the office and looking at the safe, with only an old Tunisian woman serving him.She eats, and her wages are not much.This bottomless pit can only enter and exit.It can be seen from this, what kind of opponent will Master Antiphere meet!How, one wonders, did this ruthless man serve Governor Kamilk so well as to deserve a reward? However, it does happen, here is just a brief description of the ins and outs. When he was just 20 years old, his parents died and he became an orphan. What use are his parents to him?He had long since given up on them—Zambogo was living in Alexandria at the time.There he was shrewd and tenacious as a business broker, buying short and selling short, going from middleman to banker--the most rewarding occupation of the intellect, indeed. It should be recalled that in 1829, Governor Kamilk, fearing that the treasure would be snatched away by his coveted cousin, especially by his instigated Deputy King Muhammad Ali, tried to gather the money and transport it to Syria. .Because there is no safe place in any Egyptian city. This is a huge project, and he is only willing to turn to those foreigners who are trustworthy.It is a desperate move for these aides to support the richest man in Egypt against the deputy king.Personal safety must be ignored.Young Zambugo was one of them.He served it with great enthusiasm and was generously paid for it.He traveled to Aleppo many times, and with a lot of effort, the treasure was finally gathered, and thanks to him, the treasure was transported to a safe place. This is not without risk. After Kamilke left, several assistants with Zambugo were suspected by the police and were thrown into prison.Later, due to insufficient evidence, they were released again.Still, they were punished for their allegiance to Kamilk. The father of Master Antifel, who rescued Kamilk who was lying half dead in the rock of Jaffa in 1788.Zambugo also has his credit.So, after 30 years, of course entitled to payback. Camilleke had certainly not forgotten him. These accounts explain why, in 1843, Thomas Antifel, who lived in Saint-Malo, and Zambugo, who lived in Tunis, each received a letter informing them that they would one day share an equal share in a certain A treasure worth hundreds of millions of francs on the island.At the same time, the latitude of the island was given to the two of them respectively; as for the longitude, it will be conveyed in due course. The effect of this on Thomas Antiphale and his son is well known, and it must be remarked that it was equally strong on such a character as the banker.Regarding the letter, he naturally kept silent, put the latitude number in the safe, and added three locks.From then on, every minute of his life awaited the arrival of the man whom Kamilke had announced in his letter.He had tried to understand the fate of the richest man in Egypt, but to no avail.Nothing is known about his capture on the brig, his escort to Cairo, his subsequent eighteen-year imprisonment in the Kasbah, or his death in 1852. It is now 1862, and 20 years have passed since 1842. The people of Saint-Malo have not yet appeared, and the longitude and latitude have not yet met... The location of the island seems impossible to determine... However, the banker did not lose confidence.He had no doubt that Governor Kamilk's intentions would come to fruition sooner or later.He was convinced that Master Antipher would definitely appear on the horizon, just as the observatory predicted that comets would appear in the sky.The only regret was having to share the inheritance with another man, who was always trying to push him out of his mind.However, he could not change the arrangement of the Egyptian who returned the favor.To divide a wealth of hundreds of millions of francs equally seemed to him astonishing! ... So, for many years, he has been thinking hard, racking his brains, and wants to swallow the inheritance... Can he get his wish? ...One thing is certain, that is, he is fully prepared to meet Master Antipher, no matter what kind of person he is, as long as he brings him the longitude. Zambugo is a layman to sailing, so there is no need to repeat it.He could not explain how the intersection of a latitude and a longitude, that is, two hypothetical lines, could determine the bearing of a point on the earth.But he understood that, above all, the meeting of the two heirs was essential.He also knew that without Antipher, he would be helpless, and vice versa.