Chapter 22 Chapter Twenty Two

my daughter!O my silver!Ah, my daughter! O my Christian money! Fair!Law!My money, my daughter! "The Merchant of Venice" The two Saxon parents could only return to the table with insatiable curiosity, and continue to sate their half-satiated appetite; The case of Isaac.The poor Jew was hastily imprisoned in a dungeon in the castle, which was lower than the ground, even lower than the surrounding moats, and very damp.Light could only penetrate through one or two narrow openings, which were much higher than the captive's raised hands.Even at noon the light that came through these openings was dim and dim, so that it was pitch black while the rest of the castle was bathed in blissful daylight.Rusted chains and shackles hung on the wall, left by former prisoners to prevent them from escaping from prison; two moldy bones hung from a pair of shackles, which seemed to be human. On the thigh, it seems that a prisoner not only died there, but also rotted there, leaving a few bones in the end.

At one end of the gloomy room was a large stove, with several large iron bars across the top, which were also half rusted. The whole appearance of the dungeon, even a stronger person than Isaac would feel horrified, but facing the imminent danger, he was calmer instead, not as terrified as when the danger was far away and only possible.Hunters say that rabbits suffer more when they are pursued by dogs than when they are caught in his teeth.Those Jews may be threatening them anytime and anywhere because of terror, and they have already prepared to a certain extent psychologically for all the violence that may befall them. It's the biggest factor that makes horror unbearable.It was not the first time for Isaac to be in such a dangerous situation; he had experience in dealing with such difficulties, and he would not lose hope, believing that he would be able to save himself from danger as before, and not become the leader of the mob. Put on the meat.Moreover, as far as he was concerned, he had the steadfastness of his people, and it is well known that the Israelites had met, by their indomitable will, every appalling calamity that violence and oppression might inflict on them, instead of submitting to the orders of their oppressors. everything you need.

In that mood of passive resistance, Isaac, spreading his clothes under his body to prevent the moisture of the ground from harming his limbs, sat in a corner of the dungeon; clad in furs and a tall hat with his hands folded, his hair His hair and beard are all disheveled, and under the sliver of slender and scattered light, this appearance is completely in line with Rembrandt. ], if the famous painter lived in that period.For nearly three hours, the Jew barely changed his posture, but then footsteps were heard on the dungeon stairs, the bolt was creaked, the hinges rattled, the small prison door opened, and the bull-faced general Reginald entered the dungeon, followed by two of the Templar's Saracen slaves.

General Niu Mian was born tall and strong. Apart from fighting on the battlefield, he fought for power with others all his life. In order to expand the feudal power, he would use any means; For a cruel heart.He bore several scars on his face, which in another form might have inspired sympathy and respect as marks of honorably wounded; His face became more ferocious and terrifying, making him appear even more cruel and vicious.This formidable noble lord wore a doublet of leather worn and stained by armor.He carried no weapon, but a dagger in his belt, which was balanced against a heavy bunch of rusty keys hanging on his right.

The two black slaves who followed General Buffalo had taken off their gorgeous coats and put on sackcloth jackets and trousers. Their sleeves were rolled up to the elbows, like butchers, as if they were ready to be used in the slaughterhouse. Preparation for duty.Each of them held a small basket in their hand, and as soon as they entered the dungeon, they stood at the door, waiting for General Niu Nian to carefully lock the door with two locks.Having completed this precaution, he entered slowly into the house, came up to the Jew, and fixed his eyes on him, as if trying to frighten him with his eyes, as it is said that some animals catch their food in this way.Indeed, the gloomy, menacing glance cast by the Bull-faced General had partly that effect on the unfortunate captive.The Jew collapsed on the ground, opened his mouth, and stared at the barbaric lord without blinking. His face was tense and frightened, and his whole body was motionless, as if under the fierce eyes of the cruel Norman. , really curled up and got smaller.Poor Isaac not only lost his ability to stand upright, to bow to him, as the terror had bid him, but also could not take off his hat, and utter any entreaty; come upon him.

On the contrary, the Norman's burly figure seemed to gradually swell and expand, like an eagle preparing to pounce on defenseless prey, erecting all its feathers.At this moment the unfortunate Jew huddled in a corner, so to speak, to a minimum; the Norman stopped three paces from him, and beckoned to one of the slaves to come forward.The dark-skinned lackey immediately came to the front, took out a large scale and a few weights from the basket, put them at the feet of General Buffalo, and then retreated to a certain distance to meet his partner who was already standing there. stand side by side.

The actions of the two servants were slow and serious, as if they already had a premonition in their hearts that a horrible and cruel scene was about to begin.General Buffalo's opening remarks for the scene are addressed to the hapless captive. You, sinful dog of a sinful people, said he, with a deep, dark voice that echoed ominously from the vaults of the dungeon, see this scale? The frowning Jew feebly replied yes. You have to follow the Tower of London [Note: The Royal Mint used to be located in the Tower. ] Just weights and measures, said the pitiless Norman, weigh me a thousand pounds of silver on this balance.

Holy Abraham!The Jew replied, finally speaking out at a critical moment, must have heard such a request?Has anyone heard of such a large amount as a thousand pounds of silver, even in the stories of rap poets?Whose eyes are so blessed to have seen such a large pile of wealth?Within the walls of York, search my house, and the house of each of my people, and you will not find that tenth of the silver you speak of. I am reasonable, General Niu Nian replied, if the silver is not enough, you can use gold to pay for it.One mark of gold is worth six pounds of silver.Then you, an unbelieving dog, will be spared flesh and blood; a punishment you cannot even conceive, you know.

Spare me, noble knight!cried Isaac, I am old and poor, and alone.It's not worth being angry with me.Strangling me was like strangling a bug, it didn't take so much effort. Perhaps you are old, replied the knight, for those people have allowed you to live to such an old age by usury and blackmail.Maybe you are weak, because what Jew has a strong body and a lot of energy?But you have money, everyone knows that. I swear to you, noble knight, said the Jew, by everything I believe in, by what we believe in Swear not falsely, said the Norman, interrupting him, and let not your obstinacy kill you, but consider what fate awaits you.Do not think that what I have said to you is merely to frighten you, but to arouse fear in you by taking advantage of the meanness and cowardice which your race has endowed you with.I swear by the God you don't believe in, by the gospel that our church has taught us, by the keys that God has given it to bind and loose.Chapter sixteen of the Gospel of Matthew. 】.My will is firm and unshakable.This dungeon is not kidding with you either.Prisoners a million times more illustrious than you have died within these walls, and their fate has never been known!It's just that their fate is better than yours, and I reserve the special treatment for you to toss slowly and die gradually.

With another gesture he directed the two slaves to come forward, and whispered a few words to them in their language, for he too had been in Palestine, and perhaps his heart had grown so cruel there.The Saracens took from their baskets a great quantity of charcoal, a bellows, and a jar of oil, and one struck the fire with flints and knives, while the other poured the charcoal into that great rusty furnace we have mentioned. , and then pull the bellows to burn the fire red. Isaac, said the General Buffalo, do you see these iron bars on the red-hot stove?We're going to strip you of your clothes and let you lie on this warm bed like an eiderdown.One slave pulls the bellows to keep the fire burning beneath you, the other anoints your hapless hands and feet lest they burn.Now, you can choose between a roasting bed and a thousand pounds of silver.By my father's name, there is no other way for you.

It can't be, cried the sad Jew, your words can't be true!Good God would not have created such a hard heart! Don't be so confident, Isaac, said General Buffalo, this mistake will cost you your life.I have seen how a city was sacked, how hundreds of our fellow Christians were killed by guns, by floods, by fire, and you would think a man like me would hear a few cries from a depraved Jew and howling, will my resolve be shaken?These black slaves don't know the law, don't know the country and conscience, they only know the orders of their masters, as long as the master blinks an eye, they will use poison, burn you with cannons, use daggers, and use ropes to kill you. Do you think these things Will someone who doesn't even know your language feel any pity for your pleadings?Be wise, old man, and take some of your superfluous fortune, and give back to the Christians some of what you have wrought from the Christians by usury.Your cunning will soon refill your wallet, but once your body lies on those iron bars, no doctor or medicine can restore your scorched flesh to its original shape.Take my word, pay your ransom obediently, and you should be glad to escape from this dungeon; you know, few people can escape from it alive and reveal its secrets.I don't want to waste my words with you anymore, choose between your wallet and your flesh, you will get what you choose. Abraham, Jacob and all the ancestors of our nation, help me, Isaac said, I can't make a choice, because I don't have the strength to meet your harsh demands! Seize him and strip him, minions, said the knight, his ancestors may save him, so let them help him. The helpers, who had received their instructions chiefly from the looks and gestures of their master, and not from his words, now stepped forward again, seized the unfortunate Isaac, lifted him from the ground, and held him among them, waiting Further instructions from the grim master.The unfortunate Jew looked at their faces, and then at the bull-faced general, hoping to see a sign of pity from his face, but what he saw was still a sneer that was half ironic and half angry, the same as the opening remarks he just made. same time.The savage eyes of the two Saracens stared, rolling sullenly under the black brows, and the white circle around the pupils set them off even more gruesomely, and they expressed only the secret satisfaction of the coming tragedy. It's not an aversion to the host or executor who acts as its host or executor.Then the Jew looked again at the glowing fire on which he was about to be placed, but saw no sign of tolerance from his tormentor; and his resolution wavered. I will pay, he said, a thousand pounds of silver.However, he paused for a moment, and said that it depended on the help of our fellow countrymen; I had to stand at the synagogue door, begging from them like a beggar, to raise such an unheard-of sum.When and where to pay? Here, General Niu Nian replied, it must be delivered here; it must be weighed first; after weighing, it will be piled on the ground here.Do you think I will let you go before I get the ransom? So how can I guarantee that I will be free after paying the ransom?asked the Jew. A Norman nobleman's word is a guarantee, you usurious miser, replied the General Bullface, a Norman nobleman's credit is more sure than all the gold and silver of you and your kindred. Excuse me, my lord, said Isaac timidly, but why should I trust a man who has no confidence in me at all? Because you have to believe, Jew, said the knight, severely, that if you were in your storeroom at Yorktown, and I came to borrow money from you, I could only do it on your repayment dates and guarantees.Here is my warehouse.You have to listen to me here.You already know the conditions I set for your release, so I don't need to repeat them. The Jew sighed deeply, at least you have to promise me, he said, while releasing me, also release those friends who traveled with me.They despised us Jews, yet they sympathized with my misery, and would rather delay my journey in order to help us, and now my disaster fell to them; besides, they might help me to pay a part of the ransom. If you mean those Saxon country folks, said General Bullface, they'll have to pay ransom too, and you're a different matter.I warn you, Jew, mind your own business, you don't need to worry about other people's business. So, Isaac said, only the wounded friend can be released with me? Do you want me to say it twice?General Buffalo said that an Israeli can only take care of himself, not other people's affairs.Now that you have made your choice, all you have to think about is how to pay your ransom, and you have to pay it in a day or two. But listen to me, the Jew said again, you did not hesitate to disobey you in order to get the money, he suddenly stopped, fearing that his words would offend that savage Norman.But General Buffalo just laughed, and said for him what the Jews dared not say: Don't hesitate to violate my conscience, you mean to say that, Isaac?Just say it, and I tell you, I am reasonable; a person who suffers, even if he is a Jew, will inevitably scold me a few times, and I don't care.You are not as magnanimous as I am, Isaac, Jacques.Fitzdottleell called you a vampire for embezzling his property, and you're taking him to court. I rely on "Talmud" [Note: One of the main classics of Judaism. ] Swear, said the Jew, you're always mistaken about that.Fitzdottleell owed me money and threatened me with a dagger in my house, and I did that.He owed me as early as Passover [Note: One of the major festivals of Judaism. 】It expires. I don't care about his business, General Bull Noodle said, now the question is, when will I get my money?Isaac, when will you pay? Let my daughter Rebecca go to York, replied Isaac, and you send someone to escort her, noble knight, and when they come back on horseback, Yin Zi sighed, paused, and then hurried on, The silver can be delivered in this room. your daughter!General Buffalo said, as if taken aback, my God, Isaac, if only I had known that.I thought that black-browed girl was your concubine, I gave her to Brian.The Chevalier de Bois-Guilbert has become a maid; this is done according to the old custom of former masters and warriors, and in this they have given us a good example. Isaac, hearing this relentless news, gave a loud cry that buzzed through the dungeon, and startled the two Saracens, who let go of the Jew.He took advantage of this opportunity to let go, threw himself on the ground, and hugged General Niu Mian's knee. Take all you want, sir knight, said he, ten times as much, and ruin me, stab me with your dagger, throw me in that furnace, but Spare my daughter and let her be free without a trace.You are also born of a woman, don't spoil a helpless woman.She was the shadow of my dead Rachel, the only one left of her six children.Would you have the heart to deprive me, a widower, of my only consolation?Are you going to make a father prefer to lose his only living child and let her be buried in the grave of our ancestors with her dead mother? If I had known this, I would have saved her, said the Norman, as if regretting it. I thought your people loved nothing but purses. Don't think so badly of us, though we are Jews, said Isaac, trying to seize the opportunity to win his sympathy, the hunted fox, the wild cats besieged, to protect their young, insulted and The descendants of Abraham who were harmed naturally love their children too! I hope so, said General Buffalo, it's all thanks to you, Isaac, and I'll believe it in the future.But it's impossible at the moment; I can't change what's happened, or what it's done, I promised my knight friend, if there were ten Jews, plus ten Jewish girls, I couldn't do it for them Not keeping promises.Besides, even if the girl fell into the hands of Bois-Guilbert, why do you think it would be bad for her future? Of course, this is for sure!cried Isaac, wringing his hands in agony, what else would those Templars do but oppress men and rape women! You unbelieving dog!General Buffalo shouted, his eyes sparkling, maybe he is eager to find this excuse to rekindle his anger, you are not allowed to slander the Holy Cross in the Temple of Jerusalem, think about the ransom you promised to pay, otherwise your life It's hard to guarantee! Robber, scoundrel!Said the Jew, unable to bear the oppressive insult any longer, for in spite of his natural cowardice, he could not restrain his feelings at this time, and I will pay you nothing now, not a copper, unless you first give me Give me back my daughter, give it back to me cleanly! Are you crazy, Israeli?The Norman knight said with a stern face, do you think your flesh and blood are magical, able to withstand red-hot iron bars and scalding hot oil? I'm not afraid!The Jew said father-daughter love made him forget everything, so do what you want.My daughter is my blood and flesh. She is a thousand times more valuable to me than my body. Your cruel methods can only threaten my body and cannot make me give up on her.I won't give you a pound of silver, unless it's melted and poured down your greedy throat.No, not a single piece of silver, Nazarene, not even a single piece of silver that would save you from the eternal hell you deserved for a lifetime!You want my life, so take it, you know, even under torture, the Jews will not let Christians get what they want. Just wait and see, General Bullface said, you are a damned people who have committed a heinous crime and killed Christ on the cross. You deserve to be punished by fire and iron!Strip him off, boys, and tie him to the bars. Ignoring the old man's powerless resistance, the two Saracens stripped off his coat, and were about to further strip off all his clothes, when the three-way horn sounded outside the castle, and it even spread into a remote dungeon. Then the shout was heard again, and it named General Reginald of the Bullface for an answer.The savage Norman nobleman, not wanting to be seen doing this infernal work, gestured to the two slaves to redress the Jew, and led them out of the dungeon, where the Jew was alone. To stay there, to thank God for his deliverance, or to grieve for his daughter's captivity and her probable fate, depending on whether his own safety or his affection for her came first in his mind. up.