“—­a servant,” said Michu, violently.  “But you shall not sell it!  I want it; and I can pay for it.”

“You?”

“Yes, I; seriously, in good gold,—­eight hundred thousand francs.”

“Eight hundred thousand francs!” exclaimed Marion.  “Where did you get them?”

“That’s none of your business,” replied Michu; then, softening his tone, he added in a low voice:  “My father-in-law saved the lives of many persons.”

“You are too late, Michu; the sale is made.”

“You must put it off, monsieur!” cried the bailiff, seizing his master by the hand which he held as in a vice.  “I am hated, but I choose to be rich and powerful, and I must have Gondreville.  Listen to me; I don’t cling to life; sell me that place or I’ll blow your brains out!—­”

“But do give me time to get off my bargain with Malin; he’s troublesome to deal with.”

“I’ll give you twenty-four hours.  If you say a word about this matter I’ll chop your head off as I would chop a turnip.”

Marion and Malin left the chateau in the course of the night.  Marion was frightened; he told Malin of the meeting and begged him to keep an eye on the bailiff.  It was impossible for Marion to avoid delivering the property to the man who had been the real purchaser, and Michu did not seem likely to admit any such reason.  Moreover, this service done by Marion to Malin was to be, and in fact ended by being, the origin of the former’s political fortune, and also that of his brother.  In 1806 Malin had him appointed chief justice of an imperial court, and after the creation of tax-collectors his brother obtained the post of receiver-general for the department of the Aube.  The State Councillor told Marion to stay in Paris, and he warned the minister of police, who gave orders that Michu should be secretly watched.  Not wishing to push the man to extremes, Malin kept him on as bailiff, under the iron rule of Grevin the notary of Arcis.

From that moment Michu became more absorbed and taciturn than ever, and obtained the reputation of a man who was capable of committing a crime.  Malin, the Councillor of State (a function which the First Consul raised to the level of a ministry), and a maker of the Code, played a great part in Paris, where he bought one of the finest mansions in the Faubuorg Saint-Germain after marrying the only daughter of a rich contractor named Sibuelle.  He never came to Gondreville; leaving all matters concerning the property to the management of Grevin, the Arcis notary.  After all, what had he to fear?—­he, a former representative of the Aube, and president of a club of Jacobins.  And yet, the unfavorable opinion of Michu held by the lower classes was shared by the bourgeoisie, and Marion, Grevin, and Malin, without giving any reason or compromising themselves on the subject, showed that they regarded him as an extremely dangerous man.  The authorities, who were under instructions from the minister of police to watch the bailiff, did not of course lessen this belief.  The neighborhood wondered that he kept his place, but supposed it was in consequence of the terror he inspired.  It is easy now, after these explanations, to understand the anxiety and sadness expressed in the face of Michu’s wife.