"I will take back the ten francs, which would be of no great use to you; but if you would like this five-hundred-franc note, which I put in my pocket with a view to settling with my tailor, why, don't hesitate to say so; I shall be glad to do you a service."
Balloquet forgot that he was in his shirt; he leaped on my neck, crying:
"Would I like it! I should say so! I wouldn't have asked for it, but you offer it! You're a friend indeed! Let me hear anyone say that there are no such things as friends nowadays! Dear old Rochebrune! And you don't know me very well, either."
"I know you well enough to be happy that I am able to oblige you."
"Oh! by the way, I ought to warn you of one thing: I can't say just when I shall be able to pay you."
"Don't let that disturb you! You may pay me when fortune smiles on you again, when you have a profitable practice."
"Oh! as for that, you will be the first person paid. So I'm in funds once more! Vive la joie!—No more potatoes! I've had enough of them; I've been stuffed with them for a long time. But I won't tell Satiné that my pockets are lined, for she has always some invention or other in her head, and it's too risky."
I was about to take leave of Balloquet, who was just pulling on his trousers, when we heard three little taps at his door. The young doctor listened and smiled.
"What sort of a farce are you going to play this time?" I asked him.
"Oh! this is no creditor, my dear fellow, I am sure. The creditor knocks noisily; but those soft little taps—I'll bet that it's someone to consult me."