(Nichholas Andrea Dandolos was born in Greece. At the age of eighteen he traveled to America alone. He became an American citizen in Chicago, where he entered the fig1 business. One of his friends introduced him to a rich young lady who was to change Nick’s life forever.)
It was the first time for him to call on the young lady. Nick dressed carefully for this date. Which suit to wear was an easy decision—he had only two suits. He decided to take a cab and gave the taxi driver the address on Lake Shore Drive. The cab driver examined his customer suspiciously.
“Are you sure of that number, mister?” he asked.
“I’m sure.”
The cab started, the driver probably wondering why a man from a poor neighborhood2 was going to the wealthiest section of the city.
As the taxi moved past the luxurious3 homes, Nick look out of the window curiously. At that time, he wasn’t aware that during his lifetime he would make more money than most of the successful men who lived in those mansions. The cab came to a halt before a huge house that looked like a castle. The driver was still doubtful.
“Are you sure this is the place?”
Nick said that he was. He paid the cab driver and walked up to the front door. A butler4 opened the door and asked for his card. Seeing no reason to hand him a business card that was probably stained with figs, Nick simply said, “Miss Parkinson is expecting me.”
“Very well, sir,” the servant answered and led into a gold and silver room with stained glass windows and beautiful tapestries5. Nick sat down.
“Mr. Dandolos?” A soft voice interrupted his thoughts. He stood up to face a slim, blonde woman: Elizabeth Parkinson. She asked him to sit down in the chair facing hers.
All evening they sat and talked in the gold and silver room. Nick felt awkward6 and spoke haltingly7. Yet, when he rose to leave, he asked Elizabeth if he might see her again. She nodded quietly.
Nick visited Elizabeth more and more frequently. Despite their different backgrounds, beneath the surface of their daily lives they both lived on the same intellectual level. Nick discussed his feelings, his thoughts, and his plans. Elizabeth absorbed his teachings and came to understand that with philosophy a man could face all the dangers of life calmly. She saw that this was the key to Nick’s personality. Nick, in turn, learned a lot from Elizabeth. She introduced him to English literature and poetry. With his remarkable memory, Nick soon was able to repeat long passages from the classics.
Nick was falling in love. He recognized the signs—the pain, the ecstasy8, the hours that passed like minutes. To him, Elizabeth was a princess. It became difficult for him to sleep at night. He couldn’t concentrate on his work and began making many mistakes, mixing up deliveries of figs. He knew it was impossible to marry her. He was poor, and she was rich.
Nonetheless, Nick and Elizabeth began to talk about marriage. They understood that there were two obstacles9 in the way—her mother and father. Mr. Parkinson was a powerful man, the head of a large meat-packing company employing hundreds of workers, and he did not approve of Nick.
One evening, when Nick was visiting Elizabeth, her parents were at home. Elizabeth decided that this was their right time to discuss marriage with them. Nicholas agreed and within a few minutes, Elizabeth returned with her parents. Before that day, the three had said very little to one another. Mr. and Mrs. Franklin Parkinson sat down and Elizabeth left the room.
“Mr. and Mrs. Parkinson,” Nick said in a clear voice, “I would be honored if you would give me permission to marry your daughter, Elizabeth.”
Mr. Parkinson closed his mouth tightly. His eyes narrowed. Turning to his wife, he said, “I’ll take care of this, my dear.”
Without a word, Mrs. Parkinson stood up and left the room, closing the door behind her.
Neither Nick nor Mr. Parkinson spoke immediately. The air seemed electrically charged10.
“What is your income, my boy?” Mr. Parkinson asked.
“Very little, sir.”
“And your future?”
“What do you mean, sir?”
“What is your purpose in life, Mr. Dandolos?”
“To seek the truth, sir.”
Mr. Parkinson took a deep breath and counted to five, in order to control himself. Before him stood a man who had the audacity to tell him that his purpose in life was to seek truth instead of money.
“That sounds very romantic, very brave. But I don’t think you’re very practical, Mr. Dandolos.”
“You are correct, sir,” Nick agreed.
“You want to marry my daughter and take her away from all of this? What will you give her in return?” He indicated the room and the house and all its luxury.
Nick smiled. “My way of life.”
“Your way of life!” Mr. Parkinson made no attempt to conceal his anger. “A few figs sold here and there? Raising my grandchildren in poor surroundings? No. Not for my Elizabeth. She deserves much more.”
Nick calmly asked, “What do you want for your daughter, Mr. Parkinson?”
“Money,” Mr. Parkinson replied. “I want her to have every luxury possible—to be able to lead the life she has now.”
“Then I will secure11 it for her.”
Mr. Parkinson laughed. “You make it sound simple. Where will you find it?”
“I’ll have to give the matter some thought.”
“Considerable thought,” Mr. Parkinson said mockingly12.
Nick never enjoyed talking about money. But now his happiness depended on it. He asked, “How much money would be required to make you... er... I mean, your daughter, happy?”
Mr. Parkinson allowed a minute to pass without speaking and then gave his answer: “one million dollars.”
He watched Nick, certain that he has succeeded in crushing the young man’s ambition. But Nick remained calm. “How much time will you give me to make it?”
“One year from today,” Mr. Parkinson said. “One year, and one million dollars, and Elizabeth is yours.” He was delighted. He was sure he had gotten rid of this Greek forever.
He nodded to Nick, got up, and left the room.
Nick walked all the way back home. He tried to think of all the ways in which one could make a million dollars within twelve months. He finally decided that he could never make in commercial business because he did not have enough money to start one. He needed to find another solution.
The next morning, he visited a friend to talk about a different idea—betting on horses.
For hours his friend tried to convince Nick that it was impossible to make a million dollars on horseracing13. But Nick’s mind was made up. Finally the friend advised Nick to go to Canada, where he could try his luck at the Canadian race tracks. He did not want to leave Elizabeth, but he saw no other way to raise the money he needed.
After studying horses and gambling for three months, Nick said goodbye to Elizabeth, sold his fig business, and took a train for Montreal, Canada.
At first, Nick bet very little. He was learning from practical experience and observation. He did not bet on tips14 or hunches15. And he didn’t bet the same way every day. Someone once said, “The only way to beat the races is to play the winners.” And that’s exactly what Nick did. He looked for the horse that no one else had noticed. When he bet, he usually won, and his bankroll16 grew larger.
As he learned more about gambling and horseracing practices, Nick began to bet more heavily. Within five months, he had won almost $400,000. People began to talk about him. They called him “Nick the Greek,” a nickname that stayed with him until his death.
Soon Nick became famous. He was adding to his fortune, but he was running out of time. To increase his earnings more rapidly, he bought a horse and named it Philosopher. With his own horse, he needed only one big win to reach his one-million-dollar goal.
Nick put $50,000 on Philosopher, betting that horse would place first, second, or third. Nick was calm as he watched the horse leave the starting gate. Soon one of the other horses fell. Then another lost its jockey17. As the horse neared the finish line, Philosopher was in fifth place. But with a sudden burst of speed, the horse moved into third place and crossed the finish line. Nick had won his million dollars!
Nick dashed18 to the stables and borrowed a laundry bag. Stuffing his winnings, $135,000 in Canadian money, into the bag, he ran to the entrance of the race track and called a taxi.
When he arrived at his hotel, he packed two suitcases. One contained his clothes. The other contained one million dollars in cash.
He was about to leave as someone knocked at the door. Nick opened the door. A bellboy19 handed him a telegram. Nick tipped the boy five dollars and closed the door.
Whistling, he opened the envelope and read the contents. Nick’s whistle died in his throat. Tears ran down his cheeks and the telegram fell to the floor with the message faced up:
I REGRET TO INFORM YOU THAT OUR BELOVED ELIZABETH DIED LAST NIGHT.
FRANKLIN PARKINSON
（尼古拉斯·安德烈亚·丹德罗西出生于希腊。18岁那年，他一个人来到了美国。在芝加哥他成了美国公民，经营服装生意。经一个朋友介绍，他和一个富家小姐相识，她将永远改变他的生活。）
这是他第一次和那姑娘见面，尼克为此精心打扮了一番。挑哪套西装穿，还是容易做决定的——他只有两套西装。他决定乘出租车去，于是便把在湖滨大道的地址给了司机。司机看看他，心里有点吃不准。
“先生，是这个地址吗？”他问道。
“没错。”
出租车启动了，不过司机心里还在嘀咕，此人从贫民区来，干什么要到全城最富的地方？
当出租车经过一幢幢豪华住宅时，尼克好奇地朝窗外看着。此时，他当然意识不到他这辈子赚的钱，比这里大多数成功人士还多。出租车在一个看似城堡的豪宅前停下，司机的疑虑还没有打消。
“肯定是这个地方吗？”
尼克作了肯定的回答。他付了车费，向正门走去。管家拉开了门，问他要名片，尼克觉得没必要把那张有可能被衣服弄脏的名片递给他，所以只是说：“帕金森小姐约我来的。”
“很好，先生。”管家答了一句，把他领进了一间屋，这间屋子金碧辉煌，窗子是彩绘的，还有漂亮的挂毯。尼克坐了下来。
“是丹德罗西先生吗？”一个温柔的声音打断了他的思路。他站了起来，面前是一个苗条的金发姑娘，她就是伊丽莎白·帕金森小姐。她指着对面的一张椅子，叫尼克坐下。
整个晚上，他们就坐在那间屋里谈天，尼克感到拘谨，说话有点儿吞吞吐吐。当他站起身离开时，他问伊丽莎白，他是否能再见到她，伊丽莎白平静地点了点头。
尼克与伊丽莎白见面越来越频繁了。尽管他俩家境不同，他们却有着相同的思想，不过被表面的日常生活掩盖着罢了。尼克向她谈起了自己的感受、想法和计划。伊丽莎白如饥似渴地倾听着他的“教诲”，明白了一个具有丰富内涵的男人是能够平静面对生活的各种险境的。她明白，这是理解尼克个性的钥匙。同样，尼克也从伊丽莎白那里学到了许多。她向尼克介绍英国文学和诗歌。尼克记忆力强，很快就能大段大段背诵古典作品。
尼克恋爱了。他辨得出那些相思的症状——时而痛苦不堪，时而狂喜不已，连时间也变短了。对他来说，伊丽莎白就是公主。他夜不能寐，无法专心工作，还老出错，把服装发错了货主。他明白，自己不可能娶伊丽莎白。自己是个穷小子，而伊丽莎白是富小姐。
但是，尼克和伊丽莎白还是开始谈起了婚姻。他们知道，他们面临着两大障碍——伊丽莎白的父母。帕金森先生是个颇有影响的人物，他是一家规模不小的肉类包装企业的老板，雇员就有好几百人。他对尼克没有好感。
一天晚上，尼克来到伊丽莎白家，伊丽莎白的父母正好都在家。伊丽莎白觉得，是时候和父母谈谈自己的婚姻大事了。尼克拉斯也同意。几分钟过后，她与父母来到了尼克面前。在此之前，他们三人之间很少说话。富兰克林·帕金森夫妇落座后，伊丽莎白离开了房间。
“帕金森先生，帕金森夫人，”尼克一字一句地说道，“如果你们允许我娶你们的女儿伊丽莎白，我将感到莫大的荣幸。”
帕金森先生咬紧嘴唇,眯缝着眼，然后把头转向夫人，说：“让我来处理吧，亲爱的。”
帕金森夫人一句话没说就站起身，走了出去，随手把门带上。
尼克和帕金森先生，两个人都没立即说话，气氛显得紧张起来。
“你有多少收入，小伙子？” 帕金森先生问道。
“很少，先生。”
“你对前途怎么打算？”
“我不明白您的意思，先生。”
“你一生中有什么理想吗，丹德罗西先生？”
“追求真理，先生。”
帕金森先生不禁倒吸了一口气，默默地数到五，尽量控制情绪。在他面前，居然还有人胆敢告诉他，人生理想只是追求真理，而不是钱。
“这听起来很浪漫，很勇敢。但是，我认为这不切实际，丹德罗西先生。”
“你说得对，先生，”尼克同意。
“你想和我女儿结婚，把她从这里带走吗？你能给她什么？”言外之意，他指房子及所有的奢侈品。
尼克笑道：“我的生活方式。”
“你的生活方式！” 帕金森先生按捺不住愤怒，“就几件衣服，东卖几件，西卖几件？我的外孙就在这种贫困的环境里长大？不，我的伊丽莎白不能过这种生活。她要过更好的生活。”
尼克平静地问：“你想给女儿什么呢，帕金森先生。”
“钱，” 帕金森先生答道，“我要她过上豪华的、和现在一样的生活。”
“那么，我保证她能得到。”
帕金森笑了：“你把它看得太简单了，你到哪儿去弄钱？”
“这我得好好想想。”
“费心地好好想想吧。” 帕金森先生嘲笑道。
尼克讨厌谈钱。然而，他现在的幸福就建立在钱之上。他问道：“需要多少钱，才能让你……我的意思是说，你的女儿，幸福？”
帕金森先生迟疑片刻，接着答道：“一百万美元。”
他看着尼克，相信这已经碾碎了年轻人的野心。但是，尼克依然平静：“你给我多长时间？”
“一年，” 帕金森先生说，“从现在起，一年，你有了一百万，伊丽莎白就是你的了。”他显得很高兴。他确信，他已经永远摆脱掉了这个希腊人。
他朝尼克点点头，就站起身离开了。
尼克一路走回了家，想着所有的办法，能让他如何在12个月中，挣到一百万元。最后他得出结论，靠做生意肯定不行，因为他没有本钱去做生意，得另想办法。
第二天，他找到一个朋友，谈起了一个非同寻常的想法——赌马。
他的朋友花了几个小时，尽力说服尼克，靠赛马得到一百万是不可能的，但是，尼克主意已定。最后他的朋友建议他去加拿大，说他可以到那里的赛马场上试试运气。他不想离开伊丽莎白，可他又没有其它办法赚到这笔钱。
整整三个月，他研究赛马和赌博，然后和伊丽莎白暂别，卖掉服装公司，坐火车来到加拿大的蒙特利尔。
一开始，尼克的赌注下得很小。他从实际经历和观察中学习。他赌马时，既不靠小道消息，也不感情用事。每天的比赛，他采用的方法都不一样。有人曾说：“赛马得胜的惟一法则，就是押准获胜的赛马。”这也正是尼克的做法。他寻找别人未曾注意的马。在比赛时，总是他赢，他的资金在膨胀着。
在他学到更多赌博和赛马经验时，赌注也下得更大了。五个月中，他已经赢到了近40万元。人们开始把他作为话题，称他为“希腊人尼克”，这个绰号一直伴随着他，直到他死去。
很快，尼克开始声名远播。他的财富在增加，可是，他一年的期限快到了。为更快地赚钱，他买了一匹马，取名“哲学家”。有了这匹马，他只需要大胜一次，就能达到他一百万美元的目标。
尼克在哲学家身上，下了5万的赌注，赌它获得第一、第二、或是第三名。尼克望着赛马离开起跑门，显得很平静。一会儿，有匹马摔倒了，接着，另一匹马的骑手落下马来。当所有的马接近终点时，哲学家还是第5名。但是，哲学家最后一刻，突然加速，进入第三名，冲过了终点线。尼克已经赢得了他的一百万美元！
尼克冲到赛马管理处，借了个洗衣的大包，把13万5千加元满满地塞了一包，奔到赛马场入口处，叫来一辆出租车。
到了宾馆，他把东西打成两大包，一包装衣服，另一包则装着一百万现金。
他正准备离开，有人在外敲门。尼克打开门，宾馆服务员递给他一份电报。尼克给了他5元小费，掩上了门。
尼克吹着口哨，展开电报，读了起来。吹出的口哨忽然哽在喉咙里，眼泪从他脸上滚落下来，电报掉到地上，上面写着：
我们亲爱的伊丽莎白昨晚去世了。
富兰克林·帕金森
1． fig [fig] n. 服装
2． neighborhood n. 街道,地区
3． luxurious adj. 奢华的
4． butler n. 男管家
5． tapestry n. 花毯,挂毯
6． awkward adj. 笨拙的,不熟练的
7． haltingly adv. 踌躇地,迟疑不决地
8． ecstasy n. 狂喜
9． obstacle n. 障碍
10． charged adj. (气氛等)紧张的
11． secure v. 获得,把…弄到手
12． mockingly adv. 嘲笑地
13． horseracing n. 赛马
14． tips n. （关于行情等的）秘密消息
15． hunch n. （口）预感
16. bankroll n. 资金
17. jockey n. 赛马的职业骑师
18. dash v. 猛冲
19. bellboy n. 旅馆服务员