Miss Mary in Pride and Prejudice

This ship is like a mobile city on the sea. It was just launched for sea trials the year before last. It is very well equipped. There are parasols and marble-topped tables and chairs on the deck, and there are waiters who can speak several languages ​​to and from the service, providing a variety of cocktails and drinks.First class has a bar, a gym, a shop selling crafts and cigars, and even a chapel and a library.

For the first time in history, Mary did not plunge into the library and fail to come out, just because the scenery on the sea was so beautiful.The sea and the sky are always pure blue, but they are so varied and layered, harmoniously blending the sea and the sky.The boat is like a sharp knife cutting the velvety smooth water surface, the waves pass by the hull quickly, and the setting sun hangs tremblingly on the sea level like a boiled egg yolk.Mary pressed down her hat and stood on the side of the boat blowing the sea breeze, the wind blew the tassels on her shawl, but she was reluctant to retreat indoors.She reluctantly left the side of the ship until a person who looked like a first officer came to remind her that it was time for dinner.

There are about [-] guests in the first class. Except for the two wives who are seasick and Annie, everyone else goes to the restaurant for dinner. The food is very fresh and delicious, and there are many dishes to choose from. Only the salmon has smoked. Different from charcoal grilling, the prawns in white sauce are also very tender. The strawberry and raspberry cake after the meal is very delicately covered with a layer of snow-white frosting, which looks appetizing. Mary is satisfied with the boat meal.

But there was also an unpleasant thing, that was when she finished her meal and wanted to go back to her room to visit Anne, her shawl slipped to the ground, and before she could bend down, a well-dressed gentleman next to her graciously offered her Picking up the shawl, Mary thanked cautiously and wanted to take the shawl, but who knew that person stepped forward and tried to put it on her body. Mary was shocked, she had never encountered such a rude thing—a plain Unborn men have to exercise rights that only relatives and friends have.

She quickly declined, took a step back, and showed indifference and dissatisfaction as little as possible. The gentleman could not speak English, and Mary's French was limited. Besides, she didn't want to talk to a stranger, the French gentleman revealed With a puzzled and puzzled look on his face, Mary didn't want to pester him, so she hurriedly bypassed this person and left.As soon as she walked to the door of the restaurant, she saw a familiar face, and she couldn't help exclaiming in surprise: "Oh, Mr. Lisbon, it's great to meet you here."

The person who came was indeed Mr. Lisbon. He took off his priest's black robe, and wore a casual style snowflake jacket, a light-colored vest, a dark gray tie, and a silk top hat, looking even more handsome and unrestrained.Seeing Marie, he respectfully took off his hat to salute, and then explained that he was on vacation and planned to visit an old friend of his in Antibes, a small town in France.Upon hearing what happened to Mary, Mr. Lisbon immediately went to the gentleman, cleared up the misunderstanding with a few words in fluent French, and asked for Mary's shawl back.

Now that such an accident happened, Mr. Lisbon naturally assumed the responsibility of protector. He immediately escorted Mary back to the room and stopped by to visit Mrs. Davis. The social etiquette here is much more open than that of the British Isles, and perhaps she will encounter even more shocking things in Paris.

Mary heard Mr. Lisbon's disapproval of European culture from Mr. Lisbon's words. She also thought that the behavior of the man just now was too far from the British customs, but she was not a hypocritical person when she followed the Romans. A gentleman was just following the etiquette of his own country, rather than being abrupt, and Mary immediately forgave him, and was a little sorry for her fuss.

Anne vomited and vomited in the room, and Mrs. Jenkinson came out to pay her respects on her behalf, saying that Anne's physical condition could not receive the Lisbon priest for the time being.But the young man's illness came and went quickly, and the next day Anne got used to the life on board and could go to have breakfast with them.In order to avoid disturbance, the two of them stayed together with Mr. Lisbon during the few days on board.Mr. Lisbon is very talented in languages. In just a few days, he has been able to talk to passengers from different countries on the ship. will not feel boring.

Mr. Lisbon showed a knack not only for reading people's hearts, but also for controlling the behavior of others according to circumstances.Under his calm arrangements, Anne no longer immersed in the grief of losing her child all day long, and their daily schedules are very rich, neither too tiring nor boring, Even for a guardian like Mrs. Jenkinson who objected to everything, was worried about everything, and wished to keep Anne under his wing, Mr. Lisbon could easily persuade her and win her heartfelt love.

On the evening of the third day, the ship approached the port of Calais in France, and the sea wind became more bitter. Flocks of seagulls were flying over the port. With the encouragement of Mr. Lisbon, Mary and Anne bravely boarded the highest deck. Throw bread to seagulls, attracting seagulls to circle around and prey on them.Mr. Lisbon's knowledge is extremely extensive, and he can easily explain to Mary whether it is a gray gull, a black-headed gull, a northern European, a great black-backed gull, or a herring gull.All in all, when the ship arrived in Calais, Marie felt that the beginning of the trip was very pleasant, and she was full of expectations for the rest of the journey.

After landing, they went their separate ways with Mr. Lisbon, but before that, Mr. Lisbon tried his best to persuade them to go to Antibes, saying that it was the first city built by the ancient Greeks on the Côte d'Azur, and it had a history of more than 2000 years. With a long history, it is famous for its rich cultural and artistic atmosphere and unique elegant charm.It was thus decided that they would visit Paris first, and then pass on to Antibes, where they would join Monsieur Lisbon and visit the places of interest near the Côte d'Azur.

It should be said that Anne was grateful to Mr. Lisbon, so she was unwilling to live up to his kindness, but she insisted on going to Paris first, not because she liked that pompous and luxurious metropolis, but because of her friends.

Port of Calais is a noisy and lively city, but it is surprisingly clean. Most of the buildings are made of white stone, and the whole city seems to be spotless.The people here are also much more enthusiastic than in England. When Mary and Anne were waiting for the servants to negotiate a horse exchange at the post station, seven or eight women with huge flat baskets came forward to sell their freshly picked vegetables and melons. Fruits, homemade honey jam, olive oil, soap, lavender, sausage and cheese, etc., colorful, their attitude is friendly but not annoying, Mary and Anne can speak some French, which is enough to ask the price, so Bought a lot of interesting little things.

But Mrs. Jenkinson was not very polite to these people. She drove them away from the carriage aggressively, and then accused Anne and Mary of trusting strangers too much, and said that these people were pickpockets and thieves. She spoke English. But here is only one strait away from England, and Mary was afraid that someone would understand her unwanted remarks and cause unnecessary trouble, so she hurriedly urged the carriage to drive away.

Mrs. de Bower booked for them the top suite of the most luxurious hotel in Paris, the Saint-Paul Hotel.As soon as she entered the hotel lobby, Marie understood the words of her favorite French playwright, Mariveau: "Paris is the whole world, and the rest of the globe is only its suburbs." It is filled with the finest silks , tapestries, porcelain, mirrors, clocks and fine workmanship furniture, each of which is as luxurious as possible, the pursuit of material comfort is unabashedly expressed, and on the contrary stimulates the most primitive enthusiasm in everyone's heart.

And during the short trip when they were personally led into the room by the respectful hotel owner, the fashionable and graceful Parisian women who passed by passed by Anne and Mary opened their eyes, of course from the eyes of British ladies. Look, their clothes seem a little too revealing. Even if you don’t consider the weather, you should also consider other people’s perceptions—the beauty is of course extremely beautiful. It made Mary and Anne feel that the clothes on their bodies were old-fashioned, and they made up their minds the next day. Spend all your time in fashion shops and milliners.

It's a pity that Mrs. Jenkinson has the aesthetic vision of the most orthodox British women from a good family. She simply sneers at those women with bare breasts and backs, and she is afraid that Mary and Anne's eyes and hearts will be polluted. She is like a hen guarding her chicks. Mrs. Jenkinson was relieved to have hurried them into the room, cut off from the pomp outside, and could not help complaining that Anne should have taken Mr. Lisbon's advice, in the presence of a decent clergyman. Accompany you to enjoy the scenery, instead of coming to this noisy and confused Paris to endure some indecent and even debauched behaviors of those men and women.

Although Anne is still as weak on the surface as before, she has her own opinions in her heart, so she endured Mrs. Jenkinson's nagging and complaining, and when she and Mary were alone in the room, they finally couldn't help laughing, Anne still It was hilarious to try to imitate the way Mrs. Jenkinson's eyes were about to pop out when she saw the lady with half her shoulder and half her arm showing.

Then they agreed on the schedule for the next few days. They were going to visit the banks of the Seine, the Place de la Concorde, Notre Dame, the Pantheon, the Madeleine Church, and also go to the Conqueror Square to appreciate the famous equestrian statue of Louis XIV. The Elysées Avenue is full of all the high-end shops, go to the Opera House to listen to the famous opera "The Marriage of Figaro"...

Mary was planning enthusiastically, and sometimes focusing on material enjoyment is also an exciting pleasure, but Anne's soft words made her calm down quickly: "Oh, dear Mary, I remembered , we still need to set aside at least half a day, because the Earl of Leicester may visit, Henry's research results have begun to take shape, he asked me to bring the research report to the Earl, and asked him to take it to the academicians of the French Academy of Sciences for comment One or two."

Mary tried to ask in a nonchalant tone, "When will you write to the Count asking him to come?"

Annie replied easily: "Tomorrow, I think."