Miss Mary in Pride and Prejudice

Listening to the Duke of Clovis narrating the ins and outs of the matter, you can't help but admire the old Duke's superb language skills as a senior socialite - he cleared the Earl of Leicester's charges cleverly and without trace, He also lightly attributed the princess's behavior to her deep love, which is justifiable anyway.But Mary was very clear in her heart. Perhaps it was the recent conversation with the priest in Lisbon that gave her a certain understanding of politics and diplomacy. His manner only aroused in her a violent disgust.

But on the surface she was calm, and she did not show the expression of sudden realization and mixed sorrow and joy that the Duke expected. She just took a sip of the coffee cup lightly and said, "Thank you for your coffee, Mr. Duke. Tell me something else?"

The Duke of Clovis was surprised. He looked at Mary with some concern, and said eagerly: "Miss Bennet, please believe that the Earl of Leicester has never deceived you. I have known him for many years and know his character well. noble."

Mary stood up, straightened her shawl, smiled charmingly at the Duke, and said, "My lord, don't you think this is between me and the count? As for the character of the count, and your The ability to judge other people's character... Oh, sometimes, people can even miss their own daughters, let alone business partners."

The duke's face flushed, and he mumbled: "I apologize again for Cynthia's behavior, Miss Bennet, but I still want to sincerely ask you to believe what I say, you know, this concerns the French royal family fate and the future of Europe as a whole..."

Mary said impatiently: "You are too serious, duke, I am just a weak woman with no power, no power, no scheming, and no responsibility for the fate of France and even Europe." She paused, did not look back, just He said quietly, "If anyone really needs to apologize for this, I don't think it's you, Duke. Please let the Earl come out."

Behind her came a deep sigh, and then a rustling sound, the Duke left, and after a while, a familiar voice sounded: "I think I am self-defeating, Mary." Mary turned around Come, Earl of Leicester stood in front of her. He was still so handsome, well-dressed, and wealthy, but Mary was no longer attracted by him: "No, no, Earl. You just showed your truest self, I have seen the truth in time, and for that I should thank you."

The earl realized the meaning of her words, and felt more uncomfortable in his heart. He lowered his head and thought for a while before he said: "I want to explain that things are not at all what Miss Cynthia told you. I have never been engaged to her, nor have I This plan, that ring . . . she forged it out of a jewel from a brooch I gave her . . . "

Mary said without waiting for him to finish: "I believe you, count, everything you and your lord the duke say. However, this does not change anything, it does not change my opinion and understanding of you-we are not the same kind Man, never. I should have kept this in mind, but I was blinded by vanity and love, yes, count, your wealth and position have excited my vanity, and I do not deny that I have loved You, even just a few days ago, were looking forward to your proposal."

The count raised his head, his eyes flickered faintly, but Mary lowered her eyes, and she continued: "But I was very lucky to encounter this clumsy deception designed by Miss Cynthia out of the blue, and she let me recognize the situation clearly , and also recognized my heart - I am not suitable for you, Earl, you can deal with the royal family and the powerful, and control the fate and happiness of so many people according to your own will, but I am just an ignorant countryman Girl, I can’t see or hear the 24 families I have associated with. Books, paintings, pianos and embroidery are all I live in. How can I dream of entering your intricate world?”

The count shook his head, and he explained sadly: "I know I did something wrong, Mary. Please listen to my explanation. I admit that my relationship with Duke Clovis has something to do with political purposes, but it's all because I'm too boring. , before I met you, I couldn't find the direction of my life, and I could only gain a sense of accomplishment as much as my wealth and status allowed. But when I met you, I knew what I really wanted... I admit that I threatened Miss Cynthia to tell the truth, and I forced Duke Clovis to confess to you, all because I was too afraid of losing you..."

Mary interrupted him sadly: "You see that all your goals have been achieved, and no one can resist your will, right?" The determination in her voice frightened Earl Leicester, and he pressed Tightly pursing her lips, she suddenly asked, "If I were just a semi-reclusive gentleman in Emerald Manor, or if I was just a poor painter in a cottage in the Lake District, you wouldn't reject me, would you?" Mary wrapped her shawl tightly , looked out the window, I don’t know when, it was windy outside, and the cypress coffee tables along the street looked deserted, she stretched out her hand to the count: “Forget it, count, there are no assumptions in life. I have made up my mind , it will not change. I think I have made it clear in my letter to you, let us say amicable good-bye."

The Earl of Leicester was silent, and the silence was short, but it made Mary feel very uncomfortable, but in the end, the Earl of Leicester gently held Mary's hand and kissed the back of her hand lightly.Mary turned and left, and even the waiter who opened the door didn't hear her mumbled thank you, and she felt tears welling up in her eyes.Now that she has made up her mind, why does her heart still hurt so much?

When Mary returned to the square alone, neither Anne nor the Lisbon priest had returned. Mary breathed a sigh of relief, which saved the trouble of explaining, and she really didn't want to mention it to anyone.She put away the note that was under the stone, sat on the original steps and continued to wait, but her mood changed.The originally clear sky was covered with a layer of haze, the cold wind drove away the flock of pigeons foraging in the square, and even the pleasant chirping of unknown birds disappeared, and Mary was filled with sadness.

Fortunately, she didn't wait too long, and Anne came back with Mr. Lisbon, followed by Mrs. Jenkinson, who was carrying big bags and small bags. Anne bought a lot of gifts, and it was probably the first time that she made her own decisions to buy so many things, so There was no restraint in the selection, and Mr. Lisbon managed to persuade the two ladies who were caught in a shopping frenzy to come back. He was already anxious and worried, and he was relieved to see Mary waiting there.

At noon, the Lisbon priest invited the ladies to the most famous Palotino restaurant in Florence to eat the traditional Italian food T-bone steak and bread salad. He also tasted the cheese and wine that are said to be the best quality in Italy. Anne and Jenkinson All the wives were full of praise, except for Mary, who had no taste at all. Her mouth was full of bitterness and taste, and she forced a smile to echo her praise. When the dessert almond chocolate cookies came, Mary was really I couldn't even eat a bite.

The Lisbon priest took good care of everyone, but he obviously paid the most attention to Mary. Seeing that Mary had a poor appetite, he calmly took the dessert from her plate, lest Anne and Mrs. Jenkinson make a fuss and make Mary worse. terribly upset.Mary had to say that she was very grateful for his understanding. Fortunately, Anne was immersed in the joy of shopping and told her what Christmas gifts she had bought for her family and friends. Only then did Mary think that Christmas As it drew nearer, she suddenly felt like returning home, and she missed her little room at Longbourne and the old piano in the drawing-room downstairs.

After the trip to Italy, the pastor of Lisbon unexpectedly stated that he would accompany the three ladies back home. It turned out that his vacation had also ended and he would report to the Archbishop of Canterbury in London and accept a new appointment.Being accompanied by a gentleman with outstanding knowledge is naturally something that the ladies can't wait for, so everyone expressed their joy, and thanks to his care along the way, they returned to England very smoothly by car and boat, and then they parted ways.

The priest of Lisbon had to go to London, and Anne wanted to invite Mary to Rosings as a guest, but Mary insisted on returning to Longbourn to spend Christmas with her parents, so it was agreed that Anne and their carriage would pass through Hertfordshire. Time to send Mary home first, for which Mary is grateful.Pastor Lisbon broke up with them first. When shaking hands and saying goodbye, he said to Mary that he hoped to meet again soon.

In the carriage, Anne made a lot of jokes on Mary. She thought that the parting words of Pastor Lisbon were not polite to Mary. She smiled to her friend: "Dear Mary, you must be careful. Charm is irresistible to any girl in her boudoir, if he wants to pursue someone.” Mary just laughed it off, she was not in the mood to accept another relationship, and she felt that her desire not to marry for life was growing. It's getting stronger.

Mary returned to Longbourn three days before Christmas. Mrs. Bennet was very pleasantly surprised when she saw Mary. The old man found that she hadn't seen her for several months. Mary became more and more beautiful, and even the fourth sister Kitty kept going He pestered Mary to ask if he had found any particularly effective cosmetics in France. Even Mr. Bennet was very happy to see Mary, but he expressed his joy for the return of his third daughter in this way: "Mary, you seem to be much more sensible than before, and you are also much more beautiful. From my experience, there is only one thing that can bring about such a benign change in a girl's family, and that is a broken relationship. Tell me, who is it? The boy dumped you?" Mary didn't feel much about her father's inappropriate jokes, perhaps because of her 20 years of life experience, she had already adapted to her father's language style.

It was her mother's attitude that made her suffer for several days.It turned out that when Mrs. Bennet saw that Mary became more and more beautiful, she couldn't restrain her desire to marry her off quickly, and there was no suitable marriage partner near Longbourne, so from the day Mary returned home, Bennet Mrs. Nat has been lobbying for her to go to Jane's house in Howard Manor with Kitty for Christmas, because there will be many rich bachelors there, but it is a pity that Kitty was not sent to the carriage until the next day. Mrs. Bennet's nagging didn't change Mary's mind. She made up her mind to spend Christmas at home, so that her father and mother would not spend the holiday alone.

Mrs. Bennet thought it unreasonable, but Mr. Bennet was quite surprised. He asked Mary the reason for becoming so filial in a joking tone several times, but Mary prevaricated it with ingenious ridicule. After that, Mr. Bennet paid a lot of attention to this daughter who was still willing to accompany the old couple, especially after Mary discussed some reading experiences, he found that Mary's views and thoughts had improved a lot compared to before, and it was inevitable that Gao Gao glanced at the daughter.

The Christmas of the three was warm and joyful. After the three of them had a gourmet meal on Christmas Eve, Mary sang some newly learned operas to her parents and read aloud the script of "The Marriage of Figaro". After saying good night to each other and going to bed, Mrs. Bennet couldn't help going on about how lively it was going to be at Howard End and Pemberley Park at this time, and how many young people would dance and sing there all night long, and how wonderful it would be if Mary didn't go. loss etc.Mary bore it all, but when she got back to her room she was not unmoved, for she was reminded of last Christmas, Pemberley's Christmas Eve, and the Christmas morning under the mistletoe. people and that kiss...