Miss Mary in Pride and Prejudice

Now everyone is talking about Mr. Lisbon, his youthful promise and promising future, especially among Mrs. Bennet, who has already regarded him as the suitor of her third daughter. At Bowen's ball, the Lisbon priest invited Mary to dance two dances, but he only chose four dances in the whole ball, and the other two invited poor girls without a partner, so Mrs. Bennet asserted that the pastor Mr. is in love with Mary.

Mr. Bennet, who always likes to make things difficult for his wife, said: "Well, madam, are you really that sure? I don't see anything about Mary that can attract that promising gentleman. That gentleman's knowledge, experience Both heart and heart are beyond the reach of ordinary people, and the two of them have almost nothing in common."

What Mrs. Bennet dislikes most about her husband is that he always speaks badly about her daughters instead of discovering their good points: "I would say that among all the girls around, Mr. Lisbon has the most common topic with Mary. Yes, they've been talking about that writer what's his name at the ball?"

Mary, who was embroidering a tablecloth, added to her mother, "It's Scott, Mom."

"Yes, that's right, my boy, it's Scott, and I'll bet the other girls don't even know who that is."

But Mr. Bennet said: "That's true, but Mary doesn't know much. If she really needs to say something attractive, she needs to bring her notebook, otherwise she won't remember it." Can't hold so many new words."

Mary laughed: "Dad, it's not kind of you to be so sarcastic about me—don't forget, you gave me that notebook."

Mr. Bennet raised his eyebrows and said: "Yes, but if I had known that you were going to discuss Scott with such a great scholar, I should have bought a thicker book, and now I worry about the old book. That's not enough."

Mary replied pretending to be serious: "I try to extract only the essence of aphorisms, so as to cover up my ignorance in front of Mr. Pastor."

Mrs. Bennet, exasperated by the conversation between father and daughter, complained that her fragile nerves had been abused again, and was about to go upstairs to lie down when the maid came in to announce Mr. Lisbon's visit. Mrs. Bennet was immediately delighted, and for a moment she was tempted to persuade Mary to go upstairs and change into something more respectable.Mary pretended not to hear, sat on the chair resolutely, and continued to embroider her own tablecloth, but she was very puzzled by Mr. Lisbon's abnormal behavior, but later she thought that maybe Mr. Lisbon was just because he had no acquaintance nearby. That's why she visited so frequently, so she was relieved, and greeted Mr. Lisbon who came in gracefully.

Mr. Lisbon is here to visit the parishioners this time and listen to everyone's evaluation of the church and the pastor of the church. Of course, he heard all good things, so the official business was over soon.The understanding Mrs. Bennet immediately suggested that Mary accompany the pastor to enjoy the pastoral scenery of Longbourne. She enthusiastically recommended the hillside to the west of the mansion, thinking that it had a wilderness, in order to attract the pastor. Ken condescended to move, and Mrs. Bennet even boasted that the scenery there might be comparable to somewhere in Pemberley.

Mary protested that there was nothing to see in the bleakness outside, and the cold weather.But the Lisbon priest had been persuaded by Mrs. Bennet, so Mary had to go upstairs to put on her thick coat, hat and muff, and left the warm living room angrily to the cold outdoor .Little Xuefei ran out happily following her like a snowball. Mary was afraid of freezing the puppy, so she drove it back to the house several times. Xuefei wagged her tail and begged eagerly. Hugging Xuefei into his arms, he said, "Puppy doesn't like being locked up in the house all the time, how about this, I'll hold it, so it won't catch cold." Mrs. Nutt was full of praise again.

Mary thought: But I might catch a cold.The weather is not only cold, but also very humid. There are fluffy rain in the air, which is icy cold. After walking for a while, Mary asks Xuefei to come over and hug her. The puppy is like a small stove, and she Well-behaved and warm, it poked its head out of Mary's muff, looked at the scenery in the field quietly, and never made a fuss about it.

But with Mr. Lisbon, he will never be bored. As he walks, he points Mary to observe the scenery in the field. Where is the lark's nest and where is the hare's hole, he can't hide it from his eyes.He even found half a broken Sphinx statue in a weedy stone pile. The granite was covered with moss and spots, but the statue's lines were smooth and Renaissance-style. The two squatted down to study the Latin inscription on the base of the statue for a long time, and finally agreed that it was written by Raphael.

Any ordinary scene, with Mr. Lisbon's touch, has a unique artistic beauty. Soon Mary forgot the cold, and also forgot the reluctance in her stomach just now. Far from feeling tired at all, Mr. Lisbon reminded her, on the contrary, that she remembered that it was almost time for lunch.

On the way back, Xiaoxuefei was put on the ground, and it ran wildly back and forth, holding a branch or a piece of mud from time to time to show it to Mary as if offering a treasure, but Mary laughed and scolded, but didn’t go Control it.Because she agreed with Mr. Lisbon's words: "Every creature has its own nature. It is best to let nature take its course and let it live according to its own nature. This will benefit itself and others." Mary thought, not only Puppies, why not people!

Perhaps because she was a little hungry, she chatted with him about food with great interest: "Mr. Lisbon, maybe there is one side of human nature that likes to pursue novel things. I have eaten all kinds of strange things in Europe, such as snails and eels. , caviar... To be honest, I don't think it tastes better than chicken and beef, but it gave me a lot of talking and bragging rights, and now I can have an advantage when chatting with the ladies of Sir Lucas's family gone."

Pastor Lisbon was very happy to see that Mary had returned to her cheerful and cheerful nature, instead of always worrying like she was in Italy, so he also talked about all the incredible things he ate when he was a missionary in the Asian colonies: "If Even if snails are outrageous ingredients, I have eaten things that you may have never seen. I have eaten sea cucumbers and swallow's nests in China. To be honest, in order to taste these two things that Chinese people think are supremely delicious , I spent the last penny in my pocket without tasting anything, but the common dishes I ate there were very good."

Mary exclaimed: "China... how far away... how mysterious, I really want to see it." Mr. Lisbon said calmly: "It's worth a visit, I assure you, it's a completely different customs from England, but It's hard for me to tell who's better. Oh yeah, I ate live octopus from a fishing boat in a port off the coast there, and I could feel the sucker contact on the tentacles as I swallowed them A strange sensation when touching the mucous membranes of the mouth." These words and these experiences once again aroused Mary's amazement.

Then he told about the curry rice and frog legs he ate when he was a missionary in India, and the opossum and porcupine he ate in Egypt, all of which seemed new and interesting to Mary, who wondered why she had never heard of Lisbon before. The pastor mentioned these things, but when they talked together before, they only talked about Mary's own affairs. Pastor Lisbon seemed to be particularly good at leading others to speak their minds, but he seldom talked about himself.Thinking of the content of the previous conversation, the familiar uncomfortable feeling surged in Mary's heart again, and she quickly shook her head to bring her thoughts back to reality.

When they came back from their walk, it was already lunch time. Under Mrs. Bennet’s enthusiastic persuasion, Pastor Lisbon stayed for lunch as a matter of course, and played a game of cards with Mr. Bennet after lunch. Mr. Nat appreciates him very much, because he has deep insights into people and things and has deep compassion. There is no ridiculous or disgusting words or deeds that make the old man dislike him.

Then Mrs. Bennet carefully prepared the afternoon tea, she was determined to stay Mr. Pastor for dinner.At afternoon tea, Mary and the priest in Lisbon continued the conversation they had had in the field in the morning, but this time they were talking about the delicacies of the Normandy region of France, such as those beach green-shell oysters, stuffed pig's feet, flavored sausages, Rouen blood Duck, apple pie with schnapps and blue cheese.It's a pity that every kind of food they talked about will be judged as worthless by Mrs. Bennet next to her. In Mrs. Bennet's mind, any big dish in France is absolutely worthless. Of the common stew at the Beaune table.

Mary was familiar with her mother's temper, so she smiled and did not argue with her mother. After Mr. Lisbon tactfully agreed, he brought the topic to Mrs. Bennet's field of interest. He talked about a French village called Balho The origin of the hot spring town: "It is said that the local owner, Sir Yugai, was very old and still had no heirs. One day he put an old horse that could not work back into the forest. A few days later, the horse came back happily. Sir Huguet rode on his horse, and the old horse took him to the depths of the forest, so Balau hot spring was discovered. After soaking several times, Sir Huguet felt his youthful vitality returned to him, and later he married a A young wife with many children..."

Before he finished speaking, Mrs. Bennet asked impatiently: "My God, really? Is the hot spring really so magical? Can the hot spring enhance people's fertility?"

Mary suddenly felt worried. She worried that the words of the Vicar of Lisbon would arouse her mother's long-silent desire to have another heir. Mr. Collins has come to inherit the business.

She quickly winked at Mr. Lisbon, and Mr. Lisbon laughed, and he said loudly: "Of course it's not that miraculous, but there is enough evidence to show that the Balao Hot Spring has obvious effects on the treatment of rheumatism. And the hot spring is located in In the pleasant valley with lush trees, patients who go to the hot springs will be well healed physically and mentally in the fresh air and tranquil atmosphere of the valley.”

Mrs. Bennet babbled with some disappointment, and said: "Oh, in that case, I can persuade Mr. Bennet to go there for a few weeks to recuperate. Since last year, his rheumatism has become more and more serious. ——Of course not as serious as my neurasthenia, Mr. Lisbon, do you think hot springs are useful for curing neurasthenia?"

Mr. Lisbon answered this question, as well as Mrs. Bennet's imaginative questions later, very cautiously, and only his pastoral patience and diplomat's rhetoric could resist Mrs. Bennet's various conversations. It was a whimsical idea, but Mary was a little annoyed at this time, because she belatedly realized that the way she winked at Mr. Lisbon just now seemed to indicate that the two were close enough to be familiar with each other. It is easy to be misunderstood.

In the next few days, Reverend Lisbon visited Longbourne almost every day, and was often left behind for dinner. During these social activities, he often had a lot of time alone with Mary, talking or reading.Mrs. Bennet was simply too pleased with him, except for the bewildering and disappointing fact that he never proposed to Mary.Mrs. Bennet, however, held Mary herself to be responsible for this, for she was too inattentive to look prettier or to say pleasant things.

When the Vicar of Lisbon came to Longbourn to take his leave, at the end of his duties in the district, Mrs. Bennet regretted it more than anyone else, and decided that if he could stay here another week or two, her own ardent hopes would be shattered. Become reality.However, when Pastor Lisbon heard that Mary was going to Howards End in March, he told Mary that he would also visit that area during the same time period and maybe meet again.As soon as Mrs. Bennet heard the news, she immediately believed that it was specially arranged by Mr. Pastor to further pursue Mary. Missed opportunity.