Miss Mary in Pride and Prejudice

That night, when Mary returned to her room, although she was exhausted, she did not feel sleepy at all, because she still remembered the count's invitation, and she couldn't imagine that if she broke the appointment, the man would do something out of anger .Maybe he would really run to her window and play the guitar and sing love songs. In that case, she would really be ashamed to see others.

When she took off the decorations on her bun, her sister Kitty ran in, hugged her and asked her if it was true that the earl fell in love with her, this reckless and scheming sister Repeatedly asking for evidence, concentrating on guessing, she insisted on how much benefits she promised to give herself after becoming the Countess, and asked Mary to ask the Earl to transfer her dear Andrew back to England... Mary sent her out with great difficulty.

She felt that she was having a headache, and at this moment there was another knock on the door. Mary thought that Kitty had come running back and was talking, so she opened the door angrily, and said, "Kitty, nothing but lace, young man and Marriage proposal, can't you think of something more meaningful in your little head?"

Then she froze, and the most unlikely person stood outside the door——Miss Bingley, and Miss Bingley raised her chin arrogantly, and said in a tone: "That's right, this is exactly what I said. To the Bennet girls." Then she held a note between two fingers and handed it over, "I was entrusted to pass it to you."

Mary took the note angrily, said "Thank you", and closed the door in front of Miss Bingley without regard for politeness. There were a few sarcastic sneers outside the door, and finally Mary's ears were clear. .She opened the note, and saw a few words written in a familiar font: Midnight, by the river.

Mary felt a little strange in her heart, didn't he already said that it was in the old octagonal pavilion in the courtyard?There are shrubs covering all sides, it is a good place for a lover's tryst, but after thinking about it, there are a lot of guests in Howard Manor tonight, and many young people may take advantage of the cool summer night to play and play all night, the octagonal pavilion is indeed not safe enough.

It was almost midnight when Howards End was very quiet, and Mary, convinced that even the most energetic of Kitty's young people had gone to bed, got up quietly, changed into a dark coffee-colored dress that was not very conspicuous in the night, and left the room. , her footsteps were very light, the corridors and stairs were very quiet, only the faint light of the long light on the wall was flickering, Mary was a little uneasy, she subconsciously felt that something was spying on her whereabouts in the dark, she turned her head suddenly , there was no one in the corridor, she breathed a sigh of relief, and pushed open the heavy oak door of the mansion, the moonlight streamed a silver-white ripple on the carpet in the hall, and was blocked outside the door again.

Tonight's moonlight was hazy, Mary took a deep breath of the refreshing air, the residual heat left by the scorching sun in the day slowly evaporated in the night of Howards End, Mary did not fight the cold war like last time, the night wind Gently, lightly brushing away the gloom she felt in the mansion, she walked briskly along the gravel path to the river at the other end of the woods. Although the moonlight tonight was not as bright as the previous night, Mary walked along this road. Countless times, even with her eyes closed, she could find the place where the yellow lilies bloom by the river, not to mention that during the day, she had just had an extraordinary conversation with the priest of Lisbon there.

When Mary walked out of the gate of the mansion, she just heard the clock in the hall strike midnight, so when she came to the river, it was a little later than the appointment time, but what surprised her was that a man by the river There are no people, only the yellow lilies quietly closing their petals and dozing in the night wind.This doesn't seem to be the Earl of Leicester's style. Although he is not a gentleman, in Mary's impression, he is very punctual. Could it be that he couldn't wait to leave because he was 5 minutes late?

Mary thinks this possibility is unlikely, he does not seem to be the kind of stubborn person, not to mention that when a woman has a tryst with someone, being late is a means of self-promotion, making the lover wait until he is anxious or even desperate, and then Giving him a sudden surprise seems to be the secret to success in love.She came early, the earl should be a veteran in the field of love and moon, and would not be entangled in such details.

But tonight, this kind of method in love was used on Mary. She waited for another 10 minutes under the laurel tree by the river. When she was about to go back, there was a sound of footsteps in the bushes in the distance. , and then the Earl of Leicester appeared out of breath.However, he looked a bit embarrassed, his hair was messed up, he was not wearing a coat, the collar of his white shirt was open, revealing half of his chest, and his cuffs were half-rolled over his wrists. Overall, he looked a bit wild and unruly.

Mary thought of how well-dressed she was before the appointment, and felt a little resentful at his casual attitude. She said dissatisfiedly: "You are late," and she took the note with the date and place on it. Handed it in front of him, "First, I changed the meeting place, and still asked for the note from Miss Bingley, and then I was 15 minutes late... Well, I know you have always claimed that you are not a gentleman, but if you Came here in a hurry during another carnival, and I hope there won't be such a forced rendezvous in the future." The Earl of Leicester's clothes easily reminded her that he had been drinking and carousing with some friends after dark .

The Earl of Leicester was not ashamed or angry when he heard her complaints, but his eyes lit up. He took the note and glanced at it, and said with a loud smile, "I fully understand. Miss Bingley is really helpful. I will repay her well." Then he looked at Mary affectionately and said, "Honey, I have to say that you are much more charming when you are angry than usual. But I promise that this kind of thing will not happen in the future, Today also happened for a reason, I will explain to you later, now let's talk about more important topics."

Mary squinted at him and said, "What else is there to say? Haven't you already designed it? I only hope that you won't regret it. I only hope that when you find out that I am not what you imagined, You won't be too bad to me..." She suddenly felt a little sad, and couldn't help but choked up.

The Earl of Leicester quickly embraced her in his arms and said softly, "Little fool, what do you think I imagined you to be? Don't you think that my courtship and marriage proposal to you are all out of pleasure and without careful consideration?" ? Could it be that I am such a heartless person in your heart?"

When a woman is weak or sad, it is easy to speak out what is in her heart, so at this time Mary choked up and said: "But, a rich noble like you, what kind of rich lady can't be pursued, why would you come to provoke me like this?" What about a country girl who is neither beautiful nor rich? In terms of status, I am not as good as Miss Cynthia, in terms of looks, I am not as good as Miss Darcy, and in terms of dowry, I am not as good as Miss Bingley with twenty thousand pounds at my disposal. So, I am very afraid, I am afraid that I will really fall in love with you—maybe I have fallen in love with you, but I have nothing, all I can count on is your love, love like this kind of disparity in status will not last long Yes, once the love fades away, what a miserable situation I will be in! I would rather look up at you from afar, envy you, and don't want to bear the pain of losing after gaining..."

Before she could finish her words, she was sealed by a passionate kiss, and her tears were still on her cheeks. At this moment, a hint of saltiness was added to the lingering lips and teeth. Perhaps the earl was too Enthusiastic, her soul was almost sucked out by him, so when she finally broke free from the suffocation and took a breath of air, she completely forgot what she had just said.

The count stroked her forehead and hair with his chin, and murmured: "I am so happy, Mary, happy and distressed, what is going on in your little head, I have been searching for so many years alone in the vast sea of ​​people, I finally found you, the only person in the world who can be my soulmate, how can I love you for so long?"

Mary now remembered another question that made her tangled up: "But the way you pursued is so overbearing. You first bought a horse with 20 pounds, and then gave it to me as a gift. This is not to let people gossip about me. Is it? It seems that I was bought by you with 20 pounds!"

The count laughed loudly this time: "What an expensive bride! Mary, tell me, what does a happy family life look like in your mind?"

Mary said without hesitation: "Mr. Bingley and Jane are like this. Maybe they don't need to be as rich as them. As long as there is a small farm, a flock of chickens, ducks, and cows, a warm home, husband and wife love each other, and two children. Three lovely children, even if the whole family can only drink vegetable soup and eat dry bread, will they be happy?"

The earl looked at her and said seriously: "I now realize how much illusion the Bingleys have given you. Maybe they are happy after marriage, but you have also seen it, and you can't help being agitated - if I hadn't bought that black horse, If Howard End is auctioned now, can you imagine what kind of life the Bingleys would live? Would they really drink vegetable soup and eat bread? When the quality of life plummets, their love will work in the short term, and they Will comfort and support each other, but your sister can no longer wear beautiful clothes to the ball, she has to grind her delicate fingers in the kitchen and vegetable patch, she has to bargain with small vendors to save every penny At that time, can she still maintain her gentle and pleasant demeanor? She will find that her beloved son, little Ellen, and her future children will not enjoy the childhood life enjoyed by Mr. Darcy's children. Now, she has no money to send them to receive higher education, so she can only let them be apprentices at a young age, beaten and scolded, won't she complain about her husband's recklessness at that time?"