[Comprehensive Book] A Rose for Catherine

That night, Catherine was not in a calm mood.Elizabeth came in with a book in her hand. She looked at her sister who was leaning over the table and blinked suspiciously, "Kitty, I should say congratulations to you. But you don't seem particularly happy—I thought you would be more happy." .”

Catherine rubbed her sore eyes, "No, Lizzie, I'm really, really happy. You know that."

There would be no one else but him, thought Catherine.No one is worthy of her liking like that.Knowing that she was deeply loved by such a person, Catherine felt a secret joy in her heart, and it was difficult to share the throbbing joy with others.

Knightley was different.This special was doomed from the very beginning.

They are friends, confidants, elders and guides, and unique lovers.

But maybe it was because of this uniqueness that Catherine dared not miss anything.She always wanted everything to be perfect between them.

Elizabeth couldn't understand her secret and complicated psychology, so she just gave Catherine a strange look, "Then why are you worried, Kitty?"

"You know, I wasn't planning on marrying anyone - I even had a fight with my mum."

Catherine tries to describe to Elizabeth the predicament she faces.

Elizabeth listened to what she said, and quickly grasped the key points from Catherine's words: "So you mean that you like him very much, but you are not willing to marry Mr. Knightley? Because marriage may bring some not-so-good s consequence."

Elizabeth looked at her incredulously, and shook her head, "Kitty, I really didn't expect you to have such absurd ideas. If Mr. Knightley said this to you, we will definitely denounce him as a hypocrite who plays with emotions. A woman You don't want to be married but you are willing to fall in love with this man. This sounds like no loss to a man. But Kitty, if we treat your feelings as equals, no one is more noble than the other. Your behavior has nothing to do with a hypocrite. What's the difference? You'll hurt people by doing it."

Listening to Elizabeth's accusation, Catherine sighed softly.She knew what Elizabeth said was right, but she couldn't explain to Elizabeth that the reason for her fear of marriage was that she was afraid of losing her freedom and had to depend on her husband.

Catherine would never accept a worldly marriage for the purpose of turning a woman and her property into a man's property.

She undoubtedly likes Knightley, but no matter how much she likes her, she is unwilling to turn herself into an attachment.Their affections were equal, and Catherine wanted more than equal affection.

Elizabeth finished her long speech, thought for a while, and picked up the book in her hand.

"Kitty, I really don't understand. You want to start a different girls' school, and you tell me you don't know how it will turn out, but you are still willing to try. Why do you want to do this instead? Refusal to start that it might not be good enough? It just doesn't make sense."

"Lizzie, I see what you mean."

Catherine let out a long breath, rubbed her temples, and was silent for a while before she could organize her words.

"I also know I shouldn't. I think it's because I care too much, and I can't stand a little bit of blemished between us. But you're right, I've got to try and work this out with Knightley and we can Find a better solution."

Elizabeth patted her on the shoulder and said, "You don't seem to be troubled by this alone. Can I see what you're writing?"

Catherine covered up the content on the paper, and said vaguely: "It's something related to the completion of the school, wait for me to finish writing."

Elizabeth nodded with feigned reluctance. "All right, Kitty."

Persuaded by Elizabeth, Catherine felt much calmer.The next morning, she took an early walk outside the courtyard, waiting for her lover to arrive on time.

At eight o'clock Knightley rode up on a horse.He saw Catherine from a distance, and lightly touched the brim of his hat to her while sitting on the horse.A smile rose on his lips when he saw Catherine.She was the start of his day in a good mood.

The servants took his horse aside to tend it, and Knightley strode up to Catherine.

"Good morning."

He said good morning to her as gently as he had every morning at Donwell Park.Catherine smiled back, she held up her skirt and walked in side by side with Knightley, and the rest of the Bennet family were already waiting for them.

"Before you meet Dad, we need to spend a little time sorting out some issues," Catherine told him.

Knightley stopped, looking a little more serious than at first, but there was still a thin, gentle smile under his pale eyes.

"I think what you have to say may or may not be of such importance. But I'd like to hear it. I'd love to hear more, Miss Kitty."

Catherine calmed down inexplicably when she heard his words. He was telling her tactfully that maybe what she thought was a serious problem was not as serious as they thought.

"Sir, can you accept that your future wife will not be a good wife and mother?"

Catherine, who was shorter than Knightley, looked straight into his eyes and had to look up to not miss the slight change in his expression.

Knightley was taken aback for a moment, and then he smiled: "Kitty, I'm afraid I have to apologize to you—"

Catherine's palms were soaked in cold sweat.

Before she had time to think about anything, the young man continued to speak unhurriedly: "I am afraid that my understanding of you is completely different from what you think of as a 'good wife and loving mother'. If you think you are such a person, then I have to help you." I am sorry for my previous misunderstanding."

"No, you are not wrong, sir." Catherine lowered her eyes for a moment, then immediately raised them again, "I really can't be a good wife and mother, I will love my own career more, I may not take care of your manor Get in order and be a good hostess—if you will marry me."

"I'm glad you love your careers, Kitty, so long as you don't neglect me for them." Knightley replied to every apprehension in her words, "As for the manor, it will fight itself all these years without a mistress. Good reasoning. Isn't it?"

However, Catherine still has a problem that all men in the middle class of this era have to consider.She even felt a little cruel for asking this question.

"Then you can also accept that I am selfishly unwilling to bear the risk of having children, and you will have the bad consequences of not having children to inherit the family business in the future?"

Catherine's words were straightforward and almost mean, without a single euphemistic embellishment.

But it was just to hide her nervousness.

Facing this question, Knightley thought for a while, "If you're just worried about this, Kitty, it's definitely not as serious as you think."

"Little Henry is a lovely boy. You saw him once in London."①

He was talking about his nephew, his brother's eldest son.In the event that Mr. Knightley himself has no biological child, the child will be the first in line to inherit the Donville estate.

The author has something to say: [One update. 】

①: Little Henry is the eldest son of the Knightley brothers and his wife Isabella, named after his maternal grandfather.It can be seen from the original text of the first volume of "Emma".