Scarlet Rose

It was the spring of 1913 when I arrived in England from Paris.I followed my mother's last wish to visit my uncle.

My parents had died in an accident while on vacation in Turkey at the end of the winter the previous year, and I was just a young man just out of medical school, and I was caught off guard by the shock.Fortunately, Mr. Dio, my parents' former lawyer, took good care of me and helped me with the funeral.Naturally, all the inheritance of my parents belongs to my name. After paying the inheritance tax, I was shocked by the large amount of money.My father is the editor-in-chief of a newspaper, and my mother writes articles for the newspaper. Our family is middle-class. Although we live a good life, it seems that we should not have so much money.Mr. Dio said it was her mother's dowry and the money her brother sent her every month.That's when I learned that my mother's original name was Smedley.I only knew that my mother was British and lived in France after marrying my father, but I didn't know that she was an English noble lady.You must know that in 20 years, my mother never mentioned her family.

I can somewhat guess the reason why my mother didn’t mention the past—it’s wrong for her to marry a commoner’s father, not to mention that her father is not even British, and it seems natural that her family would object.I guess my mother had a falling out with the family, otherwise I wouldn't keep talking about it.

A week later, when I was sorting out the books left by my mother, I saw a letter in a book. Nothing was written on the envelope. I opened it curiously, and it turned out to be my mother’s will.It said that all the property would be left to me, and hoped that I would go to England to find my uncle, that is, her brother, and ask him to arrange a decent job for me.

I was hesitant, actually I don't have a job to worry about, I have a medical license, and the money they leave is more than enough for me to live without working.But I couldn't bear to live up to my mother's last wish, and I was very curious about my uncle's family, whom I had never met, so I tentatively wrote a letter, explaining the death of my parents in as plain a tone as possible.Soon they wrote back, and my uncle expressed his deep sorrow and invited me to visit the manor.I didn't know whether it was a sincere invitation or just a courtesy, so I sent a telegram saying that I would pay a visit. There was a warm welcome and postage for my travel expenses-even though I didn't need it.I simply packed my luggage and set off.

Three months after my parents died, I set foot on British soil.It is already late spring.Although summer is approaching, the temperature is still not high enough and the sun is not bright enough.I'm not very familiar with plants, and I don't know what kind of trees are planted outside the train station. I just think the flowers bloom beautifully.I found the car that my uncle sent to pick me up without much trouble. Along the way, I have to say that I was a little nervous. I didn't know what I was nervous about, but even the green grass and verdant trees on the road are ignored.

My uncle is an earl, and manages the affairs of the county.Many lands belong to him.The family lived in the manor.The manor covers a large area, with a magnificent castle in the middle - it is hard to imagine that their family lives in such a building that seems to me to be a school or something, and seems to be able to accommodate hundreds of people. in the house.Well, the nobles of France also live in castles, in fact almost all nobles live in such castles.But that was too far away from me, and I never thought that one day I would enter or even live in such a castle.I wondered what to call my unknown uncle, "Uncle Edward" or "Earl Smedley"?

The car stopped at the gate of the castle. The earl, countess, their sons and daughters, my cousins, and a group of servants were already waiting for me at the gate.I was a little flattered by this battle.

"Welcome to the estate, my boy." The count shook my hand.

"Ah, thank you. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Smedley." I quickly agreed, and thought that the British are reserved, so I didn't give a face-to-face salute; Cousin Downer also greeted me, and I shook hands with him. I shook hands, and then with the ladies and ladies who smiled dignifiedly, and they didn't give me a chance to kiss my hands.My luggage has already been taken by the servants and placed in the guest room.

The Count led me to the study for a conversation.Their study was huge, and I couldn't help but hold my breath at the sight of the bookshelves filled to the ceiling.The five of us sat down on the sofa—the sofa is no longer young like those collections of books, but it is well maintained, and the overall design matches the style of the study room. It can be seen that the original designer had great taste.When the footman had poured us tea, the Count let him go.I looked at the teacup in front of me, a white porcelain cup with a beautiful pattern, filled with clear black tea, the heat was rising, and the tea was fragrant—my mother also loves to drink black tea.

"May I call you Roman?" the countess spoke first.She is a very elegant woman, her hair is meticulously coiled, her face is well maintained, and only the fine lines on her neck reveal her age when she raises her head; from the first time we met, her face was perfectly curved Her smile, her sitting posture is also very elegant and beautiful.Her temperament is very similar to my mother, but not quite the same, but it is enough to make me feel good about her.

"Oh, yes, ma'am," I said.

"You don't need to be so polite." Madam smiled and shook her head. "You can just call me aunt. We are relatives. Your cousin Donna and cousin Alice, just call them by their first names."

I looked at Donald and Alice, and they both nodded in agreement.Donna is seven or eight years older than me, with a well-proportioned figure and a handsome face; Alice is two years younger than me, and has inherited her mother's beautiful appearance. Although she has hardly spoken since we met, she also imitates her mother Sitting dignifiedly, but from her smart eyes, it can be seen that she is actually a lively girl.

While I was looking at that family, naturally they were also looking at me.

"You are so similar to her." The count said, looking at his sad expression, I knew that I reminded him of his sister whom he hadn't seen for many years.

My mother and I do look alike.I inherited her soft facial lines and relatively slender bones; my dark brown curly hair and lake blue eyes were also inherited from her, and the shape of the eyes and nose was almost identical to hers.I only have my father's forehead, chin and lips, which also makes me less feminine.

"How have you been?" the Count asked me.

"It's not bad," I replied after thinking for a while, "it's nothing bad."

"Did your mother mention us before?" the earl asked urgently. It was obvious that he cared about my mother, but now he could only know about her from others.

"To be honest, my mother never mentioned her natal family before. I only found out about you when I inherited the inheritance. I found the will written by my mother... Maybe it's not a will, it's just a letter to me—she I hope I can come and visit you." I knew that what I said would make Mr. Earl sad, but I said it carefully.

"It's normal if she doesn't say anything." The earl smiled bitterly.Before I could ask, he started talking about things his parents never mentioned.

Only then did I know what happened back then.My mother ran into my father by chance in London, and they fell in love at first sight. Unfortunately, the mismatch of status and status made the relationship very difficult.The Earl and Madam objected very much, and my grandmother was even more disapproving.So mother and father eloped, and they went to France and never came back.I was very surprised. The mother in my memory was demure and elegant, and she didn't look like she would elope with anyone at all.

I don't know where to stand to judge this matter.Mother's approach is certainly wrong. She has the courage to pursue love, but it is too extreme.From the earl's point of view, what the mother did was a family scandal.This is why they have been reluctant to contact their mother since then.Out of concern for their mother, even though they didn't want to lose face to contact her, they sent money to her every month.From a mother's point of view, her relatives refused to accept her and her husband, which was really ruthless, so she refused to even use the money that the earl sent her.My mother never mentioned her past to me, mostly because she complained to her family, but I think she may also think that elopement is disgraceful and not something a young lady should do, so she is ashamed to mention it.

"I really regret that I didn't invite her back sooner. In fact, we have already forgiven each other, but no one can afford to compromise first, so it has been so awkward for so many years. I thought that when she was older, she would come back one day Yes, it's a pity... If only I had attended her wedding back then..."

"Please don't be too sad..." I didn't know how to comfort the Earl, I could see that he really cared about my mother, and from my mother's letter, she asked me to visit the Earl and let the Earl take care of me, It is also out of trust in the earl.In fact, as long as any party compromises earlier, there will be no such regrets. It is a pity that they are too stubborn.After hearing the news of the death of my parents, I think the earl was no less sad than I was.

The countess patted the count on the shoulder lightly.The count lowered his head to calm his breath. After a while, he seemed to regain his composure, and gave his wife a comforting smile.

We chatted for a while, it was strange, I thought our conversation was not speculative, but the fact is that we chatted very happily.Maybe it's because the Earl's family are easy-going people who are good at chatting, or maybe it's the strength of family affection as the Countess said.We didn't see each other 20 years ago, but we can talk like old friends for an afternoon.

The butler knocked on the door and came in to inform us that dinner was ready.

"Let's change into evening clothes." The earl said and several people got up one after another.

"Wait..." I was taken aback, "Evening dresses?" Well, as kids from a middle-class family, we don't deliberately change into an evening dress at dinner, and I don't think there's anything wrong with us not changing—we can just It is said that the lives of nobles are different from ordinary people after all.

"Oh, didn't you bring it?" The countess smiled at me kindly, "You can wear your cousin Donna's new suit first—it's just made, he hasn't worn it yet, maybe you will wear it a bit Big... wear his tuxedo first, and I will order a new one for you tomorrow."

"No, don't bother..." I blushed a little, "I'm just staying here for a few days."

"Oh dear, don't you plan to live here for a long time?" Madam asked me in surprise.

Hearing her question, I immediately began to reflect, could it be that my letter or telegram gave them the wrong signal that I would settle down for a long time?But I thought about it, and there doesn't seem to be such a hint.

"I came here according to my mother's last wish. I am relieved to see that you are all living in a stable life. I believe my mother is also satisfied... I plan to go back to Paris in a few days." I replied.

"Stay here, wouldn't it be good to stay in the manor and live with us?" Madam advised me softly.

"You have a doctor's license, so you can work in the clinic in the town, it won't be very hard; and you will have no relatives when you go back to Paris." The earl seemed to analyze calmly, but actually advised me to stay.

I was hesitant, I was not worried about work, doctors are popular everywhere; I have to say, I was tempted by the earl's words, for me, Paris is a sad city that lost my parents, grandparents I'm nowhere with my aunts, and I only have a few friends I don't know very well.Here, the new environment allows me to change my mood, or to escape, at least it can make me no longer feel sad about the death of my parents, but at the same time it means that I will live with my uncle's family.To be honest, I don't think I can get used to such an aristocratic life...

"My child, I know you may not like living with us," said the countess, as if guessing my thoughts, "we have a little mansion near the manor near the town, and you can live there, whether you go to It's still very convenient to come to the town, and you can have dinner with us. Don't rush to refuse-you can try to stay and see, if you really don't like it, it's not too late to go back to Paris."

Having said that, I have no reason to refuse anything, so I have no choice but to agree to live in the mansion - after a few days it will be cleaned and a new special housekeeper will be selected, and I will live in the guest room in the manor for a few days.