aristocratic engagement

The carriage stopped slowly by the Thames.

At dusk, when Du Li opened the car door, Annie narrowed her eyes.Everything was soaked in golden-red light, and Annie looked back, only to see a burning cloud in the sky.

It was as if the flames of the sun had been forced upon them, and thick clouds were ignited, dyeing the Thames a red gold.

Allen got off his horse and came to the carriage.He stretched out his hand gracefully, bent down, and motioned for Anne to hold his arm.Annie looked up, and saw that Ellen's blue eyes were also dyed golden red, radiant and sparkling.

Anne grabbed his sleeve and got off the carriage with his strength.

Allen left the horse in place and tied the rope to a tree stump.

Annie stood in place and looked around. This was the place where she stood with Du Li and Xiao Guli last time.At that time, they saw Alan walking out of the shipyard surrounded by workers and managers from a distance.

"That's the Duke of Bridgewater's shipyard, yes, that's the direction you're looking at." Allen's voice sounded above her head behind her, "That's a sailing ship waiting to be refurbished, and it has been completed as a sea freight The mission of the ship. However, it is not yet time to rest, and the engineers plan to install a new type of steam engine on it and put it into experiment again."

Annie nodded, and walked straight towards the boat docked on the distant shore.Allen also stepped forward.

Du Li fell far behind at a distance where she could not hear their conversation.

The sails of the ship flapped in the evening wind.The wind blows up the waves, and the boat is pushed up and down by the waves. If the rope is not caught and the anchor is dropped, maybe the boat can sail far.

Annie stepped on the path of the new lawn and walked slowly, the golden sunlight dyed her goose yellow skirt orange.The sheen of the silk made her appear to be bathed in a flowing sunset.

"The bridgewater shipyard is also doing steamboat experiments? May I ask about the progress? I don't know how long it will take before we can take this new boat for a long journey? You know, my cousin Darcy has left I left the British Isles and went to the continent of Europa, but there is still no letter. I am really worried about him, and I don’t know if he has settled down.”

"According to the days, Mr. Darcy should have arrived half a month ago." Allen followed her with his hands behind his back, "Maybe the return letter came late. The speed of the sailboat is always uncertain. , the direction of the ocean current, the direction of the wind determines how fast it travels, which is one of the reasons why we want to develop steamships."

As he spoke, he pointed with his right hand to the ship whose waist had been opened.

"The power of the steam engine has been used in many places, but it is almost whimsical to drive such a large ship with its power alone. Engineers have also experimented with small boats. When the weather is calm, they really come in handy. use."

"But the sea is never calm," Anne added.

"That's right." Allen paused, turned and left the path, and walked towards the shore.

He took out a silk scarf from the front of his chest, stretched both sides with both hands, and lifted it up.Under the blowing of the wind, the silk scarf is like a sail on a ship, bulging a curved arc, "the current steam engine - in the words of the engineers, the power is not enough, the efficiency is not enough, they have used enough Coal, but only..."

Speaking of this, Allen stopped, and he suddenly realized that the person he was talking to was not any gentleman in the industry, but a lady, a lady who lived in a wilderness manor without the Grand Canal or sailing boats all year round.

Annie fiddled with her hair, which was blown all over her face, and asked loudly: "Shouldn't Bridgewater Shipyard be the only ones researching this technology? Since the steam engine has played a huge role in other machines, to improve efficiency It is several times that of manpower. Then think about it, if it can be used on a ship, what a great feat it will be?"

"I agree with you, but—" Allen turned around and spread his hands, "I have been insisting on appropriating funds to engineers, hoping that they can invent more advanced engines as soon as possible. However, as time and time again "They" have no patience to wait for such an investment with no return. This project has been forced to this progress by me, but if this modification and experiment fail again, it will be sealed forever."

Allen's voice was poignant and weak, which reminded Anne of Mr. Bergram she met at the bank that day.They knew that this path was right, but they had to stop for various practical reasons.

Allen sat slumped on the lawn, facing the direction of the sailboat in the distance, looking a little dazed.

"Are they... referring to the Duke and Mr. Edward Edgerton?" Anne made her voice soft and bewitching, "I believe your father must be on your side, which is what people with foresight will do choose."

Anne intentionally made her words unclear, farsighted?But for supporting the project?Still support this young son?

Allen nodded in a daze: "Yes, my father has always been by my side...he is my father."

Allen lowered his head and murmured, "However, Edward can only see those naked/naked/naked gold coins forever, he doesn't want to see 'his' money flowing into other people's pockets, so he hates me—— The thief who stole property out of his pocket."

"Poor Allen." Annie walked slowly to his side, knelt down/body, and patted him on the shoulder.

Allen twitched like an electric shock, as if being stabbed in the heart by a soft needle.

Annie sat down beside him, lowered her voice, and said in a soft tone like a gust of wind blowing in his ears: "The Duke and Mr. Edgerton are still here, and you have already suffered so much. Later... sorry , I didn't mean that, I just fight for you, it is not easy to make a living under Mr. Edward."

Anne's words were like a siren's bewitchment, and Allen stared into her eyes in surprise and bewilderment.

He vaguely felt that his disguise seemed to have been torn open a long time ago, just like Pandora's box, once opened, the darkness in his heart would no longer be willing to cover himself.

Hatred, resentment, unwillingness, and injustice filled his brain, almost tearing him apart.

He took one step back and gave way again and again, just wanting to seek a living space.Before Christmas Eve, he had never regarded Edward as an enemy; after returning to London, he still couldn't believe that it was his elder brother whom he admired and respected who killed him.

Until the truth was on his desk.

All it takes is a nudge, someone sympathetically waking him up.

Alan could hardly breathe, and the seeds of evil that had been suppressed in his heart countless times broke through the ground.

"You once asked me whether to surrender to hell or struggle to cling to heaven. I gave my answer, have you made your decision yet?"

Anne's eyes were on fire.

"...Did I hear you right?" Allen shook his head in astonishment, unable to believe what he heard, "You said, you hope I can sell the old boat to Mr. Poglass?"

"It's Mr. Bergram." Anne corrected, "That's not accurate enough. To be precise, it's a company that was sold to Mr. Richter, and Mr. Bergram is working for him."

"Mr. Richter? Who is he to you?" How dare you sacrifice your face to beg me for such a person?Still going in such a big circle?

I don't know why, but there is an inexplicable feeling in Alan's heart...

"He is my friend, just like you. He once went to Rosings Manor and was rescued by me. He and I have always been best friends. This person is also the boss of Phoenix. Mrs. Edgerton should know, she Didn't you say that?"

"No—wait, you actually saved such a person? Best friend?" Allen asked stubbornly.

Annie stood up pretending to be annoyed, and walked towards the carriage.

Allen got up from the grass at once, and cried: "Well, well! You want me to sell the boat to Mr. Bergram, and you want to do business with me? Dear Miss de Bourgh, You are not a businessman. Tell me your terms! If you can impress me—"

Annie turned her head suddenly, her hair flicked up: "So you agreed?"

"I still don't understand anything!" Allen couldn't laugh or cry, he felt that he had fallen into a trap, a trap that he had to step into willingly.

Whether it is out of emotion or reason, he has actually made a decision.

"Okay, I'll say it again. Mr. Bergram is the head of an independent steam workshop. Like you, he also fell into the dilemma of developing a steamship, but he is very lucky. Mr. Richter is willing to fund it. He, Mr. Richter is not the person in charge of any shipyard, how difficult it is to purchase a ship! I know that your big shipyards have always preferred to blow up old ships..."

"boom--"

"careful!"

The violent explosion and Alan's exclamation sounded at the same time. Annie felt her head was blown into a daze. Before she could react, Alan hugged her in her arms, turned around, and pressed her down .

"Ah!!!" Screams sounded one after another from a distance, and at the same time, the sound of heavy objects falling to the ground also echoed on the river bank.

Anne's face was hot, and she knew it was not shyness, but real heat.She was so firmly blocked by Allen that she couldn't see what was behind him.

Annie turned her face away and looked as hard as she could. In the river beside her, the flames soaring into the sky and a thick black smoke were clearly reflected.

The explosion didn't stop immediately, and the buzzing sound continued for a long time.There were screams of women, men, and children, all coming from across the river.

Annie reacted quickly and broke free from his embrace.

For a moment, red and gold filled her eyeballs.

The burning factory and the burning clouds in the sky merge into one, and it is almost impossible to distinguish what is fire and what is cloud.

"What kind of factory is that—" Alan was also quite frightened. After he recovered, he immediately put his arms around Anne's shoulders, trying to take her further away.

Du Li screamed and ran from a distance, and at the same time, a chaotic crowd poured in from the bridge not far away.

"Phoenix." Annie murmured.