aristocratic engagement

Liz was silent for a moment, then looked at Anne's expectant and serious eyes, and nodded firmly.

With her affirmation, Annie breathed a sigh of relief.Turning his head and looking towards the Countess of Fitzwilliam, he saw Lance getting up from the sofa, ready to say goodbye to the ladies.

The wives politely asked him to continue talking, but Lance politely but firmly refused.

The countess gave the order: "Go, do what you have to do. You are here, ladies and ladies are not at ease. Where is Lawrence?"

"Brother has gone to the study."

"Very good." The Countess nodded her chin, "Go ahead and help him with things. You are in a hurry this time, and the Earl will definitely ask about your affairs at night. Go and discuss with your brother. Don't make the Earl angry."

Lance took the order obediently.After saluting to the ladies, he left the teahouse without looking sideways.

When his figure disappeared behind the door, the ladies flattered the countess again, praising the teachings of Earl Fitzwilliam's residence.

"How old is little Mr. Fitzwilliam, countess, if I say you don't have to be so strict?"

"With all due respect, I don't agree with your point of view, ma'am. If you don't discipline him early, it will be too late for his brother and father to control and educate him when he is an adult." Countess Fitzwilliam shook her head. Shaking his head, "He is still in school, so he should keep the gentleman's etiquette firmly in his heart. If a family like ours does not abide by the etiquette, then in the future...there will be more and more foreigners in London, and I am afraid that few people will still remember their ancestors their teachings."

"Yes."

"You are right."

"As expected of the countess, we still have a lot to learn!"

……

Mrs. Edgerton looked a little ugly, but said nothing.Anne saw that they had naturally found a topic and had fun on their own, and when she turned around and saw that the ladies couldn't stay still, she suggested to go for a walk in the garden.

Liz understood that she was also looking for an excuse and space for the conversation, so she also agreed.

Seeing that the ladies were all in high spirits, Anne took on the responsibility of being the leader again, and greeted the countess and the ladies and explained the situation.

"Alright, the girls should get closer to nature, and of course they are impatient to listen to our topics." The countess nodded, then looked at Anne and said, "Annie, it's hard work for you to take care of the ladies, don't let them play If you don’t enjoy yourself, you can go to the housekeeper if you need anything.”

Annie complied.Amid the whispered cheers of the ladies, Annie was surrounded, and the group walked towards the gate chirping.With beautiful clothes and temples, Anne heard the pleasant voices and laughter of the ladies in her ears, and she couldn't help feeling that she really deserved to be the girls from outstanding families in London.

I don't know what their future will be like?

Is it like the ladies in the tearoom, gathering together during the social season, talking about the world, discussing interesting things in the city of London?Or like Lady Catherine in Rosings Manor, far away from her former social friends and living deep in the manor?

Without allowing Annie to think too much, the ladies had already arrived in the garden, each found a place to stand or sit, and chatted.Annie didn't have time to talk to the Bennet sisters, so she hurriedly ordered Du Li, who came out behind them, to ask the kitchen to prepare some refreshments and black tea and send them to the garden.

Du Li took the order, and immediately turned around and ran towards the kitchen with small steps.

"Wait!" Annie suddenly thought of something, stopped her loudly, then walked quickly to Du Li's side, and whispered, "Send those rose teas to the teahouse, just say it's Mr. Richter's apology." .”

Du Li understood.

Anne saw that the young ladies started new topics in small groups, or gathered around a stone table to pick and drink tea, or stood in a corner with few people, and acquaintances in twos and threes talked about private topics , then he was relieved, knowing that he would not stand out when talking to anyone.

She gave Liz and Jane a wink, came to the fence leading to the backyard, and hid behind Privet and Boxwood.Standing in this place, not only can the skirt and figure be exposed, so that the ladies in the garden in front can see their existence, but also can hint that they are having a private conversation here—any lady who is knowledgeable and interested will not interrupt Or forcefully join the topic.

After standing still, Annie looked at Liz who had a serious face and couldn't help pursing her mouth, and couldn't help laughing: "Don't be so nervous, I just want to ask some general information-I haven't had time to read your works yet. , can you tell me exactly what it is? In other words, what do you think of it?"

"Me? Evaluation?" Liz blinked in confusion, "I thought it was you who gave me some... evaluation."

"No, my evaluation is not important, my dear." Annie shook her head, looked at the bewildered Bennet sisters, and sighed secretly, "I support and encourage you to write something, not for yourself Judgmentally. I think with your intelligence, you have already felt something from writing."

Liz's eyes were a little stiff, and Anne knew that she was thinking about what she had just said.

Jane didn't quite understand what they were talking about, and twisted the veil on her hand in a daze.

Annie turned around and looked at Jane, who was obviously more "mature" than the two of them, but could be called innocent, and asked, "Liz likes to write, so what do you like to do in your spare time? "

"Reading, and sometimes helping my mother with some work." Jane blurted out without any thought, "I don't have much free time. Since I can remember, there have been several younger sisters who need my discipline!"

"So, what about when you're alone?" Annie tilted her head.

At this moment, Jane suddenly got stuck and fell into memory.Their ears were filled with "white noise" from girls talking, and the three of them couldn't hear what the girls said clearly, but felt that the world they were in was especially quiet.

Only the rustling of leaves.

At this time, Liz suddenly woke up, trembled, and said: "Jane plays the piano very well, but since our tutor left, I seldom hear her play the piano."

"...I'm not good at playing." Jane shook her head awkwardly, as if she wasn't used to her compliments, "I dare say that any lady here can play much better than me."

"But you like playing the piano very much, don't you?" Liz made a look of reminiscence, "I also play the piano, but I don't think I can play it as beautifully as you—you know, being able to play and playing well are two different concepts. "

"I couldn't agree more with that sentence." Annie nodded in agreement, and then waved her hand indifferently.

The Bennet sisters showed curiosity at the same time, and Anne told them about her bad playing skills and experience.Including how she dealt with her tutor and Mrs. Catherine, and how, with the help of cousin Darcy, she successfully fooled the party playing that made Mrs. Catherine proud.

The two sisters laughed, and when they finished laughing, Liz suddenly said, "I didn't know that your cold, arrogant and hard-to-serve cousin still has such patience? Your description is completely different from the person I saw." Sample!"

Recalling Darcy's words and deeds in the past, Anne couldn't help pursing her lips.

"Well, Jane is actually much better than us in this aspect! She has a talent for playing the piano." Anne looked at Miss Bennet with a smile, "Is that right? Jane? You must feel happy when you play the piano, right? "

"It may not be called happiness, but it must be relaxed." Jane nodded.

"That's the reason." Annie clenched her fist firmly and thumped the palm of the other hand, "Why don't you stick to things that make you feel relaxed and even happy? You don't need to care about other people's evaluations at all. You don’t need to care about how other people play, you feel happy from it, and that’s enough.”

"But what if I play badly and badly?"

"First of all, you are not like this; secondly, if you play the piano in a mess for a while, it is very bad, but as long as you can enjoy the joy and feel yourself from the process of playing the piano, over time, your feelings will be accepted by others, and they will also accept you. I will be moved by your piano sound."

Seeing that both of them were thinking, Annie said softly and slowly: "The most important thing is not other people's judgments at all, but your own expression."

Annie's words caused the sisters to fall into silent thinking again.

Expressing is extremely difficult for ladies.

This is a double oppression, both external and internal.Ladies often become reluctant to show themselves due to various reasons, perhaps out of inferiority complex, perhaps out of the requirement that they "not be allowed to make mistakes", or maybe they lose the ability to express themselves after a long silence.

Annie was pleasantly surprised when she learned about Liz's hobby.In any case, Liz is an articulate person, and she still has such a bud in her heart.

Anne was used to seeing ladies competing for beauty at the party at Rosings Manor, but the goal was to keep a close eye on the gentlemen who might become husbands in the future, trying to please them and their aesthetics.It is rare to meet such a person who will please his heart and himself.

But Liz just did it as she wanted, not yet understanding how cherished and precious her soul is.

Annie couldn't help but want to wake her up—but Annie wasn't sure whether Liz would stick to her heart or compromise after being woken up to such a "deviant" one?

Annie looked at Liz's clenched hands, feeling even more nervous than she was.

"I understand what you mean, Anne." Liz changed the center of gravity of his feet, kicked the weeds under his feet, and said with his head down, "I like writing very much. When recording interesting things in life, I not only feel that those stupid My stories can please me, and at the same time, I also want to tell them to more people—maybe some things seem silly to others, but I enjoy the process of expressing them more.”

"You're right, I should care more about myself and my own evaluation of those words." Liz suddenly smiled shyly, "Maybe you will feel arrogant, in fact, I think the novels I write are more important than those magazines. Much more fun in the press!"

Annie pursed her lips and smiled encouragingly.

"Jane was right before. If you dare to write, you are already very powerful." Annie bumped her shoulder, "I see your goal, my dear, maybe you haven't realized it yet."

When Liz compares her own work with articles in magazines and newspapers, Anne has heard her inner voice.

The author has something to say: Oh my god, is Jin Jiang smoking?Changed three computers and can't open the background...Try to use the app to send Orz