[Pride and Prejudice] Dear Lydia

"Father, who is the lady you want to give her a gift?" Mr. Pete's back stiffened, but his expression remained unchanged, and he asked in a business-like tone.

"Lady Lydia Wickham." Earl Chatham admitted generously, leaned back in the chair, folded his hands on his raised legs, and looked at his son leisurely.

"Mrs. Wickham?" Mr. Pitt raised his hand and squeezed the center of his eyebrows in a concealed manner, almost unable to put on the calm mask on his face. "She is Lois's good friend, and also my friend!"

"Of course I know, and I'm happy to see it happen."

"That……?"

"George, I just want to give her a gift, not to collect debts from her. What is the purpose of your disapproving expression?" Earl Chatham looked at his son and shook his head in disapproval. "By the way, although you have been Keep a straight face, but I can still see your emotions from your eyes."

"I'm not keeping a straight face, Dad, you've been very humorous recently." Mr. Pete coughed lightly with a trace of embarrassment, "Why did you think of giving Mrs. Wickham a present?"

"Because she is very pleasing to me," replied the Earl of Chatham frankly, "sincere, cheerful, lively, not the most intelligent, but has a brain, without the impetuous vanity common to young women today, understands life, and is almost calm. Unlike 19 years old, when you are with her, you can clearly feel that she is serious about life. This feeling is very good. The most important thing is that she also likes to draw, not that the ladies have learned to be pretentious for the sake of the reputation of versatility. I am a true favorite, and it is very rare to paint for interest.”

Mr. Pete pursed his lips. It was the first time he discovered that his father's ability to summarize was so strong, and he added dryly, "Actually, after getting in touch with her for a long time, you will find that in addition to the above advantages, she is also a bit of a money fanatic, and she is not broad-minded enough. Retaliation, and a little problem with extremely weird methods of revenge."

The Earl of Chatham smiled, "Really, how do you know?"

"It's all from my own experience."

The Earl of Chatham obviously took this as a joke, "Okay, George, I have answered your question, should you also answer the question I asked you first? You are buying a woman's jewelry for preparation What is it for?"

"Same as you, Dad, it is also intended to be given to Mrs. Wickham." Mr. Pitt replied after a moment of silence.

"Oh? A piece of expensive jewelry is not a gift that should appear when friends are in contact." The Earl of Chatham did not show any surprise when he heard this, but raised a pair of delicate eyebrows that seemed to have been painted and looked at his son, beckoning him Go ahead and explain.

"It's because she did me a favor a few months ago and saved my two businesses from major losses, so I wanted to send a gift to thank her. But after I bought the things, I also felt that it was too abrupt, so I directly Put it away and don't intend to send it out."

At this time, Robert knocked on the door and came in to tell the Earl of Chatham that his dinner was ready, so the conversation between the father and son stopped here, and Mr. Pitt still disapproved, "Dad, don't worry about drawing too much in the future." Not eating meals on time is bad for your health.”

The Earl of Chatham got up and walked out of the study, "When did you become nagging, didn't you just say that, don't worry, I will pay attention to my body, otherwise someone will teach me a lesson unceremoniously. own good conditions."

Mr. Pete frowned, wondering who would talk to his father so presumptuously.Seeing that Earl Chatham opened the door and was about to go out, he couldn't help but say again, "Father, it's actually not appropriate for you to give Mrs Wickham a piece of expensive jewelry. If you have no other thoughts about her, I suggest Get another one."

The Earl of Chatham turned around, showing a reserved and elegant smile, "George, have you forgotten that I didn't buy that necklace."

"But..." It's not difficult to buy another piece of jewelry.

"Come on, George, help me tell Lois that I plan to take her back to Somerset to live with her for a while. The wife of Hunter's housekeeper is ill, and he needs time to accompany and take care of her, so I hope Lois can temporarily help him manage the affairs of the manor." The Earl of Chatham lightly avoided his son's temptation, and turned to enjoy his dinner that was at least two hours late.

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In Longbourn, Mr. Bennett once in a century supported his wife's point of view - he also suggested that Lydia accept Mrs. Burns' invitation to leave Hertfordshire and go somewhere else for a play or two. moon.

However, his reasons were very different from those of Mrs. Bennett. It was definitely not because of such a cheap thing and the idea that it would not be worthwhile not to do it.Rather, he thinks that Lydia is too close to people in Netherfield now, and Mr. Pitt's subtle attention to her is very disturbing, so he wants her to leave here for a while.

But the reason given in public is much more grandiose, "Go, Lydia, I went to Somerset once before I married your mother, and there are some beautiful places there! You can take Go and paint in your portfolio."

Lydia shrugged, "Dad, do you also think I should go? Well, then I'll think about it. In fact, I don't really want to go. How comfortable it is to stay at home." Her mother, decided to put it another way, "I hate my mother."

"Oh, my dear Lydia," Mrs. Bennet was moved, "of course I miss you too, but it's only going to play for a month or two, and it's not a long-term parting, so you don't have to be so sentimental. You might as well take advantage of it now." I didn't go out to accompany me to visit more, I thought it was time to go to Mrs. Jin's house today."

Lydia decided that it would be better for her to go to Miss Mallard, "I'm sorry, Mom, I have made an appointment with Lois these few days to accompany her to the furniture dealer in Meryton to see the furniture."

"Oh? Netherfield wants some furniture?" asked Mrs. Bennet with immediate interest.

"Mum, that's impossible," Elizabeth reminded her. "In that case, Miss Mallard should accompany Mr. Pitt to look at the furniture, and not Lydia should accompany Miss Mallard."

"What's the matter? Maybe Mr. Pete was too lazy to go, so he entrusted it to his cousin." Mrs. Bennet said to herself, not thinking about whether this statement was reasonable.

"Of course not for Netherfield. Lois wants to buy two pieces of new furniture for her London residence. When she went to Meryton last time, she found that the samples displayed in Mr. Mason's shop were of good quality and cheap, so she planned to buy them. Order from his shop," Lydia replied.

"Old Mason's things are not cheap! I don't remember that Miss Mallard has a lot of property?" Mrs. Bennet wondered.

"Lois made a small fortune recently, so she's going to spend it extravagantly." Lydia laughed.

"A small fortune? Did you get a bequest from an elder?" Mr. Bingley interjected.

"How lucky she is!" Mary couldn't help interjecting.

Seeing that she had accidentally attracted everyone's attention, Lydia felt a little inappropriate, and said vaguely, "It seems that she invested the profits from a friend's business last year. Mom, speaking of it, Mr. Mason There's a nice wardrobe there, made of shiny old mahogany."

"Yes, yes, I've seen it too. The workmanship is unmistakable, and it is indeed good wood." Mrs. Bennet's attention was drawn to the expensive and beautiful furniture, and she began to talk endlessly. Her insights on mahogany.

As soon as she finished speaking, Lydia slipped away firmly, saying that the time agreed with Miss Mallard was approaching.

Mrs. Bennet was left to continue nagging her son-in-law Mr. Bingley and Mary, "It's not easy for an unmarried woman. You have to manage such a big thing as buying furniture. Fortunately, Miss Mallard has several rich relatives..."

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Adding furniture is indeed a big event these days. Good furniture will be written into the will and become part of the inheritance and passed down from generation to generation.

So Miss Mallard forced Lydia to run to Meryton every day. From the style, texture, construction period, price, and delivery time of the furniture, every link had to be considered and discussed repeatedly.

Fortunately, the Earl of Chatham received a letter from an old friend, saying that he would come to Hertfordshire in late August. The Earl of Chatham had not seen this old friend for a long time, and he wanted to meet him before returning Somerset, therefore, postponed the trip till the end of August, which gave Miss Mallard time to carefully choose the furniture.

One sunny afternoon, Miss Mallard and Lydia came out of Mason's Furniture Store and walked down the street to the intersection where the carriage was parked.

Although she had just ordered a carved dresser she wanted, Miss Mallard was angry, not at all happy, "Lydia, how could you be so unsteady and agree to that Mrs. Burns?" The invitation? Didn't you discuss with me the afternoon before yesterday that you would decline her!"

"Hey, Lois, it's really hard to say no when everyone around you thinks you should do something! This time, everyone except you and Mr. Pete thinks I should accept the invitation, and that The lady seems to be really looking forward to my company, even the Earl of Chatham knows about it, and told me that he also thinks I should go while walking, I really can't help it!" Li Dia mentioned that so many people persuaded her that she wanted to wipe off her sweat, "Besides, this is a good thing that you can go to play for free. People will only propose it if they are generous. If I grit my teeth and die, I will not agree. Isn't that hypocritical!"

Miss Mallard rubbed her forehead in annoyance, "It seems impossible for you not to go, then try to stay with me when the time comes, God bless, these two months can pass safely."

"Lois, why are you so resolutely opposed to this matter?" Lydia looked at her sideways. "Actually, I wanted to ask for a long time, but I was afraid that it would involve something that I shouldn't inquire about*, so I endured until now. I really can’t help it! Excuse me, what’s the reason for this? Can you tell me about it?”

The reason for this is really hard to explain. Of course, Miss Mallard can't say that she is worried that Earl Chatham may have Lydia's idea.This matter is just a guess. Mr. Peter deliberately went to his father to test it out, but he didn't come to a clear conclusion. As someone's niece, how can she do things that will ruin the reputation of the Earl without evidence? .

"I don't think there will be unreasonable hospitality in this world. To be prudent, it's best not to accept it until the reason is clear." Miss Mallard choked out this sentence for a long time.

Lydia looked at her suspiciously, "Just because of this?"

Miss Mallard was about to answer when two stylish young ladies came out of the millinery shop on the street. When they looked up, they frowned and greeted them coldly, "What a coincidence, Miss Mallard, Wickham lady."

Lydia saw that they looked very bad too, and thought how annoying it was that Meryton always met them both!Replied in the same tone, "It's a coincidence, Miss Bingley, Mrs. Hurst."

The two sides confronted each other indifferently for a while, and then Mrs. Hurst nodded first, "Excuse me, we are going back."

"Please go ahead, both of you, it's time for us to go back." Miss Mallard replied immediately.

Mrs. Hurst pulled her sister to leave. Miss Bingley turned her eyes and suddenly smiled at Lydia, "I heard from my brother that you have been busy shopping for new furniture with Miss Mallard recently, because Mallard Miss was lucky enough to make quite a bit of money from an investment last year."

Lydia was shocked by her laughter, and frowned. Miss Mallard answered before she could say anything, "Miss Bingley, please be careful, it's impolite to talk about my affairs in front of me!"

Miss Bingley sneered, "It was my negligence, I'm sorry. I just happened to hear from a friend in London that Mr. Eshton recently made a fortune by investing in an ocean-going business, and his partner It happens to have your name in it, and I think you made money by investing in that project." He raised his eyebrows at Lydia, "The most interesting thing is that there seems to be a Mrs. Wickham in the list of partners. This is really true. It makes people wonder, is there another lady named Wickham, or are you two good friends investing in this project? I am more inclined to the latter possibility."

Lydia was vigilant, "Miss Bingley, what do you mean, you meddle too much, didn't your lady upbringing tell you that it is rude to inquire about other people's affairs?"

The sneer on Miss Bingley's face changed into a smirk, "This is about the rights and interests of my dear sister-in-law, I don't think it's meddling! As far as I know, you have no private property, so what kind of money do you use?" It is very debatable to invest. If the Bennetts contribute, then the income this time and the long-term income in the future should be shared by the five daughters. That is to say, my sister-in-law Jane also has a share. If someone steals it quietly, I can't stand idly by because of my sister-in-law's affection, and I will see Jane suffer." After speaking, he glanced at Lydia triumphantly, and pulled Mrs. Hurst away.

"This sinister, mean, stinky girl! She's as cunning as a mouse, prying around for other people's secrets! It's so annoying!" Miss Mallard cursed loudly at their backs, and Miss Bingley's shoulders were obviously stiff. one time.

Miss Mallard turned her head and patted Lydia reassuringly, "Honey, don't be angry, let's go back and discuss it carefully, and think of a way. You earned that profit through your connections and unique vision. There's no reason to take it out and share it equally! That's too much!"

Mr. Eshton sent them a statement of income after settlement a few days ago. Mr. Pete earned [-] pounds from the gold mine project this year, and Lydia and Miss Mallard each received [-] pounds. , Lydia has given all the five thousand pounds to her mother, Mrs. Bennett, four thousand pounds to repay the principal, and one thousand pounds to count as interest, which is five times higher than the normal interest. Mrs. Bennett is happy She couldn't close her mouth. Lydia originally thought that the money was given to her mother. In the future, as her inheritance, the daughters would definitely share it equally. It could be regarded as a disguised compensation for the sisters after she borrowed her mother's property. Unexpectedly, the news from Mr. Eshton's side spread so fast, and Miss Bingley could find out the detailed inside information. According to what she meant, she wanted to advocate that the proceeds be shared equally by everyone, so that her hard work would be in vain!

"Lois, let me tell you a proverb." Lydia was surrounded by low air pressure.

"what?"

"If you offend anyone, don't offend the villain!"

"Why, do you regret that you didn't swallow your anger in front of her a few days ago?"

"Of course not! I just regret that I was too tolerant at the time. After she offended me, I shouldn't just say a few harmless words to anger her. Instead, I should repay her with a little trouble, so that she would have no free time to do this. It's a horrible thing!"

Miss Mallard thought, "Don't be afraid, I have a way."

"Is there a way to teach Miss Bingley a lesson?"

"No, there are ways to keep the property you deserve."

"Well, then I will be responsible for finding a way to teach Miss Bingley a lesson." Lydia and Miss Mallard immediately enjoyed the division of labor.