[Comprehensive classics] Darcy or Brandon

Ramsgate is close to the sea, and there is a very prosperous small port there. Driven by this small port, the nearby economic development is quite good.With money, almost all the squire families living in Ramsgate will go to London for Christmas in winter, and the few remaining families are relatively tight, so they will only hold a few dances throughout the winter , and even fewer balls to which the Steele Sisters were invited.

Sometimes Lucy felt that the neighbors were not hospitable enough, but Anne felt that the neighbors were not all to blame.The terrain of Ramsgate is relatively rough, with huge rocks lying on the ground, and not much flat land, so the villagers generally live in scattered places, with a distance of at least one or two miles between two families. If the villagers want to exchange feelings, they have to run around diligently. In this case, the relationship between neighbors will be relatively weak.Sisters Steele are not at home for most of the year, and even if they are at home, they will not go out often. Residents in the village do not see the sisters twice a year, and it is reasonable not to invite them to their dance parties .

Annie and the others have been home for more than half a month. After dinner that day, Lucy wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. Instead of standing up and moving the plates into the kitchen as usual, she sat on a stool in a bad mood. Gao said: "Annie, it seems that we have to spend Christmas at home by ourselves this year. I went to the market today and met Jessie, the maid of Sir Smith's family. She told me that Sir Smith's family went to London two weeks ago. Will spend the whole winter there. Oh, they're the only ones here who will definitely take us to the Yule Ball. The hostesses of the rest of the houses who throw balls are not close enough to us, they certainly don't We will be invited."

Annie took a sip from the teacup and asked, "Lucy, do you want to go dancing?"

Lucy looked up at Anne's expression, and she could easily see from Anne's face that she didn't really want to go to the Christmas ball.She pursed her lips and said hesitantly, "I don't really want to, but Christmas is just the two of us..."

It's really lonely for two people to spend Christmas in this old house, but in Annie, an impure Englishman, the meaning of Christmas is that the family gets together to have a good meal, there must be cake and roast chicken, and then come A newly decorated Christmas tree is fully alive.Now the Christmas tree has not been introduced to the UK, and roast chicken is not a mandatory food. Anne thinks that she and Lucy will cook some favorite food and have a happy meal, which is better than going to someone else's house. So much more comfortable taking part in those useless and exhausting social events.

Apparently Lucy didn't think so. In the past, Anne and Lucy spent Christmas at Pratt Manor. The manor started cleaning and decorating a few days before Christmas, and then sent invitations to all the relatives and friends nearby. On that day, a grand all-night dance party will be held in Pratt Manor. Everyone dances and sings together all night, not to mention how lively it is.Lucy is a very lively person. She always enjoys the Christmas ball very much. She will definitely have some objections if she stays at home this year.

"If you want to attend the Christmas ball, then we will go out tomorrow to visit those neighbors who may hold the ball, and they will definitely invite us to the ball out of courtesy." Anne thought for a while and said.

"But you don't really want to go."

"I can go home early, and you can stay at the ball all night." Annie said that she didn't know how many Spring Festivals she spent alone in her previous life. Enjoy yourself.But she didn't want Lucy to have an unhappy Christmas just to accommodate her.

If Anne is willing to stay at the Yule Ball all night, Lucy will definitely agree to Anne's proposal.But Annie planned to spend Christmas Eve by herself, and Lucy couldn't accept such a proposal without any burden. She didn't want Annie to spend Christmas Eve alone because of her own sake, which would make her feel guilty.And as long as Lucy thinks that the two of them will come back at this time this year, if they go to the ball, they will be told how many ugly gossips by those talkative women who think highly of themselves, and they will completely lose the mind of dancing.

In the end, Lucy held Anne's hand and decided: "Annie, let's spend Christmas by ourselves, but you have to cook me a lot of delicious food. Let's spend more money and buy some good food."

The festival should have a big meal, so Anne happily agreed to Lucy's request, "No problem, I will cook a good meal that you have never eaten before."

Time flies, and soon it will be Christmas Day.In the morning Anne and Lucy got up before daylight, and began to prepare for the holiday early.It was a rare luxury for them to light the fireplaces in all the downstairs rooms while they were still in the kitchen in the morning, making the whole downstairs warm.

Anne sat in front of the fire to light the fire, and added another log to it.Anne really likes the smell of firewood from burning firewood in winter. It is a smell that is difficult to describe in words. It is a unique fragrance of trees that have been reborn after being burned by flames. It is warm and inclusive. In any cold place, the temperature contained in this smell will not disappear. Just take a breath, it seems that the temperature will enter the lungs and then spread throughout the body.

The small door of the kitchen was pushed open, and Lucy came in staggeringly carrying a bucket of water, followed by their family's big hound, Hade.

Harder was a very strong bullmastiff, a full 23 inches tall, and a great hunter.When the Steele sisters were not at home, Hader would go hunting in the woods or go to the sea to catch fish by himself. Sometimes he would go to the house of Mr. Field, a dog-loving pastor, to ask for some food. He took good care of himself.But as soon as Anne and Lucy came home, Hader would stay by their side all day, acting like a child.

Annie touched Hader's head, poured a cup of hot tea for Lucy, and said to Lucy, "Why don't you go out without wearing a woolen shawl, it's so cold outside."

Lucy actually only went out for less than 10 minutes, but she was still terribly cold. It was not until she drank a cup of hot tea that she felt alive again and said, "Oh, Annie, I just woke up and I'm still hot. Wait It doesn't feel that cold inside, who knew it would be so cold after going out."

Annie glared at her, and said, "The snow outside has already covered your ankles, how can it not be cold. You are always so careless, you must remember to bring a shawl when you go out next time, it will be bad if it freezes. "

Lucy just ran out without putting on a shawl, entirely out of young people's blind confidence in her own health, but now that she is freezing, she naturally knows that it is impossible to go out without wearing a shawl.Lucy smiled coquettishly at Annie, and then sat down on the small stool beside Annie. The heat from the burning flame in the stove immediately enveloped her whole body. Lucy breathed a comfortable sigh of relief before lazily Asked: "Annie, do you know that there have been stray cats at home recently?"

"No, what's wrong?"

Hud crawled to Annie's feet, obediently took a piece of firewood and stuffed it into Annie's hand. Annie took it and stuffed it into the stove, and stroked its big head in praise.

"When I passed the utility room just now, I heard cats meowing inside. It is estimated that a wild cat lived in it. I think we should put the fish better."

"Cat! Ouch, the chicken, duck and fish I marinated two days ago are all in the firewood room. I have to go and see." Annie yelled, jumped up and ran outside.Annie marinated things according to the wet pickling method in her previous life. The cut chicken, duck and fish were all placed in separate jars, pressed with several large stones, and covered with a large porcelain basin.She was afraid that the fire in the kitchen would be too hot and the food would be marinated, so she put all the pots in the firewood room. If wild cats wanted to eat the porcelain pots that had been lifted up, they would be able to find them by digging in the crevices of the stones a few times.

In the past two winters, the sisters basically did not live in their own house, and Anne had never pickled anything, so Lucy forgot for a while that they moved the jar into the woodshed, and hurriedly ran out with Anne to check.

In a broken box in the corner of the firewood room, a dirty short-haired cat was nestled in the haystack, and there was a little milk cat with four fingers in its stomach, which looked like it was only a few days old.

"Little cats! So cute." Lucy bent down and looked at the four little milk cats that looked like little meatballs, full of joy.

"It must have come in through the small hole on the door. It must have been a while, and even the litter is so good." Annie immediately fell in love with the big cat and kitten when she saw the litter. There is no way, especially this kind of newborn kittens and puppies, it makes people feel itchy just looking at them.

"It's so cute," said Lucy, reaching out to touch the kitten.

"Don't touch, beware of being caught."

Annie quickly pressed Lucy's hand, fearing that the mother cat protecting the cub would catch her, but the two of them squatted by the broken box for several minutes without seeing the mother cat move. Annie wrapped her hand in a shawl and tentatively reached out to touch it. I touched the female cat's belly, but the cat didn't move.Annie had a bad premonition in her heart, and pushed the cat's head, which was huddled in its chest, and it tilted to the side.

Lucy quickly reached out to touch it, and the cat was already cold.

"The mother cat is dead."

Annie glanced at the bloodstain on the haystack. She thought it was the infection of the kittens just now, but now she saw that the bloodstain seemed a little bigger. She stretched out her hand and turned the mother cat over, and saw that the mother cat was infected There was a big gash on the leg that was pressed, and the skin on half of the leg fell off.