[Pride and Prejudice] Mary's Pride and Prejudice

No.17 Chapter Jane's Social Ball

Mrs. Bennet beamed with joy at Aunt Philip's compliments on Jane, which was her favorite thing to hear, and she took Aunt Philip's hand and said, "Jane is really pretty, isn't she? You can't find a more beautiful girl than her."

Mrs. Bennet was right. Jane is the most beautiful woman in Meryton. Even in London where there are so many beauties, she will never be obliterated. Today's Jane is even more beautiful because of her meticulous attire.

Mai's blond hair was pulled up high, and a circle of emerald headband was wrapped around the hair, and a drop-shaped pendant hung from her forehead. Taking advantage of her pair of bright green eyes, it seemed that her whole body was exuding An unbelievable brilliance.She also wears the same jewelry around her ears and neck. The emerald green usually gives people an old-fashioned feeling, but Jane wearing it only shows a piece of vitality that belongs to a young girl.

Aunt Gardiner held Jane's hand and said as she walked, "This set of emerald jewelry suits you very well, my dear. I knew it would suit you completely." The last time Jane and Mary went to London to buy this set of emerald jewelry. At that time, Jane was a little hesitant about the price of this set of jewelry, but Aunt Gardiner strongly supported them to buy it, and Mary and Elizabeth also agreed very much, and wearing it today is really extraordinary.

Jane first stayed in the lounge with her sisters. Jane was very popular and had many friends. The ladies who were acquainted with her came in one after another to congratulate Jane on her coming-of-age ceremony. The atmosphere in the lounge was warm and warm.

About an hour later, Aunt Gardiner hurried in and said, "Come out, Jane!" Immediately, a large group of young women came out surrounded by stars.

Mr. Bennet held a glass of sherry and pulled Jane to the stage in front of the band to speak. The general idea was to welcome everyone to the little girl's coming-of-age ceremony. From today onwards, my eldest daughter Jane will officially enter the social network. Please pay more attention. Concern and the like, Mr. Bennet’s character is never long-winded, and he finished what he should say in a minute or two. There were cheers and applause from the crowd. Mr. Te raised his glass, and the dance officially began.

The band played cheerful music, and the young men looked around for a partner.Usually, before the girl's coming-of-age ball, a young gentleman will be found in advance as a dance partner, and there are also girls who dance the first dance directly with her father. Today, it is obvious that Mr. Bennet is very interested in this.

Jane was wearing a light blue silk skirt with a few circles of white lace under the skirt. The hem of the skirt swirled and fluttered like a lake with waves, and she walked back and forth like an elf standing on the surging waves. This scene is so beautiful that the whole young people at the ball were deeply attracted by her. When she turned around, she smiled, her eyes were like blue waves, and the corners of her mouth curled up, so beautiful and so cute, like an angel. Every frown and smile touches your heart.

After the first dance, young people lined up to invite Jane to dance. Unfortunately, the social etiquette of the ball stipulates that if a lady is invited to dance by two men at the same time, she must refuse both. It is considered impolite to accept one and reject the other. .So Jane had no choice but to refuse them all, and sat for a whole dance music. Fortunately, the young gentlemen learned how to behave. They no longer invited Jane in a rush, but first come, first served, so Jane didn't have any invitations for the whole night. In her spare time, she has been dancing.

Mary noticed a familiar young man, very handsome, who had already invited Jane to three dances.

"Who is that?" Mary asked Elizabeth.

Elizabeth looked at it for a long time, then smiled clearly: "You talked about him a few days ago, Mr. Lawrence, the nephew of the Wells family."

"Is he not married yet?"

This Elizabeth didn't know, but Charlotte who was on the side said, "He's not married yet."

This Mr. Lawrence was obviously fascinated by Jane, his eyes were fixed on Jane and he couldn't bear to blink. When he couldn't dance with Jane, he stood aside and stared at Jane, and he was absent-minded when talking to others.However, his stupidity was not discussed and ridiculed by others, because he was not the only one who fell for Jane like him tonight.

His aunt, Mrs. Wells, was very upset to see him so ecstatic. After all, she once had the idea of ​​marrying her daughter to this nephew. Although her daughter has married someone else now, this does not affect her possibility Mrs. Lawrence was dissatisfied, and all evening she talked to Mrs. Bennet with a certain sneer.But Mrs. Bennet is not a delicate person. If you can't express your intention to her directly, then she is likely to take your insinuation as flattery, so Mrs. Wells gradually feels miserable He said that he was so depressed that Mary and Elizabeth on the other side burst out laughing secretly.

The confrontation between middle-aged women has remained unchanged for thousands of years, and it is tiresome to listen to it for a while. Girls who have entered the society can accept other people's invitations to dance as they like, but young girls who have not formally entered the society such as Elizabeth and Mary do not. can.Elizabeth found Charlotte sitting aside to talk and laugh, but Mary was a bit bored. She didn't have the patience of Mrs. Wells to "discuss" with Mrs. Bennet all night how Jane could marry into a wealthy family.

Kitty and Lydia beside them are eating happily. They have their own circle of friends. Charlotte's sister Maria is very close to the two of them. The three girls are holding small plates to the men on the dance floor. They commented, and Mary felt a black line on her forehead, thinking that the little girls these days are really precocious, they are only eleven or twelve years old, okay?

Mary went to get a plate and put some potato chips. Potato chips are really a good snack to pass the time, but the kaba kaba keeps ringing in her mouth when eating, which makes gentlemen and ladies a little embarrassed, so some old-fashioned British I don't like it very much. Such people choose mashed potatoes and fried foods more.But young people don't care about that, they see the "kabbah" sound of chewing as a new pleasure, and many good friends will sit together and wipe down a large plate of potato chips.Mary was very happy to see the potato chips disappearing from the dining table. More and more people accept and love this kind of food, which means she will make more and more money. The Bennet family pays the bill by themselves, and it seems that they just hand over the money from the right hand to the left hand, and they still make money back and forth with their own money.

When Mary came back, she saw Uncle Gardiner and Aunt Philip sitting beside Mrs. Bennet. Mrs. Wells had gone somewhere, and only Aunt Philip and Mrs. Bennet were spitting and talking. Look at that It is looking forward to the prospect of Jane marrying into the Lawrence family.

Seeing the friendly smile on Uncle Gardiner's face from the beginning to the end, Mary couldn't help but feel a little emotional. Uncle Gardiner is so well-mannered. Although the two sisters are superficial, he can always keep his expression on his face and treat the two sisters very well. The two sisters are considerate.Uncle Gardiner has received a higher education. Although he does not have the status of a "gentleman" recognized by society, he is indeed a very gentlemanly person. He is tall, thin, and very refined. If you don't mention it, no one would think that he is a businessman. He is completely gentle. gentleman.Seeing the occasional helplessness in Uncle Gardiner's eyes, Mary decided to save the uncle.

She went to him and said, "Uncle Gardiner, I have something to tell you."

"Oh, dear little Mary," said Uncle Gardiner gently, "what can I do for you?" Uncle Gardiner said as he followed Mary to a pillar on the other side.

Mary laughed mischievously: "I'm just looking for an excuse to save your uncle. It doesn't matter if you don't listen to the vows of your mother and aunt. If you are serious, you will lose." Mary picked up a potato chip and threw it into her mouth. Ka Chi said - "You don't have to thank me too much!"

"Oh——" Uncle Gardiner couldn't help laughing: "You are such a clever little ghost, Mary." He took Mary to sit on the two seats under the pillar, and also picked up potato chips and ate: " I hear you were the one who persuaded your father to move your family grocery store to London."

"Yes, London is a big city. The population there is growing every year. With the population, there will be consumption. There are so many rich people there. I believe our food stores will make more money there."

"You are very thoughtful. Indeed, London is a very prosperous place. I have tried every kind of food in Fanny's Foods. I dare say that it will be a great success in London."

Mary was very happy: "Do you really think so?"

"Yes, of course," said Uncle Gardiner affirmatively. "There are thousands of pubs and restaurants in London. How many of them have you seen losing money? Especially your food is very delicious. You only need to find a good place. With a good manager, everything will fall into place."

What could motivate Mary more than getting the affirmation of an experienced businessman? Standing ground.The present society is her new journey. She is standing on a higher ground, but she will face more difficulties. No matter how confident she is, she is still a little guilty in her heart. She is also afraid of failure. She has plenty of time for herself, but certain scenes that may appear in the future will always flash in her mind. There is always a sense of oppression and tension in her heart, but now these negative emotions have disappeared with the encouragement of Uncle Gardiner Exhausted, she became energetic again.

Mary was discussing the location of the store with her uncle. Elizabeth and Aunt Gardiner came together. Elizabeth asked them why they hid here. Mary and her uncle looked at each other and smiled. Mary told Elizabeth that she was discussing with her uncle to go next month. London is investigating the location of the new store. Elizabeth has known for a long time that Mary is going to open a new store in London. Last time she went to London, Mary had to bring a notebook every time she went out, which recorded the data of many restaurants and restaurants, the number of customers , spending amount, spending habits, types of meals, serving time, prices...Elizabeth admires Mary's meticulousness and prudence, and often helps Mary sum up. This time, she offered to help Mary. Mary Of course, I am very happy. Elizabeth is smart and often helps Mary a lot when she has a flash of inspiration. Elizabeth has contributed a lot to the smooth operation of Meriton's food store in the past two years.

Aunt Gardiner saw that the girls learned how to do business with her uncle, and she blamed him for taking away the two nieces. She quickly changed the subject and asked Uncle Gardiner: "Do you know Mr. Lawrence who danced with Jane?" Lizzie says he works in London."

"No." Uncle Gardiner shook his head. "Our social circle is completely different from that of Mr. Lawrence, and I have never known a gentleman like him."

"It's a pity, that Mr. Lawrence looks very pleasant, a handsome and handsome young man," said Aunt Gardiner.

The gazes of several people turned to the dance floor at the same time. Many young girls were dancing there. Jane looked like a beautiful and light butterfly, walking through the crowd with dexterous dance steps. Although there were so many people there, your first One can see her, recognize her, be attracted to her.

Obviously, Mr. Lawrence, who is dancing with her, has been attracted by her, and Jane also seems to have a good impression of Mr. Lawrence, and the two of them are like luminous bodies, attracting everyone's attention.

"They look so well matched, the man is handsome and the woman is beautiful." Elizabeth said happily.

Mary once accidentally overheard the conversation between Mrs. Wells, Mrs. Lawrence's aunt, and Mrs. Cook. Mr. Lawrence is worth a lot of money and has a bright future. But it's a real hit.