[Pride and Prejudice] Mary's Pride and Prejudice

Chapter 19 One to London

One month later, Mr. Bennet received a letter from Mr. Gardiner, his brother-in-law in London. He has already inquired about the store, and he also recommended a manager to his brother-in-law. If he is free, he should go to London in person. .

Mr. Bennet hates London very much, but this time he must go. In fact, he knows nothing about business, so he can't see the good or bad of the location of the store, but he has to make a decision.

This time he wanted to take Mary with him. Originally, Mary wanted Jane to go to relax together, but Jane didn't want to go to London now. It would be embarrassing if she ran into that Mr. Lawrence.

In this way, Elizabeth was unwilling to go, and she wanted to stay and spend time with Jane.So this time only Mary and Mr. Bennet went to London, and they set off for London on a misty morning.

Mrs. Bennet looked at the leaving carriage and said to her daughter: "This is really big news. Your father is willing to go to London. He didn't even want to mention that place before. He always said that the air there made him unable to go to London." breathe."

"Father's trip this time is entirely out of his love for his daughter." Elizabeth said, "I wish them all the best."

"I hope they come back later, I'm almost out of breath these days." Mrs. Bennet said sadly.

"Mom, you know that Mary is doing it for the sake of the younger sisters, so don't be angry with her." Elizabeth persuaded.

But Mrs. Bennet walked away anyway, and she would hold a grudge for at least a year at least for Mary's cruelty to her two sisters.

************

Uncle Gardiner's family lived on Tenen Temple Street, a street where many businessmen like him lived.When the carriage stopped at the door, Mrs. Gardiner had seen them from the window, and the couple hurried to the door to meet the rare guests.

Mary noticed that there was a young man following behind the Gardiners. This person had never been seen before. It should be Mr. Lake, the manager recommended by Uncle Gardiner, but this manager was a bit too young.

After a brief introduction, this person really is Mr. Lake.Mr. Lake is the only son of a friend of Uncle Gardiner's. He should have inherited a rich family business, but unfortunately his father's business failed and he owed a huge debt. Old Mr. Lake committed suicide.And little Mr. Lake also had to interrupt his studies and go out to make a living in order to support her mother and three younger siblings.Mr. Lake went to a university, and he is also very intelligent. The important thing is that he grew up in London and lived here for 20 years. Uncle Gardiner felt that Mary could give Mr. Lake a chance.After Mary met Mr. Lake, she also thought that Uncle Gardiner’s proposal could be adopted. Mr. Lake is a lively young man, but he has the kind of stability that has been precipitated after experiencing setbacks. Mr. Bennet told him After talking for a while, the two had a pleasant exchange.

After a brief rest, in the afternoon, a few people went to two shops together. One was not far away, just in the Tianen Temple block, only 500 meters away from the Thames River and London Bridge, surrounded by banks and trading companies, and many shop.The house is located in the middle of the street, with three floors and a basement with windows. The area of ​​the first floor is about 350 square meters, and the annual rent is [-] pounds.

The other is on Southwark Street, which is the busiest place in London, next to the Thames, surrounded by shops, pubs, restaurants, where people come and go like weaving.This shop has only three floors without a basement, and its area is not as big as that of Tianen Temple Street, but the rent is not cheap at all. This is the most prosperous era in Southwark District, and it is also a hotbed of crime in London. All thieves, robbers, □ and beggars are here to make a living.

Both places are spacious and bright, the streets are clean and the traffic is heavy, but the customers they face are somewhat different.The customers of Tianen Temple Street are mainly middle class and white-collar workers, while Southwark Street is more inclusive, with people from all walks of life.

Mary couldn't choose for a while.

A few people decided to go back to discuss it first, and continue to walk around tomorrow. After all, this is not something that can be decided overnight.

For dinner, they ate the food from Fanny’s Food Store brought by Mary. Mary brought some semi-finished products, handed them to the cook for simple processing, and then served them on the table. The children ate with gusto, and even Ray Mr. Ke is also full of praise, he really likes to eat a deep-fried spring roll.He said to Mary: "I know London, Miss Mary. Here are the pickiest people and the laziest people in England. They would rather put up with tasteless food here than leave London half a step. Our food shops are very good." Market, even if the store only has these few signature dishes that we eat, we can definitely be a big success."

"I'm very glad to hear you say that," said Mary, smiling to Mr. Lake.

Mr. Lake flattered Mary a lot: "Although you are not very old, you can definitely publish a cookbook-I mean if you want to publish a cookbook-it will definitely become a best-selling book."

Mary modestly expressed that it was all thanks to her mother, sisters and the cook at home. The dinner came to an end in a joyful and harmonious atmosphere, and Mr. Lake left.

Mary was allowed to go to Uncle Gardiner's study together to discuss important matters, but Mr. Bennet had a hard time making a choice, and Mary was also hesitant. In the end, everyone had to decide to continue to look at it tomorrow.

Uncle Gardiner highly praised Mary. He said: "Dear niece, you are really a pioneering spirit. If you were a boy, I would encourage you to go to America or India. You must return home with wealth."

"After all, my dear Edward, if Mary had been a boy you and I would not be busy with these things," said Mr. Bennet.

Mary still had to say a few words of modesty, and then the conversation turned to Mr. Lake.

Uncle Gardiner said: "A good manager must have brains, be decisive, and be able to handle any changes and accidents with ease. He must be as comprehensive as a competent housekeeper, and he must have the attitude of a successful businessman. Smart minds..."

"Obviously Mr. Lake must have these advantages?"

"Of course, Mary, I wouldn't recommend an unreliable person to my niece."

On the second day, several people went to the store block again, but found that it was still difficult to make a choice. Mary had better decide to open two stores directly.It takes at least 1500 pounds to ensure that the two shops can be opened at the same time. Mr. Bennet decided to pay the money after several considerations. Get married in the near future, otherwise the dowry will be ugly!"

Mary laughed and said, "Don't forget you only have one adult daughter."

"Of course, but if one of you needs my signature to get married, I might consider agreeing." Underage girls rarely get married, and girls under the age of 15 need the guardian's signature to get married.

Mr. Lake had never seen Fanny's Food Store, so he decided to go back and investigate with them before he came back to plan the store in London.

So two days after leaving home, Mr. Bennet took his daughter and his new manager back to Meriton. Mr. Lake lived directly in the food store. Alice said that he would definitely treat him well, but Ray Mr. Ke said that there is no need to pay attention to him at all, and it is still the same as usual. His main job at present is to observe.

After settling Mr. Lake, the Bennet father and daughter rushed back to Longborn's home without stopping.

At Longbourn at this time, the Bennet mistress was entertaining a pair of delightful guests.A militia regiment has recently been stationed in Meriton, which is very close to London, and militiamen are often stationed here. Mrs. Bennet said that when she was a child, officers were often entertained at home.So this time she invited a Colonel Porter and his wife whom she had met yesterday at Mrs. Philip's.

Everyone had just tasted a delicious lunch. Mr. Porter liked the crispy fried beef tenderloin on the table very much. He heard that the Fanny’s Food Store in the town sold this delicious dish. He could eat this delicious dish in Meryton every day. Very happy after delicious.

When Mr. Bennet's carriage drove into the gate, the guests were drinking tea in the living room and resting. Elizabeth was ordered to play the piano for the guests. Mrs. Bennet and Jane were having a lively conversation with the guests, and Kitty and Lydia were surrounding Mr. Porter asked things, and they were all curious about the new militia.

At this moment, Hill suddenly pushed the door open and came in, saying to the hostess, "Master is back."

This sentence is like a hand suddenly holding down the record that is playing, and the room is extremely quiet for a moment.The Potters even felt uncomfortable with the silence.

"Is Miss Mary back too?" Mrs. Bennet asked quickly.

"Yes, ma'am."

These words seemed to press some kind of activation button. Kitty and Lydia immediately stood up, saluted the guests hurriedly, and left quickly, regardless of whether they were rude.

Mr. Bennet came in quickly, followed by Mary.

"It's a lot of fun," said Mr. Bennet with his characteristic laugh.

"Oh, my lord, I didn't expect you to come back so soon. I thought you would stay for a while." Mrs. Bennet said awkwardly. She quickly glanced at Mary behind her husband, and quickly She glanced at the door at the side behind——it was through this door that Kitty and Lydia slipped away just now. She was sure that Mary should not have seen Kitty and Lydia, and immediately became more calm. She used A dutiful hostess introduces her husband and daughter to her guests.

Mr. Bennet saluted the guests. After the brief exchange of greetings, he had to apologize and wanted to go down to freshen up. Mary also took the opportunity to leave. She came to the second floor, and the door of the first room next to the stairs was wide open. Inside came the voices of Kitty and Lydia practicing Latin, and Mary stood at the door for a moment, and the voices suddenly became loud and clear.Satisfied to see her two younger sisters studying hard, Mary nodded and ordered the maid to bring a basin of water to her room before turning around and leaving.Her two younger sisters, who were facing her back behind her, relaxed their stiff backs until she heard the sound of her footsteps. The two of them looked at each other and let out a long breath.

At the same time, Mary, who turned her back to them, also twitched her mouth slightly: "Small! You still want to lie to me! It's just that you've been so good lately, and I'm too lazy to expose it." These two scumbags are always lazy in class, and they dress casually , why is it neat and beautiful when a guest comes today?And Mrs. Bennet's flustered look when she saw Mary entering the door. Kitty and Lydia must have been entertaining guests downstairs just now!In fact, it's nothing. Mary just wanted to straighten the crooked places of the two bear children, and didn't really want to overcorrect and make them really isolated from the world.However, looking at the current effect, it's actually quite good, so Mary decided to continue to make the bear children's skin tighter!Hey~

The author has something to say:

This weekend, I suddenly have to work overtime, let's add another chapter in the long process of waiting for customers, haha!