little miss austin

"Did he even look at it!" Alice wanted to throw the table. "As for style! I think Jane's style is her own style, and she doesn't need to follow any style." Jane's works have been tested by tens of millions of readers for 200 years, okay?

"I originally thought that if Jane had a little income, she would be able to get married earlier." Pastor George felt deeply sad, "Although... I shouldn't tell you this, but look at Cathy, if I can give her a An annuity, even if it was only a hundred pounds, Tom would not go to Santo Domingo. She has decided not to be engaged and married. My dear little Alice, there is no way Daddy can give you more money—”

"Dad, it's not your fault." Whose fault is that?No Planned Parenthood fault?But if they only had four or five kids, maybe there would be no Jane, and there would be no her.The cost of raising children is really not small. Pastor George has not retired yet, isn't it all for his children?

Alice determined in her heart that she would not fall into this kind of life of constantly having children and working continuously to raise children in the future.

Pastor George's complexion this year is indeed not as good as last year. It is probably like this as he gets older, and his spirit will become worse and worse.He is already considered to be in good health, and medicine is not advanced in this era, and he can live to be 66 years old in good health, which can be said to be in good health.

Wesley also returned to Gresham Manor.

This year, he didn't give Jane any more birthday presents, but only Alice's.

At the New Year's Ball, Alice saw Wesley and was surprised by his change.

He was still the tall and thin young man, his appearance had not changed, he still had short blond hair and a shy smile, but—his clothes had changed and he became fashionable.

The demeanor and posture have also changed, how should I put it?He became elegant, calm and confident, which added charm to his not outstanding appearance and made him charming.

Alice was terrified.

In the past six months, they have been writing letters, but they haven't met each other, so she can't imagine why such a former country boy suddenly changed a lot?It's not bad, obviously, that friend and classmate, William, had a huge influence on him.

She was super worried that good boy Wesley would turn into a playboy.

Moreover, another thing happened that surprised her even more: Lucy Lefroy fell in love with Wesley!

Jane was engaged, and Wesley, being a gentleman, would certainly not ask her to dance again.There were no other young girls of the right age around here, and Lucy was the most suitable dance partner.

The 17-year-old Lucy just broke up with her last month. This month, she found that Wesley, who was once laughed at by her, has become handsome.

The status of her family is similar to that of the Gresham family, but not as rich as the Gresham family. In terms of money, Lucy's social status is slightly lower, but a gentleman with an annual salary of 2000 pounds married a man of slightly lower social status. It is also common for a wife to marry, so the two of them are strangely matched in the marriage market.

The servant secretly told Alice that Mrs. Gresham was very dissatisfied with Jane's sudden engagement. She felt that Jane, a poor girl, was too ungrateful. She had a chance to become a rich wife, but she chose that poor Irish boy, and cursed her that she deserved to be poor. lifetime.

Alice decides to ignore her curse on Jane.Anyway, it's just talking, and it won't lose a layer of skin, so let her go.

After dancing a few dances with Lucy, Wesley felt that she was talking too much, so he found an excuse to slip away.

Gresham Manor, the second floor, that room is all pink.

There are 3 candlesticks lit in the room, shining brightly.

"I haven't seen you for a year, and look, you've grown a lot," Wesley said.

"Yeah, I'm already 8 years old." Alice smiled.Because of his young age, there is no need to avoid suspicion.

"Still a little girl." He said kindly, "Is Mr. Austin in good health? I think he is not as energetic as last year."

She nodded, "Dad's health is not very good, I think he might consider retiring in the next few years."

"Then you are going to move out." Wesley said worriedly, "You won't be moving out too soon, will you?"

After the pastor resigns, the parsonage will be handed over to the next pastor.Both the parishes of Dean and Steventon were Knight estates, and Edward Austin was now the owner of the Knights, so Reverend George was free to decide to whom the two parishes would be left.

"I don't know, it is very likely that Dad will hand over the Steventon Parish to James."

"If you really want to move out, you must tell me in advance."

Alice gave him a strange look, "Why?"

Wesley suddenly didn't know what to say: Indeed, what's the reason?They are neither relatives nor relatives, and they are not really "friends".Originally there was Jane, but now that Jane is engaged, he has no connection with the Austin family anymore.

He bowed his head and thought for a while, "Don't you want to be a publishing house in the future? If you need funds, I can give them to you, or Henry."

"You know Jane is engaged, right?"

"I know." He smiled melancholy, "but I still want to do something for her. After all, if you want to do business, you may not lose money, and you may even make money. My money is in the bank. Let it go, it's useless."

When it comes to money, Alice can't help but ask, "Do you spend a lot in Oxford?"

"It's okay. My aunt paid for my tuition and accommodation, but I paid for the meals myself, and—" I feel a little awkward to say, but I'm too close to a playboy like William. There is always a lot of extra expenses for no clear reason, and then he didn't figure out how these expenses were spent.

"William?"

Wesley nodded embarrassingly, and smiled wryly, "He's really good at spending money!"

"Has he not been expelled from Oxford?"

He couldn't help laughing a few times, "Not yet."

"Don't get too close to him. This kind of person is a scourge wherever he goes." Don't lead the good boy Wesley down!

"He's actually pretty good, he just loves to play and has no other shortcomings." Wesley always tends to think of others in good places.Alice always wondered how he hadn't been tricked into selling him.

"How was your time in London?"

"Very well, don't I often write to you?"

"Like learning?"

"I like it very much. Mrs. Baker is very good. She can do almost everything. Well, I mean, it's enough to teach me."

"What about after three years of study?"

"Go to Daylesford House." Alice had already made up her mind. She was only 9 years old when she left Mrs. Baker's house. Of course, she had to continue her studies. Being able to study with Mr. Hastings was something no one else could ask for. good thing.

"I'll be graduating by then."

"What are you going to do after graduation?"

"Travel in Europe, and maybe go to the New World." That means going to America.

Alice thought, this is not bad, he really should go out and see.It is necessary to read thousands of books and travel thousands of miles.

On the last day of 1797, Henry Austen married Countess Eliza Feud at Steventon Church.

Pastor George presided over the wedding for another son, and I was very relieved.

Although the groom is 9 and a half years younger than the bride, Cousin Eliza is beautiful and doesn't show her age, so she is a good match for Henry.After their marriage, the Austin couple will live in a village near the Oxford militia station, where Eliza has rented a cottage.Little Hastings was sent to Daylesford House.

Alice guessed that it was not that Henry didn't like the 11-year-old stepson, but that the newlyweds were going to work hard to make a man, and it was not suitable for a very old boy in the family.

1798 came quickly.

This year also passed quickly.

In early February, Alice returned to London to continue her education at Mrs. Becker's house.

At the end of July, Pastor George, his mother Cassandra, Cathy, and Jane, all went to Goldmusham Manor and lived there until the end of October.

Edward's elder brother already has 4 children: Anne, Little Edward, Little George, and Little Henry. The three boys are all named after their uncles; they have their fifth child, William, in early October.

Jane wrote that the children were lovely, even little William, who was just born, and that she and Cathy liked them very much.

Brother James will also have a child, and Mary Lloyd is pregnant, and it is estimated that another child will be born when they return to Steventon.

However, there is no news from brother Henry.Eliza has already given birth to a child. She is only 37 years old and is still of childbearing age. Her body should be fine.But Henry was a little anxious. He wanted a child, whether it was a boy or a girl.

Alice was most impatient to hear about children.She complained to Mrs. Baker, "Why do you have to be busy having children when you are married? I am very tired of hearing children crying."

"Oh, that's probably because rich people need heirs."

"The poor can't even afford black bread, and they keep having children! I really don't understand! They can only support one child, but they have 1 children! No wonder they are not poor!"

She thought of her family again: 9 children!It's scary to think about it.

At this moment, she forgot again, if there is any family planning now, there will be no her, and there will be no Jane.It is generally normal and acceptable for an average family to have 4 or 5 children.She can actually understand that having more children is due to the high mortality rate of infants and young children. Before the 17th century, the mortality rate of children under the age of 12 in England was even as high as 50%!This means that of the 9 children in the Austin family, only 4 are likely to survive...

this is too scary!

But whether it can be understood is one thing, and whether it can be accepted is another.

"Pregnancy and childbirth are women's burdens, and men don't have to carry a big belly for several months!"

Mrs. Baker didn't think that she shouldn't know about this. Children these days are all premature in some aspects, and things like pregnancy and childbirth can be seen everywhere, so it's impossible to really understand everything.

"So, women in this world work hard. If you want to avoid having children all the time, then—" Mrs. Becker smiled, "The easiest way is to separate."

Mrs. Baker had no children, but it was not known whether she would not want to have children, or could not.Listening to the servants gossip, Mr. Becker has several illegitimate children at home, so they all judged that the wife was barren.

Alice didn't think there was anything wrong with Mrs. Baker. If she didn't want to have a baby, she shouldn't. The value of a woman shouldn't be measured by whether she can have children or how many children she has. Everyone has the right to choose the life he wants .It's just that in this society, it is difficult for women to live freely and themselves.

First, there must be money.

Second, be able to withstand pressure.

Third, don't care about those gossip women and gossip men whispering behind their backs.

That's right, Mrs. Baker made it clear that, don't look at women who like to talk about the family's family, men talk about the privacy of other people's homes, okay?

Alice always thought that men in England should be elegant gentlemen, but her views were refreshed.The reason is that she is too young and has seen too few people, so she doesn't understand this truth.

In fact, think about it, are English men at the end of the 18th century more elegant than men in later generations?Human beings all have the desire to spy on other people's privacy and to spread other people's privacy, but gentlemen disdain it, while villains are not ashamed of it.

The author has something to say:

*What William looks like, refer to Sebastian played by Ben Whishaw in "After the Storm in the Homeland".Of course William is not necessarily gay.