little miss austin

She wondered if this was the principle of "wealth cannot last three generations"?William Beckford is the fourth generation of his family, and he inherited a large inheritance from the previous three generations, without paying any attention to how this amazing wealth was accumulated.And since he has no male heir, after Susan gets married, he will not have any offspring with his own surname. Even if this branch of the Beckford family is over, he has no scruples about spending money.

Susan still wrote her often, mentioning what Beckford had bought again.The Fengshan Manor has not yet been built, and it is still spending money continuously. Beckford has been buying art, and the cost of entertaining guests can also be called a big deal.The purpose of spending money is "only buy the expensive ones, not the right ones".

Susan's letter vaguely reveals her envy for Alice. She envies that she has both parents and many brothers and sisters. Although the family does not have much money, everyone loves her very much. She is really a happy girl.Alice felt rather sorry for her.So God is fair, Susan is rich, but she doesn't have the motherly love and brotherly love she wants, and her father is still very unreliable.

"So she's a flustered spoiled child, but she's not necessarily evil at heart. After all, she hasn't done anything very evil," Cathy said.

"I'm not angry with her anymore, but in order to show that I'm not easy to please, I still can't write back to her."

Cathy smiled, "Okay, I know you are a proud girl." In fact, Alice has let go of Susan, otherwise, if she disagrees, Jacob would not say a word to Susan .

Daylesford is beautiful in summer.

The main house has a large lawn for four weeks, enough to play cricket.

In the area where the lawn meets the woods, many annual herbaceous plants are planted. It is in full bloom at this time, forming a beautiful flower belt, full of wild charm.

Jacob picked a large bouquet of flowers and put them in a vase on the table.

"Master Oliver asked if you still played cricket today?"

"Has he come?"

"coming."

"Where are Ivo and George?"

"Candice sent a letter saying that the two young masters will come back tomorrow."

"Then go and tell Oliver that we won't be playing today. But he can come over and have afternoon tea with Cathy and me."

Ten minutes later, Oliver Bondfield walked over from the main house.

This is a thin and handsome boy, tall already, a head taller than Alice.Round face, big eyes, pleasing appearance, polite and thoughtful.

After approaching, bow to the sisters first, "Miss Austin, Miss Alice."

"Hello, Lord Bundfield."

Oliver smiled, "You can call me Oliver just like Alice."

"I can't play cricket with you these days. My mother is here. She doesn't like me dressing like a boy and playing boys' games." Alice said.

"Then—how about you come to my house?"

"I should visit your father with my mother. Have you read the book I let you read last time?"

"It's over, it's beautiful."

Cathy watched them sit together, their heads getting closer and closer, whispering very intimately.Oliver seemed to be very familiar with Alice. Without her saying anything, Oliver took the initiative to bring her favorite pastry plate and put it in front of her. He even knew what flavor of black tea she liked, how much milk and how many spoons of sugar to put.It can be said that he is a very careful boy.

His ability to observe words and expressions is too good.

Considering that she also lost her mother when she was young, and her father has never remarried, Susan and Oliver can be regarded as two extremes. Susan is too spoiled by her father and is very willful; while Oliver, who knows how to read words and emotions, is actually too precocious .

Oliver remained at Daylesford House until dinner was over.

Mrs. Austen was very interested in the young neighbor, and asked Cathy quietly, did Alice and Oliver have a good relationship, what was the situation, did Alice like Oliver, or did Oliver like Alice?

"I like it, that is, the favorite of children. After all, there is not much difference in age between them. Oliver is a little more than 5 years older than her. He has just graduated from Eton College and will go to Cambridge University next year."

"Then, when he graduates from college, it's—"

"It's almost 22."

"When Alice is 18 years old and Oliver is 23 years old, get engaged first, and then Alice can get married at 20 years old. This is perfect!" Mom has already begun to revive enthusiastically.

Cathy couldn't help holding her forehead, "Mother!"

"what happened?"

"Isn't it too early for you to think about this now? You don't know what kind of temperament Oliver is. What if he changes his temperament after he goes to university and Alice doesn't like him? Besides, there are still many years left Well? Alice is too young to understand any of this."

"She doesn't understand, but I understand. If there is any suitable boy, of course, we must pay attention in advance, and we can't be snatched away first." Mrs. Austin felt that she was worried.

"He's 16 now, in case he doesn't survive—"

"Bah bah! Bad spirits, bad spirits, good spirits!" The mother glared at the eldest daughter reproachfully, "If you don't want me to talk about Alice, then I'll talk about you, don't think you can just hide here Pretend that Bridges didn't propose to you. I said, you gotta think about it, you gotta know, daddy and I are going to see God, what are you going to do then? You don't want me to die Do you close your eyes?"

Cathy shouted anxiously: "Mother!"

The next day, Ivo Gordon and George Byron of Candice House came to play with Alice.

The two cousins ​​were about the same age, Ivo in December 1786 and Byron in January 12.Both boys are good-looking, Ivo is a little inferior, not very beautiful, but he has a youthful temperament and a lively personality; Byron is a little more beautiful, and has inherited the title of the family. He is a Lord, a fly in the ointment Is born with a handicap.

Mrs. Austen promptly dismissed Lord Byron from her prospective son-in-law.

There is also Evan Holmes of Newton Manor. Mrs. Austen has long known this naughty boy from her daughter's letter, and has never considered him.

A few days later, Mrs. Austen and her two daughters went to Newton Manor to visit Lord Bundfield.

Mrs. Holmes warmly entertained Mrs. Austen, and Baron Bondfield was also very kind, and invited the mother and daughter Austen to the summer ball in a few days.Mrs. Austen gladly accepted the invitation.

A day later, I went to visit Mr. Gordon at the Candace House.

Although Mr. Gordon does not have a knighthood, he is also a big landowner with an annuity of 2 pounds and many properties and fields. He has 7 children. Ivo is the youngest child and the only boy.

After Mrs. Austin inspected the two manors and the male masters, she felt that Oliver and Ivo were both good, and it was even a bit difficult to decide.

Cathy felt that her mother was thinking too soon.But I still told Alice secretly, in exchange for Alice's horrified denial, "What the hell is Mom thinking? I haven't thought about this at all, okay? Yes, they are both cute, but to me, they are the same as Charles is about the same."

Cathy teased her, "Do you know what the hell Mom means?"

"I'm not a child anymore!" Alice glared at the elder sister angrily, "What mother means is—I hope I can marry Oliver or Ivo in the future, just like Jane and Tom, Henry and Eliza. I I'm only 11 years old, my mother is always in such a hurry, I'm under a lot of pressure!"

After the summer ball at Newton Manor, the servants began to pack their luggage, and the master and young master were going to the Isle of Wight for vacation.

The servants of Daylesford House were also busy, including Mr. Hastings, mother and daughter Austin, Mr. and Mrs. Gordon from Candace House, 6 of the 3 daughters who were not married, Ivo, Byron, the three families made an appointment to set off together.

With a lot of people, cars, and luggage, the journey on the road is relatively slow, and it can often occupy all the mangers at the stations on the way at once.It is unrealistic for so many carriages to change the stage horses halfway, so they have to stop frequently to let the horses rest and graze.The whole trip needs to cross the whole of Wiltshire, and stop in Salisbury town for two days, let Mrs. Austen take her two daughters, Oliver, Ivo and Byron, to visit William Baker Ford.

Although Susan sent Alice a portrait of Fengshan Manor, but no portrait is far less than the shock she witnessed: just the left and right wings that have been built are strange enough, plus the tower that is being built, brother The special building is indeed a strange and spectacular architectural style.

Alice specially stopped the carriage far away to enjoy the distant view of Fengshan Manor.

She stopped the carriage, and the carriage with the boys behind her also stopped.

"Look, isn't Fengshan Manor very beautiful?" Alice waved to the boys who had just got off the carriage.

"It's weird," Oliver said.

Ivo said: "I think it's very beautiful, but I can't imagine what it would be like to live in it."

Byron did not speak, but his expression made people think that he admired the architectural style of Fengshan Manor.

"Susan said that the tower is very high, and when the tower is all built, it will be a complete towering building. Don't you think that this place is very remote, and it would be a very strange thing to have such a Gothic building ?"

"What do you mean?" Byron asked, frowning.

"Maybe some cold and weird stories will come out. For example, Mr. Beckford eats the hearts of children and drinks the blood of girls to keep his youth forever."

Oliver frowned, and Ivo laughed.

"You should read less gothic novels." Oliver looked at her.

Byron shook his head, "I thought your imagination should be richer."

"Well, let's change this story to a female protagonist. Susan said that this place is indeed a bit weird. The previous owners built the manor, but it collapsed not long after it was built. Then, this is a cursed place. Because many, many years ago, the lord of this land failed his lover, and the betrayed lover cursed her betrayed lover and this land, so the buildings on this land were always built soon after they were built. Collapsed. In modern times, in 1801, the descendants of the lord wanted to end the curse because he was so poor that he had only this land, because no one would buy an uninhabitable land. So he went through all kinds of hardships, Find the offspring of the betrayed lover—maybe a boy, maybe a girl, it doesn’t matter—and then kill that offspring on this land, the blood of the offspring will break the curse, but at this time, A bolt of lightning suddenly fell from the sky and split the soil into a deep pit. The descendants of the lord fell into the deep pit and died. Strangely, the curse was broken and the new owner built a new manor. Until decades later, on a dark and stormy night, the new estate collapsed again."

Ivo was surprised and a little scared, "My God! This story is really cruel."

Byron glanced at his cousin: How naive!

Oliver said: "It's kind of weird, it's kind of—not for you."

"Oh? Then what kind of story do you think I am suitable for writing?"

"That's the kind of thing—a brighter story, a boy and a girl story, not too complicated, not too dark."

Alice made a face at him, "You're scared."

"I don't have it!"

Mrs. Austin told her to get in the car, and she was in a hurry!

William Beckford was quite surprised. He didn't expect that the three boys could be regarded as good-looking talents.

Oliver is a bit boring; Byron is quite smart and sharp; Ivo is most like a carefree boy, neither too smart nor a fool.

Alice brought all her recent works and stayed in Fengshan Manor.

Susan perfectly played the role of "the educated only daughter of the super rich", and the three boys all had a very good impression of her.

Mrs. Austin thought that the appearance of Fengshan Manor was a bit weird, but the interior decoration was extremely gorgeous and rich, so she didn't mind the appearance of the manor.

Beckford stayed with the guests for one night.

There were only two masters in the house, he and Susan, and there was no shortage of rooms. The guest rooms were adequate, and all were richly decorated, with thick Persian rugs on the floor.

The room service was meticulous and thoughtful, and Susan didn't come to harass her at night, and Alice slept comfortably until the morning.

After breakfast at Fengshan Manor, we left.Before breakfast, Alice accompanied Beckford for a walk.

Beckford affirmed her progress, but believed that she still needs to broaden her horizons, gain insight into the world, and figure out human nature.It is easy to broaden one's horizons, but insight into the world and human nature cannot be taught.

"Mr. Hastings can only teach 'knowledge', and how to accumulate knowledge. Most of what you get is just materials, but how to use materials, he can't teach you, and I can't teach you. "

"You mean to say that writing is a gifted thing?"

"Indeed. For example, for the same trip or adventure in Egypt, some people can write interesting travel notes, while others can't even write simple statements. This is a huge difference."

"Talent cannot be practiced the day after tomorrow, right? No, what I mean is that talent should come naturally. Writing can be practiced, but talent cannot be found."

"Yes, this description is very good. Look, you don't have to worry about your lack of talent. Everyone has talent, but many people don't know what kind of talent they have. People who can find their talent and use it to make a name for themselves, after all It is a very small number. You don’t have to worry too much, you are only 11 years old, and you don’t know what you are suitable for writing.”

Alice thought, the so-called "reiki" is really hard to define.However, it is said that talented players with "reiki" can always stand out, such as Beckford, Scott, the future Byron, and the unborn Arthur Rimbaud.

Susan Beckford went for a walk with the three boys.

When it was breakfast, I saw Ivo and Byron vying to please Susan, but Oliver was unmoved.Alice thought it was fun, and Beckford hinted to her to pay attention.

Oliver probably didn't dislike Susan. After all, Susan was very good at pretending to be a lady, and she was also a beautiful little beauty. Boys, at the age of 14 or 5, they have reached the age to know the difference between men and women, and know how to please girls.None of the three teenagers regarded Alice as a "girl" because she was too young.

But Susan is different. She is a girl who has begun to develop and understands her own beauty and charm. She is a delicate, soft and fragrant little lady.

oops!Sure enough, boys like pretty girls!

However, Alice still thinks that whether she is beautiful or not is not too important. If she has 100 points of appearance, it is enough for her to be 7 or 80 points.Too beautiful is not bad, it is unnecessary.This world is based on looks, but in the end it is based on money, just work hard to make money.As for her marriage, which her mother started to worry about now, she felt that it was not a big deal at all, so she didn't need to think about it.

Four days later, the motorcade of the three families arrived in Southampton.

Southampton is a huge harbor city, very lively.Many people can't get a seaside villa or holiday cottage on the Isle of Wight, and they will choose Southampton. Brother Edward has a seaside villa here, and his family is now cooling off in Southampton.

So the three families went to visit their relatives and friends, made appointments, boarded a boat at the port, and headed to the Isle of Wight.

Edward had another daughter, Marianne, and at the age of 33 he was already the father of seven children.Children come to this world at an average interval of one and a half years. After all, sister-in-law Elizabeth was pregnant again when a child was just weaned at the age of 7 or 7 months. The labor intensity is terrible!

In addition to sighing, Alice sighed, and also lamented that Elizabeth's body is not bad, but she always gives birth to children, no matter how good her body is, she can't bear it.

In addition to visiting her son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren, Mrs. Austin was very happy to learn that Jane was pregnant!

This is great news!

Alice is also happy for her sister, but at the same time very worried, afraid that Jane will not survive the delivery process.Jane is 14 years older than her, and now she is 25 and a half years old. At this age, she is not too young to become a first-time pregnant woman. It can be said that she is just the right age.But what Alice worried about was whether the typhus she had in the early years would do any damage to her body.

Since the Middle Ages, the Black Death, smallpox, and typhus have repeatedly broken out in Europe, interspersed with older and more mutated influenza, which is hard to guard against.Several diseases broke out one after another. At the worst time, 60% of the population in Europe died of various diseases.

Mrs. Austen almost wanted to go to London right away. Fortunately, Cathy persuaded her, "Jane is still several months away from giving birth, and it is impossible for us to stay on the Isle of Wight until winter. We will go to London after we leave the Isle of Wight, that At that time, Jane was about 5 months pregnant, and the time was just right. And we can also go to see our new home, and the new home should be ready to move in."

They originally planned to go to London to inspect the new house after leaving the Isle of Wight, and then they happened to stay until the end of the year to spend Christmas with Jane.I just didn’t expect Jane to be pregnant at this time.Because they have been on the road for more than a week and couldn't receive the letter, they missed receiving the letter in the first time.

Edward also passed through London on the way to visit Jane, and only then did he know the good news.Edward also told her to write to the Reverend George of Bath and Steventon's eldest brother James.Because Jane was pregnant for the first time, her menstrual period was delayed and she was not sure. It took more than two months to be sure.

Alice was very puzzled, saying that there is not even an obstetrician in London now, how do pregnant women know they are pregnant until their bellies get big?

Mom laughed at her childlike question, and then said that there are still gynecologists and midwives, and besides, married women whose menstrual period is over, of course, the first thing to consider is whether they are pregnant.

When it comes to menstrual periods, my mother started to worry again. Jane's menarche came very late, probably when she was almost 16 years old. At that time, she was very anxious, because she was afraid that something was wrong with Jane's body.Cathy's menarche came not too early, at the age of 14.Now I have to worry about when Alice will have her period.

Alice didn't think about it at all.

What she thought was how hard a woman's life is. When she was unmarried, she worried that there would be no suitable man to propose marriage, and she also had to worry that the family could not provide a suitable dowry; It does not have to be born one after another; when the child was young, he was worried about various diseases that would cause the child to die prematurely, and after finally growing up, he had to worry about falling in love, getting married and having children.So the cycle never ends.

It's tiring to be a human being!There must be something other than passing on the family line, right?

There were also some social balls at Southampton, and Baron Bundfield discovered that there was a landowner's son in the Austen family, and he was well-bred, which was beyond his expectations.Before, he only thought that the Austin family was poor relatives of the Hastings family, but now he found that the Austin family was not only not poor, but also a wealthy class.So I inquired a little about the situation of Austin's family.

"My ancestors were richer" is actually very useful in this era, at least it can let people know that your family is not a nouveau riche with mud legs.

The author has something to say:

*No problem with Mrs Austen's thinking, Susan Beckford later married the Duke of Hamilton.Now that the Austin family is rich, it is reasonable for the mother to expect her youngest daughter to marry the heir of the baron.

*Susan actually has an older sister, who is not an only child, but she will not be written about her, so she deleted it.

*Speaking of big guys who are about the same age as Alice, there is Shelley, born in 1792.Shelley and Byron later became friends and were both Romantic poets.Byron died young, at 36, and Shelley at 30.The experience of Shelley and his second wife, Mary Shelley, is super bloody, and Mary's parents are also super bloody, and I will talk about it later.

* Shelley is a scumbag in the standard sense. His first wife threw herself into the river because she couldn't bear the humiliation brought about by his cohabitation with Mary.Byron is a double, and the marriage is not happy, but it is hard to say whether his wife can't understand him, or the wife finds out that he has some indescribable relationship between men and women.In a sense, this pair of friends can be regarded as suffering brothers and sisters.

*Aunt’s problem, depending on the individual’s physique, it is common to have menarche at the age of 10-12, but before the middle of the 20th century, it was normal to have menarche at the age of 15 or 6, even girls from wealthy families who eat well Same.