Pride and Prejudice Becoming Jane Bennet

After the dinner at Rosings Manor, life at last returned to normal for the Hansford Vicarage family.Of course, in Jane's view, it was the same as before, except that Colonel Fitzwilliam began to visit the vicarage frequently again, and Mr. Darcy occasionally accompanied his cousin, or his own, for whatever reason. Aunt and cousin, or come alone.

Colonel Fitzwilliam came to visit at the beginning because field activities were out of date in this season. As a man, he couldn't stay out all the time. The vicarage was close, and the people who lived there were interesting. But now, he finds that the vicarage is more and more attractive to him. The interval between his visits is shortened and the time of stay is longer and longer. During the visit, he spends most of his time sitting in the Be by Jane's side, or in close proximity to Jane, be alone with her, or participate in her conversations with others.

Lady Catherine came only to inquire about their daily life, to examine their household affairs, to find fault with their furniture, and to say that things should be done differently; It's different, but when she came alone with Mrs. Jiang Jinsen, Jane found a slight change—she was still so silent and gloomy most of the time, but when Jane spoke to her again, she was actually polite. She replied calmly, and even showed a smile occasionally, which surprised Jane unceasingly.After going back and forth in this way, she discovered that Miss de Bauer was not bad in nature, but because of a congenital heart disease, she had a strong mother and a nurse who took good care of her. So I suppressed my personality and emotions, didn't care much about what happened around me, and didn't talk much.

Among these visitors, Mr. Darcy was the most puzzling, and his purpose of coming was obviously different from that of his cousin, aunt or cousin, because he always sat there for ten minutes without speaking, even He also spoke as if forced to, and Colonel Fitzwilliam sometimes laughed at his silence, which made Jane sure that he was not usually like this when facing people close to him.

That day, the vicarage family finished their breakfast, and Mr. Collins stayed in his study as usual, while Jane, Mrs. Collins, and Maria stayed in the living room to do their own things.Mrs. Collins was embroidering beautiful patterns on her newly bought tablecloth, and Maria watched beside her, while Jane sat at the round table on the other side, writing letters to her sister Elizabeth.

Suddenly, Mr. Collins opened the door and rushed in, shouting to them: "Dear Charlotte, Maria, Cousin Jane, pack up quickly, we have a distinguished guest!"

"Your honored guest?" Mrs. Collins asked, raising her head in surprise. "Who is it? When are you coming?"

"Miss de Bourgh and Mr. Darcy! My dear," said Mr. Collins quickly, "that's them, and Mrs. Junkinson! Get your handiwork together, their carriage is coming!"

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Collins quickly put aside the work she was doing, and hurriedly stood up. Jane looked at them, and also folded her half-written letters and put them aside.

They had hardly finished tidying up when they heard the sound of "Did"'s hooves entering the garden, and a little later Mr. Collins ushered in Miss de Bourgh, Mr. Darcy, and Mrs. Jiangkinson.

After exchanging greetings as usual, they sat down.Mrs. Gingerson sat down with Mrs. Collins and Maria, Miss de Bourgh went and sat down beside Jane, and Mr. Darcy sat on the sofa a little away from them. Miss de Bourgh spoke to her, but seeing that there was no vacant seat next to her and Jane, she took the next best thing to sit next to Mr. Darcy and kept talking to him.

Jane watched Miss de Bourgh sitting beside her in silence, and asked, "I heard that Dr. Gilbert had a review for you the day before yesterday. Are you all right, Miss de Bourgh?"

"I'm fine, thank you," said Mademoiselle de Bourgh in a low voice, "but my mother won't allow me to walk much."

Jane smiled slightly and said, “Your mother cares about you very much.”

Miss de Bauer looked at her, and with a smile on her lips, she said, "I know."

After a pause, she said again: "It's just that sometimes I think she worries too much about me...I'm not worth it."

"No, please don't say that," Jane said, "I'm sure Lady Catherine will be happy... You see, I have four younger sisters, two of whom are still young, and they are always quarreling to an undetermined number. I worry all the time, but I never feel bad about it."

Mademoiselle de Bourgh looked at her and smiled.

Suddenly, her eyes fixed on Jane's side, and Jane followed her eyes suspiciously, and found that what she was looking at was the letters she had just written halfway, turned over because of the visitor's visit, one of the letter papers Because she didn't fold it well and exposed a corner.

"Did you draw that?" asked Mademoiselle de Bourgh suddenly. "It's lovely."

The exposed corner of the letter paper is a picture of a naive little squirrel, swinging its big tail and waving its teeth and claws. The pen used for drawing is obviously the quill pen used for writing letters. Created a vivid image of a squirrel.

Jane refolded the letter and looked at her.

Miss de Bauer immediately realized that she should not read the contents of letters written by others in this way, and she said so, lowered her eyes apologetically, and said "sorry".

Jane looked at her, thought for a while, pulled out the letter paper with squirrels on it, and handed it to her.

She smiled and said: "You don't need to feel sorry, Miss de Bourgh, this is not a private letter, it's just my improvisation, I occasionally attach it to my sister's letter, let them Also look at what I see."

Miss de Bauer couldn't help being fascinated by holding the small picture. At this time, she saw the whole picture, only to find that the squirrel was only a corner, and there were many flowers and trees on the part of the letter that was originally covered. The appearance of a few strokes is very similar to the draft before painting oil painting or watercolor, but it is a little different.

"You paint so well," Miss de Bourgh could not help admiring. "I didn't know that painting could be done like this. What kind of painting is this, Miss Bennet?"

Jane smiled slightly, and said, "You can call it a stick figure, miss, if you like, you can keep her."

"Thank you," said Mademoiselle de Bourne sheepishly. "I really like it very much. . . but . . . did you paint this picture for your sister? It must have taken you a lot of time?"

"This is indeed for my sister," Jane said with a smile, "but it doesn't take much time. The stick figure itself can be regarded as a lazy drawing method. It only takes a few minutes to complete such a painting. I My younger sisters won't mind if I draw another picture for them to see."

Miss de Bourgh smiled slightly when she heard her words, thanked her softly, rolled up the letter, and asked Mrs. Jiang Jinsen to help her put it in the small handbag she brought.

After finishing this matter, she suddenly thought of something again, and said to Jane, "Miss Bennet, I didn't know that you paint before...do you like painting very much?"

Jane smiled and said, "It's not bad...but I actually prefer to look at paintings rather than draw them myself."

"Then would you like to visit Rosings' studio this afternoon?" asked Mademoiselle de Bourgh. "You don't think I'm presumptuous?"

Jane froze for a moment, and said, "Of course not, that's my honor."

Mademoiselle de Bourgh smiled happily.

At this time, Mr. Collins saw that the sun was sunny and there was no wind, so he asked the distinguished guests if they would like to go for a walk in the garden.

Mr. Darcy was noncommittal, but Mrs. Jiang Jinson weighed it. Thinking that Dr. Gilbert asked the lady to exercise properly when she came to the consultation a few days ago, she did not object to the lady's intention, so she agreed for the lady, and Mrs. Collins asked the servant to bring it again. A flower basket and two pairs of scissors, please Miss de Bourgh to cut it back if she sees something she likes. After getting ready, several people walked out of the room back and forth.

At the beginning, Jane and Mrs. Jiang Jinsen each supported Miss de Bourgh's side and walked slowly, but when they came to the front of a flower bed, Miss de Bourgh felt a little tired. After sitting down on the chair, Mr. Collins immediately walked up to her and asked her to admire his gardening works, and told how he took care of these flowers and plants, pushing Jane aside.

Jane didn't care too much. She saw Charlotte and Maria cutting the gorgeous flowers in front of the flower bed. She thought that there were only two sets of scissors, so she stopped going and came to a small stream flowing through the garden. Watch the fish swimming in the stream and the pebbles at the bottom.

"My cousin seems to like you very much." A voice came suddenly.

Jane looked back, and saw that it was Mr. Darcy who had come up beside her.

"I've rarely seen her talk so long with one person," Mr. Darcy continued.

"I suppose it is because she seldom meets young ladies of her own age," said Jane.

Mr. Darcy looked at her and smiled, and said: "Perhaps that is one of the reasons, but even my sister Georgiana can't get on so well with her."

Jane smiled and said, "Maybe Miss de Bourgh and I just happen to have the same interests."

"You are quite right," said Mr. Darcy. "May I ask what you were talking about so pleasantly?"

Although he was sitting far away from Jane and his cousin just now and couldn't hear what the two ladies were talking about, he could clearly see the interaction between them.

"We were talking about painting, sir," said Jane.

"Painting, of course..." said Mr. Darcy, "my cousin does like painting... You paint, Miss Bennet?"

"I can draw a little bit." Jane said, "But my painting skills are the same as my piano skills. They can only be used for entertainment, and it is difficult to be elegant."

"I'm sure you're overly self-effacing," said Mr. Darcy. "You're only making me look forward to your pictures."

Jane looked at him and said with a smile: "Then you will be disappointed, sir... Please believe that my evaluation of my skills is completely honest, and I don't mean to be humble."

"Miss Bennet, you underestimate yourself," said Mr. Darcy.

Jane looked at him strangely, and she was sure that the average gentleman would not say such a thing.At this time, Mr. Darcy also seemed to realize that what he said was a bit strange. He tilted his head, looked at the garden, and said, "This garden is well arranged."

"Mr. Collins has given great thought to this," said Jane.

Mr. Darcy smiled, glanced at Mrs. Collins and Maria who were cutting flowers not far away, and said, "Mr. Collins is extremely lucky to find such a wife."

"That's right," said Jane. "Indeed."

After thinking about it, she said, "To a certain extent, this kind of luck is also for both parties."

"Mrs. Collins must be very pleased to live so close to her natal family?" said Mr. Darcy, looking at her.

Jane looked at him and said, "I'm afraid only Mrs. Collins can answer this question, sir."

"And you?" continued Mr. Darcy, "you say you like to travel. What do you think of the journey from Hertfordshire to Kent?"

It is about seventy miles from Longbourn in Hertfordshire to Hunsford in Kent. This distance may have been a two-hour drive in the era before she crossed, but at this time it is enough for a carriage to walk on the road. It's been half a day.It gave Jane a headache to think of the greater part of the day's journey back to Longbourn from the Westons at Brighton, not to mention the cost of the journey.

"Is it about seventy miles?" Jane thought for a while, and said, "I don't think I would classify such a distance as a short distance."

"What's seventy miles if the road is good?" said Mr. Darcy, smiling slightly. "I don't think you find the traveling all the way unbearable?"

"Of course not," Jane said with a smile, "The road conditions along the way are good, the scenery is good, and the traveling companions are also suitable. What's more, we didn't have a rush when we came, and we wanted to visit my friends."

"I believe that with such a mood, you will not feel that this is a long journey?" asked Mr. Darcy.

"Far and near are relative terms," ​​Jane said, "The road conditions you mentioned are one of the conditions that determine how far a person thinks the distance is, and there are many other things... and if a person has a close relationship with his relatives and friends, And if you can’t move around often for some reason, even a few miles apart will feel far away.”

"Indeed, without a doubt," said Mr. Darcy, smiling, looking at her. "I don't think you would wish to live near Longbourn, if you could?"

Jane was very surprised by Mr. Darcy's inquiry, and this surprise was also shown on her face. She looked at Mr. Darcy fixedly, unable to figure out what he meant, and Mr. Darcy He didn't avoid it, just stood there and let her look at him.

Just when Jane faintly noticed something, a cry interrupted her thoughts.

"Mr. Darcy, Cousin Jane?" cried Mr. Collins. "We may go on."

Jane heard the reputation, and found that Mrs. Collins and Maria had already cut the flowers, and Miss de Bourgh had rested enough, and was waiting for them by the edge of the flower bed.