Pride and Prejudice Becoming Jane Bennet

Mr. Darcy had had a rough time since leaving Kent.He himself promised that Lady Catherine decided to stay in Rosings for one more week in order to spend more time with Jane, but after the marriage proposal was rejected and Jane made it clear that she did not want to see him again, he There is no reason and no mood to continue to stay in this place any longer.

He immediately decided to leave, and took his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, with him.He thought that when he returned to London and let Jane out of his sight, his feelings would no longer be so intense.But just as he hid from Hertfordshire to London in order to prevent Mr. Bingley from returning to Netherfield, and to keep himself from Jane, he found that even when Jane was out of his sight, he often thought of her. , and this time, he could no longer suppress his feelings.

At first Mr. Darcy filled his life with official duties and banquets in order to avoid having time to think about Jane.The official affairs he had accumulated during his time at Rosings did take his mind off Jane for a while, but the banquet he arranged for himself could not let him escape from his thoughts successfully.

He had only felt at ease when he had just returned to London society, for he would not be judged here as the coarse folk in the country were, and the parties were attended by well-mannered and well-bred people, many of whom were like him. But soon, he found that he could no longer enjoy the banquet like before.

At a banquet, he overheard the hostess of the banquet telling her companion a piece of news, saying that Mrs. Palmer had passed away a few days ago, but Mr. Palmer had just finished the funeral with his front foot, and his back foot The mistress and illegitimate child were brought into the mansion, and dead Mrs Palmer's natal family made no sign of it.

"Poor Cora," said the companion of the hostess of the party, "she was tortured to death by gossip."

"Actually, I have expected this for a long time," said the hostess of the banquet. "Mr. Palmer has long been notorious for his affairs. The Marquis and his family are willing to marry their daughter to him, not because he can do it for them. Pay off the debt, otherwise how dare he, a little viscount, do such a thing?"

"You are indeed right." The female companion said, "A daughter is not important to a family like Lord Marquis."

This conversation made Mr. Darcy frown severely. He almost immediately thought of what Jane had said to him, the accusations she made when she rejected him, and her words about nobility and blood. Those remarks had a great impact on him at the time, but he had to admit that what Jane said did happen to people in the same class as him.

This incident is just the beginning.The banquet in London has always been a place for those boring people to exchange gossips. In the past, because of Mr. Darcy's overall desolation, no one dared to talk about those ugly gossips in front of him, and Mr. Darcy himself did not pay attention to those who were Things seemed meaningless to him, so he had no way of knowing about many things.But now he doesn't know if it's because after listening to Jane's words, he has doubts in his heart about the elegant appearance of the social circle he belongs to, so those things that he didn't want to pay attention to or subconsciously ignored in the past seem to jump to him spontaneously now. In front of him, let him take a closer look.

Today's Britain is at a time when the old and the new aristocrats are changing.Those old aristocrats who are noble but whose family circumstances have declined sell their children to new aristocrats who can help them pay off their debts in order to maintain their appearance, regardless of whether the person's behavior is decent or not, and whether their children are married or not. Then look at those people who were not born well, they work hard on their own, and they can still nod in his social circle.What he had seen and heard gave Mr. Darcy a faint idea that Jane's words seemed to have some truth.

When he first came up with this idea, he was taken aback, but once this idea came into being, it was as if a layer of fog had been lifted before his eyes, allowing him to see the current situation in Britain more clearly.Those old aristocrats who only lived on the noble titles and real estate left over from their ancestors, because they relied on their status, looked down on industry and commerce, and felt that engaging in these activities would damage their reputation, and they were declining more and more. Received titles of nobility in many places...

Mr. Darcy himself is a farsighted person, and now he seems to have suddenly seen the future direction of Britain, which makes him a little bit out of control in his usual calm and self-sufficient heart.He thought of Jane again, and couldn't help but want to go back to Hansford to see her again, but he also thought that this lady had rejected him and was unwilling to see him, and he probably had already returned to Lambeau by this time Well, he could only bear it again, but the anxiety that followed was almost never seen in his life.

He didn't want to go to the banquets that bored him anymore, and his affairs had been dealt with a few days before he returned to London. Staying at home would only make him feel upset, so he had to go to the fencing club to vent. One pass—because fencing is one of the few sports that allows him to think about nothing but competition for a while.

Mr. Darcy's fencing skills are quite good. Gentlemen who often like to go to the fencing club to exercise naturally welcome such a person to come from time to time, but these gentlemen go to the club not only to exercise, but also to talk about their own business Things, to strengthen the relationship, but Mr. Darcy can't stand it every day and find someone to compete with him, so in the end, almost only the resident fencers invited by the club are willing to fight with him.

Mr. Darcy lived like this until the news came from the north, telling him that some business needs to be handled by him, and he finally had something to occupy his mind and let him stop thinking about Jane.It's a pity that the traveling companions on this journey and the people he met at the end of the journey could not make him feel so comfortable.

On the day before leaving London, Mr. Darcy went for a ride in the park, and accidentally met Mr. Bingley, who had just returned to London the night before, after visiting his cousin in other places.

Part of Mr. Bingley’s business is similar to that of Mr. Darcy. He happened to need to go to the north this time. After talking with them, they found that the destination was the same, so Mr. Bingley decided to take his sister and brother-in-law with him. Go on the road with Mr. Darcy.

Miss Bingley was very glad to see Mr. Darcy again, and immediately inquired where he had been at Easter and when he would be back in London.

"I went to Rosings," said Mr. Darcy, "and came back to town about a fortnight ago."

"Ah!" said Miss Bingley presently, "how are your aunt and cousin?"

"They're all very well, thank you," said Mr. Darcy.

He glanced at Mr. Bingley, who was less interested, and added: "They have also received some visitors from Longbourn."

"Longbourn?" asked Mr. Bingley, turning at once, "who are they?"

"Miss Bennet, Sir William, and Miss Maria Lucas," said Mr. Darcy.

"It's a curious combination, isn't it?" laughed Mrs. Hurst. "How did they come to Rosings?"

"They were going to see Mr. Collins, the vicar of that parish, and his wife," replied Mr. Darcy. "Mrs. Collins was the original Miss Charlotte Lucas."

"You mean Sir William's eldest daughter?" asked Mr. Bingley.

"Yes."

"That was a match made in heaven!" said Mr. Bingley cheerfully. "I know she has always wanted a property of her own. . . . Was she all right when you saw her?"

"I think she's well," said Mr. Darcy. "She seems to be doing well."

Mr. Bingley nodded, and was about to ask some more questions, but at this moment his sister, impatient to hear these irrelevant matters, interrupted them, and moved on to other topics.It's just that Mr. Darcy himself brought up this topic to let his friends know that he had met Jane, and if Mr. Bingley still had a heart for Elizabeth, he would naturally not let go of this opportunity to find out her information.

As Mr. Darcy expected, when the group rested in the hotel and Mr. Bingley and he were the only ones left in the room, Mr. Bingley asked hesitantly if he knew the number of the Bennet family. How are the ladies doing?

"Miss Bennet is very well," said Mr. Darcy, "and her parents are said to be very well."

"Then..." asked Mr. Bingley with some hesitation, "where are her sisters?"

"Miss Bennet told me that her sisters were all in good health," said Mr. Darcy.

"Are all Miss Bennet's sisters at Longbourn?" Mr. Bingley asked again.

"No," said Mr. Darcy, noticing that Mr. Bingley's expression seemed tense, "I had news before I left Rosings that Miss Bennet's youngest sisters had gone with their former governesses to Leighton, Miss Elizabeth is in London, and Miss Mary is alone at Longbourne. Don't know now."

"Miss Elizabeth was in London?!" cried Mr. Bingley at once, "and you tell me now that she is in London these days?"

"Yes," said Mr. Darcy, "she has not only been here, but has visited you."

"She called on us?!" exclaimed Mr. Bingley. "How did I not know? Darcy, you are hiding something from me?"

"I cannot deny it," said Mr. Darcy.

"Why didn't Caroline and Louisa tell me?" said Mr. Bingley, frowning again. "You keep me in the dark?"

"We believed at first that you had lost all affection for Miss Elizabeth," said Mr. Darcy. "I did not know that Miss Elizabeth would stay so long in London. You happened to be away when she called at your house, and when you came back, Nor is she necessarily still in London."

After a pause, he added: "I don't want to excuse myself... This is an arrogant assumption. I shouldn't have interfered, Bingley, and I'm sorry."

"You admit that you were wrong?" said Mr. Bingley in disbelief.

"Yes," said Mr. Darcy, "I admit it."

Mr. Bingley looked at his friend in amazement, hesitated for a moment, and asked: "If I say that I plan to go directly to Longbourn after finishing the trip to the north, what do you think of this idea?"

Mr. Darcy looked at him. He knew before that Mr. Bingley always believed what he said when he was indecisive. At this moment, he realized the influence of his attitude on Mr. Bingley's actions. He couldn't help but think of what Jane said when she accused him of using her influence over her friends to make decisions for him.It's just that at this moment, he has seen that his friend still has a deep affection for Elizabeth. If he doesn't return to Hertfordshire, there will be no possibility of reunion.

"That's a good idea," said Mr. Darcy.

"That's settled!" said Mr. Bingley cheerfully.

Mr. Darcy smiled slightly, and did not say any more words, because he was not sure whether the feelings of Miss Elizabeth had changed. Maybe she had forgotten the hurt and started a new relationship at this moment, so he I don't want to say more, lest I give too much hope to my friends.

But now that he has told what he has been hiding, he has let go of one thing in his heart.Since he and Mr. Bingley both had business in Birmingham, the group did not make too many stops along the way. They arrived in the city of Birmingham at noon on the second day after leaving London.

Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley, as soon as they were settled in the hotel, went their separate ways.Mr. Darcy was pleased to find that, while he had business to attend to, he could successfully keep Jane out of his head for a while, but he soon lost his joy, for as soon as he got back to the hotel , he found a book on the desk, which made him think of Jane at the first sight.

Miss Bingley had brought the book all the way from Netherfield, and she had the servants sort it out at this time, so that it might be used occasionally to pass the dull hours.The name of the book was The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, and it was the same novel that Jane had read at Netherfield.

Because Mr. Darcy thought of Jane, he involuntarily took the book in his hand and opened it, wanting to see what was written in the book that Jane was reading so fascinatedly at that time.His behavior was seen by Miss Bingley. She mistakenly thought that Mr. Darcy was interested in the book she was reading, so she immediately said: "Mr. Darcy, do you want to read this book? Although it is just It's a novel, but the plot is still interesting, and it can barely pass the time."

"I do want to see it," said Mr. Darcy, looking at her; "you don't mind if I borrow it?"

"Of course not!" Miss Bingley said happily. She knew that Mr. Darcy didn't usually like reading novels, so she took Mr. Darcy's willingness to borrow this book from her as a compliment to herself.

"You can take it," she said, "I've read the story."

So Mr. Darcy got his wish, and could see what kind of story Jane was reading.Reading this book will inevitably make him think of Jane, but this does not bother him, because through reading, even if he is distracted occasionally, it will not be noticed by others, and he can think of Jane's thoughts when she reads a certain plot. What kind of evaluation is it? Did she also read the irony from this seemingly romantic novel? Did she already see the corrupt life of the upper class exposed in this book at that time? .

When he was reading this novel, he thought of Jane so much, but what he didn't expect was that he actually saw Jane on the second day after he started reading this novel!

Mr. Darcy and Mr. Hunter corresponded with each other, so he knew that Mr. Hunter had been in Birmingham recently, so he met Mr. Hunter on the second day after arriving in this place.

This is an extremely correct decision.Never had Mr. Darcy been so glad that he had gone to see Mr. Hunt that day.Because if he hadn't met Mr. Hunter, he would naturally not know Mr. Weston, let alone know that Jane is in the same place with him at this moment!And Mr. Hunter immediately proposed to meet Jane, which was exactly in his favor.

With mixed emotions, he walked all the way to the door of the jewelry store where Jane and Mrs. Weston were. As soon as he approached, he heard someone shouting loudly. He knew it was Jane when he heard that voice.And when he saw the sneaky people running out and the chaos in the jewelry store, he immediately knew what happened.Seeing that the people around him hadn't reacted yet, he took a step up without thinking, raised his cane, and hit the calf bone of the oncoming person hard.

That person fell down successfully, and he also successfully met the person who made him miss him day and night.The meeting between the two made him almost think that he was dreaming. He only felt that the restless emotions that he had been suppressing for the past two months but still surfaced from time to time suddenly calmed down.