Chapter 20: Who has better marriage proposal experience, Jade Rabbit or Stooge?
Ellie had no experience in proposing.
The only two young men I knew who had had such experiences were Mr. Collins and Mr. Bingley.
Alice frowned at the thought of the former. It was a truly terrible proposal that even she, as a bystander, couldn't bear to hear.
As for the latter, winning Jane's sincere consent is enough to prove that his proposal is worthwhile. Moreover, Jane can also give her some advice from the perspective of the person being proposed to.
Alice decided to invite the engaged couple to be consultants for her proposal ceremony.
While waiting for Mr. Bingley, the two sisters opened the letter from Longbourn.
The letter begins in Mr. Bennett's voice.
Dear Daughter,
After receiving your letter, your mother has been spitting in my ear for about half an hour. Every word in it made me write it down and pass it on to you. If you find some mistakes or incoherence in this letter, please forgive your father's writing speed due to his old age.
To prevent me from forgetting, I'll write down on a piece of letter paper what Mrs. Bennet repeatedly urged me to convey. Your mother and sisters have been stealing the show in Meryton for at least a week. The newspapers covering you and the Refreshing Ointment finally arrived from London a few days ago, and they've become breaking news throughout the town. Seeing the article about the ointment being specially developed for her, your mother declared you her proudest child. Mrs. Bennet will frame the papers and hang them on the living room wall, ensuring that every visitor will see them immediately. The one mentioning her will be placed front and center.
The ladies in town with unmarried sons or relatives are all asking your mother about your latest marital status, eager to form marriages with our family. As your mother puts it, they're hoping to leverage your connections to the aristocracy. Mrs. Bennett has declared that no one can profit from our family. She's announced that you'll marry a noblewoman you're friendly with, and that your sisters will also benefit from your status as wives. I regret to inform you that, because of this announcement, the marriage prospects of the five unengaged Bennett ladies have experienced a sharp rise and fall in just two days.
Your mother is not only popular among the ladies in town, but Mr. Jones at the drugstore has also repeatedly expressed his desire to buy some of your wake-up cream, which he plans to sell in his store. This requires your personal response, Alyssa.
…
Regarding the concerns in your letter, considering that I wrote three pages and Mrs. Bennett is still shouting beside me with full energy, I think we can finally congratulate your mother and say goodbye to her old friend. However, if this continues, perhaps our family will welcome a familiar new friend, who will belong to your father's fragile nerves.
I heard that Jane and Mr. Bentley both fell ill during your spa vacation. Your mother and I are concerned about their health, but we're not overly worried, considering you're a miracle doctor in our family. My regards to Jane and Mr. Bentley. I hope they'll be well by the time I receive this letter. If a wedding date is set, please write as soon as possible. We all look forward to attending Jane's wedding.
Also: If Lizzie returns to London from that foolish gentleman's house, give us your best wishes and hope that her bright brain has not been polluted by her short stay there.
Your father
J. Bennett
"Jane, have you set a date for your wedding?" Alice didn't know how far along the couple was in their wedding.
"Bentley has asked the church and found a suitable date. We will have the wedding soon." Jane pursed her lips slightly, her dignified smile revealing her unconcealable joy.
As he spoke, Mr. Bingley strode joyfully into the apartment's living room, announcing the good news that the wedding church had been chosen: it would be located at nearby St. James's Church in Piccadilly. Although the church wasn't part of the bride and groom's parish, it was the closest. Jane also admired its sacred and elegant style. They both hoped to be married there.
"The priest of St. James's Church has read out our marriage announcement in public, and the wedding can be officially held in three weeks." Mr. Bingley said excitedly. At the end of his speech, his sweet eyes fell on Jane and he couldn't take his eyes off her.
Jane felt a little shy when she was looked at and lowered her head slightly.
Mr. Bingley then remembered that it was Jane who specifically asked him to come to Alice's rented apartment today, saying that "there was something important."
"What's so mysterious?" he asked, sitting opposite Jane.
When Mr. Bingley heard that the proposal was to give advice to his wife's sister Alice, he was surprised for a moment, but he soon convinced himself and accepted it naturally.
He turned to gossip and became curious: "Which gentleman captured your heart, Alyssa, and made you so impatient that you want to propose to her?"
"Charles, you've met Mr. Adrian Moran," Alice said frankly. "Come to think of it, we met at a ball you gave."
"Mr. Moran?" He was very much in favor of the match. "He's a reliable and warm-hearted man."
Alice's eyes lit up with confusion. When did that gentleman become so highly regarded by her future brother-in-law? Weren't they familiar with each other? And what about a warm-hearted person? Hmm, it was hard to associate that with a face that always looked either arrogant or cold.
"Jane and I wanted to publish a marriage announcement and hold the wedding in a non-parish church, which was going to be quite a hassle. I was planning to write to Darcy for help. You may not know that the Darcy family has a lot of influence in the church." He explained to the two young ladies, "I just happened to meet Mr. Morland. As a church member, he helped prove that we were not eloping and that he lived nearby. He is really a very good person."
"By the way, Alyssa," Mr. Bingley thought of a key question, "are you at least somewhat sure of Mr. Moran's feelings?"
"If I hadn't felt that Jane had some feelings for me, I wouldn't have dared to face the blow of a failed proposal." He hinted that a unilateral and rash proposal might result in hurt.
"Of course." Her exes were not ignorant either. They didn't understand what a man looked like when he wanted to be with him.
"That is very good!" Mr. Bingley agreed cheerfully. "Since I have had a part in bringing about this match, it would be unreasonable not to take part in it."
He was very excited about giving advice, but he was so curious about what his fiancée thought of his previous proposal that he forced himself to hold back and let Jane speak first.
Jane briefly described the proposal scene and concluded: "I think the most important thing about a proposal is sincerity."
She glanced down at her fiancé and said, "I was simply moved by Mr. Bingley's sincerity. His words weren't particularly flowery, but they made me understand his true feelings. I know that he loves me just as much as I do him."
Mr. Bingley agreed very much and said that he was sincerely expressing his love for Jane, and fortunately, Jane also responded to his feelings.
Alice: Sincerely, she noted.
Seeing Alice nod, Jane suddenly remembered her sister's explicit words yesterday and immediately changed her words: "Actually, there's no need to be too sincere..."
Alice met Jane's somewhat embarrassed look and quickly understood what she meant.
"Hmm?" Bentley asked doubtfully.
Jian Yuan said, "Well, what I mean is that we still need to embellish and package our language. Sometimes being too straightforward can be unsightly."
Alice: With her eighteen years of experience as a human in England, she really can't say.
After talking about the time, place and specific preparations for the proposal ceremony, the three of them discussed and decided to set the time on Christmas Eve.
"There couldn't be a better day for a clergyman!" Bentley clapped his hands and stood up, excited about this brilliant idea.
As for the location, the fiancée asked Alice if there was anywhere in London that held special meaning for them.
Significant? It was the first time she noticed him, so that was probably it.
Alice briefly recounted her first encounter with Mr. Moran in Hyde Park. Jane was surprised to say, "Mr. Moran is the son of that lady who also had a fragile nerve."
After learning the details of their first encounter, Mr. Bingley exclaimed, "Mrs. Bennett met that gentleman because of her headache. And you, too, came to London for the medicine to cure your headache. What an incredible fate! Eliza, it seems God has chosen the place for you to propose."
"Never mind, God is God." Alice decided to listen reluctantly. After all, she knew nothing about such an unfamiliar matter as proposing marriage.
Before leaving, Mr. Bingley recommended to her some books on marriage proposal that he had read, such as "A Guide to Proposal for Young Gentlemen".
Alice read it and automatically replaced words like "advice to the gentleman" with "advice to her, the lady".
The contents of these books are similar.
The first step is to praise the other person, praise his character, appearance and manners.
This is easy.
The second step is to show your advantages to the person you are proposing to, what benefits he can get from marrying you, and especially what shortcomings you can make up for in the other person.
Then she has many advantages, and she needs to count them carefully.
The third step is to pursue love boldly and propose marriage solemnly.
That's fine too.
The fourth step is to maintain a sense of familiarity and freshness before proposing. If there's still some time before the proposal, the proposer should create opportunities to maintain a moderate frequency of meetings to avoid the other person feeling left out and the relationship becoming distant. Meeting every day is also not recommended.
Write it down and do it.
Step 5: Don't act frivolously. Even if you are in love, you should still show enough respect and decency, and don't act or speak too frivolously.
"Okay, I won't tease him anymore." Alice pouted.
Step six, maintain a good relationship with his family and don’t put him in a difficult position.
This had already been agreed upon. When she left Bath, the old Countess of Camden said she would invite her to visit when she returned to London.
Alice, who had no experience in marriage proposals, was impressed. While drawing on the experience of others who had gone through it, she made specific arrangements for the proposal day. She also followed the instructions and occasionally visited Adrian Moran's church under the guise of delivering medicine to patients, making her presence felt and gaining some merit.
Unfortunately, the gentleman had never returned from Bath, but she had learned that he would be at church on Christmas Day.
Everything went smoothly.
Little did he know that when everything was ready on Christmas Day, he couldn't find the person he wanted to propose to.
The author has something to say:
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Rabbit has no experience in proposing, only experience in robbing...
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