Chapter 14: Country Life 8: Girl's Thoughts
The first family meeting of the Bennett family was adjourned.
Heather felt relieved after getting rid of the burden.
She planned to go back to her room now and copy down the information and data provided in Mr. Lancaster's letter so that her dear nieces could start work as soon as possible.
As Heather reached the door, she heard running behind her. She turned and saw Mary running after her.
Mary calmed her breath after panting for a while and said hesitantly, "Aunt, I still want to ask you a question."
"Why me? I mean, I thought you were going to have Jane and Lizzie help, not me."
There was a gentle breeze in the corridor on the third floor. Only Mary and Heather were on this floor. The quiet sunlight sprinkled on their shoulders, spreading into circles of light.
The girl in front of me is not extremely beautiful, and the acne on her face shows that she is going through an awkward period of growth.
She was not as naturally and gracefully radiating her charm as her two older sisters, nor as unbridled and free-spirited as her two younger sisters. She often frowned, as if pondering some profound problem or resisting some great injustice.
She seems to be in a contradictory period where she is eager to grow upward but often hits a wall.
Heather was in no hurry to go back. She leaned against the window in the corridor, looking forward to what this girl, who had always been considered to have no outstanding qualities compared to her sisters, would say.
Will she give up on her own initiative?
Mary looked at her beautiful and lazy aunt in front of her. She always looked like she didn't particularly care about anything, but she could do everything with ease.
She tried to straighten her back and said, "I don't know why, maybe it's because Jane is already at the age of getting married and has no time to be distracted, or maybe it's because Lizzie is too busy to handle it all. Anyway...anyway, I think I can definitely complete this task. I have found several books related to canals and financial investments. I won't let my aunt down."
She looked a little nervous, afraid that her aunt was just acting on a whim and didn't really want her to participate.
But after saying that, she became a little excited and looked like a warrior about to enter the arena.
It hadn't actually occurred to Hazel that this was what she wanted to say.
Heather held out her hand to Mary and pulled her to the window, and they looked out together at the endless wheat fields and meadows in the distance.
"Mary, have you ever thought about what your future will be like?"
Mary didn't know how the topic changed so quickly, but she still answered seriously: "If I'm lucky, I'll probably marry someone good in all aspects; if I'm unlucky, I'll probably marry someone not so good."
"So your goal is to marry a good man as much as possible? Do you want to pursue love?" Heather really wanted to know what girls of this era thought.
"Yes, that is indeed my goal, but it is not to pursue love. I believe that nothing should be done emotionally, and emotions should be constrained by reason."
Mary frowned, recalling the books she had read, trying to describe her thoughts more clearly.
"But, like Mom said, girls like us have to get married. In that case, I want to strive for a better outcome in terms of marriage. At least one that's not too unbearable for me. Maybe even better, someone who can understand my thoughts and with whom I can communicate."
Heather inexplicably felt that Mary now was a bit like herself when she was looking for a job after graduation. For her, marriage was a necessary means to maintain a livelihood and change the quality of life. She worked hard to improve herself in order to apply for a better-paying job.
"Is that why you took the initiative to perform piano and sing at the dance?"
"Yeah, after all, I'm not pretty, so I can only work hard in other areas. Otherwise, I don't want to perform for people who don't know how to appreciate it. They obviously don't know anything themselves, but they are always pointing fingers at my playing." Mary shrugged pretending to be indifferent, but she still looked a little lost.
Heather admired in her heart that Mary was not an ordinary person. If it were her, she would definitely never perform in front of others again for fear of making a fool of herself.
"Mary, I'm not very good at playing the piano either, but I'd say your technique is good enough. If you could just work on the other parts a little bit, your performance would be much better."
Mary looked at Heather curiously.
"I mean, the movements and posture." Heather recalled the videos of piano masters she had watched.
"You play very well, but perhaps you're a little insecure about the difficult pieces you deliberately chose. You're afraid of making a mistake and embarrassing yourself, so your whole body is very tense and the rhythm feels rushed."
Heather turned her back to the window and sat down on the sill with her hands. Mary was so frightened that she quickly grabbed her arm.
Heather laughed out loud, his face beaming with joy as he said to her, "Mary, you know, I thought about this for a long time after watching your performance last night. I think this is the key. Those country gentlemen and ladies haven't heard top pianists perform; they're watching for the performance! Just pick a piece you're confident in that laymen would find pleasant, and then put on a very dedicated and elegant posture, and you'll win the audience's heart."
Mary looked at her aunt in amazement. She clearly couldn't even get the most basic hand position right. But she gracefully held her hands up, her body stretched and leaning slightly forward as she simulated playing. Her expression was focused and natural, and her body swayed with her gestures.
Heather smiled and asked Mary, "How is it? Doesn't it look good? Are you mesmerized by my performance, ma'am?"
Mary opened her big, sparkling eyes, held Heather's hand and gave her a kiss: "Of course, Miss, you are even more charming than the chief pianist of the London Opera House."
Mary pulled Heather down from the windowsill, and they huddled together, laughing and making noises.
Afterwards, they didn't speak for a long time, but they didn't feel awkward. They just felt that country life was so quiet and peaceful.
They waited until the sun was gradually obscured by clouds and the water vapor content in the air gradually increased before they closed the windows and left the corridor.
Before returning to her room, Heather said to Mary, "Mary, I believe that with the method I've described, and your intelligence and perseverance, you will definitely be able to achieve your goal. Your mother is actually right. The life trajectories of most girls in Longbourn are similar, and they will definitely lead to marriage and having children."
"But now you might have a chance to change your goals." Heather stared at Mary without blinking and said to her, "If the canal investment is successful, you'll have the initial capital and more options. Once you see the bigger world, perhaps you won't want to be confined to this one-way street."
"Aunt Heather, do you think I can do this?" Mary said softly, but her tone was not confused.
Heather knew she was determined enough, she just needed a little encouragement.
"Yes, I think you can." Heather told Mary firmly, "I chose you because I think you have a strong motivation to seize this opportunity. Maybe at first you just wanted to impress your parents, but now you probably want to use this opportunity to change your life."
Mary smiled and let go of Heather's hand, and walked back to her room. She said in a light and cheerful tone:
"Yes, I will definitely seize this opportunity. See you at dinner, Auntie."
Heather returned to her room contentedly and collapsed on the small sofa.
That’s great. Maybe I’ll have an excellent assistant to help me with things in the future.
Because the information provided by Mr. Lancaster was very specific and comprehensive, Mary and Elizabeth worked together for three days and prepared the materials for preliminary negotiations.
They wrote a thick manuscript and, accompanied by Heather, invited Mr. Darcy to Longbourn's living room to complete the preliminary agreement independently.
Mary had never been involved in negotiations before, and Elizabeth had only met tenant farmers with her father. Their first performance wasn't particularly impressive, but they had finally taken the first step smoothly. This would also be a very important beginning for their future lives.
Heather hardly said anything. After all, she was a stranger who was only a few years older than them and might not know as much as the two girls.
In short, the general mode of cooperation has been preliminarily finalized.
Afterwards, Heather will write to Mr. Lancaster to ask him to help draw up the contract, and Mr. Darcy will temporarily leave Netherfield and return to London to inquire about the news and sign the contract.
Elizabeth found that Mr. Darcy did not look down on the two inexperienced girls.
On the contrary, his attitude throughout was very normal and equal. He even took note of some of their opinions and admitted that they were helpful to him, which made Elizabeth very confused.
After Mr. Darcy left, Elizabeth asked anxiously, "Could it be that Mr. Darcy is not as bad as the legend says?"
Heather knew that she was beginning to doubt her previous prejudices, but her good impression of Wickham and her very bad first impression of Darcy made it difficult for her to accept.
Mary, unaware of the truth, said without looking up as she sorted the papers on the table, "If he were truly a low-class person, he wouldn't have asked about the investment in front of everyone that day. He knew clearly that neither Mother nor you had a good impression of him and might ruin this opportunity, yet he still spoke openly about it. Lizzie, perhaps you have some misunderstanding about Mr. Darcy."
Elizabeth frowned and lowered her head in pain.
She is completely confused!
Looking at Elizabeth pulling her hair, Hazel felt that both Pride and Prejudice were beginning to waver and change.
My sister is really short-sighted. Mr. Bingley is the future son-in-law, so why can't Mr. Darcy be too?
This good thing will not flow into the hands of outsiders.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
