Chapter 20 Chapter 20 Before Mary could even get from John's...
Before Mary could even recover from John's departure, in early August, Richard told his sister that he had also decided to leave. He had already found a merchant ship that traveled between England and India and would soon be boarding it as an apprentice crew member.
"You don't need to try to persuade me, Mary. It's already a great favor that Uncle is willing to sponsor John's continued education. We can't take advantage of that. Staying at home after graduation isn't a long-term solution either. Anyway, I've been thinking about going to India to make my fortune. The little capital I've accumulated from the hat business over the past two years is just enough to buy some goods. Maybe I'll bring you a surprise when I come back from India!"
Richard patted his sister's head and said with a smile, "Don't be so dejected. Help me analyze what those wealthy people in the Indian princely states would like. I think bringing our cotton cloth is definitely a good idea. Mr. Brown once said that he has a colleague who imports goods from Manchester and then ships them to India to sell. But wouldn't just cotton cloth be too monotonous? There are too many similar goods on this ship."
“Now is indeed the time for us to dump our cotton textiles on them. I don’t think the East India Company’s monopoly in India can last forever, and now is the perfect time for you to go there. Besides cotton, I think you should also bring some high-quality wool fabrics, such as Huddersfield’s worsted wool. As long as you can find suitable buyers in India, the profits will definitely be high. As for the best-selling items when you return to England, you know without me saying it: tea and silk from the East are currently the most popular items among high society.” Seeing that she couldn’t change Richard’s mind about going out to make his fortune, Mary calmly analyzed the situation for him and told him some tips on how to distinguish the quality of tea. “Your capital might not be enough, but I can sponsor you fifty pounds. Don’t refuse; consider it an investment. Like you said, I’ll give you a surprise when you come back from India, and who knows, we might make a fortune.”
“There’s only one thing you must promise me, dear Richard.” Mary sat up straight and looked at her brother with a serious expression.
Richard was leaning against the wall, his face, which Mary considered still very young, radiating anticipation for the future. Seeing his sister's serious attitude, he straightened his posture: "What is it? Tell me, and I will do it if I can."
"In any case, please do not participate in the opium trade or the slave trade, whether in the West Indies or the East Indies, whether in the Americas or Africa. When those people consider themselves civilized, yet commit acts more barbaric and cruel than the most wicked savages, exploiting their innocent fellow human beings to the bone, do they still possess a shred of humanity and morality? I don't think they do. And can the money extracted through such heinous acts buy happiness? I don't believe it can." Mary's eyes were fixed on Richard, her bright blue eyes reflecting a deep blue and green light in the sunlight, her golden curls flowing freely, making her look like an angel from an oil painting.
“Oh, Mary, don’t worry, those heinous acts are hellish, I would never do such a thing.” Richard looked at his beautiful and kind sister and thought to himself that she deserved God’s favor more than those carefree noble ladies. She should live in a magnificent villa in London, not in a dilapidated house in Portsmouth.
The night before his departure, Richard, like John, transferred his entire share of his hat business to Mary. "While I'm gone, you'll have to handle everything yourselves." In his two sisters' room, he ruffled Mary's long, golden hair and told them, "Just like William said, don't be reckless. If you run into trouble, remember to go to General Maxwell. It doesn't matter if you have to give up the whole business, as long as you and Susan are safe and sound."
Mary pursed her lips. "I understand. When that time comes, I will definitely go to find my godfather." Susan, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up. "Even if you all leave, I will always be with Mary." Her voice was soft, but very firm.
Richard nodded and gave his two sisters a final hug. The next morning, he boarded the merchant ship bound for India with the goods and savings he had prepared beforehand.
William could only come home every few months. With John and Richard gone again, Mary and Susan not only lost their business partners but also their close friends in the family. Mr. Price continued his daily drunken rants and rave routines, while Mrs. Price lazily did the housework. Sam, Tom, and Charles were still too young to have any meaningful conversations with.
No wonder that when Mary happily returned home after handing over her 150 pounds saved this year to her godfather to invest in bonds, she saw Susan arguing with Mrs. Price and Sam.
This summer, Charlotte wasn't in Portsmouth; she and Mrs. Brown had gone back to the countryside. Mary could at least visit the General's mansion for a change of scenery and chat with Anne, but Susan had nowhere to go and could only stay home to help with chores. Unfortunately, the little boys, spoiled too much by Mrs. Price, were always defiant of Susan's discipline.
“Mother, it was clearly Sam who messed up the teacups that were set out.” Susan thought Mrs. Price shouldn’t have criticized the maid Lily without even knowing the facts.
“Oh, well then, just have her put the teacups back in their place,” Mrs. Price said casually.
“But this is clearly Sam’s fault. Mary said I would supervise their behavior, so Sam should admit his mistake.” Hearing this, Sam made a face at Susan and ran away quickly. “Mom, look at what he’s doing!” Susan was even angrier.
Kate, the housekeeper who had been with the Price family for four or five years, was already used to this scene and leisurely brought the snacks to the table. On the contrary, the young maid Lily was somewhat at a loss when she saw her mistress and mistress arguing over her.
Ava, the Price family's former maid, hadn't come to work since her marriage, and Mrs. Price had gone through several maids without finding one she liked. Lily, only fourteen years old, was Kate's neighbor's daughter. She had just come from the countryside to Portsmouth looking for work, and Kate introduced her to the Price family.
Kate pulled Lily aside: "Don't worry, everything will be fine once Miss Mary returns. You'll see as time goes on; everyone in this house except Mr. Price has to obey Miss Mary's orders."
When Mary returned, she saw Susan angrily confronting Sam. She roughly understood what had happened. She patted her sister's shoulder, and after understanding the situation, went to Mrs. Price's side: "Mom, didn't I already tell you? Susan and I will take care of the younger brothers. You just need to rest. I remember when William was home, John, Richard, Susan, and I listened to him in everything. Susan didn't do anything wrong this time, so you don't need to worry about it."
“But William is so kind to you brothers and sisters. My dear Mary, I’m not talking about you, I mean, why was Susan so harsh? Sam just did it by accident. Look how scared she made poor little Sam.” Mrs. Price breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Mary return. She was neither capable nor eloquent and had always been most afraid of dealing with problems.
Aside from Mary, this mother had never shown much affection for her other daughters. Whenever Susan argued with her brothers, she would always choose to turn a blind eye and brush it off. Conflicts between children are often stirred up by these kinds of biased and indiscriminate parents.
Because Mary had been in charge of the accounts for the past few years, Mrs. Price had little to worry about except taking care of the children, and thus spoiled her younger sons even more. Except during school hours, Sam would spend all his time at home with four-year-old Tom and three-year-old Charles, making a ruckus and running wild.
After John and Richard left home, Mrs. Price fell ill. The greatest benefit of this illness was that Mary took over the responsibility of disciplining her younger brothers from her mother.
Mary knew that it would do no good to let her brothers continue to be spoiled by their mother. Children always like to imitate adults. Six-year-old Sam's loud voice and arrogant attitude towards the maid were exactly like Mr. Price's. Mary did not want her brothers to grow up to be like their father.
Therefore, after taking over her brothers' education, she established several new rules: except for the youngest brother Charles, Sam and Tom had to start learning to tidy their own clothes instead of leaving all the mess to the maid every day; after starting school, Sam had to complete one page of homework every day, which would be checked by Mary or Susan; Susan would supervise Sam and Tom's behavior, and those who behaved well would receive a penny of pocket money every week, while those who behaved poorly would receive none.
Tom was alright; as soon as he saw his two older sisters with stern faces and angry expressions, he wouldn't dare to misbehave. The most difficult one to manage was Sam. Actually, he was quite clever and quick-witted, but he always liked to provoke Susan. The two of them were like oil and water, always needing Mary to judge right and wrong for them.
“What exactly happened this time? Susan said you messed up the teacups, is that true?” Mary led Sam upstairs to her room and asked him in detail.
“I messed it up by accident. Charles almost fell, and I bumped into her when I went to help her up,” Sam said, head down. “I didn’t do it on purpose.”
"Well, she wasn't wrong to criticize you. Next time this happens, you should tell your mother the specifics when she criticizes Lily, so Susan definitely won't blame you."
"But isn't Lily our maid? What does it matter if Mom criticizes her?" Sam looked at Mary's gentle face with a puzzled expression.
Mary patiently explained, "Although Lily is a maid, she's still a person. She'll feel sad when she's wronged, just like you would when you're wronged." Seeing that Sam seemed to understand, Mary added, "In a little while, apologize to Susan and Lily properly. If you can get good reviews from Susan for a month in a row, when William comes home, I'll tell him to give you a souvenir from your battle."
Sam's eyes lit up instantly—his older brother William was the person he admired most.
A note from the author:
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