Chapter 37 (Reverse V) Just as Mary was...
Just as Mary was calculating exactly where Richard had gone, she received a letter with a London postmark.
“My dear Mary, I heard that Sir Thomas sent men to bring you and Susan to Mansfield. I hope you haven’t forgotten me because of your pleasant time with your sister.”
Don't worry, that unfortunate incident has subsided in London. There's always a new hot topic in the city, and now everyone's focused on Mr. B and Baroness C's affair. In the past, some people tried to influence me into marrying General Crawford because of my father's relationship with him, but now they've finally stopped mentioning it. I don't like that guy at all. I can only tell you about these awful things.
Perhaps out of longing for her late close friend, Mrs. Crawford, the General's wife has been frequently inviting Miss Crawford to their home lately, and everyone sympathizes with her misfortune. However, this has had little impact on her; in fact, her wealth has increased, and I've heard she now lives with her sister and brother-in-law.
Aside from these gossips, I didn't get any noteworthy news from the girls' school. You know, because I like sports, Baron S's daughter has been making sarcastic remarks about me for the past few years, saying I'm setting a bad example for the school. She's always looked down on people of commoner background. I'd rather advise her to calculate how much gambling debt her father actually owes, instead of constantly arguing with me at school. I doubt she'll even get 15,000 pounds when she gets married.
Let's not dwell on these unpleasant things. Anyway, I'll be graduating from school in a little over six months, or maybe even less. I reckon everyone will be leaving school by April next year. It's social season, and many families are busy preparing their daughters for a dazzling debut in the social scene.
Thankfully, the general didn't intend for me to enter the marriage market at sixteen (you know, a significant number of families are like that nowadays); he planned to let me wait until I was eighteen. Thank goodness! I don't want to get married yet. What's wrong with being a happy daughter? Let those girls who want to get married get married!
If I graduate, there will be even less family to keep me company. Your godmother, who is also the general's wife's guest, isn't quite to my liking. The only solution is for you to come to London to be with me during the Easter holidays, regardless of whether I've left school by then.
We haven't seen each other for so long, and I'm so curious to know what you look like now, dear Mary. My father has mentioned you and your brother William many times at home; please don't refuse again. Love, Anne.
Oh, after all this time, she finally learned of Miss Crawford's latest news again through Anne. The vicarage had been empty ever since she arrived in Mansfield, and she had no idea Mr. and Mrs. Grant moved in. Poor Miss Crawford, she certainly wouldn't be happy to know Edmund and Fanny were married.
Just as Mary was writing back to Anne from Mansfield, Richard had just disembarked at Portsmouth. This time, he didn't plan to go out to sea with merchant ships for the time being, not only because ordinary crew members couldn't carry too much cargo on merchant ships, but also because he had learned an amazing piece of news in India—a golden opportunity to make a fortune.
He planned to sell some of the goods in Portsmouth first, as usual, before going to Mansfield to pick up Mary, to avoid arousing suspicion. After so many years of experience, Richard remained completely inconspicuous throughout the journey. He grabbed his two large bags of luggage and nimbly disappeared among the group of sailors in the harbor.
When he returned to Price House, the atmosphere inside struck him as odd; the housekeeper, Kate, was listlessly helping Mr. Richard with his luggage.
“Hey Kate, what’s wrong? You don’t look too good.” Richard asked as they walked toward the porch.
“It’s nothing, sir. You’ll find out when you get back. Maybe my wife will fire me after this year,” Kate replied somewhat irritably. “I really hope Miss Mary comes back from Northamptonshire soon; things are getting out of hand at home.”
Through Richard's conversation with Mrs. Price, although the mother's words were incoherent and illogical, the son still managed to piece together a conclusion. It turned out that since Mary and Susan left and Mrs. Price took over the household chores, she had become very frugal. She and her husband spent money lavishly, but couldn't stand seeing the maids spend too much.
Kate and Lily had worked for the Price family for many years, and their annual income wasn't just wages; it also included benefits set by Miss Mary: each month they received a fixed amount of meat and bread from Miss Mary, not just the leftovers their masters used to eat. Mrs. Price hadn't managed the accounts before and hadn't understood the shady dealings, but once Mary left, the truth could no longer be hidden.
This had really stirred up a hornet's nest. Mrs. Price was insisting that Kate and Lily couldn't take the food back. Lily was obedient, and for the past few months, she hadn't taken anything back. Kate, however, was twenty-eight years old. She hadn't been too afraid of Mrs. Price when she was nineteen, and now she had even less respect for her mistress. Mrs. Price wanted to withhold the benefits Miss Mary had promised her—on what grounds? Her workload was by no means light!
Richard spent his days selling goods at the market, and in the afternoons he had to help mediate the relationship between his mother and the maid, longing for the days when his sister was in charge of the household. The arguments at home seemed completely irrelevant to Mr. Price; to him, even if the house was in chaos, as long as it didn't interfere with his drinking, he could peacefully stroll outside all day or come home to read the newspaper in the afternoon.
After more than a week of this noisy life, Richard had sold most of his goods, leaving only some of the finest tea and silk, and he immediately set off for Mansfield.
Richard arrived in Mansfield quite early, before the family's usual dinner time. So, upon entering the living room, he was greeted by his two sisters and aunt, and Mrs. Bertram was delighted to see yet another handsome nephew.
They chatted for a while, mainly the older brother expressing his longing for his sister. Uncle Sir Thomas and older cousin Tom also entered the living room. Fanny and Edmund, however, lived after their marriage at the vicarage in Thornton Lacey, not in Mansfield.
Richard wasn't as well-known to his uncle as his two older brothers. Unlike William, who was in the navy and had the knight ask for favors on his behalf, or John, who worked as a government clerk in London and was always seen by the knight when Parliament opened in winter, Richard was a different story. However, the young man possessed the spirited character typical of the Price family, which made him even more convinced that it was good for children to suffer a little when they were young.
He stayed in Mansfield for three days, accompanying his aunt, Tom, and Mary on several whistling trips. It was supposed to be hunting season, but unfortunately, Tom had only been recovered for less than six months, and just as he was regretting not being able to host his cousin on a hunting trip, Edmund and Fanny returned to Mansfield.
The reunion of family members was naturally touching. Fanny finally saw her younger brother, Richard, whom she hadn't seen in Portsmouth, and was very affectionate towards him. Richard was only eight years old when his sister Fanny left Portsmouth, and he had almost no memory of her. But after all, she was family. After they sat together and chatted for a while, even though their bond wasn't as deep as William's, Richard considered Fanny a sister second only to Mary and Susan.
“Richard, what do you think of Edmund?” Mary asked her brother privately, talking about their second cousin and brother-in-law.
“He’s a good husband to Fanny, and I have great respect for his character,” Richard smiled. “But for those of us who are used to being out in the wild, he’s a bit too effeminate. I think he’s more like a playboy than a clergyman. I can sense that he respects the profession, and perhaps it’s fine for him to be a clergyman in the simple countryside, but it wouldn’t work in the colonies. Maybe I’m judging him by his appearance. Clergyman is a good profession, but unfortunately we don’t have a baron-de-camp father to arrange such a good career for John.”
Mary smiled. Compared to the rough upbringing the Price boys received, the Bertrams were indeed overly refined, which explained Richard's impression. He didn't comment on Susan's decision to stay in Mansfield; as Price children, they were used to finding their own way.
Richard didn't intend to stay in Mansfield for long. After meeting his sister and brother-in-law, he hoped his sister could set off with him as soon as possible. Coincidentally, Sir Thomas had some business to attend to in the city. He planned to take his eldest son, Tom, with him to familiarize themselves with family affairs. Richard and Mary could travel to London in the Sir's carriage and then transfer to a stagecoach.
The siblings, of course, wouldn't say they were unhappy about being more comfortable. So, they said goodbye to Aunt Bertram, Edmund, Fanny, and Susan, and embarked on their journey back to their hometown.
More than six months ago, when Mary came to Mansfield, it was late spring and early summer. The gardens were full of flowers and the woods were lush with greenery, allowing her to enjoy the most beautiful scenery of the estate. But now, when she and Richard left, it was already winter, and winter in the countryside was quite dull.
The only thing Mary had in common on both trips was that she couldn't have any lighthearted conversations. On the way there, she had to consider her cousin's feelings, and on the way back, she had to consider his father's. Although traveling in her uncle's carriage was much more comfortable than in a stagecoach, having a travel companion who didn't suit her taste was the enemy of a pleasant journey. When they finally arrived in London, they hurriedly said goodbye to their uncle, planning to meet John, stay in London for one night, and then return to Portsmouth the next day.
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