Chapter 85. Mary and the Colonel didn't hear it...
Mary and the Colonel did not hear Willoughby's slander against them because Mary and the Colonel had talked about his adopted daughter, Miss Williams, some time ago. While dancing, she asked the Colonel again out of curiosity whether the little girl was still attending the boarding school.
“Thank you for your concern, Miss Price. The school you mentioned is indeed excellent and can provide you with a new education, but Eliza is unwilling to transfer. This school is closer to Drafort, and she has some familiar friends there. I'm afraid a change of environment would be difficult for her to adapt to.”
Ah, this left Mary at a loss. Her relationship with the Colonel wasn't close enough to discuss whether his adopted daughter had been deceived by a man. She could only silently pray for this poor girl, ruined by Willoughby in the original story, hoping the butterfly effect would save her from this fate.
Seeing how much she cared for her adopted daughter, Colonel Brandon couldn't help but say, "Miss Price, Eliza would be very happy to know how much you care about her."
“I don’t deserve that, Colonel Brandon. You are her protector. Her future is entirely up to you.” Mary glanced at the Colonel. He probably wouldn’t let his adopted daughter become a governess. He likely hoped she would get married and might even be willing to provide her with a simple dowry.
Miss Williams' status as an illegitimate child meant she would not be accepted by the gentlemen of high society, and her biological father was not a wealthy man who could afford a large dowry. If the colonel had not adopted her, she might have ended up in a very different situation.
Even if she became the colonel's adopted daughter, marrying an ordinary lower-middle-class man might have been her best outcome.
Therefore, Mary could understand how a naive fifteen-year-old girl with no other options could not be deceived by the sweet words of a young gentleman like Willoughby.
Colonel Brandon had no idea what Mary was thinking, and he always found himself tongue-tied whenever he appeared before Miss Price. The young lady seemed to see right through him, and always looked at him with a sympathetic gaze.
It was precisely because of this that, even though the rumors about the Duke of Devonshire and Miss Price had long been forgotten by the people of the city in the past two years, Colonel Brandon never took the initiative to confess his feelings.
Having witnessed this proud young lady reject Baron Brooke at a ball in town, he dared not reveal his own feelings. Of course, he liked and respected her, and although Mary and his first love were completely different kinds of people, he dared not hope that he was worthy of her.
As for Miss Marian Dashwood, she was very much like his cousin, not in appearance, but in their personalities and attitudes toward relationships. Every time he saw her, he couldn't help but think of his cousin, and it was this infatuation that made Eleanor believe that he had indeed fallen in love with his sister.
After they finished dancing, Colonel Brandon and Mary returned to the edge of the dance floor and chatted with Eleanor. From their vantage point, they could see Marianne and Willoughby. They were talking, very close together, almost cuddling.
Seeing Eleanor embarrassed for her sister, she wanted to go over and remind Marianne to be more mindful of her behavior.
Colonel Brandon spoke up first in defense of the young lady: "Miss Dashwood, your sister is only close to Mr. Willoughby out of pure affection, and we all know her character."
Mary glanced at Willoughby and said, "My dear Eleanor, if anyone is to blame in this matter, it should be Mr. Willoughby."
Thinking of Mary's past attitude toward that man, Eleanor asked curiously, "I'm curious, Mary, almost everyone likes Mr. Willoughby, but you treat him rather indifferently. Some people told me it's because of Mr. and Mrs. Hawthorne, but I don't believe it."
“I guess who told you. No wonder Marian treated me that way. Mr. Willoughby is really unethical. Mr. Hawthorne has never said a bad word about him to me. Doesn’t that just prove that my attitude towards him was correct?”
At this point, Mary turned to Colonel Brandon and asked, "I haven't known Mr. Willoughby for very long, so I can't really comment on him. What do you think of him, Colonel?"
Colonel Brandon paused for a moment, then hesitated and said, "I'm not very familiar with Mr. Willoughby, so I'm afraid I'm not qualified to comment on him."
Although neither of her friends minded Marianne's outrageous behavior, Eleanor reminded Marianne again upon returning to Barton House.
The younger sister didn't think there was anything wrong with her behavior with Willoughby. She believed that restraining her feelings was not commendable, so it was really too difficult for her to learn to control her words and actions and pay attention to the boundaries of male-female relationships.
Throughout October, there were more balls and parties in the neighborhood than Mary had imagined. Not only was Sir John eager for his nieces to shine at the balls and parties, but the neighborhood residents also seemed to be actively participating in various indoor recreational activities.
Mary originally came to the countryside to escape the social life in the city, but it turned out that the social life in the countryside was no less vibrant than in the city. After attending a few events, she began to decline, naturally leaving a bad impression on the people in the neighborhood.
In stark contrast to Mary, Willoughby and Marianne hardly missed any balls or parties, and their relationship deepened.
In this respect, Eleanor differed from her sister; the pleasures of entertainment could not outweigh the sense of loss she felt upon leaving Nolan Estate. Even with Mrs. Jennings and Mrs. Price trying to match her with Richard, the enjoyment of talking with this charming gentleman could not make her forget Edward.
Richard had no intention of courting Miss Dashwood, and his relationship with Viscountess Kirk was not simply one of romance.
Viscountess Coke's husband died young, and the two had no children. He left her a large fortune, which would allow her to live a life of luxury as long as she did not remarry.
This lady always idolized the Viscountess of Melbourne, and while enjoying the pleasures of social life, she also amassed tremendous influence, allowing her to thrive in high society.
Mary offended Lady Fitzwilliam (formerly the Earl of Spencer), Lady Carlisle, and Baron Brooke in succession. Even though the Duke of Devonshire always supported the Butterfly Sewing Machine Company, it was not enough to stop these people from speaking ill of the Price family.
If it weren't for the connections he made through Viscountess Kirk, his company wouldn't have been running so smoothly. How could Richard not be genuinely grateful to this distinguished lady? She was away from town recently, so he came out on vacation to also check out where to buy a estate, in preparation for his future election as a member of parliament.
For the Viscountess, Richard, though of low status, was handsome and wealthy, and unlike her previous lovers, he didn't rely on her to climb the social ladder. This charming lover allowed her to rediscover the joy of love. Even so, she had no intention of giving up her status as the Viscount Cork's widow to marry Price.
It's no wonder William disapproved of Richard's relationship; it seemed unlikely to lead anywhere.
Unfortunately, Richard and Miss Dashwood did not spark a romance. At a party at Barton Manor, Miss Dashwood's youngest sister, Margaret, revealed her sister's secret: she already had someone she liked.
At the party, everyone agreed to visit Whitwell, the estate of Colonel Brandon's sister and brother-in-law, the next day. Mary was the one who most hoped to go, but things didn't go as planned.
While having breakfast, Colonel Brandon received a letter. After reading it, his expression immediately changed, and he was determined to go into town, no matter who tried to dissuade him.
The Price family knew the man's temperament well; for him to go back on his word and abandon a group of friends, something serious must have happened, so they did not express any dissatisfaction.
The others, however, were quite different, speculating wildly about the reasons for Colonel Brandon's sudden departure. As the one who knew the most about the situation among those present, Mary not only couldn't reveal the truth, but also had to endure Willoughby's constant badmouthing of the Colonel and Mrs. Jennings' incessant speculation.
Therefore, she simply did not participate in the tour organized by Sir John afterward, and thus missed the opportunity to secretly visit Ellenham with Marian and Willoughby.
About a week after Colonel Brandon left, Willoughby also suddenly departed. By then, the Price family had been away from town for a month, and Richard had decided to buy a plantation in a village about ten miles away, close to his brothers and friends.
He went with William to handle the matter, leaving Anne, Mary, and Sam at home. Shortly after they left, Mary and the others received an unexpected letter from Mr. Hawthorne in London.
He was about to travel to Devonshire to handle a secret matter that involved Mr. Willoughby, whom they had just met. In the letter, Mr. Hawthorne revealed what Willoughby had done, without mentioning the poor girl's name.
Anne was extremely surprised: "How is that possible? It's unbelievable that Willoughby actually had a relationship with a girl from a good family, got her pregnant and plunged her into poverty, and then didn't even plan to marry her after the affair was exposed."
“Mr. Hawthorne wrote to us about this publicly, which means there’s only one possibility: Mrs. Smith not only knew about it, but was also furious. I don’t think that old Mrs. Hawthorne would let this opportunity pass. In that case, Willoughby’s sudden departure makes sense; he was kicked out of the house by Mrs. Smith,” Mary analyzed.
“That’s right. Mrs. Smith has always been traditional and virtuous, and she detests this kind of thing.” Anne thought for a moment and sighed, “In that case, he may not have been sincere with Miss Marian Dashwood either. It’s probably impossible to expect a playboy to suddenly change his ways. It would be a good thing for that lady if this incident caused him to leave suddenly.”
"It depends on what Marian thinks. Judging from her expression, Willoughby certainly didn't tell her the truth when he left. She probably won't be able to forget him anytime soon." Marian had no hope that this young lady would be clear-headed.
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