Chapter 87 Just after leaving Devonshire...
The Price family, who had just left Devon, were discussing the romance between the two Miss Dashwoods on the road.
While in the carriage, Anne heard the name Mr. Edward Ferras and remembered, "Mr. Ferras, isn't that Mrs. Dashwood's brother, Mary? I remember Mrs. Dashwood wanted to introduce him to you! I didn't expect he was in Devonshire too. What do you think of him?"
“My dear Anne, don’t worry about me. Mr. Ferras has clearly taken a liking to Miss Dashwood.”
“Oh, ‘Fair,’ could he be the one Miss Margaret Dashwood mentioned, the one Miss Dashwood is so fond of? If they are in love, why doesn’t Mr. Ferras propose?”
Mary pursed her lips. "Perhaps he has some unspeakable difficulties. You can tell from Mrs. Dashwood that Mrs. Ferras may not approve of her son's relationship with a girl of humble origins. This gentleman is too indecisive; being his wife would not be a good job."
“Mary, in your opinion, whose wife would be a good job? You have already rejected several gentlemen. I think if Mr. Edward Ferras and Miss Dashwood were to get married, they would be a perfect match, and the wife could just make up for the husband’s lack of decisiveness.”
Mary muttered softly, "That depends on whether Mr. Ferras is still so lucky!"
Anne didn't hear the sentence clearly. She thought of another Miss Dashwood and felt indignant on Mary's behalf: "Considering Miss Marian Dashwood's misfortune, I think we've been quite polite to her. But she's really lacking in manners. Mrs. Dashwood has been far too permissive in raising her daughters. Miss Dashwood, as the eldest daughter, bears more responsibility than her mother."
“Mrs. Dashwood and her two young Miss Dashwoods are so well protected.” Thinking of her two sisters, Mary smiled again. “Perhaps we don’t need to feel sorry for Eleanor. Isn’t mutual protection the meaning of family?”
And so, chatting idly along the way, they soon arrived in Bath, planning to stay for two days to rest before continuing their journey. Before arriving in Bath, Mary was still worrying about other people's love lives, unaware that she was about to reunite with a man she hadn't seen for over two years.
Mary and Anne were on their way to Sallyro's Restaurant to try their round bread, a delicacy they always revisited whenever they visited Bath. A luxurious carriage passed by and stopped.
When William Cavendish saw the beautiful face he had longed for for so long, he jumped out of the car before he could even think.
"Hello, Miss Price, it's been almost three years since we last met."
The Duke of Devonshire was still handsome, but the air of complete control he had carried three years ago was gone. He greeted Mary with a melancholy and somewhat bewildered expression, not even noticing Mrs. Price beside her.
"Hello, Your Highness." Mary was also a little flustered. She was about to bow when she was stopped.
“I remember you said you considered me a friend, so you can’t go back on your word. The last time we met was on Harry Street.” He finally remembered Anne. “Mrs. Price, you weren’t home at the time, and Mrs. Price treated me very warmly, which left a deep impression on me.”
Anne quickly expressed her honor that Harry Street was able to host such a distinguished guest.
William Cavendish smiled, seemingly finally calming down, and asked, "Are you on vacation in Bath?"
Anne replied that they only planned to stay for two days before returning to London.
“We happen to be going the same way, and I’m heading back to town in a couple of days.” As he said this, William Cavendish had completely forgotten his original plans.
When he learned the address where the Price family was staying, he was reluctant to part with Miss Price and accompanied them all the way to Sally Lou's restaurant.
His Highness had other matters to attend to, and finally agreed to part ways with them temporarily. Mary extended her hand, and William Cavendish shook her hand before reluctantly leaving.
Afterwards, Mary had no recollection of what she had said to the Duke on the way. She seemed to have said nothing at all, or perhaps she had said something else entirely; she was completely disoriented. During the meal, Anne called her several times, but Mary remained dazed.
Meanwhile, William Cavendish, who had only been passing through Bath, couldn't help but recall the blunder he had caused there. Just as Mary was lingering in his mind, he unexpectedly ran into her on the street.
Upon seeing Miss Price again, the love he thought had faded with time seemed to reignite in his heart. He immediately found a place to stay nearby, planning to visit Major Price and his family later.
After returning to England from Italy, he lost all interest in socializing, refused to attend parties with friends, and secluded himself in Chatsworth. There, he constantly thought of Miss Price—the books she had read, the rooms she had stayed in, the horses she had ridden…
This reunion made him realize that this young lady's influence was greater than he had imagined. He didn't even expect Mary to reciprocate his love. Accompanying the Price family back to the city was no longer a condescension for him, but something he couldn't ask for.
Back at their temporary hotel, Anne immediately told William that they had met the Duke of Devonshire, and that the Duke was going to accompany them back to London.
“What business could he have in the city at this time? He hasn’t spent much time in the city this year, and some people even suspect that he fell ill in Italy and needs to rest for a while.” Richard glanced at his sister, but in front of Mr. Hawthorne, he did not voice his suspicions.
“I don’t see anything wrong with him. He’s more approachable than ever before, without a trace of aristocratic airs, and he greeted Mrs. Price very warmly,” Anne replied.
"Why would this gentleman mention our mother?" William asked curiously.
“That’s why I said he was approachable!” Anne winked at Mary.
It turns out that Anne did not tell her husband William about the Duke of Devonshire's visit to Harley Street. The prince had already left England, and Mary was very resistant to marriage, so Anne felt it was better not to mention it.
As Mary's close friend, she knew perfectly well that Mary had a special feeling for the Duke; even he couldn't sway Mary into marriage, let alone anyone else. Sure enough, no matter how William Richard and the others tried to persuade her, Mary didn't change her mind.
In retrospect, her choice was correct; revealing the matter would not have helped but had only added to the burden. The scene of Mary meeting the Duke this time didn't seem like she was completely indifferent!
Mr. Hawthorne was completely bewildered. He had long heard that Richard and the Duke of Devonshire knew each other, but since marrying Susan, he had not received confirmation from his brother-in-law. He had not expected the prince to be so polite.
William Cavendish arrived before the Price family had even had dinner. This time, he was much more courteous, politely inquiring about William and Sam's situation in the Navy and showing interest in Richard's company's development.
William and Richard were alright, but young Sam's face turned red. The Duke of Devonshire was a great man he had never imagined meeting in his eighteen years of life, and the young man was extremely excited to have such a friendly conversation with him.
Mr. Hawthorne was considerably older, and although he rarely even had contact with the butlers of this class of nobles, he still tried his best to introduce himself to the Duke with composure. Upon learning that he was Miss Price's brother-in-law, His Highness the Duke also offered some minor suggestions regarding his legal practice.
Mary, now calmer after their reunion on the street, observed everything and guessed that Mr. Hawthorne would gain a lot from these suggestions. A small share of business from Piccadilly Street would be enough for the new partner of the law firm to establish himself in the London legal scene.
When His Highness the Duke approached her, Mary said in a low voice, “You have already shown your great energy and generosity, which only makes my ungratefulness stand out more.”
“No, Miss Price, you misunderstand. I absolutely did not mean to put pressure on you,” William said calmly beside her. “That topic we both know about, I will never bring it up again if you don’t want to. I know you have a clothing factory in London, which seems to be quite popular these days?”
When business was mentioned, Mary's lips curved into a smile: "Your familiar control is not surprising. I'm not surprised that you know that garment factory belongs to me, but I didn't expect that you don't mind women doing business?"
“Miss Price, I have never doubted a woman’s abilities, especially such an outstanding woman as yourself,” William Cavendish said with a smile. “I’ve heard people praise the innovative designs of this clothing factory; did you design them?”
“Not entirely. Although some people are still refusing to accept the changes of the times, there are always some excellent tailors who are willing to work with us. I think I prefer to call them fashion designers,” Mary said with great enthusiasm. “Next, I plan to start my own magazine to recommend the latest designs to everyone.”
“I own a newspaper. If you don’t mind that its business isn’t doing so well, Miss Price, perhaps you could use its sales channels. If it could also boost the newspaper’s sales, that would be a great help to me.”
Before Mary could speak, Richard overheard the Duke and Mary's conversation and came over, saying, "Your Highness, you've done me a great favor. For Mary's sudden idea, I visited the London newspaper industry in July and August, trying to help her acquire a magazine, but unfortunately, there wasn't a suitable one."
“Richard, I remember you spent most of the summer vacationing with Viscountess Kirk and didn’t care about this at all,” Mary retorted bluntly.
"The Viscountess is also interested in ladies' magazines, and didn't she invite you to go on vacation with her? You'd rather go to Mansfield than come with me."
Upon hearing the name Viscountess Kirk, William Cavendish was taken aback. He had attended so few social events since returning home that he had not heard of her relationship with Richard. However, he was well aware of her past association with his uncle, Earl Spencer, and the Duke, who was very familiar with her manners, immediately inquired about it.
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