Chapter 55 Price, a master of tactics...
Captain Price, a tactical whiz, saw that his attack had worked and already understood what Miss Maxwell hadn't said. Naturally, he pressed his advantage and continued to passionately tell Miss Maxwell what he had kept hidden in his heart, saying that if she didn't agree to his request, he would never find happiness in his life.
How could kind-hearted Anne refuse William's request? She couldn't be more willing. However, the general happened to be away from home that day, so she asked William to come after the ball, and they agreed to dance the first two dances at the ball.
Although Richard and Mary's analysis suggested that the general was likely to agree to his proposal to Anne, William remained extremely anxious in the time leading up to telling the general.
The ball had invited a great many guests. For Mary, who was not yet a part of society, the biggest attraction of the ball was obviously not dancing, but the opportunity to hear a lot of gossip about celebrities from the attendees. Even if she couldn't attend, she would enjoy waiting for Anne to share it with her.
At the ball, William and Anne indeed danced the first two dances, becoming the focus of everyone's discussion. The Price family didn't have much inheritance for William to inherit, far less than the wealthy Mr. Macdonald and Colonel Brandon, but his younger brother Richard Price had recently climbed the social ladder and could now provide his brother with assistance.
A young man from humble beginnings became a naval captain before he was even twenty-three years old, which can be described as remarkable for his age. Although his conditions cannot be compared with those of the Maxwell family, his current annual income of more than a thousand pounds is enough to start a family and provide a comfortable life for his family.
While William and Anne were dancing, Mr. McDonald invited another wealthy young lady to dance, Miss Crawford.
Although her brother lost some invitations from respectable families, it did not affect Miss Crawford's popularity; after her brother's incident, her dowry increased from £20,000 to £40,000. Like Miss Maxwell, Miss Crawford was never short of suitors.
Miss Crawford, who had attended the last Maxwell ball, was well aware of Mr. MacDonald's previous pursuit of Anne, and teased, "Captain Price is quite the lucky fellow to have won Miss Maxwell's favor, isn't he?"
Mr. McDonald remained unfazed: "Of course, given Sir Maxwell's background, it's no surprise that Captain Price won her favor."
“Oh, poor Mr. MacDonald, so this is how you failed. I find it hard to believe that Miss Maxwell thinks this way. As far as I know, Mrs. Maxwell doesn’t think this way at all. She, like my late aunt, utterly despises everything about the Navy.” Miss Crawford smiled.
"And what about you?" Mr. McDonald pressed. "Miss Crawford, your uncle is General Crawford. You wouldn't happen to require your husband to have seen combat, just like Miss Maxwell, would you?"
“Of course I’d side with my aunt. I’ve seen enough of the vulgar men in the Navy who have almost no refined tastes other than drinking and bragging. If Miss Maxwell were to choose this handsome Captain Price, she would have to endure the pain of separation, and she would surely regret it.”
“Then I’m relieved. If all beautiful and lovely ladies like you were like Miss Maxwell, how many gentlemen like me who have never been to the battlefield would be heartbroken,” Mr. McDonald complimented.
After finishing the dance, Mr. McDonald and Miss Crawford danced another dance. This time, they did not continue talking about Captain Price and Miss Maxwell. Mr. McDonald inadvertently mentioned his own deceased parents and his uncle who had always looked after him, expressing that he especially understood the Crawford siblings, whose parents had also died young and whose guardians were their uncle and aunt.
They chatted so congenially that Miss Crawford couldn't help but compare Miss Maxwell to her in her mind while dancing with others. Perhaps because she was somewhat sensitive to the name Price, she felt that Miss Maxwell's judgment was really unwise. Even if Captain Price became a field officer, he was far inferior to Mr. McDonald, who had a large fortune and didn't have to worry about anything.
The young people danced so joyfully, almost without a break, except for William, who usually danced the entire time. This time, he frequently glanced at his lover and didn't invite a partner for several songs. Standing next to him happened to be Colonel Brandon, who also didn't dance. The two quickly struck up a conversation.
"Colonel, why don't you go dancing? Besides Miss Maxwell, there are many other lovely ladies in this ballroom." William, himself happily in love, was eager for everyone to enjoy the beauty of love.
Colonel Brandon looked at the young captain, who was immersed in love, and smiled: "Captain Price, I'm not as lucky as you to have such a smooth life. Please understand the heart that has withered."
The poor colonel must have suffered a lot in love. Before William could comfort him, he saw that Anne had finished dancing and he quickly went over to chat with his sweetheart.
The ball granted many people their wishes, and on the afternoon of the ball's end, William couldn't wait to go to Grosvenor Square to see General Maxwell and plead for his permission for that life-changing event.
When William entered the study, the general was already prepared for William's purpose. Thinking of his own youthful romance with Anne's mother and his previous father-in-law, he hardly made things difficult for the young man and readily agreed to their engagement.
As the general descended the stairs, before he could even announce the news, the two anxious girls in the living room immediately embraced each other upon seeing the beaming William behind him.
“Now you’re my real sister, Anne,” Mary whispered in her friend’s ear. “If you find anything William doesn’t do well, don’t forget to tell me.”
Anne and William were gazing into each other's eyes. She thought he was perfect in every way. Their loving gazes were almost overflowing with affection, and she couldn't hear what her best friend was saying.
Mary decided that it was unnecessary for her to stay there any longer, so she invited her godparents to go for a walk outside, and the general and his wife readily agreed.
“I really didn’t expect my daughter to find love so quickly. I hope Anne can get married a little later, but that depends on William’s vacation time. I don’t think they can hold the wedding next month.” The general held his wife’s arm with one hand and his goddaughter’s arm with the other.
“Oh, how could that be? Anne wants to hold the wedding in May, but even if they get married, they won’t move out for the time being. I heard she and William have already discussed it and will stay here until William finds a suitable place to move out,” Mary comforted her godfather.
“That would be perfect. Even if they move out, Mary, you have to stay and keep us company.” Mrs. Maxwell said, thinking of her own experience. “Actually, I’m more worried that they’re not prepared for frequent separations. That’s the biggest enemy of their marriage.”
The lady never objected to her husband's decisions, only feeling sorry for poor Mr. McDonald, the lovely young man who hadn't become her son-in-law. Captain Price, however, wasn't bad either, and even more handsome, being the brother of her goddaughter Mary, so she liked him just as much.
“I’ve decided to divide the year into several parts, including you and the Godfather, Anne and William, and Richard, Fanny and Susan. I can enjoy having your company, as long as you’re happy to.” Mary blinked her bright eyes.
After they finished their walk and returned home, the two sweet and happy young people were still oblivious to everyone else. William stayed at the mansion for dinner and chatted for a while before reluctantly leaving Grosvenor Square.
William is still living at Richard's place on Bond Street for the time being, and when he tells his brother the good news, the two brothers inevitably talk about buying a house.
“Now it seems you didn’t need to buy a house in Portsmouth at all, but should have bought property in London instead. But who could have imagined it would turn out like this?” Richard laughed.
He had been looking at houses recently, so he enthusiastically offered William some advice: "You can rent a house like I did. The house I live in now only costs £120 a year. However, since you and Miss Maxwell are married, you will need to hire more servants. Renting a townhouse like this will definitely be too small. You can look at better houses."
William shook his head: "I might get a notice to go to sea at any time, so there's no need to waste money renting a place first. Anne and I have discussed it, and if all goes well, we'll set the wedding date for May. If, unfortunately, I have to go to sea, we'll wait a bit longer. After the wedding, she doesn't plan to move out of her parents' house for the time being; she'll move out after we buy our own house. I currently have over two thousand pounds, and saving three thousand pounds to buy a house by the end of this year shouldn't be a problem."
“Three thousand pounds, that’s not much. You can’t buy a really nice house in a good location in London.” Richard himself had been looking at mansions costing over eight thousand pounds, so he was naturally surprised that William was only offering such a small amount. “It seems you’re not planning to use the proceeds from Miss Maxwell’s dowry?”
“Of course, I’m different from you. I should act within my means. Three thousand pounds should buy a decent house on Bond Street.” William smiled. “As for Anne’s dowry, that’s her money. You might not remember, but Mary always complained that her father was unproductive and relied entirely on her mother’s dowry to make a living. Her father had to retire because of his disability. I’m not short of money myself, so why should I use Anne’s?”
William's noble sentiments were certainly worthy of his brother's respect, but Richard felt it was unnecessary to do so, since they would have the money to buy a mansion more befitting Miss Maxwell's status.
However, Sir Edward's mansion would eventually be inherited by his daughter and son-in-law, so William didn't seem to need to buy another one. He didn't even need to worry about buying property, because Miss Maxwell's dowry included an estate that her father, Sir Edward, had bought in Devon.
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