gentleman's manor

It was spring in England at that time, and everything was recovering.London, on the other hand, is cloudy and rainy, and sunny days are rare.

I chatted with Anna in the living room, and there was a dry firewood burning in the fireplace, and the room was warmed by the smoke, which drove out the dampness brought by the many days of rain.

"Indian women like gold jewelry very much. When they get married, they will wear gold jewelry all over their bodies, and then the elders will paint strange patterns on their arms..."

"I heard that they can marry several wives, is this true?" Anna asked with wide eyes.

"Well... there are some."

When I told Anna about my life in India, she listened with great interest.When she heard that I encountered wind and waves at sea, she bit her lip tightly in fright, and kept asking me to promise that I would never go to sea again.

"I met an old friend in India, and he will come to London soon, and I will entertain him at home." I mentioned Edward to Anna. Friends who are solemnly introduced like this are usually important friends. So Anna nodded with a smile: "I also hope to know my brother's good friend, but just don't be impulsive like Mr. John."

"What's going on? How did he marry Miss Daisy? Was he impulsive when he decided?" I asked eagerly.

Anna hesitated for a moment, and said to me: "Mr. John's father visited our house three months ago. He talked to Miss Daisy for a while, and there seemed to be a dispute in the living room. It seemed anxious all day long. But one night, Mr. John rushed to our house suddenly, and then, as in the novel, he proposed to Miss Daisy in the drawing room, and Miss Daisy immediately agreed."

At this time, thick clouds gathered outside the window, the entire sky dimmed, and the room was pitch black, only the light from the fireplace flickered slightly, reflecting on Anna's slightly disappointed face.

"I think...Miss Daisy hates me." She said darkly.

"Why?" I looked at her curiously.

"I think I've crossed the line of being a friend, and I said to her, please reconsider her marriage to Mr. John, and don't agree blindly. But then she whispered to Martha that I looked down on her and thought she was not good enough for John." Sir, that’s why she objected. Later she resigned from my position as tutor and left home.” Anna looked at the fire light quietly and said, “I don’t mean to look down on her, but Mr. John’s father seems to object This marriage, every marriage should respect the opinions of both parents, otherwise, wouldn't it be like...like elopement? Other ladies and ladies will gossip, and they should seek Mr. Martin's approval first, otherwise it will affect her from entering the circle I am very worried about her, so I hope she can postpone it for a while... But they are married now, so they should be happy, after all, Mr. John loves her very much. "

I thought for a while and said, "If you are worried about her, how about I take you to visit them?"

The firewood in the fireplace crackled and exploded. Anna looked at me and nodded with a smile: "Yeah."

"Then you go and pack some luggage, we will visit the newly released Martin couple tomorrow."

Seeing Anna briskly running upstairs, I frowned worriedly.

In order to let Miss Daisy take good care of Anna, I paid her wages for three years in a row, but I didn't expect her to leave my sister alone.It would be too irresponsible to be in a hurry to get married, leaving her job behind and not even waiting for the few months when I go home.Or because she can be a rich wife, she doesn't care about the money I gave her at all.

As for John, he is easily swayed by emotions, but he is timid by nature, so he should not dare to disobey his father. What is the reason that prompted him to marry Miss Daisy?Could it be that the other party is pregnant?

The next day, the weather was still not clear, and it was raining lightly.The sun has not shown up for many days, thick fog is everywhere, and the rain and dew are like a tulle covering the field, emitting a silvery luster.The carriage drove into London from the suburbs, and the road was full of pedestrians holding umbrellas. Their footsteps were hurried, and the gloomy weather always made people feel gloomy.

John rents a three-storey house in the North End of London.

Surprised by my sudden arrival, he embraced me in the hall.

A footman took the cloaks and hats from Anna and me, and Daisy followed.I haven't seen her for two years, and the youthfulness on her body has receded completely, and she has turned into a beautiful young woman.

She was wearing a light green dress with long sleeves, a necklace of pink pearls around her neck, and a gold bracelet on her wrist. Her golden hair was pulled up high and tied with a headband studded with white pearls.The gorgeous clothes made her glamorous and charming, quite charming.

I took two steps forward, held her left hand, and kissed her hand: "Hello, Mrs. Martin, I wish you a happy wedding. I didn't expect you to marry my best friend. It was destined by heaven. fate."

Daisy Martin smiled and nodded to me: "I'm also very honored, why didn't you write to inform us before you came back? My husband and I can clean up the dust for you in advance."

"Because it was a surprise." I looked at Anna.

Anna walked up to Mrs. Daisy with a smile, and curtseyed to her: "How are you these days? I've always missed you."

"No, I'm the one who misses you. I shouldn't have left you at home alone, thinking about getting married." Mrs. Daisy leaned over and hugged Anna, and they looked at each other and smiled.

John is renting a new house, which is very elegantly decorated, with fine wood pasted around the corners and finely carved patterns on the roof.There are copper fireplaces in the kitchen and living room, and on this rainy day there is a constant fire of wood.The sofa is navy blue velvet, the carpet is thick and expensive Persian goods, and there are many murals hanging on the walls, which seem to be John's own works.

They hired two maids and one male servant in their house. They were all dressed up very vigorously, pouring tea and pouring water for us diligently. Everything was in order. It seemed that Daisy was a qualified hostess.

We had dinner together at noon that day and had a great time.In the afternoon, the ladies went upstairs to whisper, and John and I went to his study.

"Would you be offended if I asked you why you were in such a rush to get married?" I said, sitting across from John.

John lit a cigar, looked at me and said, "Dear Adam, you know I will never be offended by you, you are my most important friend."

Afterwards, he walked to the window and silently watched the pattering rain outside.

He looked very depressed, not like the joy of newlyweds at all, but full of melancholy.

"Do you remember the girl I fell in love with when I was 15 years old?" He asked me while smoking a cigarette, his whole body was shrouded in smoke, and he couldn't see clearly.

"Of course, I remember." I nodded and said, "She's dead, isn't she?"

"Do you know how she died?" John's tone was bleak, with a kind of deep despair.

I frowned: "Is the cause of her death related to you?"

"It's more than related, my father sent someone to kill her!" John clenched his fist and slammed on the glass.

"I almost don't know my father anymore. He is simply a devil. How could he do such a terrible thing? If Daisy hadn't found clues and told me, I would have been kept in the dark forever."

The raindrops hit the glass, the light rain suddenly turned into heavy rain, and the sound was crackling.

"Why do you do this? What can she do to me? She's pregnant with my child! That's my child!" John shouted with a thunderclap.

Afterwards, he squatted on the ground holding his hair with both hands, like a helpless child.

"He is probably afraid that you will have an illegitimate child at such a young age, which will hurt your reputation." I sighed, "Uncle Martin has always wanted you to marry a gentleman's daughter."

I walked over and squatted beside him, put my arms around his shoulders and said, "Now that you have separated from your father, live a good life with Daisy and forget about everything in the past."

John looked at me, nodded heavily, and then wept softly, leaning on my arm.

Before evening, Anna and I took our leave from John's house.

The couple saw us off at the door, Anna happily waved goodbye to them, but sighed a little.

"What's wrong?" I smiled at her.

Anna shook her head and said, "They...are a bit extravagant. Maybe Mr. John is richer, but...he's just an ordinary lawyer, isn't he? It's less than my brother's annual salary. I'm worried that they will spend too much."

Hearing what Anna said, I also became worried.John has always spent money lavishly, and Uncle Martin never treats his only son badly, trying to make him live a good life like a gentleman's boy.But now he has fallen out with Uncle Martin. If he doesn't learn to live frugally, his salary may not be able to support the extravagant expenses at all.

However, when we got home that day, we encountered an uninvited guest.

"Mr. Martin!" I looked at the shrewd middle-aged man in front of me in surprise.

Mr. Jack Martin hugged me with a smile: "Forgive me, my child, I came here too suddenly, I hope I didn't disturb you."

Then he looked at Anna next to me, and said hello to her in a gentle tone: "Hello, my little lady, you have become beautiful again, and you are already an outstanding lady."

"Hello, Mr. Martin." Anna curtsied to him cautiously.

"Go tell the kitchen, I'm going to have a banquet tonight." I said to Anna, and sent her out of the living room.

Then I looked at Mr. Martin: "I'm sorry, I just arrived in London yesterday, and I just heard about John's marriage."

If Mr. Martin hadn't been generous enough to pay my tuition fees for four years at once, I'm afraid I would be trembling every day. £600 is not a small amount, my biological father is only willing to spend £4 a year on me.Mr. Martin can be said to be my great benefactor, so I have always had great respect for him.What's more, John hooked up with the tutor I hired when he came to help me take care of my sister. There seems to be a trace of responsibility on my part.

"Oh." Mr. Martin smiled and waved his hands and said, "It's none of your business. I know best about my son. He's just being stupid again. He'll understand soon."

Mr. Martin was born in a real poor family. He was even illiterate when he was a teenager, and he was self-taught when he grew up.He once ventured out to do business at sea, and after returning to China, he tried every means to connect with those in power, and then opened a large textile factory, with hundreds of workers working for him every day.His greatest wish is nothing more than to get rid of the hat of being an inferior, and let his descendants enter the gentleman class, so that they will never be despised again.

"But John and the others are already married." I said, "If he doesn't get your blessing, he will have a very difficult life in the future."

"My child, you are John's best friend. I want to ask you, are you willing to see him marry a low-class woman, and then spend his whole life inactive and discriminated against by the upper class forever?" Mr. Martin suddenly asked me seriously.

The author has something to say: I want to write about the contradiction between the merchant class and the powerful class at that time, and John is the protagonist.