aristocratic engagement

"What about me? Am I going with you too?" Liz was taken aback by the unexpected news.

"There is someone waiting at the entrance of the city, he will take you back." Annie smiled slightly, a little sly.

After hearing this, Liz let out a long sigh of relief.

Sensitively aware that Anne seemed to have other arrangements, Darcy whispered in his ear and asked, "Why are you smiling so cunningly? You want to play tricks on Miss Elizabeth?"

Anne pursed her lips and pinched his lips.

Liz averted her eyes in embarrassment, pretending to be interested in the scenery outside the window.

Soon, the group saw the outline of the city of London in the distance. On the other side of the road, a carriage was parked there, and a gentleman was idly pacing around waving his whip not far from the carriage.

"Lance! Here!" Annie stuck her head out of the car window and shouted loudly.

When Lance heard the voice for the first time, he immediately turned to look this way, and after a while, he waved his hand at Anne as well.

The carriage soon stopped next to another carriage, and at this time Lance had also come to the carriage, looking at the person with a smile on his face.

"Lance, I'm so grateful for your promise to help." Annie said anxiously, "I'm in a hurry to make an appointment, so I can only ask you to help send Miss Elizabeth Bennet back!"

"You don't need to say these words! Miss Elizabeth Bennet, hello, I will be responsible for sending you home safely." Lance said, performing a standard gentleman's salute, but Anne from him His nervousness and excitement could be detected in the obviously more cheerful tone.

Liz jumped out of the carriage, saluted him, and thanked him politely.

"This is my uncle's second son, Mr. Lance Fitzwilliam." Anne hurriedly introduced, "Stop talking, we're about to leave, Cousin Lance, the safety of Liz is up to you."

Without allowing Elizabeth to react, the horse neighed under the urging of the whip, and ran towards the other side.

Anne stretched out her hand out of the window and waved them far away.

"Are you matching Lance and Miss Elizabeth?"

"No, this is not a matchmaking, it's just a chance for them to meet." Annie blinked.

"Do you think so? Although Lance is only the second son and cannot inherit the title and family business, Miss Elizabeth's background..."

"Stop, stop!" Annie covered his mouth, "I don't expect to change your mind, but don't belittle my friend either. Who do you think she is? She is an incredible writer!"

"I'm sorry." Darcy apologized quickly.

"It's not me who should apologize."

Anne wants to "preach" about respect and equality.But he swallowed the words again. Anyone can say beautiful words, and Darcy may not really understand those points of view, but when he is in it, maybe it is out of his own status, maybe out of opposition. The protection and worry of the family... On the contrary, Annie herself cannot say that she must be objective and calm.

"Many years ago, at Earl Fitzwilliam's tea party, Lance and Elizabeth met once. I dare not say that they must have a good impression of each other, but it would be fine if we could create an opportunity for them." Anne thought about it After a while, he said again, "If they have forgotten the hasty side of the past, it is also God's arrangement."

It was already evening when the carriage stopped at the gate of a gorgeous manor.Anne opened her mouth in surprise—not for anything else, but for the rows of waiting carriages and servants.

"I didn't expect the prince to have a banquet and arrangements today?!" Annie found the invitation letter from her pocket, and confirmed it again and again, but there was no mention of this arrangement.

Darcy's eyes lingered among the crowd, and each carriage was engraved with different and complicated family crests, declaring the owner's extraordinary background.The servants are well-trained, do not talk freely to each other, and watch the others warily and distantly.

Darcy looked away.He said lightly: "Perhaps, the prince attaches more importance to this meeting than we imagined."

In any case, Anne had to bite the bullet and go to see the prince.

Darcy opened the carriage door, and the hand supporting Anne appeared in everyone's sight.

All the servants beside the carriage—whether male servants or maidservants—couldn't hide the surprise and doubt in their eyes, staring at the center of the crowd: a lady in trousers.

Anne turned a blind eye to such probing.From the moment she decided to wear pantsuits, she knew that prying eyes and gossip were inevitable.She had even anticipated the nasty insults and curses.

The butler seemed to have received the master's order early on. As soon as Annie's figure appeared, she immediately rushed forward from the stairs.

His face was expressionless, his attitude was completely different from the reactions of other people, and he seemed to turn a blind eye to Anne's clothes: "Please come with me, Viscount Richter, Mr. Darcy."

Hearing this address, Anne raised her eyebrows, and immediately understood the prince's attitude.

The news that the king made her a viscount has not yet spread.In the conversation with the king at the beginning, he clearly mentioned that the condition of the title is to assist His Royal Highness the Prince, so Anne made an invitation.And now, what was supposed to be a private meeting between Anne and the prince has turned into a feast of violence...

Anne and Darcy looked at each other and nodded, and they followed the butler and walked towards the brightly lit manor.

Passing through the long corridor, the three of them stopped in front of a carved gate.Indistinct conversations, warm yellow candlelight and soothing sonatas could be heard from the crack of the door.

The butler waved, and the two male servants saluted respectfully and pushed open the door.

The sound of the piano and the conversation came flooding in, and when Anne and Darcy just stepped into the space, the sound stopped abruptly.

Annie began to imagine in her heart, this scene was too dramatic—the well-dressed people in this hall were all gentlemen, old or young, and some of them were people she knew and had a relationship with, Annie guessed Probably saw it at the Duke of Bridgewater's funeral.

The gentlemen closest to the door noticed the movement here, turned around first, and opened their mouths in surprise when they saw the person coming.Like a tide, it spread out round and round.

All the gentlemen stopped their movements and conversations, and turned their gazes here.

It was really scary to be stared at by dozens of people in an instant. Annie clenched her fists tightly, pinching her nails fiercely in her palms, to keep herself awake and backed away without subconsciously.

The confusion and bewilderment in those people's eyes gradually turned into shame and disgust, and this constant malice woke her up.Their eyes lingered on her body, especially her lower body - her pantsuit was shining brightly under her translucent gown.

"Mr. Alger! How could there be a lady on this occasion? Or is it that I am so blind that I can't tell whether the person is a man or a woman for a while?" An old gentleman with gray hair asked angrily.

"Perhaps you are mistaken, Andrew. Look, she is wearing trousers!" laughed the young gentleman beside him.

For a while, the gentlemen fell down laughing, and some even accidentally shook the wine glass in their hands and knocked it over on the carpet.

"It's really scandalous! What about the guards, why haven't they taken her away from the prince's banquet?!"

"Take her away!"

"The world is going down!"

Darcy's breathing became heavier, and he was so angry that he was about to step forward, but Annie held him back.Anne firmly grasped his arm, pressing him beside her.

"I remembered! This is that 'Richter'!" One person suddenly shouted loudly, "That day at the funeral of the old Duke of Bridgewater, she suddenly appeared and poured dirty water on the deceased !"

"Richter? The Richter New Invention Company?"

"It's her...it's ridiculous that she should call herself Richter. How old was she when Richter's name appeared in London? I never even saw her at this year's ball!"

The implication is that this 'Richter' has just come of age, or is not even of age.

For a while, Richter's name rang out everywhere.

The corners of Annie's mouth were slightly raised, revealing a smile that was not a smile, and said: "Before Columbus really arrived in the New World, only the wise believed that it really existed and would bring great wealth; while the fools would only repeat those old-fashioned things endlessly." prejudices and fallacies, and thought themselves wise."

"Arrogant young man!"

"How dare a woman compare herself to Columbus? It really makes people laugh out loud!"

Anne narrowed her eyes, turned her face slightly towards Darcy, and said loudly: "Honey, what do people call those who despise facts and firmly believe in falsehoods? Ostrich? Or tortoise?"

"Such a metaphor is really insulting to those innocent animals." Darcy's eyes swept over the flushed faces, his eyes were cold, "It's just that he was blind."

"Which rude brat is this again?!" The old gentleman raised his cane, trembling with anger.

"He's from Pemberley Manor in Derbyshire, am I right? Mr. Darcy?" The prince's voice suddenly sounded from the back of the crowd.

For a moment, everyone looked at each other in surprise, and slowly dispersed, revealing a trail.

The figure of the prince appeared in front of Anne and Darcy. With a smile on his face, he strode towards the two: "Oh! Your arrival makes the humble house shine!"

He quickly came to Anne, and extended his hand to shake her graciously: "Viscount Richter, it's a pleasure to see you again. The last time I met you in my father's courtyard in a hurry, I didn't have time to introduce myself. I am very happy that you accepted my invitation to come here."

As soon as the prince's voice fell, the hall was completely silent.

Annie looked at his attentive smile, which was completely incompatible with his identity, and didn't react for a while.

It was obviously the greeting card that she handed over, but how did it become in his mouth that he was invited to come?

Of course, Anne would not refuse the face the prince gave her. She guessed that the prince must have asked her for something, but she didn't know whether the prince was coming for Richter or Anne de Bauer.

Anne shook hands with him politely, and the Prince in turn shook hands with Darcy.

"Viscount Richter, I have something to talk to you alone." The prince suddenly lowered his voice and said.

Although he deliberately lowered his voice, the volume was enough for the gentleman beside him to hear him clearly.Anne nodded kindly, and after following him for two steps, she seemed to suddenly think of something: "Your Highness, Mr. Darcy is mine..."

"Oh, of course, Mr. Darcy, please come too." He nodded kindly.

Only then did Darcy frowned, strode to Anne's side, and disappeared behind the door on the other side together with the prince.

As soon as the figures of the three disappeared, heated discussions erupted in the hall.Gentlemen's theme boils down to a name—

"Viscount Richter?! She is really Richter? And she is a Viscount?"

"Where did she inherit the title, even if she can inherit the title?!"

A calm voice suddenly came from the corner: "She is from Rosings Manor in Kent, and her father is that Sir Louis de Bourgh." This man was the Duke of Bridgewater Alan Edgerton of Home.

All of a sudden, there was a wave of waves.

But, even so, a woman who inherited the title?

King gone mad again?

The gentlemen looked at each other in horror and were speechless for a while.

On the other side, Anne and Darcy had already sat down in the prince's extravagant study.As soon as the prince walked into the study, his face fell down, just like when they met in the king's summer estate that day.

The door was closed, and the two footmen stood outside dutifully.

The author has something to say: It was not until after World War II that women gradually began to wear pants in public.

I wrote this chapter quite sadly. In fact, the wording in the article is already a lot more implicit. Even in the [-]th century, a woman was thrown into prison for wearing pants, and she was not released until feminists collectively protested.

The two fanfics I wrote about Pride and Prejudice actually expressed my views on "women's rights"-about careers, families, and even just whether women can wear pants and work.This is also expressed in Ms. Austin's novels, but due to the constraints of the times, it has not yet reached the current level.The female writers of the [-]th and [-]th centuries are our role models.

_(:з」∠)_哎说这么多其实有点冒险，还是希望大家能宽容理解吧。感谢在2021-01-2401:25:36~2021-01-2601:02:20期间为我投出霸王票或灌溉营养液的小天使哦~

Thanks to the little angel of irrigation nutrient solution: 13 bottles of Su Ranqi;

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!