[Pride and Prejudice] Mary's Pride and Prejudice

Chapter 9 The new job of the young lady

Mary prepared a detailed draft, and then knocked on the door of Mr. Bennet's study. After getting permission, Mary walked in and said to Mr. Bennet, "Dear Dad, I'm here to ask you for money."

"I'll give you every pound you want, Mary, you're the most frugal of our family, and never got into lace and silk like any other lady. That's not right, though thrift is a virtue that everyone celebrates." , but if you continue like this, you will be called a miser, and you will be out of tune with the stupid girls around you." Mr. Bennet said without looking up.

"I need two hundred pounds."

Mr. Bennet looked up at Mary in surprise, and said, "Dear Mary, I always thought you were the most reassuring of my children. You are not as kind as Jane, who thinks that the world is full of good people. You are not as sensitive as Elizabeth to think that there are almost no good people in the world, and you are not as stupid as your two little sisters, so now you finally think that you are too different, so you decide to clear yourself of this accusation? ?”

"Dear dad, I have found enough reasons to ask you for money. After you listen to my story, you will definitely be willing from the bottom of your heart."

"Very well then," Mr. Bennet put down the book in his hand, motioning for Mary to sit across from him, "let me hear how I am willing to give my daughter a large sum of money, if you describe it It is reasonable, I will be a father who indulges his daughter for the time being."

Mary sat on a sofa across from her father's desk. She smoothed the hem of her skirt and said firmly, "I think I'm going to start building my own property from now on, Dad."

"Mary, where do you see that I am an irresponsible father? The dowry prepared for you is of course my responsibility."

"No, papa, I'm talking about my property, not my dowry."

"As an unmarried young lady, there is no difference. Your current property will be taken away by you in the future and given to another person for nothing. Your mother and I are actually happy about this."

"Father, according to my understanding of marriage, I'm afraid I won't choose marriage very early. If I become an old girl who stays at home relying on your support, I will be ridiculed by others. I can't even hope for this kind of life that people ridicule. In the future, I also thought that I would go out and find a job if I couldn't get married in the future. Not as leisurely as I am now." Mary paused, and then said: "So I have to make plans early."

Mr. Bennet nodded, and said puzzledly: "I'm very surprised that a young lady like you is so far-sighted—will consider such distant things. But the first thing I need to understand is that you plan to give you what I should give you in advance. Is the money in your pocket, Mary?"

"No, Dad," said Mary seriously, "I mean, you need to give me a job."

"Job?" Mr. Bennet's eyes widened in surprise, "You want a job from me? So do you want to be a housemaid or a lawnmower on a horse farm? I think I'm still hiring Can't afford an employee with an annual salary of two hundred pounds, especially if she is still a child laborer!"

"Of course you can afford Dad, and I can give you more value for money." Mary said firmly, "Please listen to my work plan."

Mr. Bennet said indifferently, "Please."

Mary first handed a few pages to Mr. Bennet, and then sat upright, telling her own ideas: "The paper is about our family's various expenses last year. Of course, this is only an approximate amount. The specific number is only available to you. Just known."

Mr. Bennet said in admiration: "Where did you get these Marys? I have to say that your data collection is very detailed. Although there are some discrepancies, it is not outrageous."

"I asked many people, tenants, servants, stewards, mothers, kitchens, grooms, and your personal servant Galen." Mary replied. "I have spent several days calculating the family's income and expenses and expenses. Dad, I found that our family has a lot of repetitive expenses and unnecessary expenses. If you agree to let me be your financial supervisor in the next year, I will Will save you at least £200."

"What do you mean by recurring and unnecessary expenses?" asked Mr. Bennet.

"Father, you can't save your penis and riding boots, but you don't have to buy new ones every year. The old ones can be used after maintenance. There are also all kinds of gadgets for women. She may not be satisfied when she buys them , just buy them back on impulse and put them on the shelf, and never look at them again. There are also meat and vegetables in the kitchen, as long as we search carefully, there are always better and cheaper things waiting for us. If we can spend less money and enjoy the same life, why not Dad?"

"Oh, I think you asked for a lot of things in the kitchen, Mary."

"Yes, but we can start saving now."

"So you're saying we're going to start saving money?"

"Not Dad, what I mean is, we have to determine which expenses are necessary and which are unnecessary. If I can save you two dollars in the coming year compared to last year's income and expenses A hundred pounds, without making our life a little more difficult, then please let me have the two hundred pounds."

"So you mean we'll save you two hundred pounds by saving you two hundred pounds?" said Mr. Bennet.

Mary said without blushing: "It is true, but I promise that I will not take this money for nothing. This money will only stay in my hands for one year, and I will pay it back in the second year." Here it is, and you may give it to Jane as a dowry, so that if Jane marries at twenty, she will have two thousand pounds or more."

Mr. Bennet jokingly said: "If a dowry of 30 pounds is reached for all the daughters, according to your plan, Lydia will not be able to marry until she is [-] at the earliest!"

Mary's face was really a little red at this time, and she reluctantly said: "Although Kitty and Lydia are young, I think they already have the habit of extravagance and waste, and I think I can help them correct it. And mother "Mary said in a low voice, "Mom will also develop a good habit of saving, I think she is a little... In short, she will spend money on many things that don't matter."

But Mr. Bennet objected: "There is a saying that a wife spends too much and her husband never stands out. Your mother just lives like other people's wives, so I have to live like other people's husbands, do you understand?"

"I'm not criticizing my mother. I can keep her quality of life without any decline, but at the end of the year, I will find that I have extra money."

Mr. Bennet frowned and thought for a while, and Mary clenched her fists nervously. Although Mr. Bennet is almost indulgent to his daughters, he will give money when he asks for it, and as long as he makes up a decent reason, he can get it from his pocket. This also caused many bad spending habits of Kitty and Lydia in the past two years.But that was two hundred pounds. Mr. Bennet would probably not agree to such a large sum of money if he asked for it directly.If you know that she wants to use the money to open a store, I'm afraid she won't even think about it, after all, she is only 12 years old now.

The most important thing is that she wants Mr. Bennet to see her ability, and she wants to have the right to speak at home, so that when she wants to realize her plan to become rich, Mr. Bennet will not treat her as a child or a fledgling. A young man who is not capable enough to despise her and stop her.

Mr. Bennet finally spoke amidst Mary's uneasiness. He said: "Although I think a man should not be stingy in giving pocket money to his wife and children, it is of course a good thing if they can develop a good habit of thrift. Moreover, As you said, why not spend less money and enjoy the same life?"

Mary jumped up in surprise, and she cheered, "That's great, Dad, you're so kind."

"Yes, I also think I am very good." Mr. Bennet said proudly, "As a father, I am really too competent. The demands of my daughters are always so difficult for me to refuse. If Jane and Elizabeth If there is any request, you can let them come in and persuade me to agree...or Kitty and Lydia."

Mary happily kissed Mr. Bennet on the cheek: "Your decision today is extremely wise, and you will never regret it."

Mr. Bennet touched his cheek. He was really flattered by the closeness of a child like Mary, so he murmured: "I hope... I hope..."

Mary quickly discussed her specific scope of work with Mr. Bennet, and the two unanimously decided that Mary should start taking office the next day.Then Mary immediately began to prepare, and she had to rearrange her schedule.And say hello to Mrs. Bennet in advance.

Mrs. Bennet was very surprised to hear that she was working for Mr. Bennet. She stood up from her seat and asked loudly, "Is this true, Mary? You actually want to help Mr. Bennet manage his money?" "

Then she got a positive answer from Mary.

"This is really unbelievable." Mrs. Bennet said with wide-eyed eyes, "Even if our daughter wants to learn housework, she should learn from me. People who know us sincerely praise me as a qualified good housewife And, even if you want to learn to manage the family, Jane and Elizabeth should come first, after all, they married earlier than you. But this is not the point, Mr. Bennet has always managed his own money, even if I , and there is nothing that can help him, so what can you do?"

Mary laughed and said, "Look, Mom, I'll surprise you. And, Mom, since Dad asked me to help him manage his money bag, how about you, Mom? You also let me help you manage it." Years, I guarantee you will have one third of the money left at the end of the year."

However, Mrs. Bennet was not moved by her at all: "Wait until you can really help your father, Mary, I have five daughters, and I don't want to find someone for myself like a little girl to control my money. "

"I beg you, Mom, Dad said that I will take care of all the expenses at home. If you insist on making your own money, then my prestige will be greatly reduced. In order for the servants to bow to me, in order to make Promise me that your daughter will not be ridiculed and fooled by the servants, and let me manage your money. I never spent a penny when I was a child."

"Oh, that's true. You are my cheapest daughter. Mr. Bennet has complained to me many times about it."

"It's still your ugliest daughter, mom, if you don't let me have some extraordinary advantages, how will I marry in the future?"

"Don't say that about Mary, you are not ugly, don't compare yourself with Jane, she is the most beautiful girl in England, you can be ranked fifth..." Mrs. Bennet felt guilty said.

Mary lobbied again and again, and finally she pretended to stay in Mrs. Bennet's bedroom, and would not leave unless she agreed. Finally, she persuaded Mrs. Bennet that from now on, all the money in the Bennet family must be spent with Mary's consent.

On the next day, Mr. Bennet announced Mary's new position in front of the whole family.Jane and Elizabeth already knew yesterday.None of them had any objection. In their opinion, Mary had always been a curious child, and it was not incomprehensible if she wanted to satisfy some of her whims by helping Mr. Bennet in his work.

But Kitty and Lydia were taken aback.They thought it would be so interesting to help Mr. Bennet work. The two asked Mr. Bennet for the same job opportunity, but Mr. Bennet refused. Give you math problems, then I can make you all wish, but I think you would rather learn to fish. So, girls, in order to prevent you from ruining my family property, it is better not to waste each other's time."

Kitty and Lydia really didn't have any interest in calculating math problems, so they stuck out their tongues and ran away hand in hand.