Pride and Prejudice; Sense and Sensibility

Chapter 111 Marianne's Free Swim
Elinor made another short visit to Harley Street, and John Dashwood congratulated them, saying that it was a good deal for them to come all the way to Baden at no cost, and that in a day or two the Burton Colonel Land was going to Cleveland too.The visit ended their brother-sister stint in the city.Fanny flatly invited them to visit Nolan Manor as soon as it was convenient, if they were passing by - which was precisely the most unlikely thing.John told Eleanor, more warmly and less openly, that he would soon be visiting her at Delaford--that was all the foreseeable chance of their meeting in the country.

What amuses Eleanor is that all her friends are determined to send her to Delaford, because not only is her brother and Mrs. Jennings there as her future home, but even Lucy is still parting ways. Shi also insisted on begging her to visit her there.But in fact, that place has now become the place she least wants to visit and live in.

One early morning in early April, the two groups of people from Hanover Square and Beckley Street set off from their homes separately and met on the road.For the sake of Charlotte and her son, they planned to walk for two days on the road. Mr. Palmer and Colonel Bland walked faster, and they would arrive at the Cleveland Manor soon after the women's family members arrived at the Cleveland Manor.

Marianne, though she had had very few pleasant moments in London, and was always anxious to leave the house, could not help being very distressed when the time came to say good-bye to the house.For it was in this house that she had last enjoyed the hope and confidence in Willoughby, which were now gone forever.In this place where Willoughby had been busy with new appointments, new plans, all of which were out of her hands and which she could not share, it was impossible not to move her to tears to be leaving.

Elinor was indeed glad to part.She had no one worthy of attachment, nor had she left anyone she could never part with, so she felt little regret.She was glad that she had escaped the troubles caused by Lucy's friendship, and that she had been able to take her sister away, since Willoughby had not been able to see Marianne since her marriage.She looked forward to returning to Barton and living quietly for a few months, which would restore Marianne's mind and calm her own.

The journey went smoothly, and the next day they entered Somerset, which in Marianne's imagination was both a desirable and lovely place and a forbidden area.They arrived in Cleveland before noon on the third day.

Cleveland is a spacious modern building set on a sloping meadow.There are no gardens around, but the entertainment area is quite spacious.Like other places of equal renown, there are open bushes and forest paths criss-crossing.A smooth gravel road runs around the plantation and leads to the front of the house.The lawn is dotted with scattered trees.The houses are covered by dense firs, peppercorns, and acacias, occasionally dotted with a few towering poplar trees, which completely cover the lower houses.

Marianne went into the house, excited because she knew it was only eighty miles from Barton and less than thirty miles from Combe House.She hadn't stayed in the house for 5 minutes, and while everyone was helping Charlotte to show the baby to the housekeeper, she backed out and sneaked through the winding and stretching garden that had just shown greenery. bushes, and climbed to the high ground far away.Standing in front of a Greek-style temple there, she glanced across a large open field to the southeast, and fell affectionately on the ridge at the end of the horizon.From these hilltops, she thought, she might be able to see Combe Towers.

She was glad that she came to Cleveland. At this extremely precious and extremely painful moment, she couldn't help but burst into tears with mixed emotions.When she came back to the house by another road, she felt at ease in the country, free to roam about by herself, and wander about without restraint.So she decided that during her stay at the Palmers' house she would indulge in these solitary walks every hour of every day.

When she returned to the house, just in time for all the people to go out of the house to visit the front and back of the house, she walked out together.Everyone came to the vegetable garden and watched the flowers on the wall while listening to the gardener complaining about various diseases and insect pests.Then they went into the conservatory, where several of Charlotte's favorite flowers and plants were frozen to death because the frost was late and not covered, and made her laugh.They finally came to the poultry farm, only to hear the breeder discouragedly say that the old hen refused to enter the nest to lay eggs, and the chicks were taken away by the fox. There was a promising litter of chicks, but unexpectedly they died one after another. , So Charlotte discovered a new joke.In this way, the rest of the morning passed quickly.

All morning, the weather was sunny and dry.Marianne hadn't thought about the changes in the weather during their stay in Cleveland when she planned to be outdoors.Therefore, she never expected that the continuous heavy rain after dinner would prevent her from going out again.Originally, she wanted to take advantage of the dusk to go for a walk to the Greek-style temple, maybe she could take a good stroll around there.Even if the weather was colder and damper in the evening, it would not stop her.However, such continuous heavy rain, even she can't think that it can be regarded as a dry and pleasant weather to go for a walk.

They don't have many partners, and they spend their time peacefully.Mrs. Palmer looked after the children and Mrs. Jennings weaved the rugs.They talked of friends who remained in town, wondered what Lady Middleton's company was, and wondered whether Mr. Palmer and Colonel Bland could make it to Reading that night.Although Eleanor didn't care about it, she talked with them.Marianne was able to find a study in any house, and it was probable that the family would not normally go there, and yet she was able to get a book without much trouble.

Mrs Palmer's cheerfulness and friendliness ensure that guests do not feel unwelcome.What she lacked in reflection and elegance, she more than made up for in her frankness and earnestness.Her amiable manner, combined with that pretty face, made her very attractive.Her flaws, though obvious, are not obnoxious because she is not self-righteous.Eleanor tolerated everything but her laughter.

The next day the two gentlemen finally arrived, in time for a very late dinner.There were more people in the room at once, which was really gratifying.The anecdotes they bring liven up the conversation.Originally, it had been raining all morning, and everyone's interest in talking had become very low.

Eleanor had rarely seen Mr. Palmer before, and in those few contacts, she found that his attitude towards her sister and herself was also unpredictable, so she didn't know how he would treat them when he came to his home .However, she found that he was very polite to all the guests, only occasionally a little rough with his wife and mother-in-law.She felt that he was originally a partner who could get along well with others, and the reason why he couldn't do this was because he was too conceited.He always thought himself superior to the common man, as he considered himself superior to Mrs. Jennings and Charlotte.Elinor could see that his character and habits were the same as those of a man his age, and there was nothing unusual about him.He is more particular about his food, and his daily life is irregular; he loves children, but pretends not to care; when he should be doing business in the morning, he spends his time playing billiards.On the whole, however, Eleanor thought of him much better than had been expected, and she did not regret not being more fond of him.She looked at his pleasure-seeking, selfishness, and self-righteousness, and thought of Edward's generosity, simplicity, and modesty, and she could not help feeling comforted, and she did not regret it.

From Colonel Bland, who had recently been in Dorset, Eleanor had news of Edward, at least in part, of his condition.Colonel Bland regarded Eleanor as both Mr. Ferrars' disinterested friend and his own bosom friend.He gave her an overview of the Delaford Parsonage, describing its defects.His attitude towards Eleanor in this and any other particular subject, his apparent pleasure at seeing her again after ten days' absence, his willingness to talk to her and respect her opinion, all All this was evidence of Mrs. Jennings's belief that he was in love with Eleanor.If Eleanor didn't still believe that Marianne was the Colonel's real sweetheart like she did at the beginning, then she might also have doubts about it.But as a matter of fact, unless Mrs. Jennings mentioned it to her, the idea hardly ever occurred to her.She could not but think that she herself was more attentive than Mrs. Jennings: she watched his eyes, while Mrs. Jennings thought only of his conduct.When Marianne felt dizzy and had a sore throat and a severe cold, Colonel Bland's expression of concern and anxiety, which Mrs. Jennings did not perceive, as he had no words to express his feelings, But Eleanor found the fiery emotion and the lover's sensitive but unnecessary panic from this look.

In the evenings of the third and fourth days here, Marianne went out for two pleasant walks, not only on the dry gravel path among the bushes, but also on the surrounding gardens, especially the gardens. The edge, which is more desolate than other places, the trees are the oldest, the weeds are tallest, and the most humid.On top of that, Marianne had the impertinence to sit on the floor with wet shoes and wet socks, and she caught a bad cold as a result.Although she didn't care about it for the first day or two, and even denied it flatly, but her condition became more and more serious, and she couldn't help but arouse everyone's concern, but she also paid attention to it herself.Prescriptions came from all directions, but she declined them all.Although she was heavy, had a high fever, her limbs were sore, and her throat was sore from coughing, she insisted that she would recover completely after a good night's rest.After she went to bed, Elinor managed to persuade her to try one or two of the simplest medicines.

(End of this chapter)