Pride and Prejudice

Chapter 53 (1)
Elizabeth's dismay at finding no letter from Jane on her arrival at Lambton lasted for several days; and by the third morning she had neither complained nor was angry with her sister. , She received two letters from her sister at once, and one letter was marked with the words that it had been posted elsewhere by mistake.Elizabeth saw her sister's scribbled address, so it was not surprising that she had made a mistake.

They were about to go for a walk when the letter came; so her uncle and aunt left her to read the letter in peace, and they went out by themselves.The misposted letter should naturally be read first; it was written five days ago.At the beginning of the letter, there are some small parties and dates, and some gossip in the country; The message is also very important, the main content is as follows:
"Dearest Lizzy, since the above was written, the most unexpected and serious thing has happened; but I am afraid to frighten you--do not worry, the family is well. I am here to speak of poor Lydia. Last night at twelve o'clock, just as we were going to bed, there was an express mail from Colonel Foster saying that Lydia was with one of his officers. Went off to Scotland; with Wickham, to tell the truth—you can imagine our astonishment. It didn't seem so unexpected to Kitty. I'm so sorry. The two A man and a woman have come together so recklessly! But I'm still willing to think the best, and hope that his character is not as bad as people think.

I certainly thought he was rash and reckless, but let's hope this step (let's hope) wasn't his intentional move.He didn't choose her for profit in the least, because of course he knew our father didn't have anything for her.Poor mother was terribly sad, but father managed to hold on.I'm glad we didn't tell our parents what Mr. Darcy said about Wickham; we must forget it ourselves.It was conjectured that the two of them had set off about twelve o'clock on Saturday night, but their disappearance was not discovered until eight o'clock yesterday morning.Express mail arrived immediately.My dear Lizzy, they must have passed within ten miles of us.Colonel Forster said Wickham would be here soon.Lydia left Mrs. Firth a few lines explaining their intentions.I must stop, I cannot bear to leave poor mother alone at this time.I'm worried that you won't understand what's going on after reading my letter, and I don't know what I wrote. "

After reading this letter, Elizabeth couldn't bear to think about it, and didn't understand her current feelings, so she hurriedly grabbed another letter, opened it impatiently, and read it. This letter was dated later than the previous one. for a day.

"My dearest sister, you must have received that hastily written letter by this time? I hope this one will make the matter clearer; but, though I have plenty of time, my brain I am afraid it will be difficult to write in order. Dearest Lizzy, I simply do not know what to write to you, except to convey the unfortunate news to you, and without delay. Although Weco The marriage between Ham and our poor Lydia was a little too rash, but we are now eager to hope that it will be done, for there are many reasons for our apprehension that they are not going to Scotland. Colonel Sturt arrived here yesterday, having left Brighton within a few hours of sending that express letter.

Although Lydia's note to Mrs. Foster stated that they were going to Glena Meadows, Danny came to disclose that he believed Wickham had no intention of going there, nor had he spoken to Lydia. The idea of ​​marriage, we informed Colonel Forster of this at once, and he was astonished, and set out from Brighton at once to follow them.He did, indeed, easily trace the two of them to Klaphan, but there the trail ended; took a cab.All that was known after that was that they were seen continuing in the direction of London.I was at my wit's end, not knowing what to think.Colonel Forster, after making inquisitive inquiries in London, came to Hertfordshire, and searched in vain at the checkpoints along the way and in all the hotels in Barnet and Huntfield. I have never seen such a pair of men and women walking here.He came to Longbourne out of deep concern, and told us his fears in all sincerity.I really feel sorry for him and his wife, but who can blame them both.My dear Lizzy, we are very miserable.

Both father and mother think it sucks, but I don't think he's that bad yet.Perhaps for various reasons, they found it more feasible to marry in private in the city than to carry out their first plan; and even if he had no kindness for Lydia, and bullied her for having no distinguished relations (which was unlikely), I also don't believe that she will be completely reckless, it's impossible.But I was sorry to find that Colonel Forster did not believe in their marriage; and when I expressed my hope he shook his head and said that Wickham was not the sort of man to be trusted.The poor mother was really sick with anger, and stayed in the house all day.She would be better off if she got a little out and about, but no one could persuade her; and as for my father, I never saw him so miserable in all my life.Poor Kitty was also very angry with herself for not telling the family about their relationship; but since it was an intimate conversation between the sisters, the family could not blame Kitty.Dear Lizzy, I am so glad you did not witness these painful scenes; but, now that the first turmoil is over, I can tell you frankly that I should like to have you back.If it's inconvenient for you, I'm not so selfish as to urge you to come back.

Goodbye!Forgive me for taking up my pen again to do what I have just told you I would not do, but the situation is so serious that I cannot help imploring you to come home as soon as possible.I know my uncle and aunt too well, I know they won't blame me for calling you back, besides, I have other things to ask my uncle for help.Father plans to go to London with Colonel Forster soon to find Lydia.What he meant to do, I do not know; but his distressed appearance must not lead him to the wisest and safest course of the matter, and Colonel Forster must be back in Brighton to-morrow evening.In such an emergency, the advice and help of our wise uncle were of the utmost importance; he must have understood my feelings at once, and I sincerely trusted in his character. "

"Oh, uncle, where is my uncle now?" Elizabeth shouted after reading the letter, jumping up from her chair and running outside, she was eager to find her uncle, so as not to waste this precious time; But just as she reached the door, it was opened by a waiter, and Mr. Darcy appeared at the door.Her pale face and restless manner startled Darcy, and before he knew how to respond, Elizabeth, whose mind was full of Lydia's dire situation, said anxiously, "Excuse me, I must go now. I must find Mr. Gardiner at once, there is an urgent business to attend to; I cannot afford to lose a moment."

"My God! what's going on?" he cried, so worried that he forgot his manners; then he calmed down and said, "I don't want to keep you a minute, but let me, or the waiter, Go to Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner. You are unwell—don't go by yourself."

Elizabeth hesitated for a moment, her knees were trembling at this time, and she felt that she was powerless to go back to her aunt and aunt.So she called back the servant and told him to bring back his master and mistress as soon as possible.She was so out of breath when she spoke that it was almost inaudible.

When the servant had gone, she sat down, and seeing her so weak and disfigured that Darcy was not at ease to leave her, he said in a gentle and considerate tone: "Let me fetch your maid. Could you have something to refresh yourself? A glass of wine—I'll get you one—you seem very ill."

"No, thank you," she answered, trying to reassure herself. "I'm not sick, and I'm in good health. It's just that I've just had some terrible news from Longbourne, and it's all a bit disturbing to me."

(End of this chapter)