Volume 10, Pride and Prejudice and Resident Evil
Chapter 1. Welcome to the era of gentlemen and ladies (Part 1)
October 1792, the village of Longbourn, Hertfordshire, southeast England
Although France on the other side of the strait was already turbulent in the flames of the Revolution, Britain at this time remained the same as before.
Longbourn in Hertfordshire is a typical English countryside, only about twenty-five miles away from the capital London, which is a day's journey by horse-drawn carriage. No matter how you look at it, this is not a remote place, but it is far away from the bustle and hustle and bustle of the metropolis.
There is a squire named Bennet in the village of Longbourn, who owns an estate with an annual income of two thousand pounds, and is considered a prominent family here. In this family, Mr. Bennet, the father, is an upright gentleman. He has a wide range of interests, is humorous, and likes to use funny words to sarcastic people. As for his wife, Mrs. Bennet, apart from her extraordinary beauty, she really had no outstanding qualities to match her husband.
It is a pity that Mr. Bennet has reached a gray-haired age, but he still has no sons at home. Instead, he has five daughters-in-law. Therefore, as a typical young woman, Mrs. Bennet worries all day long about finding a few satisfactory husbands for her daughters.
However, although the Bennet sisters were famous in the countryside for their beauty, the Bennet family did not have much savings and could only prepare a dowry of one thousand pounds for each daughter. However, Mrs. Bennet, a country woman, was extremely vain and had a high vision. She was also ignorant and uneducated. She made many jokes and was quite ridiculed by her neighbors. Therefore, she was never able to find a son-in-law. As wished. Until the eldest daughter Jane. Bennet was already in her twenties and was considered an older leftover girl in this era. None of the five girls in the Bennet family were successfully married off.
Such an urgent situation makes Mrs. Bennet increasingly anxious. This includes not only her concern for her children as a mother, but also her family's financial worries: the manor property owned by the Bennet family in Longbourn Village, You can get a fixed income of two thousand pounds per year. In this era, the working class's annual salary is only thirty pounds, which is enough to afford a carriage, servants and cooks, allowing the family to live a pampered and wealthy life.
But the problem is that the land owned by the Bennet family is tied to military service. According to the law, it is limited to male inheritance. However, the Bennet family has no sons. With Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s current situation, At his age, it is estimated that he will never be able to grow back again.
Therefore, when Mr. Bennet was alive, the family's living situation was still very wealthy, but when he died, the property and house would be inherited by the men of distant relatives, while Mrs. Bennet and her five daughters Otherwise, they will be kicked out of this home by distant relatives in a reasonable and legal manner!
It was obvious that if Mr. Bennet could not find a good and wealthy husband for one of his daughters before his death, he would be ready for the unexpected. Then after Mr. Bennet's death, the remaining orphans and widows in the family will have no income, and will live on the streets until they are so destitute that they end up living on the streets.
——In the United Kingdom at the end of the 18th century, women did not yet have independent economic status and sources of income, and their property inheritance rights were also restricted by law. Marriage was their only means of obtaining life security. On the other hand, the class stratification of the entire country has long been solidified. The social status of different families is clearly hierarchical. Personal identity is attached to the family. Marriage must be of a well-matched family. Marriage beyond the next level is unthinkable. Therefore, the options for marriage between men and women are very limited. Mrs. Bennet was distressed all day long and even hysterical because of the five daughters who were waiting to be married. In fact, she was forced by the invisible sword hanging over her head at all times - the family property could only be inherited by men. The pressure to survive is right in front of you, and women who have no other options can only rack their brains. And within the narrow scope of the gentry class, it is particularly difficult to find so many satisfactory marriage partners for five daughters.
Such heavy pressure made Mrs. Bennet become more and more nagging, screaming and having a nervous breakdown every day. It also made Mr. Bennet unbearable, but he had no solution to this problem, so he had to passively escape and hide in the study all day long to read for peace.
As for the five daughters in the Bennet family, they also have their own characteristics - the eldest daughter Jane. Miss Bennet is the most beautiful among the five sisters, with a gentle and virtuous personality. She is undoubtedly a good person who likes to think the best of everyone and cannot see anyone's shortcomings and bad intentions.
Second daughter Elizabeth. Bennet is as beautiful as her eldest sister, but she has a cheerful, lively, sincere, and clear sense of love and hate, with a bit of cynical disdain and cleverness, as well as a bit of a strong woman temperament that transcends the times. She is also the most favored by Mr. Bennet.
The third daughter, Mary. Bennet is the most mediocre of the five daughters. Because she is not more beautiful than her elder sisters, she becomes a bookaholic, trying her best to achieve in literature and music, and seizes every opportunity to show off herself, but to tell the truth she His talents and knowledge are also very average, which can only make people dumbfounded.
Four girls, Kitty. Bennet and fifth daughter Lydia. Bennett is also a beauty in terms of appearance. Unfortunately, like most girls of this era, she is as empty-headed, ignorant, lazy and vain. She is also a uniformed control girl who fanatically pursues a handsome officer. She looked forward to the lively dances and drinking parties all day long, and abandoned her ladylike restraints to fool around and make fun of the "little freshmen" in red uniforms - although by the standards of British women in the 21st century, these two This lady is probably the most Conservative ladies, at least they did not smoke marijuana or take drugs, nor did they hold any sex parties. They even maintained their virginity until marriage... But in England at the end of the 18th century, they were already in the category of coquettishness and debauchery. .
In short, they are such a noisy family. If things continue like this, Jane and Elizabeth, among the five Bennet sisters, will each find a handsome and wealthy husband, and the heroine Elizabeth will also become the mistress of a beautiful large manor. And the youngest sister Lydia will be abducted by a handsome scumbag officer and run away with her. Her reputation will be ruined, her family will be offended, and her future will be very worrying...
——After seeing this, many readers should have probably understood that this is Jane, a famous British female writer in the early nineteenth century. Austen's immortal masterpiece has been popular all over the world for two hundred years, and has spawned more than ten film and television dramas, including the classic love story "Pride and Prejudice".
However, the atmosphere in Bennet's home today seems a little strange for some reason.
Mrs. Bennet, who had been noisy all day long, finally stopped holding up a bottle of smelling salts and using her high-octave high-pitched voice to scream about the pain in her nerves. Mary, the third daughter, who originally loved to express her talent and learning, no longer recited poems she had found somewhere, or played the piano tinklingly. And Kitty and Lydia, who were lively and active, did not run around the house, laughing and making noises, running around and stepping on the floor making bursts of thumping sounds... All seven members of the family were hiding. It was unnaturally quiet in their respective rooms.
And behind the above-mentioned abnormal phenomenon, there is an even more terrifying reason...
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In an upstairs bedroom, Elizabeth. Bennet was looking at his face in the mirror.
The girl in the mirror is extremely beautiful, with a complexion as fair as milk, clear and soft facial lines, and a high nose, like the most outstanding goddess statue in ancient Greece. What's even more rare is her pair of extremely charming smiling eyes, which seem to have a smile when she smiles. This kind of magical power, just looking at those smart and intelligent eyes, makes people feel extremely youthful, beautiful and wonderful - truly worthy of being simple. Austen's heroines!
What made her want to shout and scream even more was that the face of such a peerless beauty actually grew on her body!
So excited! Is this the benefit of time travel?
That's right, just a few hours ago, the soul of a female office worker in China in the 21st century mysteriously took over Jane's body. The body of the heroine of Austen's love novel - in fact, when she learned that this was England at the end of the 18th century and the plot world of "Pride and Prejudice", she was really, really surprised. She didn't expect that one day she would be able to It was such a wonderful and cheating experience.
It's amazing because as a graduate of the Department of Foreign Languages, she is also a reader who has read "Pride and Prejudice" and is very interested in Jane. The elegant rural customs, romantic love stories, and gorgeous classical dresses written by Austen certainly have beautiful longings and reveries in their hearts.
Speaking of cheating, what’s the matter with all the members of the Bennet family where the heroine lives having changed their souls? There is no trace of romance left!
What's even more deceiving is that after "visiting" the Bennet mansion just now, Miss Elizabeth, who is slightly mysophobic, is really frightened by the sanitary environment of this home: the walls are covered with brightly colored and exquisite wallpaper. , and there are oil paintings hung as decoration, which look decent, but why are the floors made of gray and rough logs? Not to mention painting the wooden floor, it wasn't even polished at all. It was as rough as sandpaper! There was obviously a lot of small garbage accumulated in the gaps between the wall and the floor, and even the body of a dead rat was found!
The most unacceptable thing for this former urban female white-collar worker was that outside the house was a bare dirt floor, not to mention cement, not even paved with stones, let alone planted with shrubs or lawns. On rainy days, it will obviously turn into a mud pond, and on sunny days, it exudes an unpleasant earthy smell.
Then, in order to be able to eat fresh meat at any time, the Bennet family raised chickens, ducks and geese directly in the yard, and even raised pigeons in the attic on the roof! The smell emitted by the horses was also stronger than expected. From the living room window, you can see them defecating on the stone steps at the door, and you can smell the obvious smell of livestock... This makes Elizabeth miss her small high-rise apartment extremely. Although it is only fifty square meters, it is The clean and bright marble living room and the bathroom with tiles are all things that this villa does not have today - the 18th century was really an era that could not afford to be hurt!
But there is nothing we can do about it. The so-called squires in the UK are actually local rich people in Chinese terms. And the manor that sounds very literary is actually the landlord's compound... What was the concept of the British countryside in the eighteenth century? To put it simply, dozens of households are scattered in a small area, and chicken and duck feces can be seen everywhere. As for the legendary fresh air in the countryside, Elizabeth dares to say what the hell it is? The first time she came here, she was only hit by the mixed smell of several different feces.
How about it? The romantic and charming petty bourgeoisie atmosphere in my mind suddenly disappeared without a trace, right?
Just as Elizabeth made an embarrassing expression in the mirror, her "eldest sister" Jane. Bennett reached out and pushed the door open and walked in - of course, this Miss Jane was not the original one, but came from the same place as Elizabeth today and was a colleague of the same company.
"...Hey! Dear! How does it feel to become Elizabeth? Do you feel like you have changed from an ugly duckling to a white swan?" Jane rubbed Elizabeth's face affectionately, "...I really envy you!" The child became the heroine of a world classic literary masterpiece..."
"...Isn't it the same for you? And in terms of appearance, you are obviously more beautiful now, okay?" Elizabeth rolled her eyes unladylikely. Indeed, when compared in the mirror, Jane, as her sister, looked... She obviously looks more like a fairy tale princess: her long hair is as golden as gold, dreamy and blurry under the sunlight. Her smooth and delicate skin is as white as milk, with no flaws visible. Her appearance is exquisite, with a perfect oval face and golden eyebrows. She is pure and full of femininity, and her long eyelashes decorate her two big blue eyes. It can simply make people lose their souls, and the two plump things shown from the breast-baring neckline can also attract the coveted eyes of men.
"...Yes, not only have I become several years younger, but I have also gained the beauty of a world-famous movie star. No matter what, I have made a profit!"
Miss Jian immediately shook off the trace of jealousy, holding her chest and said earnestly: "...Come! Sweetheart! To celebrate, we have transformed from an ugly duckling to a white swan, from an unwanted otaku to a love interest. The most beautiful beauties of the country, let’s exchange a hot French wet kiss!”
"...Don't, don't, don't! Sister, I have no intention of having sex with Ji right now!" Elizabeth quickly stretched out her hand to block the red lips that she had pouted and was about to come closer to her. She showed a shy and annoyed look, gave her a look and said: "... By the way, how are our three ‘sisters’ doing now?”
"...Sister?" Jane's expression became very strange, "...it's not like you don't know that they are old enough to be our grandmothers..."
"...But at least here, they are still teenage girls, and they are younger than us, and they are our sisters!" Elizabeth curled her lips helplessly, "...Okay! Suddenly they are fifty or sixty years younger. Years old, speaking of which, the three of them are the most profitable..."