12 Elizabeth and Darcy 
　  
　　One morning，about a week after Bingley had proposed to Jane，a carriage arrived outside Longbourn House． Elizabeth，Kitty and their mother were in the sitting-room， when suddenly the door was thrown open，and their visitor entered．It was Lady Catherine de Bourgh． 
　　They were all extremely astonished．Mrs Bennet，flattered to have such an important visitor，received her with great polite- ness．After sitting for a moment in silence，Lady Catherine said very stiffly to Elizabeth，‘I hope you are well，Miss Bennet． That lady，I suppose，is your mother．And that，I suppose，is one of your sisters．’ 
　　Elizabeth replied that she was correct in thinking so．Lady Catherine rose and said，‘I would like to have a walk in your garden，Miss Bennet，if you would accompany me．’ 
　　‘Go，my dear，’cried Mrs Bennet．‘Show her ladyship the different walks．I'm sure she will like them．’ 
　　As they passed through the hall，Lady Catherine opened the doors into the different rooms，looked in，and declared them to be reasonable-looking rooms．They went into the garden in si- lence．Elizabeth was determined to make no effort at conversa- tion with a woman who was being more than usually rude and disagreeable． 
　　Lady Catherine began speaking when she was sure they were alone．‘You must know，Miss Bennet，why I have come．’ 
　　Elizabeth looked surprised．Indeed，you are mistaken， madam．I have no idea why you are honouring us with a visit．’ 
　　‘Miss Bennet，’replied her ladyship angrily，‘however in- sincere you may be，you shall not find me so．A most alarming report reached me two days ago．I was told that you，Miss Elizabeth Bennet，would soon be engaged to my nephew，my own nephew，Mr Darcy．Although I knew it must be a shame- ful lie，and I would not offend him by supposing it to be possi- ble，I decided at once to come here， to let you know my feelings．’ 
　　‘If you believed it to be impossible，’said Elizabeth，with disdain，‘I wonder why your ladyship took the trouble of com- ing so far．’ 
　　‘I came to insist on having this report contradicted．Tell me，is it true？’ 
　　‘Your ladyship may ask questions which I shall not choose to answer．’ 
　　‘This is too much！Miss Bennet，I insist on an answer．Has my nephew made you an offer of marriage？’ 
　　‘Your ladyship has declared it to be impossible．’ 
　　‘It ought to be impossible，but your skilful charms may have made him forget，in a moment of foolishness，what he owes to himself and his family．You must tell me．I am almost his nearest relation，and I have a right to know his plans．’ 
　　‘But you have no right to know mine．’ 
　　‘Let me speak plainly．This marriage，which you dare to hope for，can never take place，because Mr Darcy is engaged to my daughter．His mother and I planned their marriage，when they were still children．They are an ideal couple，both from respectable，honourable，ancient families，with an excellent for- tune on both sides．What can possibly divide them？The des- perate ambitions of a young woman without family，connec- tions or fortune？It cannot be！And I warn you，Miss Bennet，if you marry him，do not expect to be noticed by his family or friends．Your name will never even be mentioned by any of us． 
　　‘These are heavy misfortunes，but the wife of Mr Darcy must necessarily be so happy that she could not regret her mar- riage.  
　　‘Obstinate girl！Tell me，are you engaged to him？’ 
　　Elizabeth could not avoid saying，after a moment's thought， ‘I am not．’ 
　　Lady Catherine seemed pleased．‘And will you promise me never to enter into such an engagement？’ 
　　‘I will make no such promise．You have totally misunder- stood my character if you think I can be persuaded by such threats．I do not know whether your nephew would approve of your interference in his life，but you certainly have no right to interfere in mine．’ 
　　‘To all the objections I have mentioned，I add one more．I am aware of your younger sister's elopement．Is such a girl to be my nephew's sister-in-law，and bring shame on the ancient name of Darcy？’ 
　　‘You can now have nothing more to say，’Elizabeth said coldly.‘You have insulted me in every possible way.’She rose，and started walking back to the house．Lady Catherine also rose，and walked with her.  
　　‘Unfeeling，selfish girl！So you are determined to have him？’ 
　　‘I have not said that. I am only determined to do what in my opinion will bring me happiness，without reference to you.’ 
　　‘Do not imagine，Miss Bennet，that you will ever achieve your ambition.’When they arrived at her carriage，she added， ‘I send no compliments to your mother．You do not deserve such politeness. I am most seriously displeased.’ 
　　Elizabeth did not answer，and entered the house，while Lady Catherine drove away in her carriage．She had to tell a little lie to her mother to explain Lady Catherine's unexpected visit and speedy departure，and then she shut herself in her room to consider what it all meant．Perhaps the Collinses had imagined，after the news of Jane's engagement to Bingley，that Darcy might marry her.They must have told Lady Catherine， who had made a special journey to Longbourn in order to break off this supposed engagement．Elizabeth began to feel depressed. If，as seemed likely，Lady Catherine now went straight to London to talk to her nephew，she might easily convince him of the inferiority of Elizabeth's social position． He would probably feel that his aunt's objections，which to Elizabeth appeared laughably weak，contained much common sense．In that case he might make up his mind not to marry her under any circumstances，and to keep away from Longbourn al- together． 
　　The next morning Mr Bennet called Elizabeth into the li- brary．In his hand he had a letter，which he had just received． 
　　‘Lizzy，I did not know I had two daughters about to be married．I congratulate you on a very important conquest．’ 
　　Elizabeth blushed，thinking that Darcy himself had written． 
　　‘You seem to know what I mean，but I think even you will not be able to guess your admirer's name．This letter is from Mr Collins，and he first congratulates me on Jane's engage- ment，of which the gossiping Lucases have told him．Apparent- ly the Lucases also think that my daughter Elizabeth might soon be marrying one of the great gentlemen in the country— Mr Darcy，in fact！Now，Lizzy，I think I have surprised you． Could he have chosen anyone we know as a more unlikely hus- band for you？Mr Darcy，who never praises，only criticizes women，and who probably never looked at you in his life！ What an admirable choice！’ 
　　Elizabeth tried to share her father's amusement，but had never appreciated his humour so little． 
　　‘He goes on to say that when he dutifully gave this news to her ladyship，she made many objections，and stated that she would never agree to the marriage．He kindly gives us this in- formation，he says，to prevent his cousin Elizabeth and her ad- mirer from rushing into a marriage not approved by their fami- lies．Well，Lizzy！What do you think of that？I do enjoy Mr Collins’letters．And I am delighted the Lucases thought of Mr Darcy．His perfect indifference to you，and your strong dislike of him，make it so extremely amusing．Don't you agree？’ 
　　Elizabeth had great difficulty in pretending to be amused by the letter．It was necessary to laugh，when she would rather have cried．Her father had most cruelly hurt her by speaking of Darcy’ s indifference，and she began to wonder whether per- haps，instead of his seeing too little，she might have imagined too much． 
　　In spite of Elizabeth's doubts，however，Mr Darcy returned to Netherfield a few days later，and he and Mr Bingley came to Longbourn soon afterwards．Bingley suggested they should all go for a walk，and while he and Jane concentrated on their own private conversation，some distance away，Elizabeth found her- self alone with Mr Darcy． 
　　Taking a deep breath，she said bravely，‘Mr Darcy，I can no longer stop myself from thanking you for your extraordinary kindness to my poor sister．If the rest of my family knew of it， they would add their grateful thanks to mine．’ 
　　‘I had hoped to keep it a secret，’he answered，‘but if you must thank me，let it be for yourself alone．I shall not attempt to deny that wishing to give happiness to you was one of my reasons for helping your sister．But your family owe me noth- ing．Much as I respect them，I believe I thought only of you．’ 
　　Elizabeth was too embarrassed to say a word．After a short pause he added，‘You are too generous to play with my feelings. If you still feel as you did last April，tell me so at once. My affections and wishes are unchanged，but one word from you will prevent me from ever mentioning them again．’ 
　　Elizabeth forced herself to speak，and immediately，though hesitatingly，gave him to understand that her feelings had changed so considerably since that time that she was now grateful and pleased to accept his proposal．When Darcy heard this，he was probably happier than he had ever been before，and he expressed himself as warmly and sensibly as a man violently in love can． 
　　They walked on，without noticing in which direction．There was so much to be thought，and felt，and said．She soon learnt that his aunt had indeed seen him in London，after her disap- pointing visit to Longbourn．But unluckily for her ladyship，her critical comments and description of her conversation with Elizabeth produced exactly the opposite result to what she had intended． 
　　‘It taught me to hope，’Darcy explained，‘as I had hardly ever allowed myself to hope before．I knew that if you had de- cided never to marry me，you would have admitted it to Lady Catherine openly and honestly．’ 
　　Elizabeth blushed and laughed as she replied，‘Yes，you have experienced my honesty.After scolding you so rudely to your face，I was obviously quite capable of criticizing you to all your relations. ’ 
　　‘I certainly deserved all your accusations. As an only son，I was brought up to be selfish and proud，and to consider myself superior to others．I would have continued like that if you， dearest，loveliest Elizabeth，had not taught me a lesson．I owe you a great deal for that．’ 
　　‘And I，how soon I thought better of you，when I read the letter you sent me！When I realized your description of events must be true，all my prejudices against you were removed！’ 
　　They talked of their unexpected meeting at Pemberley， which had renewed their interest in each other，of Georgiana Darcy's immediate liking for Elizabeth，and of the engagement between Jane and Bingley． 
　　‘I guessed，’smiled Elizabeth，‘that you had given your permission for their marriage. ’ 
　　‘My permission！No！But I must admit I confessed to Bingley that I had made a mistake in supposing that your sister was indifferent to him，and I encouraged him to return to Netherfield to see if she still cared for him．I am delighted to hear of their engagement．He will be one of the happiest men in the world when he marries your sister．Only I shall be happier than him，when I am fortunate enough to marry you. 
　　Their conversation continued in this way，until they sudden- ly became aware of the lateness of the hour. They returned to Longbourn House，where they separated. 
　　That evening Elizabeth could not help telling Jane her news． However，she almost regretted doing so，when she saw the astonishment on Jane's face．At first Jane could not believe that her sister was engaged to a man she had so disliked，and she wondered if Elizabeth could really be happy with him．But when she had been convinced by Elizabeth's explanations and promises，she was delighted，and congratulated her sister with all her heart． 
　　The next day Mr Darcy came to ask Mr Bennet officially for Elizabeth's hand in marriage．Mr Bennet also had to be per- suaded that his favourite daughter could really be happy with such a proud，disdainful man．Only Mrs Bennet did not need to be convinced，although she was，most unusually，speechless with shock when she heard the news．When she recovered a little，she cried，‘My sweetest Lizzy！How rich you will be！ What jewels，what carriages you will have！Mr Darcy！Such a charming man！So handsome！So tall！I am so sorry I dis- liked him before．Ten thousand a year！Oh，my dear Lizzy！’ 
　　During the weeks of her engagement，Elizabeth was glad to see that all her family were beginning to appreciate Mr Darcy's good qualities．Determined to protect him from her mother's over-familiarity，she was relieved to see that Mrs Bennet res- pected her future son-in-law too much to say more than a few words to him．In spite of this，Elizabeth looked happily forward to the time when she and Darcy would leave Longbourn and move to all the comfort and elegance of their own home at Pemberley. 
　　Mrs Bennet was a happy mother indeed on the day when she got rid of her two most deserving daughters．It may be guessed with what delighted pride she afterwards visited Mrs Bingley and talked of Mrs Darcy．Mr Bennet missed his second daugh- ter very much，and greatly enjoyed going to Pemberley to visit her. 
　　Mr Bingley and Jane stayed only a year at Netherfield，be- fore buying a large house in the north，only fifty kilometres from Pemberley. In this way，the two sisters were permitted their dearest wish，and were able to visit each other frequently． 
　　Mary was the only sister who remained at home，as Kitty spent most of her time with her two elder sisters，which greatly improved her behaviour，character and intelligence． 
　　Lydia and Wickham were always moving from one place to another in search of cheap rooms，and always spending more than they should．His affection for her soon became indiffer- ence，while hers for him lasted a little longer. They were not too proud to ask Lydia's sisters for financial help during every crisis，and Elizabeth and Jane both sent them regular gifts of money to pay their bills． 
　　Caroline Bingley was deeply offended by Darcy's marriage， but she did not show her bitterness，and was always extremely polite to Elizabeth. Georgiana Darcy，on the other hand，became greatly attached to Elizabeth，and had the highest opinion of her．Lady Catherine，however，was so rude about Elizabeth to her nephew that he broke off communication completely with her for a time．In the end Elizabeth persuaded him to forgive his aunt，who eventually fongot her pride enough to visit them at Pemberley． 
There remained a close relationship between the Darcys and the Gardiners．Darcy and Elizabeth were both warmly grateful to the two people who，by inviting her to Derbyshire and tak- ing her to visit Pemberley，had brought them together．  
12 伊丽莎白和达西 
　  
　　一天上午，大约在彬格莱向简求婚后一周，一辆马车来到了浪搏恩府外。伊丽莎白、吉蒂和母亲正在起居室呆着，突然门被撞开了，客人闯了进来。是凯瑟琳·德·包尔夫人。 
　　她们都极端惊讶。班纳特太太因为来了这样重要的客人而受宠若惊，赶紧非常客气地接待她。干坐了一会儿之后，凯瑟琳夫人很傲气地对伊丽莎白说：“我希望你还好，班纳特小姐。那位夫人我想是你母亲吧。那位我想是你妹妹吧。” 
　　伊丽莎白回答说她说得对。凯瑟琳夫人站起来说：“班纳特小姐，如果你愿意陪我，我想到你家花园走走。” 
　　“去呀，亲爱的，”班纳特太太嚷道，“让夫人看看不同的小路。我想她肯定会喜欢的。” 
　　她们穿过大厅时，凯瑟琳夫人打开各个房间的门，往里看，称这些房间还算可以。她们沉默不语地走进花园。伊丽莎白觉得这个女人比往常更无礼傲慢，令人讨厌，于是拿定主意，不先开口跟她说话。 
　　凯瑟琳夫人确信没有别人以后，便开始说话。“班纳特小姐，你一定知道我的来意。” 
　　伊丽莎白很奇怪。“夫人，您肯定弄错了。我根本不知道您为什么肯赏脸光临。” 
　　“班纳特小姐，”夫人怒气冲冲地说，“不管你有多么虚情假意，我可不是那种人。两天前听到的消息让我非常震惊。我听说，你，伊丽莎白·班纳特小姐，不久将与我的外甥，我的亲外甥，达西先生订婚。虽然我知道这是无稽之谈，虽然我把这事当真也伤不了达西的感情，但我还是决定马上到这里来，让你知道我的想法。” 
　　“如果您认为那是不可能的，”伊丽莎白说道，带点鄙视，“我不明白夫人为什么要自找麻烦，跑这么远过来？” 
　　“我到这里是要你把这条消息更正过来。告诉我，是真的吗？” 
　　“您老尽可以问，但我可以拒绝回答。” 
　　“太过分了！班纳特小姐，你必须回答。我外甥向你求婚了没有？” 
　　“您老刚说过那是不可能的。” 
　　“应该是不可能的，但是你蛊惑人心的手段高强，可能使他一时头脑发昏，忘记了自己的身份和门第。你必须告诉我。我几乎是他的至亲，我有权知道他的打算。” 
　　“但是您无权知道我的打算。” 
　　“我说得明白点。你竟然敢指望这桩婚事，可是它永远成不了，因为达西和我的女儿订婚了。他们小的时候，他母亲和我就帮他们订好了。他们俩门当户对，是天生的一对。他们都出身于名门望族，家史悠久，家财万贯。有什么可能把他们拆开？就靠一个没有门第、没有亲戚、没有家产的年轻女子的胆大妄为？根本不可能！班纳特小姐，我警告你，如果你跟他结婚，他的家庭和朋友绝不会理你！我们大家永远不会提你的名字！” 
　　“这真是天大的不幸，但是达西先生的妻子一定会非常幸福，无法对自己的婚姻感到后悔。” 
　　“犟丫头！告诉我，你们订婚了没有？” 
　　伊丽莎白无法再避而不答了，思索了一会儿，说：“没有。” 
　　凯瑟琳夫人似乎很高兴。“你能不能保证决不和他订婚？” 
　　“我不会作这样的保证。如果您认为我会屈服于威胁的话，那您就完全看错我的性格了。我不知道您外甥是否会同意您干涉他的生活，但是您绝对没有权力干涉我的生活。” 
　　“除了我刚提到的反对意见，我再加上一条。我知道你妹妹私奔的事。这样一个臭丫头也配做我外甥的小姨子，给达西这个古老的家族抹黑吗？” 
　　“您现在该讲完了，”伊丽莎白冷冷地说。“您也把我侮辱够了。”她站起身，开始往回走。凯瑟琳夫人也起身，跟着她。 
　　“冷酷、自私的丫头！你决心要嫁给他？” 
　　“我没说过。我只决心做那些我认为能给我带来幸福的事，我不管您怎么想。” 
　　“班纳特小姐，不要梦想你的痴心妄想会实现。”她们来到马车旁时，她又补充了几句，“我不向你母亲问候了，你们都不识抬举。我心情极不痛快。” 
　　伊丽莎白没有回答，进了屋子，凯瑟琳夫人坐上马车，驱车走了。她不得不向母亲撒了个小谎，来解释凯瑟琳夫人不期而至和匆匆离去的原因，然后，她就进了自己的房间，关上门，考虑这一切的由来。也许柯林斯夫妇听到简与彬格莱订婚的消息后，想象着达西可能跟她结婚。他们一定告诉了凯瑟琳夫人，她就专程来到浪搏恩，以便解除这一假想中的婚约。伊丽莎白开始感到沮丧。如果凯瑟琳夫人现在直接到伦敦去见她的外甥（这很可能），她可以轻易地说服他伊丽莎白的社会地位多么低下。他就可能会觉得姨妈的反对意见是很有道理的，当然这种反对伊丽莎白认为十分可笑，不通情理，毫无说服力。倘若如此，他可能会下定决心无论如何不跟她结婚，从此不再到浪搏恩来。 
　　第二天早上，班纳特先生把伊丽莎白叫进了书房。他手里拿了封信，是刚刚收到的。 
　　“丽萃，我还不知道我有两个女儿要结婚了。我祝贺你情场得意。” 
　　伊丽莎白羞红了脸，认为是达西本人写的信。 
　　“你好像知道我的意思，可是，我觉得连你都猜不出这位爱慕者姓甚名谁。这封信是柯林斯先生来的，他先是为简的订婚恭喜我，是爱说闲话的卢卡斯夫妇告诉他的。很显然，卢卡斯夫妇还认为我的女儿伊丽莎白不久可能就会跟大贵之人结婚——实际上，就是达西先生！丽萃，我想我让你吃了一惊吧。在我们认识的人当中，还有谁是比他更不可能做你丈夫的？这个达西先生，从来不赞美女人，只知道批评，也许他一辈子连看都没看过你一眼！好个再恰当不过的人选！” 
　　伊丽莎白尽量给父亲的逗乐子捧场，可是，她从来没有像今天那样不喜欢父亲的幽默。 
　　“他接着说，他责无旁贷地把这个消息告诉夫人以后，她极力反对，宣称她决不答应这门婚事。他说，他好心好意地把这个消息告诉我们，是为了防止表妹伊丽莎白和她的爱慕者未经双方家庭同意就草率成婚。喂，丽萃！你觉得怎么样？我觉得柯林斯先生的信真有意思。卢卡斯夫妇竟然想到了达西，可真新鲜。他对你漠不关心，你对他讨厌得要死，这样不就太有趣了吗？你难道不觉得吗？” 
　　伊丽莎白要装出对信感到有趣实在太难了。该笑的时候，她倒宁愿哭。她父亲说达西对她漠不关心，这大大伤害了她的感情。她开始怀疑，也许不是父亲太没眼力，而是自己凭空想象太多。 
　　尽管伊丽莎白心里怀疑，几天后达西先生还是回到了尼日斐，他和彬格莱先生没多久就来到了浪搏恩。彬格莱提议他们都应出来散散步。在稍远的地方，彬格莱和简在说悄悄话，这时，伊丽莎白发现自己一个人和达西留在了一起。 
　　她深深吸了一口气，鼓起勇气说：“达西先生，我再也忍不住了，我要感谢你的深情厚意，是你救了我可怜的妹妹。如果我家里面别人知道的话，他们也会对你感激不尽的。” 
　　“我本希望保密，”他回答说，“但是，如果你要谢我的话，只消表明这是你一个人的意思。我不想否认，希望让你得到幸福是我帮你妹妹的原因之一。但你的家庭不欠我任何东西。我虽然尊重他们，可是我心里只想到你一个人。” 
　　伊丽莎白窘得说不出一句话来。过了片刻，只听他又说：“你是个爽快人，不会玩弄我的感情。如果你的感觉和四月份一样，请马上告诉我。我对你的初衷丝毫未变，但只要你说一句话，我以后决不再提。” 
　　伊丽莎白不得不开口说话了。虽然说得吞吞吐吐的，但她马上告诉他，从那时到现在，她的感情起了很大变化，她现在以愉快和激动的心情接受他的盛情美意。这一回答简直使达西感到前所未有的快乐，他像狂恋者一样，无限热烈而又理智地向她倾诉衷曲。 
　　他们继续往前走，也不管朝着什么方向。他们有多少心事要想，多少感觉要寻找，多少话要说呀。她一会儿就得知他姨妈确实在伦敦见到了他，那是在她来访浪搏恩失望而归之后。不幸的是，夫人的批评和她对那次谈话的描述产生了与她本意恰恰相反的效果。 
　　“这件事教会了我奢望，”达西解释说，“因为我以前从来没有过奢望。我知道，如果你已决定永不嫁给我，你会公开诚实地向凯瑟琳夫人承认的。” 
　　伊丽莎白羞红了脸，一面笑，一面说：“是的，你知道我为人直爽。我既然能够当你的面深恶痛绝地骂你，自然也会在任何亲戚面前批评你。” 
　　“你骂我的话，都是我罪有应得。我是个独生子，从小就自私、高傲，认为自己高人一等。最最亲爱的伊丽莎白，要不是你教训了我一次，我可能到现在还是如此。这都多亏了你。” 
　　“我也是，我读了你给我的信之后，很快就对你改变了看法。当我认识到你对事件的描述真实可信时，我对你的一切偏见都烟消云散了！” 
　　他们谈到了在彭伯里的不期而遇，那重新燃起了彼此的旧情；谈到了乔治安娜·达西一见面就喜欢上了伊丽莎白；谈到了简和彬格莱的订婚。 
　　伊丽莎白微笑着说：“我猜，你已经准许他们结婚了。” 
　　“我准许了？不！不过，我得承认，我向彬格莱说明了你姐姐并非对他毫不在意，是我犯了一个估计错误，我并且鼓励他返回尼日斐看你姐姐是否还爱他。听到他们订婚的消息真使我感到喜悦。他娶了你的姐姐，将成为世界上最幸福的男人之一。只有我会比他更幸福，因为我有幸跟你结婚。” 
　　他们就这样谈了下去，突然发现天色已晚。他们回到浪搏恩府，在那里分了手。 
　　那天晚上，伊丽莎白忍不住将这一消息告诉了简。可是，当她看到简脸上的惊讶神色时，她差一点后悔告诉她。一开始，简难以相信妹妹会和一个她这样讨厌的人订婚，她怀疑伊丽莎白跟他是否会真正幸福。可是，当伊丽莎白向她解释和许诺之后，她便相信了，于是十分高兴，全心全意地向妹妹表示祝贺。 
　　第二天，达西先生正式来请班纳特先生恩准他同伊丽莎白结婚。班纳特先生还得经劝说才相信他最宠爱的女儿同这样傲慢、爱瞧不起人的人结婚会获得真正的幸福。只有班纳特太太不需要做什么思想工作，不过她听到这个消息后也惊得说不出一句话来，这种反应可是很少见。她稍微醒悟过来一点，便叫道：“我的心肝宝贝！你就要大富大贵了！你会有多少珠宝、多少马车呀！达西先生！多么可爱的丈夫！那么精神！那么魁梧！请原谅我以前那么讨厌他。每年收入一万英镑！噢，亲爱的丽萃！” 
　　在她订婚的那一周，伊丽莎白高兴地看到全家人都开始喜欢达西先生的优秀品质。她决心护着达西，不让妈妈和他过分随便，但她看到班纳特太太对未来的女婿极其敬畏，简直不敢跟他多说话，便松了口气。尽管如此，伊丽莎白还是幸福地期待着有一天她和达西离开浪搏恩，搬进彭伯里自己舒适、幽雅的家园。 
　　班纳特太太打发掉两个最争气的女儿那天，感到无比幸福。可以想象，后来她去探访彬格莱太太及谈到达西太太时，会是多么高兴与自豪。班纳特先生十分想念二女儿，所以非常喜欢到彭伯里去探访她。 
　　彬格莱先生和简在尼日斐只呆了一年，然后就在北方买了座大宅子，离彭伯里只有50公里。这样，姐妹二人就可以经常往来，实现了最珍视的愿望。 
　　家里就剩下玛丽一个女儿，因为吉蒂大部分时间都和两位大姐住在一起，耳濡目染，她的言谈举止、品行和思想都大有长进。 
　　丽迪亚和韦翰总是搬来搬去，找便宜的房子住，总是入不敷出。他对妻子的爱很快变成了冷漠，她对丈夫的感情则持续得稍微长一点。每逢危机、伸手向丽迪亚的姐姐们要钱时，他们便显得不那么自傲了。伊丽莎白和简还定期给他们寄点私房钱帮他们付帐。 
　　卡罗琳·彬格莱由于达西结婚而受到很大伤害，但她并没有显露心中的苦楚，对伊丽莎白也总是极为客气。另一方面，乔治安娜·达西对伊丽莎白极为依恋，对她也评价最高。但是，凯瑟琳夫人在外甥面前讲伊丽莎白的话如此无礼，达西有段时间与她断绝了往来。最后，伊丽莎白说服他原谅姨妈，后来，他姨妈竟也忘掉傲慢，到彭伯里拜访他们。 
　　达西夫妇和嘉丁纳夫妇仍然关系密切。
达西和伊丽莎白衷心感激这两个人，正是他们两个邀请伊丽莎白到德比郡去，并带她去参观彭伯里，最终使他们喜结良缘。 
　　　    


 