Sorry I took so long to update. I was writing later chapters and trying to work out in which direction to take this story.

~~CC~~

Lessons

Miss Bingley continued reading the list given to her by Lady Anne and was horrified. 'This cannot be right,' she exclaimed. 'At the lady's seminary I attended they made no mention of these things. They taught us accomplishments such as music, languages, penmanship, and polite conversation. All the things they said would please a husband.'

'They taught you how to catch a husband. They expected you to know all these things already,' Lady Anne pointed at the list, 'having learnt them as you were growing up.'

Since Caroline was shocked into speechlessness, Lady Anne continued her lesson. 'Gentlewomen learn these things from their mothers and simply by growing up on an estate, where this is the normal daily routine. I mean no offense, but your father would have been better advised to send you to a less prestigious school… one who educates the daughters of tradesmen who do not have the ingrained knowledge of gentlewomen.'

Caroline blushed at being reminded of her antecedents but if this was truly what ladies were expected to know, she had to admit that Lady Anne had a point.

'In addition, you would not have been sneered at, which gave you the wrong impression about the accepted behaviour for ladies. Yes, in the first circles there is jockeying for position and viscous gossip, but those ladies are exquisitely polite and much more subtle than you are. They have also learnt that courtesy costs nothing but is appreciated by everyone, particularly servants.'

'Courtesy towards servants? But they are beneath us,' gasped Caroline.

'If you are firm but fair, and of course courteous, you will receive much better service. Servants need to be supervised to ensure they do not cheat you, but I have found that I get more loyalty if I treat them well. Which saves me the trouble of having to constantly hire and train new staff.'

Miss Bingley considered what she had been told and, albeit reluctantly, had to agree with it. But she raised another point. 'I can understand that, now that you have explained, but why care for sick staff and tenants?'

'Because healthy people can work harder.'

The blunt answer shocked Caroline. 'That sounds exceedingly… mercenary.'

'Miss Bingley, as the mistress of Pemberley I spend a considerable amount of time and money on charity since that is expected of me. But the only way I can do that is if Pemberley is profitable. Therefore, checking the accounts, checking deliveries and ensuring that everyone on the estate is healthy contributes towards the estate's profitability.'

Lady Anne smiled encouragingly. 'There is another aspect you might wish to consider. If the staff or tenants are sick, their illness might spread to the family. I have no wish to be sick.'

She looked at Caroline's fashionable ensemble. 'Speaking of sick tenants, I suggest that you go and change into your oldest and most practical dress. We will leave shortly to look in on Mrs Wainwright.'

A completely dazed Caroline said, 'yes, Lady Anne.'

~~RF~~

While the adults were out and about on estate business, Georgiana, who had received permission to invite her friends, entertained Maria, Jane, and Elizabeth.

'I always wanted to have sisters,' sighed Georgiana, after she stopped laughing at a particularly hilarious anecdote related by Elizabeth about growing up with four sisters.

'It depends on the sister. I have been exceedingly fortunate to have Jane, but our youngest sisters do cause us embarrassment,' she admitted.

'Do you not have a governess?'

'I am afraid that our mother did not feel the need to hire one.'

The comment raised Georgiana's curiosity. 'How is it that you have such exquisite manners, but according to you, your sisters do not?' She blushed as she realised that she had criticised girls she had not even met.

'Jane and I spent much time with our aunt and uncle in London. Aunt Gardiner is the daughter of a gentleman and passed her education on to us. Most people, unless they know that our uncle is in trade, would never guess it since they are both intelligent, elegant, and sophisticated,' Elizabeth explained with a fond smile.

Jane remembered a story which her aunt had told. 'I have no wish to be presumptuous, but I believe that your mother might know our aunt. Her father was the parson at Lambton, which I believe is near your estate.'

'If your aunt was Miss Madeline Brooks, then I am certain that mother knows her. Although I do not remember her myself, mother always asked after her when she spoke to Mr Brooks.'

'That is the same lady. If you are here at Christmastime, the Gardiners always come for a visit.'

'If we do not return to Pemberley, I believe mother would be delighted to renew her acquaintance.'

Shortly afterwards, Georgiana invited Elizabeth to use the pianoforte, where Mrs Annesley provided some advice to help Elizabeth improve her fingering.

Eventually, Georgiana reluctantly farewelled her newfound friends, thinking it had been a wonderful idea to come to Hertfordshire. It was even worth putting up with Miss Bingley.

~~RF~~

That lady was having an educational day as they visited three of the Netherfield tenants. She learnt more about children, childhood illnesses, mould, and the danger of leaking roofs than she had ever wanted to know.

By the time they returned to the manor, Miss Bingley felt exhausted. Lady Anne took pity on her and allowed her a hot bath and a change of clothes before she scheduled a meeting with Mrs Nicholls, the housekeeper.

During this discussion Miss Bingley learnt the value of knowing the logistics of managing a household in the country. Suddenly the list Lady Anne had provided to her did not seem at all unrealistic.

By the end of it she was not at all certain that she was cut out to be the Mistress of an estate. At least not without considerably more training.

~~RF~~

That afternoon, as they all went upstairs to change for dinner, Lady Anne at last had an opportunity to speak privately with her son.

'Fitzwilliam, it has come to my attention that you were unbearably rude at the assembly.'

'Mother, Bingley is quite used to me and is not bothered if I say the wrong thing to him. He understands that it is not personal.'

'I am not talking about Mr Bingley. Although you were speaking to your friend when you insulted Miss Elizabeth Bennet.'

'I did not meet this Miss Bennet, although Bingley keeps praising Miss Jane Bennet. It seems that she is his latest angel.'

'You did not meet Miss Elizabeth since you refused to be introduced to her, and you went on to say that you would not give consequence to ladies who have been slighted by other men.'

'Oh, her. Yes, I remember Bingley pointing her out to me, but she was not handsome enough to tempt me.'

'Are you aware that she heard you?'

'What of it? She is of no consequence.'

Lady Anne throttled down her outrage as she replied, 'the young lady was not being slighted by anyone except you. Due to the war, there are few gentlemen in the area and the ladies each sit out one set to give the others a chance to dance.'

'If that was the set she was sitting out, she would not have been able to dance with me. Why are you even speaking about this?'

'Because you acted like an ill-mannered oaf, not the gentleman which you are supposed to be. You came here to help Bingley learn how to manage an estate and to settle into the area. But your actions showed your friend in a bad light since he is associated with you.'

Lady Anne crossed her arms across her chest. 'What are you going to do about it?'

'What do you expect me to do?'

'Apologise, of course. It is the least you can do after behaving so abominably.'

Darcy looked as if he would argue further. 'No, Fitzwilliam. I will not tolerate you behaving in such a fashion. Did not your father and I teach you good principles? You need to live by these principles, otherwise no one will respect you.'

He still looked mulish as he conceded, 'very well, I will apologise to the chit.'

'You will apologise to the young lady,' corrected Lady Anne as she stormed out of his room. She did not see Darcy rolling his eyes.

~~RF~~

Mr Darcy was not the only offspring who was being upbraided that afternoon. Jane and Elizabeth received their own tongue-lashing from their mother.

'Lizzy, why did you have to drag Jane away from Netherfield so early. She did not even have a chance to speak to Mr Bingley.'

'Mama, the gentlemen were out, inspecting the estate. No one knew when they would return. It would have been unbearably rude of us to stay longer,' Jane defended her sister.

'But how will you catch his attention if you cannot speak to him,' Mrs Bennet declared irritably. She was not the least concerned about propriety as long as Jane made a good marriage.

'Mr Bingley has only been here a few days and his lease is for a year. There will be plenty of time to speak to him,' Jane soothed.

'But the longer you leave it the more chance there is for him to offer for someone else,' the lady stubbornly refused to listen.

'If that happens, then he is the wrong man for me.'

'Jane, how can you say that. Mr Bingley has five thousand a year.'

'Mama, all will be well. I am sure of it.' Jane continued to soothe her mother until Mrs Hill needed the lady's attention.

Jane and Elizabeth fled to their room and changed for dinner.

~~RF~~

The following day when visiting hours had barely started, Mrs Bennet was pleased when Mrs Hill announced the party from Netherfield.

Once Miss Darcy and Mrs Annesley had been introduced and the greetings were over, Mrs Bennet had ordered tea for the guests. Darcy took this opportunity to approach Elizabeth.

'Miss Elizabeth, please allow me to tender my most humble apologies for my inadvertent insult at the assembly. I was in a foul mood due to a splitting headache. I was just trying to get my friend to stop urging me to dance, but I should not have said what I did, no matter the provocation. It was ill-done and also untrue. You are quite lovely, and I would have seen that, had I but looked at you properly. I hope that you will be generosity itself and forgive me.'

While Darcy was lying about the headache, now that he actually looked at the young lady, he realised that she was indeed quite lovely.

While Elizabeth was still smarting from his comment, propriety demanded that she accept his apology, particularly since by the chagrin and discomfort he displayed, she judged that he did not apologise very often. She therefore accepted his apology as sincerely as he gave it.

Lady Anne was pleased that Darcy had heeded her and chose a set near Mrs Bennet to become better acquainted with the lady. 'My daughter tells me that you are related to one of my acquaintances, Mrs Madeline Gardiner, although when I knew her, she was Miss Brooks.'

'Indeed, Lady Anne. It is most gratifying to hear you say that. Madeline grew up in Derbyshire before she married my brother.'

While the ladies talked, Mr Bingley sought out Jane's company, while Miss Darcy was happy to chat with Elizabeth.

Mrs Annesley found a seat near Mary and managed to involve her in a discussion about music.

Darcy, uncomfortable as always, stood by a window looking out, with his hands clasped behind his back, while the two youngest Bennet sisters sat together whispering and giggling.

Mrs Bennet was on her best behaviour due to the rank of her distinguished visitor, but she was not so preoccupied as not to notice Mr Bingley's interest in Jane. That realisation made her relax a little and toned down her usual shrillness.

By the time the guests departed, everyone except Darcy had had a pleasant time.

~~RF~~

~~CC~~

Reversed Fortune by Sydney Salier, Copyright © 2021