It was the second week in May in which the three young ladies set out together from Gracechurch-street for the town of ---- in Hertfordshire; and, as they drew near the appointed inn where Mr. Bennet's carriage was to meet them, they quickly perceived, in token of the coachman's punctuality, both Kitty and Lydia looking out of a dining room upstairs. These two girls had been above an hour in the place, happily employed in visiting an opposite milliner, watching the sentinel on guard, and dressing a sallad and cucumber.
After welcoming their sisters, they triumphantly displayed a table set out with such cold meat as an inn larder usually affords, exclaiming, "Is not this nice? is not this an agreeable surprise?"
"And we mean to treat you all," added Lydia; "but you must lend us the money, for we have just spent ours at the shop out there." Then shewing her purchases: "Look here, I have bought this bonnet. I do not think it is very pretty; but I thought I might as well buy it as not. I shall pull it to pieces as soon as I get home, and see if I can make it up any better."
And when her sisters abused it as ugly, she added, with perfect unconcern, "Oh! but there were two or three much uglier in the shop; and when I have bought some prettier coloured satin to trim it with fresh, I think it will be very tolerable. Besides, it will not much signify what one wears this summer after the ----shire have left Meryton, and they are going in a fortnight."
"Are they indeed?" cried Elizabeth, with the greatest satisfaction.
"They are going to be encamped near Brighton; and I do so want papa to take us all there for the summer! It would be such a delicious scheme, and I dare say would hardly cost any thing at all. Mamma would like to go too, of all things! Only think what a miserable summer else we shall have!"
"Yes," thought Elizabeth, "that would be a delightful scheme, indeed, and completely do for us at once. Good Heaven! Brighton, and a whole campful of soldiers, to us, who have been overset already by one poor regiment of militia, and the monthly balls of Meryton."
"Now I have got some news for you," said Lydia, as they sat down to table. "What do you think? It is excellent news, capital news, and about a certain person that we all like."
Jane and Elizabeth looked at each other, and the waiter was told that he need not stay. Lydia laughed, and said, "Aye, that is just like your formality and discretion. You thought the waiter must not hear, as if he cared! I dare say he often hears worse things said than I am going to say. But he is an ugly fellow! I am glad he is gone. I never saw such a long chin in my life. Well, but now for my news: it is about dear Wickham; too good for the waiter, is not it? There is no danger of Wickham's marrying Mary King. There's for you! She is gone down to her uncle at Liverpool; gone to stay. Wickham is safe."
"And Mary King is safe!" added Elizabeth; "safe from a connection imprudent as to fortune."
"She is a great fool for going away, if she liked him."
"But I hope there is no strong attachment on either side," said Jane.
"I am sure there is not on his. I will answer for it he never cared three straws about her. Who could about such a nasty little freckled thing?"
Elizabeth was shocked to think that, however incapable of such coarseness of expression herself, the coarseness of the sentiment was little other than her own breast had formerly harboured and fancied liberal!
As soon as all had ate, and the elder ones paid, the carriage was ordered; and, after some contrivance, the whole party, with all their boxes, workbags, and parcels, and the unwelcome addition of Kitty's and Lydia's purchases, were seated in it.
"How nicely we are crammed in!" cried Lydia. "I am glad I bought my bonnet, if it is only for the fun of having another bandbox! Well, now let us be quite comfortable and snug, and talk and laugh all the way home. And in the first place, let us hear what has happened to you all, since you went away. Have you seen any pleasant men? Have you had any flirting? I was in great hopes that one of you would have got a husband before you came back. Jane will be quite an old maid soon, I declare. She is almost three and twenty! Lord, how ashamed I should be of not being married before three and twenty! My aunt Philips wants you so to get husbands, you can't think. She says Lizzy had better have taken Mr. Collins; but I do not think there would have been any fun in it. Lord! how I should like to be married before any of you; and then I would chaperon you about to all the balls. Dear me! we had such a good piece of fun the other day at Colonel Foster's. Kitty and me were to spend the day there, and Mrs. Forster promised to have a little dance in the evening (by the bye, Mrs. Forster and me are such friends!); and so she asked the two Harringtons to come, but Harriet was ill, and so Pen was forced to come by herself; and then, what do you think we did? We dressed up Chamberlayne in woman's clothes, on purpose to pass for a lady, -- only think what fun! Not a soul knew of it but Col. and Mrs. Forster, and Kitty and me, except my aunt, for we were forced to borrow one of her gowns; and you cannot imagine how well he looked! When Denny, and Wickham, and Pratt, and two or three more of the men came in, they did not know him in the least. Lord! how I laughed! and so did Mrs. Forster. I thought I should have died. And that made the men suspect something, and then they soon found out what was the matter."
With such kind of histories of their parties and good jokes did Lydia, assisted by Kitty's hints and additions, endeavour to amuse her companions all the way to Longbourn. Elizabeth listened as little as she could, but there was no escaping the frequent mention of Wickham's name.
Their reception at home was most kind. Mrs. Bennet rejoiced to see Jane in undiminished beauty; and more than once during dinner did Mr. Bennet say voluntarily to Elizabeth,
"I am glad you are come back, Lizzy."
Their party in the dining-room was large, for almost all the Lucases came to meet Maria and hear the news: and various were the subjects which occupied them. Lady Lucas was enquiring of Maria, across the table, after the welfare and poultry of her eldest daughter; Mrs. Bennet was doubly engaged, on one hand collecting an account of the present fashions from Jane, who sat some way below her, and on the other, retailing them all to the younger Miss Lucases; and Lydia, in a voice rather louder than any other person's, was enumerating the various pleasures of the morning to any body who would hear her.
"Oh! Mary," said she, "I wish you had gone with us, for we had such fun! as we went along, Kitty and me drew up all the blinds, and pretended there was nobody in the coach; and I should have gone so all the way, if Kitty had not been sick; and when we got to the George, I do think we behaved very handsomely, for we treated the other three with the nicest cold luncheon in the world, and if you would have gone, we would have treated you too. And then when we came away it was such fun! I thought we never should have got into the coach. I was ready to die of laughter. And then we were so merry all the way home! we talked and laughed so loud, that any body might have heard us ten miles off!"
To this, Mary very gravely replied, "Far be it from me, my dear sister, to depreciate such pleasures. They would doubtless be congenial with the generality of female minds. But I confess they would have no charms for me. I should infinitely prefer a book."
But of this answer Lydia heard not a word. She seldom listened to any body for more than half a minute, and never attended to Mary at all.
In the afternoon Lydia was urgent with the rest of the girls to walk to Meryton, and see how every body went on; but Elizabeth steadily opposed the scheme. It should not be said, that the Miss Bennets could not be at home half a day before they were in pursuit of the officers. There was another reason too, for her opposition. She dreaded seeing Wickham again, and was resolved to avoid it as long as possible. The comfort to her of the regiment's approaching removal was indeed beyond expression. In a fortnight they were to go, and once gone, she hoped there could be nothing more to plague her on his account.
She had not been many hours at home, before she found that the Brighton scheme, of which Lydia had given them a hint at the inn, was under frequent discussion between her parents. Elizabeth saw directly that her father had not the smallest intention of yielding; but his answers were at the same time so vague and equivocal, that her mother, though often disheartened, had never yet despaired of succeeding at last.
--正文
五月的第二周，本内特家的三个姑娘约好仁慈教堂街出发，一起去赫特福德的镇子上玩。本内特老爷的马车约好在一个旅馆接她们，她们刚到地儿，就发现凯蒂和莉迪亚从楼上的客厅探出头来看她们，这意味着马车准点到了。这两个姑娘已经在楼上坐了一小时了，她们已经开心地逛过对面一家帽子店，看了会站岗的哨兵，又拌了个黄瓜色拉。
欢迎了几位姐姐之后，她们得意洋洋地摆出一桌菜来，都是些旅馆常见的凉肉，还大声说：“是不是很棒？很意外吧？”
“我们是请你们所有人吃，”莉迪亚补充说，“但是你们得借我们点钱，我们的钱刚才都在店里花完了。”
然后又开始展示她买的东西：“快看，我刚买了这个帽子，我觉得不是很好看，但是买一顶也没事。我回家就把它给拆了，看看能不能织的更好看一点。”
但是姐姐们说它丑的时候，她又丝毫不在意的说：“店里还有两三顶更丑的呢。等我买些好缎子给它重新装饰下，就应该会好看多了。而且民兵团离开梅屯后，这个夏天穿什么可是无关紧要了，他们两周内就走。”
“真的吗？”伊丽莎白大声说，听起来非常满意。
“他们会在布莱屯那驻扎。所以我想让爸爸带我们去那待一个夏天。这个计划美得很，而且也没有什么不方便的地方。妈妈也很喜欢去。我们要是去了其它地方过夏天，那可真是糟糕透了。”
“是啊，”伊丽莎白心想，“这可真是个好计划，对我们来说是一步到位。老天爷！之前梅屯的一个小民兵团和每个月的几次舞会，已经让我们忙得脚朝天了，更别提布莱屯那满营的士兵了。”
“现在我有些新闻要跟你们说，”她们一坐下，莉迪亚就说，“你们猜是什么事情？这可是个大新闻啊，而且是跟我们都喜欢的某人有关。”
简和伊丽莎白看着对方，然后服务员被支走了。莉迪亚笑着说：“是啊，你们就是这么正式，这么谨慎。你们以为服务员不应该听这些，但是其实它才不在乎了。我敢说他听说过比我这个还糟的事情。但是这服务员长得太丑了，他走了正好。我这辈子就没见谁长那么长的下巴。好了，现在说我的新闻。这是关于亲爱的维克汉姆的。这话可不该服务员听，你说是吧。维克汉姆不会娶玛丽.金了。这是说给你听的。她搬去利物浦跟叔叔一起住了，一走了之。维克汉姆现在安全了。”
“而且玛利金也安全了。”伊丽莎白说，“逃过了一段丢金的婚事。”
“她要是喜欢维克汉姆的话，走了可真是太蠢了。”
“我希望两边都没怎么喜欢对方。”简说。
“我肯定维克汉姆不喜欢对方。这话我替他说了，他从来都没在乎过她。谁看得上这么一个满脸雀斑的烦人的小东西？”
伊丽莎白震惊得想到，尽管她自己说不出来这糙话，但是这跟她之前那种执迷不悟的想法也差不多。
她们吃完饭后，几个姐姐给了钱，马车也准备好了。经过一番折腾，所有人的箱子，大包小宝，还有凯蒂和莉迪亚那些不受欢迎的东西，连同人一起，都被安顿到了马车上。
“真高兴我们都挤进来了，”莉迪亚大声说，“我这个帽子可真是买对了，要是再带个帽子盒就更好了。现在就让我们舒服得挤在一起，有说有笑得回家吧。首先，因为你出远门了，就你们先说说经历了什么事情吧。你们遇到了中意的男人了吗？跟谁说了什么骚话吗？我之前十分希望你们俩人能带个丈夫回来。我先说明，简很快就成个老处女了。她很快就23岁了。天啊，我要是23岁之前还没结婚那该有多么丢人啊。菲利普姨妈也想要你们找对象，没想到吧。她说利兹早就该选了柯林斯，但是我觉得这人太无聊了。天啊，我多想在你们之前结婚啊，然后我就护送你们去参加舞会。老天爷，那天我们在福斯特上校的家里可真是玩得开心。凯蒂和我去那玩一天，福斯特太太就说晚上跳跳舞。（顺便说下，福斯特太太跟我可真是好姐妹。）于是她就邀请了哈灵顿姐妹过来玩，但是哈瑞尔特生病了，所以潘就只能自己一人过来了。然后你猜怎么着？我们让张伯伦女装了，故意让别人以为他是女儿。你们知道多么好玩么？除了福斯特夫妇，凯蒂和我，没人知道这件事。还有舅妈也知道，因为我们不得不借了她一件裙子。你们都猜不到他看起来多么像女人。丹尼，维克汉姆，普拉特，还有其它几个男人进来的时候，一点都没发现这件事！老天，我当时快笑死了，福斯特太太也快笑死了。我当时都觉得自己快死了。然后就让这帮男人起了疑心，他们就知道了怎么回事。”（翻译官：我就喜欢莉迪亚这种说话风格，全是主谓宾，翻译起来多简单。）
莉迪亚一直说之前聚会的事情，又不停讲笑话，然后凯蒂又是提示又是补充的，想着让姐妹们回蘑菇屯的路上开心点。伊丽莎白尽量什么都不听，但是还是躲不过被一直提及的维克汉姆的名字。
到家后家里人很热情得接待了她们。本内特太太看到简还是一样漂亮，便十分开心。而吃晚饭得时候，本内特老爷不止一次得跟伊丽莎白说：“真高兴你回来了，利兹。”
餐厅里的人很多，因为卢卡斯家的人基本都来见玛丽亚，听她说些路上见闻，她们对什么话题都感性其。卢卡斯太太隔了张桌子问玛丽亚，自己的大闺女过得怎么样，家禽养得怎么样。本内特太太坐在简后面一点，她一边问简现在最流行的衣服款式，一边又事无巨细地告诉卢卡斯家的小女儿们。而莉迪亚的嗓门比谁都大，她把早上发生的事情一件件地说给愿意听的人听。
“哎，玛丽，”她说，“真希望你跟我们一起来了，因为这实在太有意思了。我们走在路上的时候，凯蒂和我把窗帘都拉上了，假装马车里没有人。要不是后面凯蒂生病了，我可能一直这么干下去。后面我们到了乔治镇的时候，我觉得我们干了件漂亮事，因为用世界上最美味的冷肉款待了她们三位。要是你也跟着去了，我们也会款待你的。后面我们又接着上路，这又是非常有意思。我觉得我们就不该坐那辆马车。我当时都准备笑死了，一路上大家都是开开心心的。我们又说又笑的，声音超级大，十里外的人都能听到。“
玛丽听了，很不高兴地说：”我亲爱的姐姐，我是不会贬低这种乐趣的，这无疑是女性都会喜爱的东西。但是我得说对我而言并没有什么吸引力，我更愿意读本书。“
但是这些话莉迪亚一个都没听到。她很少听别人说话超过半分钟的，而且从来也不在乎玛丽。
下午莉迪亚又招呼大家去梅屯玩，看看大家最近过得怎么样，但是伊丽莎白很坚决得拒绝了。倒不是怕别人说闲话，说本内特家的姑娘回来待不了半天就要去找军官，其实她拒绝还有其他原因。她很害怕再见到维克汉姆，而且决心尽量躲避他。想到他在的民兵团很快就要调走了，她真是说不出来的舒服。还有两个星期他们就要走了，而且一走，她希望再也没有维克汉姆的事情来烦她了。
她到家还没几小时，就发现父母在讨论去布莱屯玩的事情，这事之前莉迪亚在旅馆里也暗示过。伊丽莎白发现父亲没有任何让步的意思，但是他的回答又摸棱两可的。而她母亲虽然经常碰钉子，但是这一次却没有死心，还觉得最后肯定会如意。
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