“Bingley, you know even if you were not to be my brother that I would help you anytime. Does Jane know yet?” Darcy could imagine Jane keeping quiet and serene while they waited for the sale to complete before they shared their news.
“She knows I have been looking. Tomorrow morning, right before I sign the documents, Jane, her parents, and I will go to Longfield Meadows. After we view the house and the property, and if they approve, I will make it official and Jane and I will become members of your society here once we wed. As the name accurately describes the look and feel of the estate, I am of a mind not to change it unless Jane prefers a different name,” Bingley reported.
Congratulations were liberally bestowed on Bingley, and along with those of his family around him, he could imagine his parents smiling down on him from on high in heaven as he fulfilled their dearest wishes.
The Bingleys were to become part of the landed gentry in a matter of days.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The next morning Bingley was collected at Pemberley by Mr. and Mrs. Bennet and Jane. Their carriage approached the gate that proudly proclaimed ‘Longfield Meadows’ in large, blackened copper letters. As the carriage passed the unmanned gatehouse, Bingley informed them that there was only a skeleton staff at the estate. They consisted primarily of the steward, the butler, and the housekeeper.
He imparted he had good reports on all three of the senior staff, so he was inclined to keep them for continuity, unless Jane objected. There were also two maids of all work, one footman that maintained the manor, and the estate’s former head gardener was still working part time in an effort to keep the gardens in as reasonable a shape as possible with limited resources.
The carriage travelled for a little over a mile with open meadows on either side of the drive. The meadows had a good number of sheep grazing in them and were dotted with many kinds of wildflowers, giving a pleasing pallet of colour to the eye.
The drive turned to the right and crossed over a strong flowing stream, after which they entered the formal gardens. It was easy to see there had been far more extensive gardens than was currently displayed. It was obvious Barrow had tried his best to maintain some semblance of order, but it was an uphill struggle.
Fanny, who loved working in her gardens, could see a wide variety of flowers and told Jane she could see so much potential it was exciting. As they approached the circular drive in front of the manor, they observed overgrown rose gardens on either side of the drive.
The manor was a four-story house, built in the stone used most in Derbyshire. One wing had been added to the west of the house, and from what they could see the house looked around the same size as Netherfield Park’s, perhaps a little larger.
In front of the entrance to the house stood the heir’s agent waiting for them. He welcomed them to the estate, and once they had alighted from the coach Bingley introduced the agent to his fiancée and her parents.
They were then led inside the manor house where lined up to greet them were the three senior staff, all looking a little apprehensive as they had not been given any indication whether their services would be retained or not. After the introductions Bingley addressed their immediate concerns.
“If my fiancée approves of the estate and we make the purchase, and subject to the new mistress’s approval, we will be retaining all current servants, including the three of you. This depends as much on you as it does on us for someone may not want to stay in service with us.
“We believe that having people working here who know the estate will be good and helpful to us as we familiarize ourselves with the estate and the running of it.” Bingley related.
“Thank you, Sir. We welcome you all to Longfield Meadows,” the three senior staff chorused as they visibly relaxed.
The house consisted of three levels above ground, a cellar below ground that had a cold room, a wine cellar, a general and gun storage, and the pantry. On the first floor was a large dining parlour, a large drawing room, a smaller sitting room, a nice sized ball room, and a music room.
The kitchen, scullery, and housekeeper’s office were all at the rear of the house. They would be able to entertain a large party as sections of the walls which were not load bearing in the public rooms could be removed when needed to make a much larger ballroom.
In the newer west wing was a study for the master, one for the mistress, and a nice sized library with empty shelves waiting for books that would make it one in more than name only.
Upstairs on the second floor was the family wing that housed the master suites, four family suites and six individual chambers. There was a nursery in the family wing. In the guest wing located in the newer west wing, spread between the second and third floors, there were eight suites and ten single bedchambers and a nice sized guest’s sitting room on each floor.
The fourth floor in the older section of the house contained the school rooms, places for nursemaids and governesses and a music room for children to learn to play various instruments.
The relatively low sleeping capacity in the manor house was not a concern for Jane and Bingley given how close they were to Pemberley, Snowhaven, and also Hilldale. That way if there were ever large gatherings in the future it would be easy to have guests stay between all four family estates without major inconvenience to any.
In the large attic that spanned both the original house and the added west wing, there were ample servant quarters, with the female and male quarters separated by a space for storage. There were separate stairs that led to each of the three sections of the attic.
After the tour, Bingley requested the agent wait in the public sitting room for them. As the door to the master suite sitting room closed Bingley turned to the Bennets, their opinion, and especially Jane’s, were extremely important to him. “What did you think Janey, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet?” he walked over to Jane and took her hand, trying to contain his excitement.
“Now Charles, in six weeks you will be my son, so please call me Mother or Mother Bennet, and I am sure Thomas will be more than happy if you address him as Father Bennet or Bennet.” Her proclamation was seconded by a nod from Bennet, and with that most pressing requirement covered, she then addressed his question. “I think you two can be very happy here, but make no mistake there is work to be done. The whole house needs to be painted, papered, and decorated. Almost all of the furniture is in disrepair and needs to be replaced. You will need to redo the whole kitchen with all new equipment and find a good cook and a baker. But all that being said, I think you should take the place as it has good bones.”
“My Fanny has the right of it,” Bennet agreed. “I have had my man of business check, and you have been asked a more than fair purchase price. I would recommend that you tell the agent you want to reduce the price by five thousand pounds to cover the cost of some of the repairs to the house and the tenant cottages.
“I am almost positive he has that flexibility from the heir. In fact, I would tell him you want to reduce by seven thousand five hundred, then let him negotiate down to no less than five thousand, that way he can feel like he did not give you as much as you wanted.”
“Just the proximity to Lizzy and William and the Fitzwilliams would be enough for me Charles, but I do like the house and the estate feels like a place that we and our future children can and will be very happy. So yes, Charles. I agree we should purchase it. If we need more space in the future, there is more than enough room to add another wing or more,” Jane blushed with pleasure at the thought of having so large a family.
Once he had the recommendations, and most importantly Jane’s agreement, Bingley went down to the sitting room to meet with Mr. Brown, the agent. After almost an hour of back and forth, the agent agreed to reduce the sale price by six thousand pounds toward the needed refurbishments and the sale agreement was signed.
It would take a week to be finalised after solicitor review and for the deed to be issued in Bingley’s name on the transfer of the funds to the heir. In a week, Charles Bingley would be the first in his line to be a landed gentleman.
