The Shadow of Great Britain

The sky over London hasn’t completely dimmed yet, but the shadows of the trees in Hyde Park have quietly lengthened.

In the row of townhouses opposite Hyde Park, the lights are on in the living room.

Arthur holds a newspaper in one hand and fiddles with a deck of playing cards in the other, the silver card box is placed in the center of the red beechwood round table.

As for Eld who just got off work and came home, he buries his face behind a novel covered in a red book jacket, lifting his head every two lines to glance towards the kitchen, lest Becky, busy in the kitchen, discovers his little hobby.

But reading like this is too tiring; he spent ten minutes just finishing two pages, whereas normally, ten minutes would be enough for him to reach the main content, yet now he hasn’t even seen the shadow of the male protagonist.

Eld sighed in disappointment, then fished a pocket watch out of his pocket, complaining uncontrollably: ”Damn it! It’s almost seven o’clock, why haven’t Benjamin and Charles arrived yet?”

Arthur turned to a new page of the newspaper, asking indifferently: ”I know Benjamin, but which Charles are you talking about?”

”Of course, the Charles whose first love has already married,” replied Eld: ”The bald one from Cambridge is still at his hometown, cuddling sweetly with his cousin fiancée. Didn’t you see the letter he sent? He seems to be planning to marry.”

”You mean that letter?” Arthur raised an eyebrow, as if recalling something amusing, saying, ”I think it’s still early for marriage.”

”What? The letter he wrote to you is different from mine?” Eld pondered back and forth, a sense of betrayal rising in his heart: ”That bald guy, we’ve been together on the ship for five years, and he actually is keeping things from me!”

Arthur waved his hand, saying: ”Come on, he’s not hiding anything from you. He mentioned in the letter he is considering marriage, but apart from your letter, he also sent me a 19-page scientific investigation report.”

Eld asked curiously: ”What investigation report?”

”’A Scientific Analysis Report on the Pros and Cons of Marriage.’ If you’re interested, go to the storage room and take a look yourself. It’s in the second drawer of the cabinet by the window, the top one is it.”

”What?!” Eld exclaimed as he sprinted into the storage room: ”That Charles, planning to publish a paper for getting married?”

He rummaged around for a moment, quickly finding the investigation report Darwin summarized using scientific analysis methods.

Eld solemnly held the report with both hands, loudly reciting in a tenor-like clear voice: ”I think the advantages of marriage mainly include the following points. First, children, if God wishes to bless us, regardless of being boys or girls, they will become my lifelong companions. Parentheses, mainly friends during old age, since by then, besides children, who would be interested in an old man? Therefore, I think children are inherently better than pets like cats and dogs. Second, after marrying, there’s a family, someone to take care of the house, hearing beautiful music at home, and chatting with women anytime, anywhere, these things definitely benefit a person’s health...”

Eld read two to three pages in one go, filled a cup of tea, cleared his throat, and continued reading: ”After talking about so many benefits, next comes the drawbacks of marriage. Oh Lord! Living life like a worker bee, working work, then working more, is utterly unbearable. However, living alone all day in a smoke-filled, dirty house is even more unbearable. Imagine sitting on the couch with a kind and gentle wife, warming by the fire, reading or listening to music, how delightful it is...”

Reading up to this point, Eld couldn’t help but frown and question Arthur: ”Isn’t this supposed to be discussing marriage drawbacks? Why does he keep discussing the good points of marriage again? In the end, isn’t he just planning to betray our Pickwick Club gentlemen?”

Being a seasoned reader who has thoroughly studied Darwin’s ink writings, Arthur pointed Eld in the right direction: ”Flip to page nine, on the benefits of bachelor life.”

Following Arthur’s guidance, Eld turned to page nine, reading line by line, his expression gradually shifting from cautious to suspicious, then from suspicious to offended anger.

”One of the advantages of bachelor life lies in not being preoccupied with trivia, not worrying about whether there’s enough firewood in the evening, nor being interrupted while reading by ’Darling, the window curtain rod has broken.’ Children needing baths, pets scratching sofas, servants resigning, mothers-in-law visiting, even the amount of salt in the food can become a family crisis. Furthermore, a major benefit of being single is the freedom to go anywhere you want to, without anyone caring if you’re out all night or staying at the gentlemen’s club until dawn. You can even, like one of our friends, spend days around Leicester Square without the worry of your wife exposing you as not being a decent person. If I had to accompany my wife on walks every day, how would I work? Alas! After marriage, I can’t learn French, can’t go to the European Continent, nor can I go to the United States, or ride a hot air balloon into the sky, nor travel alone in Wales. Arthur, in this way, I might live a life even less enjoyable than Eld...”