Chapter 81: Class Barriers
Agnes hesitated for a moment, but finally didn't say anything, she didn't know what Fenerport City was suitable for relaxation.
Speaking of which, compared to most of the residents of Fenerport, she should know relatively little about Fenerport, even though she has been living in Fenerport City for more than ten years.
In fact, apart from the Ruowang district where she lived, the most intuitive part of her impression of Fenerport City turned out to be the shallow port area.
It's actually a coincidence, except for the two missions that didn't go very smoothly at the beginning, most of the missions she participated in after that, except for one or two in the towns around Fenerport City, were in the shallow port area. The number of missions she has participated in in other districts outside of the shallow port area is very small.
In addition, a lot of her knowledge of Fenerport City actually comes from books, whether it is maps or some people's living conditions, she has always lacked some real understanding.
At first, she was too young, then because she entered a public school, and then she got sick and left school, and she hardly left the house.
But in fact, even without these reasons, the daughters of the nobles mostly socialize at one ball party after another, and never cast their proud eyes to see what the city they live in is like, and they have neither the idea nor the energy.
After a little recollection, Agnes suddenly found that the time she spent in the Heart of Nature was actually the most free period for her, and even if she had tasks to do, she would often be pulled by Rhaenys to work as a coolie. But when Rhaenys asked what Fenerport City was, the first thing she thought about was the memory, not the longer aristocratic life she had before.
"Looks like you don't know what's going to be fun." Rhaenys sighed and said.
"Well, I wonder if I have the privilege of being invited to her home by our Miss Spinoza?" Rhaenys asked with a smile.
Agnes hesitated for a moment before nodding slowly.
She has already left the team, and she should no longer need to hide her identity from the members of the team as requested by her mother.
Agreeing to Rhaenys' visit will naturally tell her her true identity, and her mother will naturally know that she has a good relationship with Rhaenys.
In fact, this does not conform to the etiquette of visiting nobles. Rhaenys was not an aristocrat, at best a middle-class class in Fenerport. According to the etiquette manual, a member of the middle class who wanted to visit a nobleman required extremely complicated etiquette.
The general process is as follows: first you need to be introduced through an intermediary, and then you need to enter the business card process. This session is not the same as a visit, and the first visit for a low-status person usually leaves only a business card without asking if the other person is at home. Ideally, the low-ranking person would sit in a carriage and give his business card to his servant, who would bring it to the door of the person to be visited, and give it to the servant of the house, who would then give it to the mistress of the house, who would then decide whether to accept the visit.
After entering the visit process, you need to carefully decide the time of the visit - if it is 3 to 4 p.m. for the official visit; 4 to 5 a.m. is a semi-formal visit, and 5 to 6 a.m. is an intimate visit. In addition to the time, there are three kinds of visits: first, the visitor does not want to see the hostess immediately, at this time the visitor will leave a business card on the silver tray on the table in the hall, and the business card will be left until 4 p.m., when the visitor will come back to visit; The second is that the visitor and the hostess make an appointment in advance, and the hostess can directly accept the visit at home; The third is the hostess's "home day" system, generally speaking, the hostess of the aristocratic house will always set aside one or two times a month to entertain guests, and visitors will take advantage of this time to visit.
Just like when Mr. Conte came to visit, he abided by this set of etiquette. Ms. Jones was introduced, left her business card in advance, agreed on the time of the visit, and then made a formal visit at 3 p.m. the next day.
The life of the Fenerport aristocracy was highly ritualized, which Agnes believed was somewhat of a means for the nobles to distinguish them from the middle class. For example, in terms of visits, any nobleman is free to visit a middle-class family at any time, and the middle-class needs a set of cumbersome etiquette to visit the nobles. In fact, most aristocrats would never invite the lower classes to their homes, because it would be degrading to them.
This kind of etiquette erects social class barriers and clarifies the boundaries and distinctions between classes. This distinction is subtle and tangible, just as many nobles seem to be gentle and polite on the surface, but there is often a latent sense of overlook in their hearts, whether it is a new aristocrat or an old aristocrat, and Agnes herself is often not immune from influence.
In fact, Agnes found this etiquette to be cumbersome and inefficient. But limited by her own identity, many times she must abide by it. Mother didn't actually like such visits, but she saw them as a social duty, to help her father consolidate his position of power, and to unite some of the nobles with whom she had dealings.
In such a situation, it is wonderful that Agnes sometimes feels that she is not the mistress of a family.
Rhaenys directly asked if she could visit her home, which contradicted the etiquette manual. But first of all, Rhaenys doesn't know her identity, and secondly, she is not the mistress of any family, and Rhaenys is a very good friend with her, and going to her home at this point in time can be regarded as an intimate visit, and she will not be unhappy if she wants to take Rhaenys to her house as a guest.
At times, Agnes didn't want to follow the complicated etiquette of the aristocracy.
Agnes felt like she was being a little affected by the sense of freedom in the Natureheart team. Before this year, even if I didn't like those etiquettes many times, I would do what the etiquette required; And now, Agnes finds herself subconsciously looking for reasons not to do so.
Agnes didn't want to change, she didn't want to become a traditional aristocrat who lived by the rules and had a stale taste at heart. Penny, who had a good relationship in the public school, was already active at dinners and dances as far as she knew, and she had met them a few times before, and Agnes found that she was already full of ideas about how to show her charms, how to make friends, and she didn't have much in common with her. I think that's how Penny feels.