Chapter 19

情切切良宵花解语

意绵绵静日玉生香

After the stress of the visit, everyone is left idle and unoccupied, especially Baoyu. He finds himself alone while others gamble or watch plays on New Year’s Eve, and while Aroma is with her family, and he decides to go to Zhen’s study to look at a picture, where he finds Tealeaf making love to Swastika 卍儿. They decide to go to Aroma’s house, despite the risk that they could get in trouble. Her brother, Hua Zifang 花自芳, lets them stay. It is awkward, as the Huas are embarrassed about their humble house; Aroma passes round his jade for them to see, and Zifang gets them cabs back.

Before Baoyu returns, Nanny Li scolds the maids who are playing and drinks all Baoyu’s kumis, a present from Yuanchun he was saving for Aroma. She doesn’t mind though, so neither does he. She says it made her sick last time and asks for chestnuts instead which Baoyu dutifully peels for her. He compliments her cousin’s beauty, saying she should join the household, which upsets Aroma. Aroma reveals that her family want to buy her out of service in a year, and she wants to go back to them; Baoyu says he won’t let her. However, before Baoyu had appeared at her house earlier, she had told her family she would never want to return to them, leaving her in tears when he arrived. She had also said she wanted chestnuts to avoid a scene over the kumis. Aroma wakes Baoyu, who is crying; she tells him that if he can make certain changes she’ll never leave him.

The next morning, Aroma has contracted a chill. Baoyu goes to see Daiyu, and he becomes fascinated with a fragrance on her. They chat aimlessly, and he tells a teasing story about magic mice from near Yangzhou – she attacks him; he defends it as an allusion, when Baochai enters. Baochai sticks up for Daiyu.