Chapter 99

守官箴恶奴同破例

阅邸报老舅自担惊

Aunt Xue and Grandmother Jia laugh at Xifeng’s story about observing Baoyu and Baochai’s foibles, before conversation turns to Daiyu’s memory. They soon celebrate the marriage’s formal, if not actual, consummation. Aroma gradually stops taking Baoyu to task about his dulled wits; the maids are obedient to Baochai. Baoyu is restless and wants to go to the Garden, which he is forbidden to do. Everyone has now moved out of the Garden.

Zheng has arrived in his provincial posting; his inflexible nature grates with the corrupt clerks, servants and bureaucrats, who tender their resignations. A porter, Li Shi 李十, leads a cunning rebellion amongst the staff; all the yamen services slacken off, and Zheng, after Li’s counsel, finds himself corrupted in order to pay them off and secure his position. Li earns Zheng’s faith, and, with Zheng’s superlative reputation, the yamen appears to be running smoothly.

Zheng soon receives a proposal of marriage for Tanchun from an old Southern acquaintance.  While considering it, his eye alights upon Xue Pan’s in the newspaper; it reports that Pan had connived with the deceased’s relatives to reduce the charge. Zheng recalls that it was his pressure on the local magistrate that reversed the verdict. Not only could he be implicated, but the magistrate could lose his job. He scans more copies of the Gazette, but there is no more mention of the case. The Viceroy arrives, but Zheng’s mind is elsewhere; Li Shi tries to reassure him that, as a lot of bribes were involved, officials are unlikely to admit to wrongdoing and it’ll wash over.