Chapter 119

中乡魁宝玉却尘缘

沐皇恩贾家延世泽

Baoyu explains his remarks before Oriole leaves. The day of the examinations arrives; Baochai is concerned by Baoyu’s hasty and unconvincing conversion, while Lady Wang is concerned as it will be the first time the boys have been away without her. Baochai finds their parting conversation ominous and Baoyu’s behaviour strange – he acts like he is leaving forever. He is rushed out, giggling, while the ladies weep.

Huan and Lady Xing discuss Qiaojie; all is settled, and she is to leave with no ceremony after Yun sends her horoscope to the prince. A maid overhears and rushes to tell Patience. Qiaojie is disconsolate. A messenger arrives from Lady Xing telling her to prepare; Lady Wang comforts her, and is furious to hear of Huan’s involvement. Grannie Liu is announced; Patience persuades Lady Wang to see her. She is told the whole story since Xifeng’s death. She is aghast, and suggests hiding Qiaojie in her village. Lady Wang consents after hearing Patience and Qiaojie’s entreaties. They act quickly and silently, before Yun returns with the signed contract; Qiaojie is dressed as Qinger, and she and Patience slip into a carriage with Grannie Liu. The sentries, who disapprove of Lady Xing’s plan, are on their side. Lady Wang is still apprehensive; Baochai tells her to act normal, and she will find someone to tell Lady Xing. The Mongol prince, meanwhile, is dismayed to hear that the proposed girl is from the respected Jia family, and shuts down the deal before Yun arrives. Huan is furious. Lady Wang tells them that Patience and Qiaojie have killed themselves and she wants the bodies back. Huan, Yun and Lady Xing are left to blame each other. They interrogate the sentries, who deny all knowledge, complaining about having not been paid while Yun and Huan gamble. They are unable to unearth anything.

The day that the examinations finish, Lan arrives late in the evening without Baoyu. Lan explains that Baoyu finished his exam early and got lost in the crowd outside. All weep and a search party is sent; Baochai, Xichun and Aroma guess that the monk is involved. Tanchun visits a few days later, offering some comfort, although she is upset by recent events. News arrives that Baoyu was placed seventh in the exam, and Lan has passed too as 130th; Baochai and Lady Wang feign delight. Tealeaf briefly cheers them by suggesting that he must be found now that he’s passed, but Xichun and Tanchun are more circumspect, thinking he may have become a monk, and that it was fate. Aroma faints with grief. Lan is summoned by the Emperor, who enjoyed his composition, and explains Baoyu’s disappearance. He also finds that Zhen Baoyu has passed too. The Emperor orders a memorial, and declares an amnesty that saves Pan, and later pardons Zhen and She and returns the confiscated property, all thanks to Baoyu’s poem. He also orders all the garrisons to make a full search for him.

Qiaojie is the toast of her new village; Grannie Liu proposes a match between her and the son of the richest local family. She sends Baner to Rongguo, and he returns with news of the family’s rehabilitation and a letter from Lian inviting Qiaojie home. Qinger and Patience go with her. It is an emotional return; Lian, who is also newly returned, is furious with Yun’s co-conspirators; Lady Xing is ashamed. Aroma is suddenly taken ill.

Chapter 41

贾宝玉品茶栊翠庵

刘老老醉卧怡红院

Grannie Liu is afraid of breaking her porcelain cup, and asks for a wooden one. Faithful fetches ten boxwood cups, the size and detail of which astonish Grannie Liu. Xifeng jokes that she has to drink from all of them, she is given one of the largest in the end, and some food to accompany it. She is astonished further by the exquisite and complex recipe. When asked, she concludes the cups to be pine, causing further laughter. The music starts, and the drinking continues apace all round – Grannie Liu is particularly enjoying the music, and is consequently mocked by Daiyu. After the music, Grandmother Jia walks with Liu, who admires the flora and birds, but cannot name them. They eat some snacks, including some delicately fashioned pastries which further enchant Grannie Liu. She and Baner eat a lot of them, and the rest are sent to the actresses. A nurse arrives with Xifeng’s daughter, who swaps a grapefruit with Baner for a Buddha’s hand.

Adamantina welcomes Grandmothers Jia and Liu et al to the hermitage. Jia declines to enter the meditation hall, staying in the garden to take tea. Baoyu studies Adamantina attentively, and whilst the others take tea, he spots her take Baochai and Daiyu to her own room and gatecrashes. Adamantina tells a lay-sister to leave the cup Grannie Liu used outside – she considers it contaminated. They drink tea and discuss the value of cups. Adamantina is very eccentric about the water she uses for her tea. Baoyu suggests giving Grannie Liu’s cup to her, and getting his boys to clean her floor.

Grandmother Jia leaves the party to rest, along with Xifeng and Li Wan, and others also take the opportunity to excuse themselves. Faithful is instructed to show Grannie Liu more of the garden, and the cousins join. She kowtows at a stone arch, causing laughter, before her bowels rumble and she is quickly escorted to a privy by a servant who then leaves her to find her own way back. Her business takes some time. She is disorientated on exiting – not to mention still very drunk - walking into a Western-style painting with perspective and then being confused first by a mirror, and secondly by the automatic latch on the door on which the mirror is. She passes through the door and out on a bed. The cousins meanwhile are concerned, and send someone to the privy to check on her. Aroma thinks it through and hurries to Green Delights, where she finds Grannie Liu on a bed surrounded by a heady funk of wine and fart. She wakes and apologises, Aroma gestures to her not to speak, covers up the smell with fragrance and leads her out to the junior maids’ quarters. She asks whose room it was, and on discovering it is Baoyu’s, is horrified by the enormity of her trespass. Aroma escorts her back to the cousins, saying that she had fallen asleep on the grass; Grandmother Jia wakes and heads back to her own apartment, and everyone else goes back to the garden.

Chapter 39

村老老是信口开河

情哥哥偏寻根究底

Patience has come to collect some crab for Xifeng; Li Wan makes her sit and drink while an old woman takes the crabs. Xifeng sends back some more food in return, along with a jokey message for Patience. She starts drinking with gusto, and Li Wan embraces, tickles and compliments her, and the others join in. They discuss how well-matched all the maids and mistresses are in turn. Li Wan starts getting emotional, and the party breaks up for them to call on Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang. Aroma and Patience discuss the late payment of their allowances – Patience tells her about Xifeng’s financial investments and offers to lend her some, which is refused. Patience finds Grannie Liu and Baner at Xifeng’s – they have come to offer the first fruits of a good harvest to the house. Zhou Rui reports that Grandmother Jia had heard of Grannie Liu’s arrival and had asked to talk to her; Grannie Liu is reluctant, but persuaded. On the way, Patience allows a page whose mother is ill to take the day off. Grannie Liu is intimidated by all the ladies when she enters for her interview. She and Grandmother Jia talk about old age, and Liu is invited to stay longer. They take tea and chat further with Baner plays with the pages. Later, Liu is given a bath (which she puts up with) and returns to the others, telling them about country life, and embellishing some of the anecdotes somewhat. The maids report that a fire has broken out in the stables, but is under control. After a brief drama, Baoyu questions Grannie Liu on some of the finer details, to no avail – she continues her stories. Baoyu is still unsatisfied, and discusses possibilities for Xiangyun’s leaving party with Tanchun. Daiyu teases him, making everyone laugh. Afterwards, Baoyu is able to corner Grannie Liu again, and tests her inventiveness. Eventually, she makes up details about the locations of the places described, and Baoyu, wanting to investigate further, sends Tealeaf off on an errand there related to her story about a wood thief. He returns very late, having found what he was looking for, but saying the directions were completely wrong; Baoyu puts this down to Grannie Liu’s age. He’s angry, though, that Tealeaf didn’t find the beautiful wood thief in the temple but an ugly plague god, hurting his feelings. He promises Tealeaf ample rewards if he can find the place described. Baoyu is summoned by one of Grandmother Jia’s maids.

Chapter 6

贾宝玉初试云雨情

刘老老一进荣国府

Aroma and Baoyu are embarrassed while dressing him after his dream, and she laughs when he describes his dream to her. Baoyu has his way with her, doubling their mutual devotion.

Distant country relative Grannie Liu 刘老老 tries to persuade her son-in-law Gouer 狗儿 to appeal to Wang Xifeng for help, and she ends up going with grandson Baner 板儿 to see Zhou Rui 周瑞, with whom Gouer’s father had been friendly. Zhou Rui’s wife gains Liu an audience with Wang Xifeng through Xifeng's maid Patience 平儿. Liu mistakes Patience for Xifeng, and is overawed by the opulence and technology and cannot get a word out. Xifeng admonishes Liu for kowtowing to her, and regrets that there are not more relations visiting them. Liu is embarrassed by Jia Rong’s 贾蓉 arrival, who has come to borrow a glass screen. A meal is brought for Liu and Baner, and Xifeng gives them twenty taels.