CHAPTER 109
Fivey shares a vigil, and receives
affection meant for another
Ying-chun pays her debt to fate, and returns
to the Realm of Primordial Truth
Bao-chai, having extracted from Aroma a detailed account of what had happened in the Garden, feared that a fresh bout of grief might indeed cause Bao-yu to fall ill again. In an attempt to avert this she deliberately alluded to Dai-yu’s dying moments, in the course of an apparently casual conversation with Aroma.
‘Human beings have certain feelings towards each other while they are alive,’ she went on to say. ‘But after death a person enters a separate realm and becomes a different entity. Someone still alive may continue to be infatuated, but the dead person, the object of that feeling, will be quite oblivious of it. Besides, if Miss Lin has become a fairy, she must take a very dim view of lesser mortals and would hardly deign to mingle with them on this earthly plane. To start imagining such things is to invite trouble and to lay oneself open to possession by evil spirits.’
She was talking to Aroma, but her words were clearly intended for Bao-yu’s ears. Aroma realized this and replied in an appropriate vein:
‘Of course she’s not a fairy. It’s out of the question. If Miss Lin’s spirit were haunting the Garden, why has she never once appeared to me in a dream? She and I were good friends, after all. .
Bao-yu was listening from outside, and considered this idea of Aroma’s carefully:
‘It is strange! Since I first learned of Cousin Lin’s death, I’ve thought of her constantly, every day. But why have I never once seen her in my dreams? It must be because she’s in Heaven, and thinks me a dull earthling incapable of communicating on her exalted level. I know what I’ll do: tonight I’ll sleep here in the outer room. Perhaps since I’ve just returned from the Garden she will be more aware of my feelings, and will condescend to visit me this once in a dream. If she does, I must be sure to ask her where she has gone, so that I can make offerings to her regularly. If on the other hand it turns out that she is too pure for even a single dream-visit, then I must try to put her out of my mind once and for all.’
Having made this resolution, he said aloud:
‘I shall sleep out here tonight. You needn’t be bothered on my account.’
Bao-chai did not try to oppose him directly, but cautioned him:
‘Don’t go having any foolish ideas. Didn’t you see how worried Mother was when she heard that you’d been in the Garden? She could hardly speak for anxiety! You must be sensible and look after yourself. If you go and do something silly again and Grandmother finds out, it’s us she’ll blame for not taking proper care of you.’
‘I wasn’t being serious,’ said Bao-yu. ‘I’d just like to sit here for a while and then come in. You must be tired too. Go to sleep, don’t wait up for me.’
Bao-chai thought he would probably come in later, and said with an air of affected nonchalance: Very well then. I’m going to sleep. Aroma can look after you.’
This was exactly what Bao-yu had been hoping for. He waited until Bao-chai had gone to bed and then told Aroma and Musk to lay out his bedding. He sent one or the other of them in at frequent intervals to see if ‘Mrs Bao was asleep yet or not’. Bao-chai pretended to be asleep, although in fact she was wide awake and remained so the entire night. Bao-yu was quite taken in, and said to Aroma:
‘You and Musk can both go and sleep now. I’m not upset any more. If you don’t believe me, stay here with me until I fall asleep and then go in. But I don’t want to be disturbed later on in the night.’
Aroma stayed for a while, saw him into bed and made him some tea. Then she closed the door and retired to the inner room, where after finishing a few odd jobs, she lay down. She too only feigned sleep, and lay awake, ready to jump up if Bao-yu needed her outside.
Bao-yu dismissed the two serving-women on night-watch; and when he was alone he sat up very quietly, said a silent prayer and then lay down again. At first sleep eluded him, but gradually his mind grew more peaceful and eventually he nodded off and slept soundly the whole night through. When he awoke it was already broad daylight. He rubbed his eyes, sat up in bed and reflected. He had had a dreamless sleep. Nothing whatsoever had occurred. He sighed.
‘As the poet once said,’ he mused out loud:
‘Since death’s parting, slow and sad the year has been;
Even in my dreams, her soul has not been seen.’
Bao-chai, who in contrast to Bao-yu had not slept a wink all night, heard him recite these well-known lines from Bo Ju-yi’s ‘Song of Enduring Grief’, and remarked:
‘What a singularly inept quotation! If Gousin Lin were alive, she’d be cross with you again, for comparing her to Yang Gui-fei!’
Bao-yu was embarrassed that she had overheard him. He climbed out of bed and walked sheepishly into the inner room.
‘I meant to come in last night,’ he said. ‘But somehow I lay down and fell fast asleep.’
‘What difference does it make to me whether you came in or not?’ said Bao-chai.
Aroma had not slept either, and hearing the two of them talking she hurried over at once to pour tea. At that moment a junior maid from Grandmother Jia’s arrived.
‘Did Mr Bao have a good night’s sleep?’ she asked. ‘If so, then will he and Mrs Bao please call on Her Old Ladyship as soon as they have completed their toilet?’
‘Please inform Her Old Ladyship,’ replied Bao-chai, ‘that Mr Bao slept extremely well and that we will both call presently.’
The maid departed with this message.
Bao-chai completed her toilet at once, and accompanied by Oriole and Aroma she went first to pay her respects to Grandmother Jia. Then she called politely on Lady Wang and Xi-feng, before returning once more to Grandmother Jia’s. Her mother had by now arrived.
‘How was Bao-yu last night?’ was what everyone wanted to know
‘He went to sleep as soon as we got home,’ Bao-chai informed them. ‘He was fine.’
They were relieved to hear this and the conversation passed to various other topics. Presently a junior maid came in to say that Ying-chun was going home:
‘Mr Sun sent someone to Lady Xing’s to complain, and Her Ladyship sent word to Miss Xi-chun to say that Miss Ying-chun must not be detained, but should return at once. Miss Ying-chun is at Her Ladyship’s now. She’s very upset, and is crying. She will be coming over presently to say goodbye, ma’am.’
Grandmother Jia was greatly distressed.
‘Why did fate have to bring together a sweet child like Ying and this monster Sun! She’ll have to bear with it for the rest of her life. There’s no way out for her, poor girl!’
As they were speaking, Ying-chun came in, her cheeks wet with tears. The family were still supposed to be celebrating Bao-chai’s birthday, so she did her best not to cry as she made her farewells. Grandmother Jia knew that Ying-chun must not delay her departure and she did not try to detain her.
‘You’d best be on your way,’ she said. ‘But please, however bad things are, try to look on the bright side! He’s what he is and there is little you can do to change him. In a few days I’ll send someone to invite you home again for another visit.’
‘Oh Grannie!’ sobbed Ying-chun. ‘You’ve always loved me! But it’s no good! I know I’ll never come home again!’
She could contain herself no longer, and tears streamed down her cheeks.
‘Come along now!’
They all did what they could to cheer her up: ‘Of course you’ll come again! You should be thankful you’re not at the other end of the world, like poor Tan. She has almost no chance whatsoever of coming home.’
This mention of Tan-chun only brought more tears to the eyes of Grandmother Jia and the ladies. Once again, the fact that it was Bao-?chai’s birthday induced one of them to try and strike a more optimistic note:
‘Who knows: if peace is restored on the coast, Tan’s father-in-law may be transferred back to the capital, and then we shall be able to see her!’
‘Of course!’ everyone concurred.
Ying-chun had now to contain her grief as best she could and take her leave. They saw her out, and then returned to Grandmother Jia’s, where the party continued for the rest of that day and into the evening. When they saw that the old lady was tired, they all went their separate ways home.
*
Aunt Xue, after bidding farewell to Grandmother Jia, went to have a talk with Bao-chai:
‘Your brother has survived this year, and if he can only receive an Imperial pardon and have his sentence reduced, he may still be able to pay his fine and be set free. These past few years have been so unbearably lonely and wretched for me! I’ve been thinking, perhaps I should go ahead with your cousin Ke’s wedding after all; what do you think?’
‘You’re anxious about it, aren’t you, Mama?’ replied Bao-chai. ‘Pan’s marriage turned out so badly, and you’re worried that Ke’s will be the same. Well, my advice is to go ahead. You know Xiu?-yan’s character, and have nothing to fear on that account. Life is very hard for her at present. Once she’s married into our family, however poor we are, it’s bound to be better for her than being totally depen?dent on others as she is now.’
‘In that case,’ said Aunt Xue, ‘will you tell Lady Jia when you have a chance? I’ve no one at home, and I should like her to choose a lucky day for the wedding.’
‘Just talk it over with Ke and choose a good day between you,’ said Bao-chai. ‘Then you can let Grandmother and Aunt Xing know, and go ahead with the wedding. I’m sure Aunt Xing will be only too glad to be rid of Xiu-yan.’
‘I heard today that Xiang-yun is going home,’ said Aunt Xue. ‘Lady Jia wants Bao-qin to stay on here with you for a few days. She will be marrying too, quite soon, so you should take the chance of having a good chat with her.’
‘I will, Mama.’
Aunt Xue remained with her daughter a little longer, and then after saying goodbye to the others, went home.
*
Let us return to Bao-yu. When he found himself in his apartment again that evening, he pondered his experience of the night before. There was no denying the fact that Dai-yu had failed to appear to him in a dream. That meant one of two things: either she had indeed already become a fairy, and was holding herself aloof from intercourse with as coarse a being as himself; or else he was just being too impatient. He decided to give this second alternative the benefit of the doubt, and resolved to prolong his experiment a little.
‘Somehow last night,’ he said to Bao-chai, ‘when I fell asleep outside, I had a sounder night’s sleep than I usually do in the inner room. I woke up feeling very calm and refreshed. I’ve been thinking, I should like to try it again for another couple of nights. But I suppose you and Aroma will object again…’
Early that morning when she had heard him reciting the poem, Bao-chai knew it was the memory of Dai-yu that had inspired it. She knew that this obsession of his was something mere words would never cure, and concluded that she might as well let him go ahead and spend the two nights outside, and thus be the agent of his own disenchantment. Anyway, the fact of the matter was that he had slept soundly the previous night. She had been awake herself, and knew.
‘What nonsense!’ she replied. ‘Why should we object? If you want to sleep there, go ahead. Just don’t have any foolish ideas. You’ll only be laying yourself open to possession by evil spirits.’
Bao-yu laughed: ‘Why ever should I do that?’
Aroma was opposed to the plan:
‘I think you should sleep in the inner room. It’s harder to look after you properly in the outer room. You might catch a chill or something.’
Before Bao-yu had time to reply, Bao-chai gave Aroma a mean?ingful look.
‘Oh well,’ said Aroma, taking the point, ‘at least you should have someone with you to bring you a drink if you need one.’
Bao-yu laughed:
‘Why not you?’
Aroma was embarrassed by this. She blushed fiercely and said nothing. Bao-chai knew that Aroma was too sensible nowadays for that sort of banter, and spoke on her behalf:
‘Aroma is used to being with me now. I think she should stay here. Musk and Fivey can look after you. Besides, Aroma has spent all day traipsing about with me, and she’s tired. She deserves a rest.’
Bao-yu smiled and walked out of the room.
Bao-chai told Musk and Fivey to make up his bed in the outer room.
‘Sleep lightly,’ she instructed them, ‘and be ready to bring him a drink if he wants one.’
‘We will, ma’am,’ they replied, and went out, to find Bao-yu sitting bolt upright on the couch, eyes closed and palms together, like a monk in meditation. They did not dare say a word, but stood staring at him, with a smile on their faces. Bao-chai sent Aroma in to see if she was needed, and Aroma too found his posture highly comical.
‘Time to sleep,’ she whispered. ‘What do you want to start medi?tating for at this hour of the night?’
Bao-yu opened his eyes and looked at her.
‘You can all go to bed now,’ he announced. ‘I shall sit up for a little longer and then go to sleep.’
‘Last night,’ said Aroma, ‘you kept Mrs Bao awake till morning. Surely you’re not intending a repeat performance, are you?’
Bao-yu could see that if he did not go to sleep nobody else would either, and climbed into bed. Aroma gave Musk and Fivey a few final instructions, and then went back to the inner room to sleep, closing the door behind her.
Musk and Fivey sorted out their own bedding, and waited for Bao-yu to fall asleep before going to bed themselves. But he remained obstinately wide awake. Watching them make the beds, he found himself suddenly thinking of the time when Aroma had been away and Skybright and Musk had been left to look after him. It was on that occasion that Musk had gone out during the night and Skybright had tried to play a trick on her and give her a fright. She had been too lightly dressed, and had caught cold as a result; and it was this cold that eventually led to the illness from which she died. His mind was now completely taken up with memories of Skybright. Then suddenly he remembered how Xi-feng had once likened Fivey to Skybright – ‘the spitting image’ had been her words. Imperceptibly his old feelings towards Skybright began to transfer themselves to Fivey. He lay there pretending to be asleep, and furtively watching her. The more he watched her, the more the resemblance struck him, and the more he felt himself aroused. All was silent in the inner room; they must be asleep, he thought to himself. But he needed to discover if Musk was still awake. He called her name a couple of times, and there was no reply. Fivey heard, however:
‘What do you want, Mr Bao?’
‘I’d like to rinse my mouth.’
Fivey could see that Musk was asleep, so she hurriedly rose from her bed, trimmed the wick in the lamp again and took Bao-yu a cup of tea, carrying the spittoon in her other hand. She was in too much of a hurry to change, and had nothing but a little pink silk jacket over her pajamas. Her hair was loosely coiled on top of her head. Looking at her, Bao-yu could almost imagine Skybright come back from the dead. Suddenly he remembered Skybright’s dying words: ‘If I’d known in advance that it would be like this, I might have behaved rather differently…’ He stared at Fivey in a besotted fashion, quite oblivious of the teacup in her outstretched hand.
Ever since the departure of Parfumée, Fivey had given up all idea of coming to serve at Green Delights; but then, when Xi-feng gave orders for her to be taken into Bao-yu’s service, she was more excited about it than Bao-yu himself. To her surprise, after her arrival the generally distinguished and dignified manner in which Bao-chai and Aroma conducted themselves made a deep impression on her, and she found herself coming to respect and admire them greatly, whereas Bao-yu by contrast seemed to her to have degenerated into a complete idiot, and to be not half so handsome as he used to be. Besides she knew that Lady Wang had dismissed some of the maids for flirting with Bao-yu, and she therefore decided to dismiss any foolish and romantic notions she might previously have entertained concerning him. But now here he was, the simpleton, evidently taking a fancy to her (she knew nothing of the process by which his feelings for Skybright had been transferred to her).
Both her cheeks were burning. She did not dare say anything out loud, but whispered:
‘Mr Bao, please go ahead and rinse your mouth!’
He smiled and took the cup in his hand. She could not tell whether he ever did rinse his mouth or not, as the next she knew he was giggling and asking her:
‘Weren’t you friends with Skybright?’
Fivey didn’t understand what he was getting at.
‘Of course. We were all of us on good terms.’
Bao-yu lowered his voice to a whisper:
‘When Skybright was so very ill, I went to visit her. You were there, weren’t you?’
Fivey smiled and nodded her head.
‘Did you hear her say anything?’ asked Bao-yu.
‘No,’ replied Fivey, shaking her head.
Bao-yu held Fivey’s hand. He seemed to be completely carried away. She blushed fiercely and her heart missed a beat.
‘Mr Bao!’ she whispered. ‘Whatever’s on your mind, just go ahead and say it. But please stop behaving like this.’
Bao-yu let go of her hand.
‘“If I’d known in advance that it would be like this, I might have behaved rather differently…” That’s what Skybright said. Surely you must have heard?’
It seemed quite plain to Fivey what manner of ‘different behaviour’ he had in mind. She felt she must protest:
‘If that’s what she said, she should have been ashamed of herself! No decent girl would suggest a thing like that!’
‘Don’t you start preaching at me too!’ snapped Bao-yu irritably. ‘I was thinking how like Skybright you looked – that’s the only reason I told you what she said. How dare you slander her!’
Fivey could no longer discern Bao-yu’s true intentions.
‘It’s late,’ she said. ‘You really should go to sleep and not sit up like this. You might catch cold. Didn’t you hear what Mrs Bao and Aroma said just now?’
‘I’m not cold,’ said Bao-yu. As he said this, it suddenly struck him that Fivey was most inadequately clad, and that she might catch a chill just as Skybright had done.
‘Why aren’t you wearing a proper robe?’ he asked her.
‘You called, and it sounded important,’ she replied. ‘I was hardly going to take time off to dress! I would have, mind you, if I’d known you were going to keep me talking this long.’
Bao-yu handed Fivey the pale blue silken padded jacket that was lying on the bed, and told her to put it on. But she refused.
‘You keep it – I’m not cold. And anyway, I’ve a perfectly good robe of my own.’
She went across to her bed and put on a long robe. She listened out for a moment. Musk was sound asleep. She crossed slowly back to Bao-yu:
‘I thought you were supposed to be having a quiet night?’
Bao-yu smiled.
‘To tell you the truth, that was never my intention. Actually, I was hoping to meet a fairy…
His words strengthened her suspicions.
‘Who do you mean?’
‘I’ll tell you if you like,’ he replied. ‘But it’s a long story. You’d better come up here and sit next to me…
‘But you’re all tucked up in bed!’ she protested, blushing again and smiling coyly. ‘How can I possibly sit next to you?’
‘Why not? One night a year or two ago, when the weather was cold and Skybright stayed up to play a trick on Musk, I was afraid she was going to catch a chill, so I tucked her under my quilt to keep her warm. What’s wrong with it? People shouldn’t be so prudish.’
Fivey thought he was merely putting ideas into her head. She did not know that he sincerely meant every word he said. She contem?plated her dilemma. She could hardly escape; and yet if she remained, it would be equally awkward for her to remain standing or to sit down beside him. She gave him a little glance and her face puckered into a smile:
‘Don’t say such silly things! People might hear. No wonder you have such a reputation. How can you still need to go flirting, with two such beautiful ladies as Mrs Bao and Aroma by your side! Don’t you ever suggest such a thing again, or I’ll report you to Mrs Bao. And then you’ll have cause to be ashamed!’
As she was speaking there was a sudden noise outside, which startled them both, and shortly afterwards Bao-chai could be heard coughing in the inner room. Bao-yu made a quick motion with his lips, and Fivey hurriedly extinguished the lamp and stole back to bed. In fact, earlier that evening, both Bao-chai and Aroma had gone straight to sleep, exhausted after their previous sleepless night and the day’s exertions, and both of them had slept soundly through this conversation between Bao-yu and Fivey. It was the sudden noise in the courtyard that had woken them too. They listened for any further sound, but all was quiet. Bao-yu meanwhile lay down in bed again, and was thinking to himself:
‘That noise must surely have been Cousin Lin! She came, and then, when she heard me talking with Fivey, she decided to give us both a fright.’
He lay there tossing and turning, a thousand wild fancies running through his head, and only nodded off some time after three in the morning.
Bao-yu’s advances had left Fivey with a guilty conscience, and when Bao-chai coughed she feared that they had both been overheard, and lay awake worrying about it all night. Early the next morning she rose, and seeing Bao-yu still fast asleep, began quietly tidying the room. Musk was already awake.
‘Why are you up so early?’ she asked Fivey. ‘Don’t tell me you’ve been awake all night…’
This led Fivey to suspect that Musk had overheard them too. She smiled awkwardly and said nothing. Presently Bao-chai and Aroma got up, opened the door and came into the outer room, where they were greatly surprised to find Bao-yu still asleep. It puzzled them that he should have slept there so soundly on two consecutive nights.
When Bao-yu awoke and saw them all standing around him, he sat up at once and rubbed his eyes. He thought back over the night. No, there had still been no dream. He had met no one. He consoled himself with the words of the old saying:
Fairies and mortals tread different paths,
And ne’er the twain shall meet.
As he climbed slowly down from his bed, Fivey’s words about Bao-chai and Aroma were still ringing in his ears: ‘two such beautiful ladies’. Yes, she was right, he thought to himself, and proceeded to stare at Bao-chai. Bao-chai thought he was drifting into one of his brown studies, and felt certain it must be to do with Dai-yu again, though she still had not enquired whether his dream had been fruitful or not. She soon began to feel uncomfortable under his penetrating gaze, and finally asked:
‘Well, did you meet a fairy last night or not?’
Bao-yu concluded from this that she must have overheard his tête-à-tête with Fivey. He gave a nervous little laugh and replied with feigned surprise:
‘What do you mean?’
Fivey for her part was feeling more and more guilty and ap?prehensive, and silently observed Bao-chai’s reaction. Bao-chai turned to her next and asked with a smile:
‘Well, did Mr Bao talk in his sleep last night?’
At this Bao-yu, muttering some incoherent excuse, walked rather sheepishly from the room. Fivey blushed fiercely and replied as evasively as she could:
‘He said something or other early in the night, but I didn’t quite catch it. Something about “knowing in advance that things would be like this”, and then something about “behaving rather differently”. I couldn’t understand what he was trying to say, so I just told him to go back to sleep. Then I fell asleep myself, and if he said any more I certainly didn’t hear it.’
Bao-chai lowered her head in thought:
‘Obviously something to do with Dai-yu. If I let him go on sleeping in the outer room he’s bound to get more and more of these weird ideas into his head, and who knows what strange apparitions and flower fairies we’ll have then. It is his weakness for our sex that has always been his vulnerable spot. How can I win him over myself? Until I can do that, this will never stop.’
A fierce and somewhat unmaidenly blush came to her cheeks, and she walked back into the inner room in something of a fluster to do her toilet.
*
During the two-day birthday festivities, Grandmother Jia had over-eaten, and on the second evening she was a little off colour. The following day she had a painfully bloated feeling in her stomach, which Faithful wanted to report to Jia Zheng. But Grandmother Jia forbade her:
‘I’ve just been a bit greedy over the past couple of days. A fast will soon put me right. Don’t you go making a fuss.’
Consequently Faithful told no one.
*
That evening, when Bao-yu returned to his apartment and saw Bao?-chai come in from paying her respects to Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang, he recalled the incident in the morning and blushed with shame. His embarrassment was evident to Bao-chai. For someone subject to such extremities of feeling (she thought to herself) the only remedy lay in the manipulation of those very feelings themselves.
‘Will you be sleeping outside again tonight?’ she asked.
Bao-yu did not seem keen to pursue the matter:
‘I really don’t mind one way or the other.’
Bao-chai could think of no suitable retort.
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ protested Aroma. ‘I don’t believe you really slept so soundly out there…
Fivey promptly leapt to Bao-yu’s defence:
‘Mr Bao had a very peaceful night, apart from talking in his sleep. I couldn’t make head or tail of what he said, and it seemed best not to argue with him.’
‘I shall sleep out there tonight,’ announced Aroma, ‘and we’ll see if I talk in my sleep. You can go ahead and move Mr Bao’s bedding back into the inner room.’
Bao-chai made no comment. Bao-yu was too full of remorse to object, and went along meekly with Aroma’s plan. He was eager to make it up with Bao-chai, while her concern that too much introspection and grief would injure his health caused her to be especially tender towards him; she was quite deliberately trying to ‘graft herself’ on to the ‘stem’ of his affections, drawing him closer to her and usurping Dai-yu’s place in his heart. When Aroma went to sleep in the outer room that evening, Bao-yu was in a frame of mind to exhibit his penitence, and Bao-chai naturally had no intention of rejecting him. As a result, their marriage was that night physically consummated for the first time, and they tasted to the full the joys of nuptial intercourse. From this union Bao-chai conceived a child. But that belongs to a later part of our story.
*
When Bao-chai and Bao-yu rose in the morning, Bao-yu performed his ablutions and went ahead to call on Grandmother Jia. She had that very morning had a sudden fancy to give something to her darling grandson and to her devoted granddaughter-in-law, and had told Faithful to open one of her trunks and take out an antique Han dynasty jade thumb-ring, a family heirloom of hers. She knew it could not compare with Bao-yu’s original jade, but thought never?theless that it would make rather an unusual pendant. Faithful found it and handed it to Grandmother Jia.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen this before. How could you remember so clearly where it was after all these years? You knew exactly which casket and which trunk. With your instructions I was able to find it straight away. What do you want it for, ma’am?’
‘I wouldn’t expect you to know about this ring,’ replied Grand?mother Jia. ‘It was originally given to my father by my great-grand?father, and then when I was married my father sent for me and made me a present of it. He told me it was a very precious thumb-ring made in the Han dynasty, of the variety known as “broken circle”. He wanted me to keep it as a memento. I was very young at the time and didn’t think much of it; I just put it away in a trunk. And when I came to live here, and saw so many other treasures around me, it didn’t seem so very special. I’ve never even worn it. It must have been lying in that trunk for over sixty years. I was thinking today what a good grandson Bao-yu is to me; and since he has lost his own jade, I thought I might give this to him, just as my father gave it to me.’
Presently Bao-yu arrived to pay his respects.
‘Come here,’ said Grandmother Jia with a twinkle in her eye. ‘Come and have a look at something.’
Bao-yu walked over to the couch where she was lying, and Grand?mother Jia handed him the jade thumb-ring. He took it in his hands and inspected it. It was about three inches in circumference, slightly elliptical in shape like an elongated melon, of a reddish hue. It was a very beautiful piece of workmanship. Bao-yu was most taken with it and enthused at some length.
‘Do you like it?’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘This was handed down to me from my great-grandpa, and now I’m passing it on to you.’
Bao-yu smiled, and dropping one knee to the ground to express his thanks, said he would like to go and show the ring to his mother.
‘When she sees it she will tell your father,’ Grandmother Jia teased him, ‘and then he will say that I love you more than I ever loved him. They have never even set eyes on it before.’
Bao-yu smiled and went out, leaving Bao-chai to stay for a while and chat with Grandmother Jia before taking her leave.
The old lady fasted for two days, but she still had a painfully bloated stomach, and began to cough and have dizzy spells. The ladies found her in good spirits when they paid their duty calls, but they sent a message to Jia Zheng that she was indisposed. He came immediately, and on leaving her apartment sent at once for a doctor to take her pulses and give a diagnosis. The doctor came presently and after a consultation pronounced that the condition was nothing unusual for a person of Grandmother Jia’s age. Faulty diet had caused a slight chill, which a little dispersant medication would soon put right. He wrote out a prescription, and Jia Zheng, seeing that it contained nothing out of the ordinary, told one of the maids to brew the ingredients up and administer the decoction to Grandmother Jia.
Jia Zheng visited Grandmother Jia morning and evening. After three days, when there was still no sign of improvement, he said to Jia Lian:
‘You must get in touch with a better doctor and ask him to come and look at your grandmother as soon as possible. I’m afraid none of our regular doctors is good enough.’
Jia Lian thought for a moment:
‘I remember a while ago when Bao-yu was ill, we ended up calling in a doctor who was not strictly speaking a regular practitioner at all- and yet he was the one to put Bao-yu right. Why don’t we send for him again?’
‘Medicine is certainly a subtle art” Jia Zheng mused aloud. ‘And sometimes the ablest physicians are not recognized as such. By all means send someone to fetch this man.’
Jia Lian departed at once, only to return with the news that the doctor in question had recently left town to instruct his disciples and would not be coming back for another ten days. As the matter was urgent, Jia Lian had invited another, who was already on his way. Jia Zheng waited anxiously for this doctor’s arrival.
During this illness, all the ladies were in constant attendance on Grandmother Jia. On one occasion, when there was quite a gathering of them in her apartment, one of the old women whose duty it was to watch the side gate of the Garden came in with a message.
‘Sister Adamantina from Green Bower Hermitage in the Garden has heard that Her Old Ladyship is ill, and has come specially to call.’
‘She so rarely visits,’ they commented. ‘Go and invite her in at once.
Xi-feng went over to the bedside to tell Grandmother Jia, and Xiu?-yan, Adamantina’s old friend, went out to meet her. Adamantina was wearing the head-covering of an unshorn nun, and a pale blue plain silk gown with a patchwork full-length sleeveless jacket over it, bordered with black silk; she had gathered her gown with a russet-green woven sash, beneath which she wore a long white damask-silk skirt decorated with a pattern in grey. She drifted in with her usual otherworldly air, holding a fly whisk and fingering a rosary, and followed by one of her attendants. Xiu-yan greeted her:
‘When I lived in the Garden too, I could come and see you often; but recently the Garden’s become so deserted, and it’s been difficult for me to go in there on my own. And anyway the side gate is usually closed. That’s why I haven’t been able to visit you for so long. How lovely it is to see you again!’
‘You and the others were always too caught up in the hustle and bustle of life,’ replied Adamatina. ‘That’s why even when you lived in the Garden I didn’t visit very often. But I’ve heard of the recent troubles, and learned that Her Old Ladyship has fallen ill; I’ve been thinking of you and I wanted to see Bao-chai. What difference does it make to me if the gates are closed or not? I chose to come, and I came; if I hadn’t chosen to come, it would have made no difference how much anybody wanted me to.’
Xiu-yan laughed.
‘You haven’t changed a bit, have you!’
By now they had entered Grandmother Jia’s room. The ladies all welcomed Adamantina, and she went up to the bedside, enquired after the old lady’s health and chatted with her for a while.
‘You’re a religious person,’ said the old lady. ‘Tell me: am I going to get better or not?’
‘A person as charitable and virtuous as yourself, Lady Jia, will surely live to a ripe old age,’ replied Adamantina. ‘You’ve just caught a slight chill, and I’m sure a few doses of medicine will put it right. At your age the important thing is to relax and not worry so much.’
‘But you know I’m not the worrying type,’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘I’ve always been one for my bit of fun. There’s not much the matter with me, I just feel a little uncomfortable and have this bloated feeling in my stomach. The last doctor I saw said it was because I was letting myself get too overwrought. But you know perfectly well that no one dares to rub me up the wrong way! I don’t think that doctor really knew what he was talking about. I told Lian the first doctor was right – I’ve just got an upset stomach and a cold. Lian should send for him again tomorrow.’
She called Faithful over:
‘Tell the kitchen to prepare some vegetables so that Sister Ada?mantina can have something to eat while she’s here.’
‘I’ve already eaten,’ said Adamantina. ‘I won’t have anything now.’
‘Even if you are not going to eat,’ said Lady Wang, ‘stay and chat with us a little.’
‘Very well. It’s so long since I’ve been here. I wanted to see how you all were anyway.’
She talked with them a little longer, and then said she must be going. As she looked around she caught sight of Xi-chun.
‘Why are you looking so thin, Xi?’ she asked. ‘You mustn’t wear yourself out so with your painting.’
‘I haven’t painted for ages,’ said Xi-chun. ‘The room I’m living in now is not so light. And besides I don’t feel like painting nowadays.’
‘Where are you living now?’ asked Adamantina.
‘In a room to the east of the gate you’ve just come through,’ replied Xi-chun. ‘It’s very close, if you ever feel like dropping in.’
‘One day I will,’ replied Adamantina. ‘When I’m feeling in the right frame of mind.’
Xi-chun and the others saw her out, chatting as they went. By the time they returned, the maids informed them that the doctor was closeted with Grandmother Jia, and they all left and went their separate ways.
Contrary to everyone’s cheerful prognostications, Grandmother Jia gradually deteriorated. None of the treatment she received had any beneficial effect, and she started suffering from diarrhoea. Jia Zheng realized that her condition was becoming critical, and grew extremely concerned. He sent a messenger to the Board to say that he would be taking leave and staying at home, and he and Lady Wang waited on the old lady day and night, personally preparing and administering her medicines. One day they had just watched her eat and drink a little and were feeling slightly more optimistic, when they saw an old serving-woman poke her head round the door. Lady Wang sent Suncloud Out to see who it was, and she discovered it to be one of the women Ying-chun had taken with her on her marriage.
‘What have you come for?’ she asked.
‘I’ve been waiting an age!’ replied the old woman. ‘I couldn’t find a maid anywhere and I didn’t want to come barging in. I’ve been worried silly!’
‘What’s the trouble?’ asked Suncloud. ‘Don’t tell me Mr Sun has been bullying our Miss Ying again!’
‘She’s past hope!’ said the old woman. ‘He had one of his fits the day before yesterday, and she was crying all that night, and then yesterday she had a bad attack and could hardly breathe. They wouldn’t send for a doctor, and today she’s even worse!’
‘Her Old Ladyship’s ill herself!’ said Suncloud. ‘For goodness’ sake don’t go making a lot of noise!’
Lady Wang had heard this conversation from inside, and afraid that Grandmother Jia would react badly to this latest turn of events, she ordered Suncloud to take the serving-woman away and talk to her somewhere else. But Grandmother Jia still had her wits sufficiently about her to overhear and understand a great part of the conversation.
‘Is Ying dying?’ she cried.
‘Certainly not,’ protested Lady Wang. ‘These women lose all sense of proportion. She’s just been a little poorly these past few days and they were concerned for her and came here to ask for a doctor.’
‘They’d better have mine,’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘Tell him to go and see her at once.’
Grandmother Jia began to grow very distressed.
‘Of my three granddaughters,’ she said, ‘the eldest spent her share of good fortune and died; Tan, my third, is married and has gone to live at the other end of the world, and I shall never see her again; and now Ying – I knew life was hard for her, but somehow I thought she would live to see better days. Now she’s going to die, and she’s so dreadfully young! And I shall be left here, a useless old woman with no reason to be alive!’
Lady Wang and Faithful did what they could to console her. Bao?chai and Li Wan were not present that day, and Xi-feng had been too ill to attend for several days. Lady Wang was afraid that Grandmother Jia’s illness would be aggravated by all this mental distress, and she sent at once for the other ladies, while she returned to her own apartment and called Suncloud to her.
‘That stupid old serving-woman!’ she grumbled. ‘In future when I’m with Her Old Ladyship, you’re not to disturb me, no matter what the trouble is!’
Suncloud promised to obey this injunction, and said no more. The old woman meanwhile had just reached Lady Xing’s when the news arrived that Ying-chun had died. Lady Xing burst into tears. In Jia She’s absence she had to send Jia Lian to the Suns to represent the family. Grandmother Jia was so ill that no one dared break the news to her.
Alas! What a cruel end for such a gentle creature, her flowerlike beauty crushed within a year of marriage!
None of the Jias could leave home with Grandmother Jia as she was, and the Suns gave Ying-chun a predictably makeshift funeral.
Grandmother Jia continued to deteriorate steadily, but still her only thought was for her granddaughters and great-nieces. On one occasion Xiang-yun was in the forefront of her mind, and she sent a maid to see how she was. The maid returned and tiptoed in to find Faithful. Faithful was at the bedside, as were Lady Wang and the other ladies; and the maid, not wishing to disturb them, went round to the back to find Amber.
‘Her Old Ladyship sent me to fetch news of Miss Xiang-yun,’ she told Amber, ‘and I found her crying her heart out! Her husband has suddenly been taken ill, and the doctors say there’s no hope for him. At the best it will turn into a consumption and he may last another four or five years! You can imagine how badly Miss Xiang-yun has taken it! She’s already heard about Her Old Ladyship’s illness, but now she simply can’t leave home. She told me not to mention her husband’s illness to Her Old Ladyship. If she does ask after Miss Xiang-yun, you must think of some way to explain her absence.’
Amber heaved a deep sigh, and after a long silence dismissed the maid. She too thought it unwise to inform Grandmother Jia, and went to her bedside with the intention of telling Faithful to invent some story. She found Grandmother Jia deathly pale, and everyone in the room whispering among themselves:
‘You can see she’s going!’
Amber did not dare utter a word. Jia Zheng discreetly called Jia Lian over to whisper something in his ear, and Jia Lian tiptoed off to do his bidding. Outside he assembled the remaining household staff.
‘Her Old Ladyship will soon be gone. You must make sure that everything is in order. First fetch out the coffin-boards for inspection, and measure them up for a lining. Go round all the apartments, take everyone’s measurements, and give the tailor a complete list, with instructions to make everyone a set of mourning clothes. Arrange for the funeral awning to be constructed in the courtyard and for coffin-bearers to be hired. And have extra staff put on duty in the kitchen.’
‘Mr Lian,’ replied Lai Da, on behalf of the others. ‘You don’t need to worry about these things. We have already thought of everything. But where is the money coming from?’
‘We won’t need to borrow,’ said Jia Lian. ‘Her Old Ladyship has made provision herself. The Master told me just now that he wants no expense spared. It must be done in style; we must put on a good show.’
‘Yes, sir.’
Lai Da and the others went about their business at once, and Jia Lian returned to his own apartment.
‘How is Mrs Lian?’ he asked Patience.
Patience shot her mouth out towards the inner room:
‘Go and see for yourself.’
Jia Lian went in. Xi-feng was struggling to dress herself, but was too weak to do so. She had collapsed on the kang, and was leaning on the little kang-table.
‘It’s no good hoping to snatch some rest now!’ exclaimed Jia Lian. ‘Grandmother is sinking fast and you must be there. Hurry up and tell them to tidy things up in here. And pull yourself together! If the worst happens, we won’t be able to get away for quite a while.’
‘We’ve got nothing left to tidy up!’ said Xi-feng bitterly. ‘Only a few odds and ends, nothing worth bothering about. You go on ahead, Sir Zheng may want you. I’ll come as soon as I’m properly dressed.’
Jia Lian returned to Grandmother Jia’s apartment and reported discreetly to Jia Zheng that all had been seen to and the various duties assigned. Jia Zheng nodded. The Imperial Physician was an?nounced, and Jia Lian went out to receive him. Grandmother Jia’s pulses were taken and then the physician emerged to inform Jia Lian in hushed tones:
‘Lady Jia’s pulse-rate is very poor. You must be prepared for the worst.’
Jia Lian understood and passed the message on to Lady Wang and the others. Lady Wang beckoned Faithful with a meaningful glance and told her to prepare Grandmother Jia’s funeral clothes. Faithful went to fetch them.
The old lady opened her eyes and asked for a drink of tea. Lady Xing brought her a cup of ginseng tea, and she put her lips to it.
‘Not this!’ she protested. ‘Give me a proper cup of tea!’
They dared not deny her this request, and promptly brought her a cup of real tea. She took one gulp, and then another, and then announced that she wanted to sit up.
‘Mother,’ pleaded Jia Zheng on behalf of the others, ‘whatever you want, you have only to tell us; but please don’t exhaust yourself by trying to sit up.’
‘I’ve had a drink and I feel a bit better now,’ she replied. ‘I’d like to sit up and chat for a bit.’
Pearl and the other maids gently supported her with their hands. She seemed momentarily revived. Whether she was to live or die will be told in the next chapter.
