‘Who could have done this? I’ve never done anyone any harm. Why should anyone want to blacken my name like this? I only go there once a month with the money – this is all lies! Sir Zheng will be very hard on me, I know he will! I shall die of shame! If my mother finds out, she’ll flog me to death!’
He checked that there was no one else in the room and knelt before Jia Lian.
‘Uncle! Please help me! Please!’
He went on knocking his head on the ground, tears streaming down his face. Several thoughts were going through Jia Lian’s mind.
‘Debauchery is Uncle Zheng’s pet abomination. If he finds out that there really has been any such thing we’ll be in for a major scene. It will only help smear the family name, besides. And give the anonymous author the greatest satisfaction, and then we can expect more of such posters in the future. No, why not take advantage of Uncle Zheng’s absence, talk to Lai Da and hush the whole thing up. So far there’s no proof that anything ever happened. And no one need be any the wiser.’
Having reached this decision, Jia Lian spoke to Jia Qin again:
‘There’s no point in trying to fool me. Don’t think I don’t know about every one of your mucky little pranks. Now listen: if you want to get out of this, you must deny everything, absolutely everything, no matter how hard Sir Zheng presses you. Do you understand? Now get up off the ground, you pathetic creature!’
Jia Lian sent for Lai Da and asked him for his opinion.
‘As a matter of fact, sir,’ said Lai Da, ‘Mr Qin was behaving in a very unbecoming manner. When I arrived at the Temple they were all drinking. I’d say the man who wrote the posters was telling the truth…’
‘Do you hear that, Qin?’ said Jia Lian. ‘Is Lai Da maligning you too?’.
Jia Qin was by now puce in the face and speechless with embarrassment. Jia Lian took Lai Da by the hand and pleaded with him:
‘Spare the lad, Lai. Say you found him at home. When you take him in to see the Master, there’s no need to say that I’ve already seen him. And tomorrow you can ask the Master not to bother with questioning the nuns. Send for a broker and have them all sold off. If Her Grace should really need them again, we can always buy some more.’
Lai Da reflected that there was nothing to be gained by letting the incident blow into a storm. The family’s name would only suffer. So he agreed to Jia Lian’s proposal.
‘You go with Mr Lai now, Qin,’ ordered Jia Lian. ‘And do whatever he tells you.’
Jia Qin kotowed once more to Jia Lian and followed Lai Da out. When they reached a secluded spot, he also kotowed to Lai Da.
‘Excuse me for saying so, Master Qin,’ said Lai, ‘but it was your fault for behaving in such a manner. I don’t know who it is that you offended. Can you think who it could be?’
Jia Qin thought for a while, but could think of no particular enemies. He followed Lai Da listlessly out.
To learn how he extricated himself, you must read the next chapter.
Chapter 94
Grandmother Jia gives a crab-blossom party: a celebration of the ominous
Bao-yu loses his Magic Jade: a strange disappearance of the numinous
Lai Da led Jia Qin off, to await the Master’s return in the morning.
The little novices were thrilled to be back in the Garden and were eager to, revisit their favourite haunts, imagining that the next day would be taken up with preparations for their visit to the Palace. Imagine their dismay when they found themselves prisoners: Lai Da’s instructions to the old women and pages on duty were to feed them in their rooms and keep them in close confinement. The girls had no idea why they were being treated in this way and spent the night sitting up in suspense. Although the maids in the Garden’s various residences knew by now of their arrival, they had only been given the official story and knew nothing of the real facts of the case.
Early next day Jia Zheng, having completed his night duty, was about to leave the Board when another urgent file was passed down to him: the City Wall Repairs Estimates and Accounts for two of the Provincial Capitals, for Immediate Audit. He foresaw a considerable delay, and sent a message home to Jia Lian, authorizing him to go ahead and question Lai Da when he returned from the Temple, and to deal with the case as he saw fit.
Jia Lian received these instructions with relief, mainly on young Qin’s behalf, as he would now be spared the Master’s wrath. On further reflection, however, it occurred to him that he might attract Jia Zheng’s suspicion if he were to brush the entire affair under the carpet. It would be wiser to consult Lady Wang. Then if he incurred the Master’s displeasure, at least he would not be solely responsible.
Having decided on this course of action, Jia Lian went to see Lady Wang and told her what had happened, concluding:
‘Uncle Zheng was extremely angry about the anonymous poster and gave orders for Lai Da to bring young Qin and all the girls here for questioning. Today Uncle is too busy to deal with this sordid matter himself, and has asked me to consult you about it. What do you think we should do, Aunt?’
‘I never heard of such a disgraceful business!’ exclaimed Lady Wang in horror. ‘If young Qin really has behaved in this degrading fashion, the family should have nothing more to do with him. Mind you, it’s a despicable way to carry on, to go putting posters up about people… Do you suppose there is any truth in it? Have you asked Qin about it yet? What has he to say for himself?’
‘I’ve questioned him,’ replied Lian. ‘Only a few moments ago, as a matter of fact. Of course he denied the whole thing. But consider, Aunt; supposing he really had done it, do you think he would admit to it? Personally I don’t think he did. He knows that the girls are liable to be called to Court at short notice, and would be too scared of a scandal. We could find out the truth easily enough. But what then? What do you suggest?’
‘Where are the girls now?’ asked Lady Wang.
‘They are locked up in the Garden,’ replied Jia Lian.
‘Do the others know that they are there?’
‘They probably all know by now. But so far as they are concerned the girls are on their way to the Palace. That is what everyone has been told.’
‘Good,’ said Lady Wang. ‘We must get rid of these creatures immediately, once and for all. I never wanted to keep them on in the first place – it was all your idea and Xi-feng’s. Didn’t I say it would end in trouble? You’d better tell Lai Da to go through them one by one and find out if they’ve any relatives left at home. Find their contracts and authorize whatever money is necessary to hire a boat for them – twenty or thirty taels should be enough. Put someone dependable in charge and have them all taken home to wherever they came from in the first place. They can take their contracts with them, and that will be the end of that. Even if one or two of them have been up to some mischief, I don’t think it would be fair to punish them indiscriminately, by making them all return to lay-life. And if we hand them over to the official broker who usually finds husbands for orphan girls, even though we don’t want the body price, someone is sure to try and make money out of them, and no one will think of their welfare. Who knows what might happen to them? As for Qin, I want you to tell him in no uncertain manner exactly what we think of him. He is never to come here again except for a clan sacrifice or some other big celebration. He had better keep well out of Sir Zheng’s way too, unless he wants a taste of real trouble. And don’t forget to tell the accounts people to cancel the relevant entry.
‘Send someone to the Temple,’ concluded Lady Wang, ‘with strict instructions from Sir Zheng that none of the male members of the clan is to be allowed in there, except for the specific purpose of burning paper-money at the grave-site. And if there is any more nonsense, we will have all the Sisters removed too.’
Jia Lian took this all in and went to give Lai Da his orders.
‘That is what Her Ladyship says you are to do,’ he said. ‘Report to me when you’ve finished, and I shall report back to Her Ladyship. Look smart. When Sir Zhen
g comes in, all you need do is repeat Her Ladyship’s instructions.’
‘It’s very charitable of Her Ladyship to deal so generously with these worthless people,’ commented Lai Da. ‘I’ll make sure I pick a good ’un to take them all home, carrying on Her Ladyship’s good work, so to speak. And I’ll bring young Master Qin in here, sir, for you to deal with. As for that anonymous bill-sticker, I’ll track him down, and when I lay my hands on him I’ll teach him a lesson he won’t forget in a hurry.’
Jia Lian nodded.
‘Good.’
Jia Qin was summoned and disposed of, and Lai Da dealt with the girls in accordance with Lady Wang’s instructions.
When Jia Zheng came home that evening, Jia Lian and Lai Da both went in to report. Jia Zheng was not a man to look for unnecessary trouble, and was content to consider the matter closed. The news that the Jia household had dismissed twenty-four girl novices soon spread, and every young rake in town fancied the idea of getting hold of one of them for himself. What did happen to the girls in the end, and whether or not they ever reached home, our story does not relate, and it would be idle to speculate.
*
Let us return instead to the Naiad’s House. With the slight improvement in Dai-yu’s health, Nightingale was less busy than usual. Hearing of the arrival of the novices, and curious about the event that called for their presence at Court, she decided to pay a visit to Grandmother Jia’s apartment, in the hope of finding out more from one of the maids there. She arrived just as Faithful was coming off duty and the two of them were able to sit down for a chat. Nightingale mentioned the novices. Their presence in the Garden came as a complete surprise to Faithful who exclaimed:
‘That’s the first I’ve heard of it! I’ll ask Mrs Lian about it later on, she’ll be sure to know.’
At that moment two old women from Mr Fu Shi’s establishment came to call on Grandmother Jia, and Faithful went to take them through. Grandmother Jia had just retired for her midday nap, however, so the women exchanged a few words with Faithful and went on their way again.
‘Where are those two from?’ asked Nightingale.
‘They’re a tiresome pair,’ replied Faithful. ‘They’re always calling on Her Old Ladyship and telling her how wonderful their Miss Fu is – so sweet-natured, beautiful, well-mannered, softly spoken, a perfect needlewoman, deft with her writing-brush, nimble with her abacus, a paragon of daughterly obedience, kind and ladylike towards the servants, and so on and so forth… Every time they come they treat Her Old Ladyship to the same recital. I can’t bear that sort of thing, but Her Old Ladyship seems to love it. And the strange thing is that Bao-yu, who normally finds old women like that most irritating, makes an exception of these two. A few days ago, when they were here last, they said that Mr Fu wouldn’t look at any of his sister’s suitors (and there are plenty of them), but had set his heart on her marrying into a family like ours. They sung her praises all over again. Somehow they always seem to say just the thing to please the old lady.’
Nightingale looked thoughtful for a moment. Then she asked with affected nonchalance:
‘If Her Old Ladyship is so pleased with what they say, why doesn’t she marry Bao-yu to the young lady?’
Faithful was on the very point of explaining to Nightingale the real reason, when she heard a call from inside:
‘Her Old Ladyship is awake!’
She hurried in, leaving Nightingale to make her own way home.
As Nightingale reached the Garden and began to walk towards the Naiad’s House, she thought to herself:
‘Anyone would suppose Bao-yu to be the only boy in the world, from the amount of time we all spend thinking about him! My poor mistress just seems to get more and more besotted with him.Whenever I see her sinking into one of her depressions, I can tell it’s because of him. That’s what has been making her fall ill all the time too. What with all the uncertainty about the bond of gold and jade, and now this Miss Fu – I don’t know! I always thought Bao-yu loved Miss Lin, but from what Faithful said it seems he just flits from one girl to the next. My poor mistress! All your heartache is wasted on him!’
Nightingale had begun by feeling sad on Dai-yu’s account, but the more she thought about it the more wretched and confused she began to feel herself. She would have liked to advise Dai-yu not to wear her heart out in such a futile affair, but was too afraid of incurring her displeasure. And yet how could she just stand by and watch her suffer?
Presently, as she turned the problem over and over in her mind, her compassion gave way to a sudden feeling of annoyance and she chided herself:
‘Why should I worry about them anyway? Supposing Miss Lin does marry Bao-yu – she’ll still be as difficult to please as ever. And Bao-yu may be friendly enough, but I know how fickle he is too. I tell others not to wear their hearts out in vain, and then do so myself! No, from now on I shall concentrate on doing my duty and not allow myself to get involved.’
In this new spirit of detachment she continued on her way to the Naiad’s House, and arrived to find Dai-yu sitting alone on the kang, going over some of her old poems and other writings. As she entered the room Dai-yu looked up and asked:
‘Where have you been?’
‘Oh, I just went out for a chat with one of the other maids,’ replied Nightingale.
‘Was it Aroma?’
‘What should I want to see her for?’
The off-hand manner of her reply came as a shock to Dai-yu, who felt most put out and said curtly:
‘Do as you please, it’s all the same to me. Bring me a cup of tea.’
Nightingale smiled inwardly at the outcome of her experiment and went to pour the tea. As she did so she heard a confused hubbub in the Garden, but could not tell what was going on. She began pouring the tea and sent a junior maid out to investigate the disturbance. The maid returned in a short while to report:
‘It’s the crab-trees at Green Delights. Earlier this year some of them were struck with the blight, and no one bothered to water them. Yesterday Bao-yu went to have a look at them and thought he could see buds on some of the branches. No one believed him or paid any attention to his story at the time. But today there’s no doubt about it, they’ve come out in the most beautiful blossom! It has caused quite a stir and everyone is hurrying over there to have a look. Even Her Old Ladyship and Her Ladyship have been caught up in the excitement and are going along to see the blossom. So Mrs Zhu has given orders for all the paths to be cleared of leaves – that’s what all the shouting was about.’
When Dai-yu heard that Grandmother Jia was coming, she got up to change and sent Snowgoose on ahead, telling her to report back the moment Her Old Ladyship arrived. She soon came running back.
‘Her Old Ladyship and Her Ladyship and a lot of the other ladies have all arrived! Hurry, Miss!’
Dai-yu took a brief look in the mirror, passed a comb quickly through her hair and set off with Nightingale in the direction of Green Delights. She arrived to find Grandmother Jia installed on Bao-yu’s day-couch, and after greeting her and Lady Xing and Lady Wang went on to say hello to Li Wan, Tan-chun, Xi-chun and Xing Xiu-yan. She noticed that several people were absent: Xi-feng was ill in bed, Shi Xiang-yun had gone home to see her uncle who was in the capital on transfer, while Bao-qin had stayed at home with Bao-chai, and the two Li sisters, Wen and Qi, had been taken to live elsewhere by their mother, whom recent events had convinced that Prospect Garden was a rather unsuitable environment for her daughters.
They were all chatting away, each propounding a different interpretation of the strange phenomenon of the winter-flowering crab-trees.
‘They usually flower in the third month, I know,’ Grandmother Jia was saying. ‘And we are in the eleventh month now. But then the movable terms in the calendar are rather late this year, so we could say this is more like the tenth month, which is after all sometimes called “Little Spring”. With the exceptionally warm weather we have been having, a little blossom is only to be expected.’ r />
‘You are quite right, Mother,’ agreed Lady Wang. ‘We need someone of your experience to show us that this is really nothing out of the ordinary.’
Lady Xing however was not so easily convinced.
‘I heard that these trees had already been struck by the blight for almost a year… How do you explain the fact that half-dead trees should start flowering now, at such an odd time of the year?’
Li Wan spoke next.
‘I think you are both right,’ she said with a smile. ‘My own humble suggestion is that they have flowered specially to tell us of some happy event that is about to take place in Bao-yu’s life.’
Tan-chun, although she remained silent, was secretly thinking to herself:
‘This must be an ill-omen. Everything that is in harmony with nature prospers, and things out of season, out of time, fade and die. Plants and trees obey a natural cycle. If a tree flowers out of season, it must be an ill-omen.’
She kept all this to herself, however. It was Dai-yu who spoke next. She had been struck by Li Wan’s mention of a happy event, and said with some excitement:
‘There was once a family of farmers who had a thornbush. There were three sons in the family, and one day these three sons decided to leave home and go their separate ways. No sooner had they gone than the thornbush began to fade away and die. But some time later the brothers began to yearn for each other’s company, returned home and were reunited. And at once the thornbush began to flourish again. So you see plants follow closely the fortunes of the people to whom they are attached. Now Cousin Bao is devoting himself seriously to his studies, which pleases Uncle Zheng, which pleases the crab-trees, which is why they are flowering!’
This went down very well with Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang.
‘What a well-chosen story! Such an interesting idea!’
Jia She and Jia Zheng now arrived to view the flowers, accompanied by Jia Huan and Jia Lan. Jia She spoke first.
‘Cut them down. That’s what I say. There’s evil work afoot here.’