Chapter 106

Chapter 106

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CHAPTER 106

Wang Xifeng Brings Disaster and Bears Her Shame;

The Dowager Prays to Heaven to Avert Misfortune

Jia Zheng, hearing that the Dowager's condition was critical, hurried in to see her. He found that she had been badly frightened and had suffered a rush of qi, but Lady Wang, Yuanyang, and the others had managed to revive her. She was given pills to soothe her qi and calm her spirits, and she gradually improved somewhat, though she was still heartbroken and in tears. Jia Zheng tried to console her, saying, "It is all our fault—our unfilial conduct has brought this misfortune and caused you distress, Old Mother. If you can find some comfort in your heart, we can still manage matters outside. But if anything should happen to you, our sins would be even greater." The Dowager said, "I have lived for more than eighty years. From the time I was a girl until I came under your father's care, I have always enjoyed the blessing of our ancestors. I never heard of such things as these in all my life. Now that I am old, how could I bear to see you suffer punishment! It would be better to close my eyes and let you all go as you will." And she wept again.

Jia Zheng was beside himself with anxiety. At this moment someone came from outside to announce, "The Master is wanted—there is a message from the inner court." Jia Zheng hastened out and found it was the chief steward of Prince Bei Jing's mansion. The steward offered his congratulations as soon as they met. Jia Zheng thanked him and invited him to sit down. "May I ask what instructions His Highness has for me?" The steward said, "Our Prince, together with Prince Xi Ping, has gone into the palace to present a memorial on your behalf. They reported to the Emperor your fear and apprehension, as well as your gratitude for His Majesty's grace. The Emperor was most compassionate, and in consideration of the fact that your consort the Imperial Concubine died not long ago, he cannot bear to punish you. He has graciously ordered that you be allowed to continue in your post as Director in the Ministry of Works. As for the confiscated family property, only Jia She's portion is to be forfeited to the state; the rest is to be returned. He has also issued an edict commanding you to serve with all your heart. Only the loan documents have been sent to our Prince for examination. Any loans that violate the prohibitions against excessive interest are to be confiscated according to regulations, while those documents bearing interest at the statutory rate, together with the deeds to houses and land, are to be returned in full. Jia Lian is to be stripped of his official rank but released without punishment." When Jia Zheng heard this, he immediately rose and kowtowed in gratitude to the Emperor's grace, then bowed to thank the Prince's kindness. "Please convey my thanks to His Highness on my behalf first. Tomorrow morning I will go to the palace to express my gratitude and will also come to His Highness's mansion to kowtow." The steward then took his leave. Shortly afterward, the imperial edict was formally proclaimed. The officials in charge carried out the decree item by item—what was to be confiscated was confiscated, and what was to be returned was returned. Jia Lian was released, and all the men and women on Jia She's household register were listed for forfeiture to the state.

Poor Jia Lian—when his household goods were dealt with, beyond the documents released according to regulation, everything else, though not yet fully confiscated, had long since been snatched away by the men who carried out the search. What remained was nothing but furniture and household items. At first Jia Lian had trembled in fear of punishment; later, his release was already a stroke of great fortune. But when he thought of the savings accumulated over the years, together with Fengjie's private store—no less than seventy or eighty thousand taels of gold—all gone in a single morning, how could he not be heartbroken? Moreover, his father was now detained in the Embroidered Uniform Guard prison, and Fengjie lay at death's door. Grief overwhelmed him all at once. Then he saw Jia Zheng, tears in his eyes, summoning him and saying: "Being occupied with official duties, I paid little attention to household matters, and so I put you and your wife in charge of running the family. Your father's conduct was admittedly difficult to remonstrate with, but who was behind this practice of exacting usury and exploitation? Besides, such behavior is not fitting for a family of our standing. Now that the case has gone to the authorities, the loss of money is of no great consequence, but if this sort of reputation gets out, how can we bear it!" Jia Lian knelt down and said: "Your nephew has managed the household affairs without harboring the least selfish motive. All accounts of income and expenditure were kept by Lai Da, Wu Xindeng, Dai Liang, and the rest. The master may simply summon them for questioning. In recent years, the treasury's silver has gone out more than it has come in. Though no subsidies have been drawn from it, many false entries have been made in various quarters. If the master asks the Old Lady, he will know. As for these loans that were issued, even your nephew does not know where the silver went—one would have to ask Zhou Rui and Wang'er to find out." Jia Zheng said: "From what you say, you do not even know the affairs of your own household—much less the affairs of the entire family. I will not trouble myself to investigate you this time. But since you are now a man without duties, why do you not go and make inquiries about your father's case and about your Elder Cousin Zhen's affairs?" Jia Lian, his heart full of grievance, answered with tears in his eyes and withdrew. Jia Zheng sighed repeatedly and thought to himself: "My grandfather toiled diligently in the service of the king and established meritorious deeds, earning two hereditary offices. Now both branches have committed offenses and both have been stripped of their ranks. I look at these nephews and sons—not a single one shows any promise. Heaven! Heaven! How has the Jia family fallen to such ruin! Though I have received the Emperor's special grace and favor in having our property restored, the expenses of the two households must now be merged into one, and how can I alone sustain it? What Lian'er just said is even more astonishing—he says not only is there there no silver in the treasury, but there is even a deficit. These past years we have been living under a false reputation. I only hate myself for having been so blind. Had my son Zhu been alive, I would still have had an arm to lean on; as for Baoyu, though he is grown, he is utterly useless." Thinking of this, he found his garment soaked with tears. He further thought: "The Old Lady is so advanced in years, yet her sons have not been able to support her for a single day—instead, they have caused her to be frightened nearly to death. These many sins—upon whom can I lay the blame?" He was immersed in his own grief when a servant came to report that various relatives and friends had arrived to pay their respects. Jia Zheng thanked them one by one and spoke of "the misfortune of our family, which is due to my failure to discipline my nephews and sons, and so it has come to this." Some said: "I have long known that your elder brother, the Great Lord She, did not conduct himself properly, and that Cousin Zhen on that side was even more arrogant and undisciplined. If one had made some mistake in official business and received censure, one could still hold one's conscience clear; but now the trouble was of their own making, and it has dragged the Second Lord down with them." Some said: "Many families have had disturbances, yet we have not seen the Imperial Censor submit a memorial about them. If Cousin Zhen the elder had not offended his friends, how could things have come to this?" Some said: "One cannot blame the Censor either. We heard it was the family servants together with some country bumpkins who raised a commotion outside. The Censor feared that if he submitted a memorial without solid evidence, it would not stand, so he lured someone from here to come forward before speaking out. I would have thought your household treated its servants most generously—why should such a thing still occur?" Some said: "As a rule, servants are creatures that cannot be kept in check. Now that we are all good friends here, I dare speak plainly: even if you, sir, are serving in an outer post, I cannot guarantee—you are a man who does not love money—but the rumors outside are not good either; they are all stirred up by the servants. You should be on your guard. Although your household has not yet been touched, should the Son of Heaven's suspicion arise again, there would be considerable inconvenience." Jia Zheng, hearing this, grew anxious in his heart and asked: "What have you all heard about my reputation?" The company said: "Though we have not heard any solid evidence, we have heard people outside say that during your tenure as Grain Commissioner, you had your gatekeepers demand money from people." Jia Zheng, upon hearing this, said: "I am answerable to Heaven—I have never once entertained such a thought of demanding money. It is only that the servants, out on their own, have swaggered and swindled, and when trouble arises, I am the one who cannot bear the consequences." The company said: "Worrying about it now is of no use. The best thing is to strictly examine all those who currently manage the household. If any servant who defies his master is found, investigate him strictly and deal with him severely." Jia Zheng nodded in agreement. Then the gatekeeper came in to report: "The Young Master Sun on the Sun side has sent a man to say that he has business and cannot come himself, but has sent someone to have a look. He says the Great Lord owes him a certain sum of silver and wants the Second Lord to repay it." Jia Zheng, troubled in his heart, merely said: "I know." The company all said with a cold laugh: "People say your kinsman Sun Shaozu is a scoundrel—indeed he is. Now that his father-in-law's household has been searched and confiscated, not only does he not come to visit and offer help and support, but he hastens to demand his silver—truly unreasonable!" Jia Zheng said: "Let us not speak of him for now. That marriage was originally a mismatched arrangement by my elder brother. My niece has already suffered enough, and now she drags me into it as well." Even as he spoke, Xue Ke came in and said: "I have made inquiries—the chief minister Zhao of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is certain to act according to what the Censor has memorialized. I am afraid the Great Lord and the Elder Cousin Zhen will not be able to endure it." The company all said: "Second Lord, it will have to be you who goes to beg the Prince—find some way to turn the situation around. Otherwise both households are finished." Jia Zheng gave his thanks, and the company dispersed.

By this time the lamps had already been lit. Jia Zheng went in to pay his respects to the Dowager and found her somewhat improved. Returning to his own quarters, he vented his anger on Jia Lian and his wife for their lack of sense—their moneylending and usury had brought disgrace on the whole family. When he thought of everything Xifeng had done, he was deeply displeased. But Xifeng was now gravely ill, and knowing that all her possessions had been confiscated, her heart was so oppressed with grief that for the moment he held back his reproaches and kept silent. Nothing further happened that night.

The next morning Jia Zheng went into the palace to express his gratitude, and also called on the Prince of Beijing and the Prince of Xiping to thank them and beg the two princes to look after his brother and nephew. Both promised to do so. Jia Zheng also sought the help of his colleagues and friends.

Meanwhile, Jia Lian had learned that his father's and brother's affairs were far from settled. Having no recourse, he could only return home. Ping'er was sitting by Xifeng weeping, and Qiutong was in the side room complaining about Xifeng. Jia Lian drew close and saw that Xifeng was at death's door; he had many grievances, but for the moment he could find no words to express them. Ping'er said through her tears, "Now that things have come to this and the property is gone beyond recall, if you carry on like this, my lady, you must see another doctor and get proper treatment." Jia Lian spat, "I can't even save my own skin—why should I care about her?" Xifeng opened her eyes at this and looked at him. She said nothing, but her tears flowed without end. When Jia Lian left, she told Ping'er, "You're being foolish. Things have come to such a pass—why bother about me? I'd be only too glad to die today. If you've any regard for me, just bring up Qiaojie after I'm dead, and I'll be grateful to you even in the underworld." At this, Ping'er broke down and wept loudly. Xifeng continued, "You're an intelligent girl. They haven't said anything against me yet, but they certainly blame me. Although this trouble started outside, if I hadn't been so greedy for money none of this would have happened to me. Not only have all my scheming and efforts come to nothing—all my life I've striven to be ahead of others, and now I'm left behind. My only regret is that I trusted the wrong people. I vaguely heard that the case against Master Zhen involves the forced seizure of a commoner's wife as a concubine and her being driven to death for refusing. There's a certain Zhang involved—think about it, who else could it be? If this is brought out in the investigation, our Master Lian can't escape it. How could I ever face people then? If I were to die right now, I can't even bring myself to swallow gold or take poison. And you want to call a doctor—isn't your caring for me only hastening my death?" The more Ping'er heard, the more wretched she felt. She could see how desperate Xifeng's situation was and feared she might do away with herself, so she stayed close by her side constantly.

Fortunately, the Dowager was ignorant of the full truth. As she had been feeling better lately and Jia Zheng was safe, with Baoyu and Baochai constantly at her side, she felt somewhat reassured. Having always been most fond of Xifeng, she called for Yuanyang: "Take some of my personal things to Sister Feng, and give some silver coins to Ping'er. Let her serve Sister Feng well, and I'll make further arrangements later." She also ordered Lady Wang to look after Lady Xing. The Ning Mansion had been confiscated by the state, and all its property, land, and servants had been inventoried and seized. Here the Dowager had a carriage sent to bring over Madam You and her daughter-in-law. Pitiful—the once-mighty Ning Mansion was left with only those two women, plus Peifeng and Xieluan, without a single servant. The Dowager assigned them a house to live in, next to the one where Xichun resided. She also sent four old maids and two maids to wait on them. All their meals were sent from the main kitchen; clothing and other items were provided by the Dowager, and incidental expenses were charged to the accounts—all according to the monthly allowances given to members of the Rong Mansion. Jia She, Jia Zhen, and Jia Rong were being held by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and the accounts truly had no funds to draw on. Now Xifeng had nothing left, Jia Lian was burdened with debts, and Jia Zheng knew nothing about household affairs, merely saying that he had asked others to help and that they would be taken care of. Jia Lian, at his wits' end, reflected that the Xue family was already ruined and Wang Ziteng was dead. Although he had other relatives, none of them could offer any assistance. He could only secretly send people to the estates to sell several thousand taels' worth of land to cover expenses while his family members were in custody. Once Jia Lian took this step, the servants, seeing their masters' fortunes declining, took advantage of the situation and began appropriating rents from the eastern farms for their own use. But this is a later development and need not be recounted here.

And so it was that the Lady Dowager, seeing the hereditary titles of their ancestors stripped away and the younger generation now in prison awaiting trial, while Lady Xing and Lady Ju wept day and night, Phoenix hovering at death's door, and though Baoyu and Baochai were at her side they could only offer comfort and not share her burden—she passed her days and nights in no peace, thinking over past and present, her tears never drying. One evening she sent Baoyu back to his quarters, then with effort sat herself up, ordered Yuanyang and the others to burn incense in every Buddhist chapel, and commanded that incense be lit in her own courtyard as well. Leaning on her cane she went out into the court. Amber understood that the old lady was going to pray, and spread out a large scarlet felt prayer mat. The Lady Dowager burned incense, knelt down, and kowtowed several times. After reciting prayers for a while, she addressed Heaven and Earth with tears in her eyes:

"August Heaven and Bodhisattvas above, I, Shi of the Jia clan, pray with all my heart, begging the Bodhisattvas for mercy. For generations the Jia family has never acted with violence or tyranny. I have helped my husband and raised my sons—though I cannot claim to have done good, I have never done evil. It must be that the younger descendants, arrogant, extravagant, dissolute, and wasteful of Heaven's goods, have brought about the confiscation of the whole household. Now my sons and grandsons are imprisoned, and naturally the outlook is most dire—all because of my own sins in failing to teach them, which has brought us to this pass. I now beg August Heaven to grant protection: that those in prison may turn misfortune into good fortune, and those who fall ill may soon recover. Whatever the sins of the whole family, I am willing to bear them all myself, only begging that my sons and grandsons be spared. If Heaven in its compassion sees my sincerity, let me die soon, and pardon the crimes of my descendants."

Having spoken thus in silence, she could not restrain her grief and broke into sobs. Yuanyang and Zhenzhu tried to comfort her while helping her back to her room. Just then Lady Wang arrived with Baoyu and Baochai to pay their evening respects. Seeing the Lady Dowager's sorrow, the three of them also wept loudly. Baochai had an additional grief: she thought of her brother, also in prison, who would soon face execution—could the sentence be commuted? Though her parents-in-law were safe, she could see the family's fortunes in ruins, and Baoyu remained foolish and wild, with no ambition at all. When she thought of her future, she wept even more bitterly than the Lady Dowager and Lady Wang. Seeing Baochai in such anguish, Baoyu too felt a deep sadness. He thought of the old lady, who in her advanced years could find no peace; of Uncle and Aunt, who seeing such a scene could not but grieve; of the cousins scattered like wind-driven clouds, fewer with each passing day. He recalled how lively it had been when they composed poetry together in the Garden—but ever since Sister Lin's death he had been sunk in melancholy, and with Elder Sister Bao around he could not indulge his grief as often as he wished. Now seeing her worried for her brother and homesick for her mother, her face rarely brightened by a smile, and seeing her now in the extremity of sorrow, his heart could bear no more, and he burst into loud wailing. Yuanyang, Caiyun, Ying'er, and Xiren, seeing them thus, each had her own thoughts and also began to sob. The other maids, witnessing such grief, joined in weeping too, until there was no one left to offer comfort. The wailing in the room shook Heaven and Earth, startling the old night-watch women outside, who hastened to report to Jia Zheng. Jia Zheng, brooding in his study, was alarmed at the message from the Lady Dowager's household and rushed inside. From afar he heard the great sound of weeping and feared the old lady had passed away; his very soul seemed to leave him as he hurried in. He found her only sitting there weeping, and his spirit settled. "The old lady is grieved," he said, "you should be comforting her—why have you all joined in weeping together?" At the sound of Jia Zheng's voice, the others hastily stopped crying and stood staring at one another. Jia Zheng stepped forward to comfort the old lady and said a few words to the rest. Each thought to ourselves: "We originally feared the old lady would be too grieved, so we came to comfort her—how could we have forgotten ourselves and all wept together?" Even as they wondered, an old woman arrived with two women from the Marquis Shi's household. They paid their respects to the Lady Dowager and then to the others, and said: "Our master, mistress, and young lady have sent me to say that they have heard there is nothing seriously wrong in your household—it was only a temporary fright. Fearing that the master and mistress might be troubled, they asked us to come and tell you that the Second Master here has nothing to fear. Our young lady would have come herself, but as she is to be married in a few days, she could not come."

The Lady Dowager, hearing this, could not very well offer thanks, and said: "Go back and give them my regards. It is simply our family's fate that it should be so. I am grateful to your master and mistress for their concern, and ask you to come again in a few days so that I may thank them properly. Your young lady's marriage—I suppose her young husband is beyond reproach? How are their family's circumstances?" The two women replied: "Their circumstances are nothing remarkable, but the young husband is handsome and of an amiable disposition. We have seen him several times and find him much like your Second Master here; we also hear that he is very talented and well-read."

The Lady Dowager, pleased, said: "We are all from the South. Though we have lived here a long time, we still follow the old southern customs, so we have never seen the new son-in-law. Just the other day I was thinking of my own family—the one I loved most was your young lady. Three hundred and sixty days a year, she spent more than two hundred days at my side, and she has grown up so tall. I originally wanted to find her a good husband, but as her uncle was away from home I could not make the decision. Since fate has given her a good husband, I am at ease. When she marries I had planned to come and drink a cup of wedding wine, but with such trouble in my own family my heart feels as though it were being roasted on a hot pan—how could I possibly come to your house? Go back and give them my regards, and tell them all here send their greetings. And tell your young lady not to think of me. I am over eighty years old—even if I were to die, it could not be said I had not had my share of blessings. I only wish that when she enters her new home, the two of them will live in harmony and grow old together, and then I shall be at peace."

As she spoke, tears fell unbidden. The woman said: "The old lady should not grieve. When the young lady has entered her new home, after she returns on the ninth day, she will surely come with her husband to pay their respects to the old lady."

"Once she's settled, the old lady will be pleased when she sees her." The Lady Dowager nodded. The woman withdrew. The others paid no attention, but Baoyu, hearing her words, fell into a daze. He thought to life, "Things are getting worse by the day. Why is it that when a family raises a daughter, she must be married off when she grows up, and once she's married, everything changes? Cousin Shi, a person like her, has been forced into a marriage by her uncle. When she sees me in the future, she'll surely ignore me again. If a person reaches the point where no one pays them any attention, what's the living for?" Thinking of this, he was overcome with grief. Seeing that the old lady had just settled down, he dared not weet, but only sat in gloomy silence.

Presently, Jia Zheng, still uneasy, came in again to check on his mother. Seeing that she was somewhat better, he went out and summoned Lai Da, ordering him to bring the roster of all the household stewards and managers. He reviewed it together with them. Apart from those who had been confiscated along with Jia She, there were still over thirty households, making two hundred and twelve persons in all, men and women counted together. Jia Zheng called in the twenty-one men currently serving in the mansion and asked them about the household's annual income and expenditure—how much came in and how much went out. The chief steward presented the recent account ledgers. Jia Zheng examined them and saw that income fell short of expenditure. On top of that, there had been continuous outlays for the palace over the years, and the ledgers also showed considerable borrowing from outside. He then checked the land rents from the eastern provinces: in recent years, what had been delivered was less than half of what it had been in his ancestors' time, while the present expenditure was ten times greater than in their day. Jia Zheng had not looked before, but now that he did, he stamped his feet in distress. "This is disastrous! I thought that although Lian managed the household, he would have kept things in hand. Who would have known that for years past they have been spending the year's income before it even arrives, and still putting on a fine show, treating the hereditary stipend and salary as though they were of no consequence! How could the estate not be ruined!" He thought further, "If I try to economize now, it's already too late." With this on his mind, he paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, but could find no solution. The others knew that Jia Zheng had no experience managing a household, and that his fretting and worrying were all in vain. They said, "Your Lordship need not be so distressed. Every family is like this. If one reckons it all up, even the households of princes and dukes would not have enough. It's all a matter of keeping up appearances, getting by as best one can. Now Your Lordship has at last received His Majesty's grace and still has this much property. If it had all been confiscated, how would Your Lordship live?" Jia Zheng snapped, "Nonsense! You slaves are the most ungrateful lot. You rely on your master's prosperity to spend as you please, and when everything's gone, off you go—some leaving, some running away—without a thought for your master's life or death! Now you say it's good that there's no confiscation, but do you know the reputation we have abroad? If the main foundation can't be preserved, how can you go on putting on airs outside, making grand claims and deceiving people? When trouble comes, you'll just push the blame onto your master and be done with it. Now, regarding the affairs of the Elder Lord and Master Zhen—it's said that our servant Bao Er spread the word outside. But I see no Bao Er on this roster. How do you explain that?" The others replied, "This Bao Er is not on the roster. He was originally on the roster of the Ning Mansion. The Second Master, seeing that he an honest man, brought the couple over here. After his wife died, he went back to the Ning Mansion. Later, when Your Lordship was occupied at the yamen and the old lady and the masters went to the tombs, Master Zhen took charge of household affairs and brought him along, and after that he left. Your Lordship has not managed household affairs for years—how could you know about these things? Your Lordship seems to think that the only person not on the roster is this one man, but a single person may have relatives, and a servant may have servants of his own." Jia Zheng said, "This is outrageous!" He wanted to investigate at once, but realized he could not sort it out immediately. He dismissed the others and resolved in his mind to wait and see how the cases of Jia She and the others were adjudicated before deciding what to do.

One day, as he was calculating matters in his study, a man came rushing in and said, "Please, Your Lordness, go to the inner court at once for an audience." Jia Zheng's heart was thrown into turmoil, and he had to go in. Whether this bodes good or ill will be told in the next chapter.

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