Chapter 29

Chapter 29

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Chapter 29

The woman in the full enjoyment of her good fortune prays still more for blessings; the girl whose passion is deep grows ever more particular about her feelings.

Bao-yu was standing lost in thought when Dai-yu flicked her handkerchief at him, striking him right on the eye. He started in fright and asked who it was. Lin Dai-yu shook her head and smiled. "Don't be angry. It was my mistake. Bao-chai wanted to see the silly goose, and I was showing it to her when I let it slip."

Bao-yu rubbed his eyes, meaning to say something but thinking better of it.

Presently Feng-jie came along and brought up the subject of the ritual offerings at the Void of Purity Temple on the first of the month. She then invited Bao-chai, Bao-yu, and Dai-yu to come along to watch the opera. Bao-chai laughed and said, "Oh, stop it! It's so hot. It's an opera I've seen before, I shan't go." Feng-jie said, "It's cool there, with pavilions on both sides. If we're going, I'll send people a few days ahead to chase the Taoist priests out and have the pavilions swept clean and the curtains hung. No idlers will be allowed into the temple. That would be best. I've already told Lady Wang. If you don't go, I shall. I've been feeling very bored lately. They put on operas at home, but I can't sit back and enjoy them properly."

When the Dowager heard this, she laughed and said, "If that's the case, I'll go with you." Feng-jie was delighted. "If the Old Ancestress goes, that would be wonderful! Only I shan't be able to enjoy myself then." The Dowaged said, "Tomorrow I'll be in the main pavilion and you can be in the pavilion next to it. You won't have to come and stand on ceremony with me. Would that suit you?" Feng-jie smiled and said, "That just shows how the Old Ancestress spoils me." The Dowager then said to Bao-chai, "You go too, and bring your mother along. The days are so long, and you just sleep at home all day." Bao-chai had no choice but to agree.

The Lady Dowager also sent someone to invite Aunt Xue along the way, and told Lady Wang that she intended to take the young ladies with her. Lady Wang, being unwell and also expecting someone to come from Yuanchun's quarters, had already declined; but when she heard what the Lady Dowager now said, she smiled and remarked, "Still so full of spirits!" She then sent someone to the Garden to announce: "Anyone who wishes to go may simply follow the Old Lady on the first." Once this word spread, the others did not mind much, but the maids, who never got past the threshold day in and day out, were all eager to go upon hearing the news. Even if their mistresses were too lazy to go, the maids would urge them in every possible way. So Li Wancai and the others all said they would go. The Lady Dowager was even more pleased and had already given orders for cleaning and preparations, which need not be recounted in detail.

On the first day of the month, carriages crowded the gate of the Rong Mansion and people and horses thronged together. The servants and stewards below learned that it was for the Imperial Consort's meritorious act, and that the Lady Dowager herself was going to offer incense. Since the first day was the beginning of the month and it fell during the Dragon-Boat Festival, everything that was needed was provided in full completeness, unlike ordinary days.

After a while, the Lady Dowager and the others came out. The Lady Dowager rode in an eight-bearer sedan chair; Li Wancai, Madam Xue, and Xifeng each rode in a four-bearer sedan chair; Baochai and Daiyu shared a pearl-and-jade-trimmed eight-treasure carriage with a green canopy; Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun shared a vermilion-wheeled carriage with an ornate canopy. Then came the Lady Dowager's maids—Yuanyang, Parrot, Amber, and Zhenzhu; Lin Daiyu's maids Zijuan, Xueyan, and Chunxian; Baochai's mairs Ying'er and Wenxing; Yingchun's maids Siqi and Xiuju; Tanchun's maids Shishu and Cuimo; Xichun's maids Ruhua and Caiping; Aunt Xue's maids Tongxi and Tonggui; along with Xiangling, whose maid Zhen'er accompanied her; Li Wancai's maids Suyun and Biyue; Xifeng's maids Pinger, Feng'er, and Xiaohong; and two of Lady Wang's maids, Jinchuan and Caiyun, who were to attend Xifeng. The nurse carried Ying'er (the elder girl) and carried Qiaojie in a separate carriage, along with two more maids. Together with the old wet nurses, nannies, and family women from each household who were going out, the carriages stretched out in a dark, packed mass filling an entire street. By the time the Lady Dowager's party had already ridden far away in their sedan chairs, those at the gate had not yet all set off. One said, "I'm not going with you"; another said, "You're crushing our mistress's bundle"; from the carriage over there came "You've crushed my flowers"; and from here "You've broken my fan." Chattering and laughing without cease, Zhou Rui's wife came and went saying, "Girls, this is a street—people will laugh at us." She repeated this twice before things calmed down. The full retinue was already arrayed ahead, and they had long since arrived at the Qingxu Temple.

Baoyu rode on horseback in front of the Lady Dowager's sedan chair. People in the street stood on both sides. As they approached the temple, they heard bells and drums sounding. The Prior Zhang, already vested and holding incense, led all the Taoist priests to welcome them at the roadside. The Lady Dowager's sedan chair had just entered the mountain gate when she noticed inside the gate the clay images of the Guardian General, the All-Seeing Eye, the All-Hearing Ear, the local Earth God, and the City God of the district, and ordered the sedan to stop. Jia Zhen led the younger male members of the family forward to greet her. Xifeng knew that Yuanyang and the others were behind and could not catch up to help the Lady Dowager, so she got down from her sedan chair and hurried forward to support her. Just then a little Taoist boy of twelve or thirteen, holding a candle-snuffer and in charge of trimming the wax flowers everywhere, was looking for a chance to slip out. He did not expect to bump straight into Xifeng's arms. Xifeng raised her hand and slapped his face, knocking him head over heels, and cursed: "You little bastard, where do you think you're running!" The little Taoist did not bother to pick up his candle-snuffer; he scrambled up and ran outside again. Just then Baochai and the others were getting out of their carriages, and the women and servants surrounded them so tightly that not a drop of rain could have gotten through. They saw the little Taoist roll out and all shouted: "Seize him, seize him, seize him! Beat him, beat him, beat him!"

The Lady Dowager heard the commotion and asked, "What happened?" Jia Zhen hurried out to inquire. Xifeng went forward to support the Lady Dowager and replied, "It's a little Taoist boy who trims the lamp wicks. He didn't get out of the way in time and is running about wildly." When the Lady Dowager heard this, she said quickly, "Bring that child here—don't frighten him. Children from humble families are all tenderly raised; they've never seen such a grand display. If he's frightened, it would be pitiful indeed. Won't his parents be distressed?" She told Jia Zhen to bring the boy over properly. Jia Zhen had no choice but to pull the child forward. The boy still held the candle-snuffer in one hand and knelt on the ground trembling. The Lady Dowager told Jia Zhen to pull him up. "Tell him not to be afraid. Ask him how old he is." The boy could not say a word. The Lady Dowager again said, "Poor child," and said to Jia Zhen, "Zhen'erge, take him away. Give him some money to buy fruit to eat, and don't let anyone mistreat him." Jia Zhen assented and led the boy away.

Here the Lady Dowager led the others to worship and view the temple, level by level. Outside, the pages saw the Lady Dowager and her party enter the second mountain gate, and suddenly saw Jia Zhen leading out the little Taoist boy, telling someone to take him away and give him a few hundred cash, and not to mistreat him. The servants heard and came forward to take him away.

Jia Zhen stood on the terrace steps and called out, "Where are the stewards?" The pages standing below, hearing the question, all shouted in unison: "Send for the steward!" At once Lin Zhixiao came running up, straightening his cap as he went, and arrived before Jia Zhen. Jia Zhen said, "Though this place is large, I didn't expect so many people today. Take those servants you need and lead them to your courtyard. Send those you don't need to the other courtyard. Select several of the younger pages to stand at the second gate and the two side gates, ready to fetch things and pass messages. Do you understand or not? Today all the young ladies and mistresses have come out—not a single idle person is to get through here." Lin Zhixiao hurriedly answered, "Understood," and added several "Yes, sir"s. Jia Zhen said, "Off with you." Then he asked, "Why isn't Rong'er here?" Before the words had left his mouth, Jia Rong came running out of the bell tower. Jia Zhen said, "Look at him! I haven't even dared to mention the heat here, and he's already gone off to cool himself!" He ordered the servants to spit at him. The pages all knew Jia Zhen's usual temper—he could not be crossed. One of them stepped forward and spat in Jia Rong's face. Jia Zhen then said, "Ask him!" So the page said to Jia Rong, "If His Lordship isn't afraid of the heat, why has the young master gone to cool himself first?" Jia Rong stood with his hands hanging at his sides and dared not utter a word. Jia Yun, Jia Ping, Jia Qin, and the rest, upon hearing this, were not only alarmed themselves, but even Jia Huang, Jia Bin, Jia Qiong, and the others were thrown into a flurry as well. One by one they slowly crept forward from where they had been lurking by the wall. Jia Zhen said to Jia Rong again, "What are you standing there for? Saddle a horse and ride home to tell your mother. The Old Ancestress and the young ladies have all arrived—tell them to come quickly and attend to their duties." On hearing this, Jia Rong hurried out, clamoring repeatedly for a horse, all the while complaining, "What have they been doing all this time, and now they go and put the squeeze on me!" He also cursed the boys, "Are your hands tied? Can't you even bring the horse?" He was about to send a boy, but feared that later when accounts were settled, it would come out, so he had no choice but to go himself. He mounted his horse and rode off—no more of this.

Now let us return to Jia Zhen, who was just about to turn and go inside, when he saw the Daoist Zhang standing nearby with a smile, saying, "By rights I should not be different from the others and should be inside attending. But because the weather is so hot, and all the young ladies have come out, the presiding priest does not dare enter without permission. I await your instructions. If the Old Ancestress should ask, or if she wishes to visit the place, I will simply wait here." Jia Zhen knew that this Daoist Zhang, though originally the substitute for the Duke of the Rong Mansion, had been personally addressed by the late emperor as the "Great Illusion Immortal," and now held the seal of the Court of Daoist Registrations. The present emperor had further bestowed upon him the title "Perfected One Who Has Reached the End," and the princes and regional commanders all addressed him as "Immortal," so he dared not treat him lightly. Moreover, he often visited both mansions, and all the ladies and young ladies were familiar with him. Seeing him speak thus, Jia Zhen smiled and said, "We're family—why do you talk like that? Say any more and I'll pluck out that beard of yours! Come along in with me." The Daoist Zhang laughed heartily and followed Jia Zhen inside.

Jia Zhen went before the Dowager and said with a deferential smile, "This Grandfather Zhang has come to pay his respects." The Dowager, upon hearing this, said quickly, "Help him over." Jia Zhen hurried to assist him over. The Daoist Zhang laughed and said first, "Blessed be the Infinite Longevity Buddha! Has the Old Ancestress been enjoying good fortune and health? Have all the young ladies and mistresses been in good fortune? I have not come to the mansion to pay my respects for some time. The Old Ancestress looks even better than before." The Dowager smiled and said, "And how are you, old Immortal?" The Daoist Zhang said, "Through the Old Ancestress's boundless fortune and longevity, this humble priest is also still in fair health. Other matters aside, I have been thinking of the young master. How has he been lately? On the twenty-sixth of the fourth month, we held the birthday celebration of the Heaven-Shielding Great King here. Few people came, but the offerings were very pure. I said we should invite the young master to come and have a look, but they said he was not at home." The Dowager said, "Indeed he was not at home." She turned her head and called for Baoyu. It happened that Baoyu had just returned from relieving himself, and he came forward quickly and asked, "How is Grandfather Zhang?" The Daoist Zhang embraced him warmly and asked after his health, then turned to the Dowager with a smile and said, "The young master has grown even stouter." The Dowager said, "He looks well on the outside, but he's delicate inside. And then his father forces him to study—the child has actually been driven into illness." The Daoist Zhang said, "Recently I saw the young master's calligraphy and poetry in several places—they were all remarkably fine. Why does the Old Master still complain that the young master doesn't like studying? In this humble priest's view, he is doing quite well enough." He then sighed and said, "When I look at the young master's appearance and bearing, his speech and manner, they are exactly like the late Duke himself!" As he spoke, tears streamed from his eyes. The Dowager, upon hearing this, could not help but tears filling her face as well, and said, "Just so. Of all the sons and grandsons I have raised, not one resembles his grandfather—only this Jade Boy takes after him."

Then the Taoist Zhang turned to Jia Zhen and said: "As for the old Duke's appearance, needless to say, none of your generation ever saw him. Even the Elder Master and the Second Master probably don't remember him clearly either." Having said this, he burst out laughing again, then continued: "The other day I saw a young lady at someone's house. She's fifteen this year and quite a beauty. I thought it's about time for your young master to find a match. Judging by this young lady's looks, intelligence and wisdom, and her family's standing, she would be a suitable match. But I don't know what the Old Lady thinks, and this humble Taoist would not dare to act presumptuously. I'll wait for the Old Lady's instructions before speaking to anyone about it."

The Lady Dowager said: "Last time a monk said that this child's fate does not favor an early marriage. Let's wait until he's a little older before settling the matter. For now, you may inquire about it. Never mind whether the family is wealthy or not—as long as the girl's looks are a good match, come and tell me. Even if the family is poor, we can simply give them a few taels of silver. It's just that a girl with both good looks and a fine temperament is hard to find."

When she had finished speaking, Xifeng laughed and said: "Grandpa Zhang, you still haven't come to exchange our girl's soul-protecting talisman. The other day you had such a thick skin—you sent someone asking me for that goose-yellow satin! If I hadn't given it to you, I was afraid you'd lose face, old as you are."

The Taoist Zhang laughed heartily and said: "Well now, my eyes are failing—I didn't even see the Young Lady here, and I didn't even say thank you. The talisman has been ready for some time. I meant to deliver it the other day, but then I didn't expect the Imperial Consort would come to perform meritorious deeds, and I clean forgot about it. It's still sitting before the Buddha. Let me go fetch it." With that he ran up to the great hall and soon returned carrying a tea tray draped with a red python-embroidered scripture cloth, upon which he presented the talisman. The nursemaid of the little girl received it.

The Taoist Zhang was about to take the little girl in his arms when Xifeng smiled and said: "Just hand it over from where you stand—why bother with a tray?"

The Taoist Zhang said: "My hands are dirty—how could I handle it with bare hands? The tray is cleaner."

Xifeng laughed and said: "You only had to produce that tray and it gave me quite a fright. I don't say this to deliver a talisman—it looks more like you've come to collect alms from us!"

At these words everyone burst out laughing, and even Jia Zhen could not keep from laughing. The Lady Dowager turned around and said: "You little monkey, you little monkey! Aren't you afraid of going to the hell where they cut out tongues?"

Xifeng laughed and said: "It doesn't matter for us menfolk. He's always telling me I should accumulate yin virtue, or else I'll die young!"

The Taoist Zhang also laughed and said: "By bringing out this tray I'm killing two birds with one stone. It's not for collecting alms—I want to ask the young master to take off his jade so I can carry it out for those visiting Taoist friends and disciples from afar to see and admire."

The Lady Dowager said: "In that case, why should you, an old man with one foot in the grave, go running about? Just take him out to see it and have him come back in—wouldn't that be simpler?"

The Taoist Zhang said: "The Old Lady doesn't know—though this humble Taoist is over eighty, thanks to the Old Lady's blessings I'm still hale and hearty. But there are many people outside and the air is hard to bear. Besides, it's a sweltering hot day—the young master isn't used to it. If the young master were to be exposed to foul air, that would be a great pity."

Hearing this, the Lady Dowager ordered Baoyu to take off his spiritual jade and place it on the tray. The Taoist Zhang carefully placed it on the python-embroidered cloth and carried it out with great reverence.

Here the Lady Dowager and the others toured various parts of the grounds for a while before going upstairs. Then Jia Zhen came back and reported: "Grandpa Zhang has returned the jade." Scarcely had he spoken when the Taoist Zhang appeared carrying the tray, walked up to them, and smiling said: "Thanks to this humble Taoist's blessing, everyone has seen the young master's jade and finds it truly marvelous. They have nothing to offer as congratulations, but these are the sacred implements each of them uses in spreading the Way, and they all wish to present them as tokens of celebration. Even if the young master doesn't treasure them, let him keep them in his room to amuse himself and to give away to others."

The Lady Dowager looked into the tray and saw gold half-discs, jade pendants, some inscribed with "May Everything Be as You Wish," others with "Peace Year After Year"—all strung with pearls and precious gems, carved from jade or wrought in gold, some thirty or fifty pieces in all. She said: "You're being ridiculous. Where would these monks get such things? Why must they do this? I cannot accept them."

The Taoist Zhang smiled and said: "This is just a small token of their respect. This humble Taoist cannot very well stop them. If the Old Lady doesn't keep them, won't they think this humble Taoist is too insignificant, and not a proper disciple of the faith?"

When the Lady Dowager heard this, she ordered the servants to accept them. Baoyu laughed and said: "Grandmother, since Grandpa Zhang has said so and we can't very well refuse, I have no use for these things. Why not have the boys carry them out and I'll distribute them to the poor?"

The Lady Dowager said: "That's well said."

The Taoist Zhang hastily interposed: "Though the young master wishes to do a good deed, these objects, while not especially rare, are still several pieces of fine ware. If you give them to beggars, it won't do them any good, and it would only waste these things. If you want to give to the poor, why not simply distribute money to them?"

Hearing this, Baoyu ordered the things to be put aside and said he would distribute money to the poor in the evening. With that, the Taoist Zhang withdrew.

Here the Lady Dowager and the others mounted the upper floor and took their seats in the main building. Xifeng and her companions occupied the eastern gallery, while the maids waited in the western gallery, attending in turns. Jia Zhen came up to report, "The lots drawn before the gods have chosen the plays. The first is *The Legend of the White Snake*."

"What story is *The Legend of the White Snake*?" asked the Lady Dowager.

"It tells of Gaozu of Han slashing the serpent and rising to power," replied Jia Zhen. "The second is *The Official Tablets That Fill the Bed*."

The Lady Dowager smiled. "So that's the second one? Well, so be it. If the gods and Buddhas will have it so, there's nothing to be done." She then asked about the third play, and Jia Zhen said, "The third is *The Dream Under the Southern Bough*."

Upon hearing this, the Lady Dowager fell silent. Jia Zhen withdrew and went outside to prepare the memorial tablet, burn the paper offerings of money and grain, and open the theatrical performance—of which no more need be said.

Now, Baoyu was upstairs, seated beside the Lady Dowager. He had a young maid bring over the tray of congratulatory gifts from earlier and, wearing his own jade, went through the items one by one, picking them out to show the Lady Dowager. When the Lady Dowager noticed a gold unicorn inlaid with kingfisher feathers, she picked it up and laughed, "This reminds me—I seem to remember seeing some child wearing one just like it."

Baochai smiled. "Cousin Shi has one, though a little smaller than this."

"Yes," said the Lady Dowager. "Yun'er has one."

Baoyu said, "She stays at our house so often, yet I've never noticed it."

Tanchun laughed, "Sister Baochai has a good memory—she never forgets anything."

Lin Daiyu said with a cold laugh, "In other matters her memory is passable enough, but when it comes to things other people wear, she is especially attentive."

Baochai heard this but turned her head as if she hadn't.

Baoyu, learning that Shi Xiangyun had such a unicorn, hastily picked it up and tucked it into his robe. At the same time, he was afraid someone might notice that he kept it upon hearing Xiangyun had one, so he held it in his breast and glanced around warily. He saw that none of the others paid much attention, except Lin Daiyu, who was looking at him and nodding as if in admiration. Baoyu felt a sudden embarrassment, took it out again, and said to Daiyu with a laugh, "This trinket is rather amusing. I'll keep it for you. When we get home, I'll put a cord through it and you can wear it."

Lin Daiyu turned her head away. "I have no use for it."

Baoyu laughed. "If you really don't want it, I suppose I'll have to keep it myself." And he tucked it into his robe again.

Just as he was about to speak, the wives of Jia Zhen and Jia Rong arrived. After they had exchanged greetings, the Lady Dowager said, "What brings you here? I just came out for a casual stroll."

Before she had finished speaking, someone announced, "People from General Feng's household have come." It turned out that the Feng family, upon hearing that the Jias were holding a Daoist sacrificial rite at the temple, had promptly prepared pigs, sheep, incense, candles, tea, and silver as gifts. Xifeng, hearing this, hurried over to the main hall and clapped her hands. "Goodness! I never thought of this. We only said we mothers and daughters would come out for a stroll, but people took it as though we were holding a grand sacrificial ceremony and came to present gifts. It's all because of you, Mother. Now we must prepare tips for them."

Even as she spoke, the two stewardesses from the Feng household came upstairs. Before the two Feng women had left, gifts arrived from Vice-Minister Zhao as well. And then, one after another, all those who had heard that the Jias were holding a rite at the temple, with the ladies all in attendance, came to present gifts—every distant and close relative, every family with whom they had ties of friendship or social connection. Only then did the Lady Dowager begin to regret. "It was never a proper religious observance. We only came out for a stroll, and I never thought of the gift-giving—there was no need to alarm everyone."

And so, although they watched the plays all day, they returned in the afternoon and the next day were disinclined to go again. Xifeng said, "Since the walls have already been disturbed—since we've already roused people—we might as well go again today and enjoy ourselves." But the Lady Dowager, because the day before the Daoist priest Zhang had spoken to Baoyu about a marriage match, and Baoyu had been out of sorts all day, coming home angry and vowing never to see the Daoist priest Zhang again—though no one else knew the reason for this—and also because Lin Daiyu had come down with heatstroke the previous day—for these two reasons, the Lady Dowager firmly refused to go. Seeing that she would not go, Xifeng took people and went herself—of which no more need be said.

Meanwhile, Baoyu, seeing that Daiyu had fallen ill again, could not stop worrying about her. He had no appetite for his meals and came to ask after her from time to time. Daiyu, for her part, feared that something might happen to him, and so she said, "You go and enjoy your opera. What are you doing here at home?" Baoyu had been greatly distressed the day before by the match proposed by the Taoist priest Zhang, and now hearing Daiyu speak this way, he thought to himself: "I could forgive others for not knowing my heart, but even she mocks me." His vexation thus grew a hundredfold beyond what he usually felt. With anyone else, he would never have allowed such anger to flare up, but because it was Daiyu who had said these words—and it was not the same as when others said them—he could not help but immediately darken his countenance and say, "I have known you for nothing. It's over, it's over!" Upon hearing this, Daiyu gave a couple of cold laughs. "I too know that I have known you for nothing. After all, you're not like those people who have someone worthy of you." Baoyu, hearing this, stepped forward and confronted her directly: "When you say that, do you wish heaven and earth to strike me dead?" Daiyu could not immediately unravel the meaning of his words. Baoyu went on: "Yesterday we swore several oaths over this very matter, and now you've finally given me the words I was waiting for. If heaven and earth are to strike me dead, what good would it do you?" The moment Daiyu heard this, she remembered what she had said the day before. Realizing that she had been in the wrong today, she was at once anxious and ashamed, and trembling all over, she said: "If I wished you dead, may heaven and earth strike me dead too. What's the use? I know—yesterday when the Taoist priest Zhang proposed a match, you were afraid it would obstruct your blessed marriage, and you came here to vent your anger on me." The truth was that Baoyu had been afflicted since childhood with a certain low and foolish infatuation. Having grown up side by side with Daiyu, their hearts in perfect sympathy, and now having come to a somewhat better understanding of the world, having also read those improper and eccentric books, he had never found any of the talented young ladies among their distant and distant relatives who could compare with Daiyu in the slightest. So for a long time he had harbored a secret feeling in his heart, only he could not bring himself to speak it aloud. Therefore, whether in joy or anger, he tried every means to test her in secret. Daiyu, for her part, was also somewhat afflicted with this foolish infatuation and likewise used false feelings to test him. Because you concealed your true heart and true feelings and used only false intentions, I too concealed my true heart and true feelings and used only false intentions. Thus two falsehoods met, yet within them there was truth. Amid all these trivialities, quarrels could not be avoided. At this very moment, what Baoyu was thinking in his heart was: "Others not knowing my heart—that can be forgiven. But don't you know that in my heart and before my eyes there is only you? Instead of sharing my distress, you mock and thwart me with these words. It seems that in my heart, moment by moment, I have you, while in your heart there is no place for me." This was what he felt in his heart, but he could not bring himself to say it. What Daiyu was thinking in her heart was: "Of course you have me in your heart. Though there is talk of the 'gold and jade' match, surely you value me more than such superstitious nonsense. Whenever I bring up this 'gold and jade' matter, you remain perfectly calm and unmoved—that proves you hold me in high regard and have no such thoughts in your heart. But why is it that the moment I mention 'gold and jade,' you become anxious? It shows that 'gold and jade' is constantly in my heart, and when I mention it, you fear I will take it to heart, so you deliberately act anxious to reassure me."

Thus it was that the two of them originally shared one heart, but each had grown too many branches and leaves, and instead ended up with two hearts. In Baoyu's heart, the thought was: "No matter what happens to me, as long as you are content, I would gladly die for you this very moment. Whether you know it or not, let it be as my heart wills—it shows that you are close to me, not distant from me." In Daiyu's heart, the thought was: "You just take care of yourself. If you are well, I am well. Why must you lose yourself on my account? You don't realize that when you lose yourself, I lose myself too. It shows that you don't want me to be close to you—you deliberately want me to keep my distance." Looked at this way, both of them desired closeness, yet their efforts only produced distance. Such were the private thoughts these two had long harbored; they are difficult to recount in full.

For now, let us describe only their outward appearance. Baoyu, upon hearing her say the words "blessed marriage," went even more against his own feelings. Choked with emotion inside, he could not utter a word. In a fit of pique, he seized the magical jade from around his neck, gritted his teeth as if in hatred of his fate, and hurled it to the ground, saying: "What damned thing—I'll smash you and be done with it!" As it happened, the jade was extremely hard; after one throw, it did not even show a scratch. Seeing that it was not shattered, Baoyu turned to look for something to smash it with. Daiyu, seeing him like this, had already begun to cry. "What's the use? Go ahead and smash that mute object. If you want to smash something, you might as well smash me." The two of them carried on thus, while Zijuan, Xueyan, and the others hurried over to mediate. Later, seeing Baoyu smashing the jade with all his might, they rushed forward to snatch it away, but could not wrest it from his hands. Finding that the commotion was greater than usual, they had no choice but to go and fetch Xiren. Xiren hurried over and only then managed to take it away. Baoyu said with a cold laugh: "I'm smashing my own thing. What has it to do with any of you?"

Xiren saw that his face had gone yellow with fury and his brows had changed, never having been so angry before. She took his hand and laughed, "If you quarrel with your cousin, there's no need to go smashing her. If you break something, how will she feel about it?" Lin Daiyu, crying all the while, heard these words strike home to her heart, and it was clear that Baoyu was not even as considerate as Xiren. She grew even more heartbroken and wept louder. The distress in her stomach made it unable to hold down the Agastache drink and summer-heat decoction she had just taken—with a "wah!" she vomited it all up. Zijuan hurried over to catch it with a handkerchief, and at once the whole cloth was soaked with vomit one mouthful after another. Xueyan hurried over to pound her back. Zijuan said, "Even though you're angry, miss, you should still take care of yourself. You'd just taken medicine and were feeling better, and now because of quarreling with Second Master Bao, you've vomited again. If you bring on an illness, how will Second Master Bao bear it?" Baoyu heard these words strike home to his heart, and it was clear that Daiyu was not even as thoughtful as Zijuan. He saw Lin Daiyu's face flushed and head swollen, weeping with every breath, panting with every sob, tears streaming on one side and sweat on the other, unbearably frail. Seeing her like this, Baoyu regretted having argued with her just now. Now that she was in this state, he couldn't suffer in her place. Thinking this, he couldn't help shedding tears too. Seeing both of them cry, Xiren couldn't help feeling sad as well as she stood beside Baoyu. She felt Baoyu's hand was ice cold. She wanted to urge Baoyu to stop crying, but on one hand she feared Baoyu might have some grievance pent up inside, and on the other she feared slighting Lin Daiyu. Better that they all cry together and let it go at that. So she too began to weep. Zijuan, having cleaned up the vomited medicine, gently fanned Lin Daiyu with a fan. Seeing the three of them as silent as crows, each crying their own tears, she couldn't help feeling heartbroken too and wiped her eyes with her handkerchief. The four of them sat in soundless tears, facing one another.

After a while, Xiren forced a smile and said to Baoyu, "Never mind anything else, just look at the tassel threaded through this jade—you shouldn't be quarreling with Miss Lin over it." Daiyu, hearing this, paid no heed to her illness and rushed over to snatch it, grabbing a pair of scissors to cut it. Xiren and Zijuan were just about to stop her when she had already cut it in several pieces. Lin Daiyu cried, "I've wasted my effort. He doesn't even treasure it—there are others who'll thread a new one for him." Xiren quickly took the jade and said, "Why do this? It's my fault for running my mouth." Baoyu said to Lin Daiyu, "Go ahead and cut it. Whether I wear it or not makes no difference anyway."

While they were making such a racket inside, who would have thought that the old serving women, seeing Lin Daiyu crying and vomiting so badly and Baoyu smashing the jade, didn't know how far the disturbance might go? If they got dragged into it, they would all go together to report to the Lady Dowager and Lady Wang in the front, so they wouldn't be implicated. When the Lady Dowager and Lady Wang saw them come hurrying in to report what seemed a serious matter, they had no idea what great calamity had occurred, and both came into the garden together to see the cousins. Xiren was in such distress she complained to Zijuan for alarming the Old Lady and the Lady, while Zijuan assumed it was Xiren who had gone to tell them and complained right back. When the Lady Dowager and Lady Wang came in and saw that Baoyu had nothing to say and Lin Daiyu had nothing to say either, and when they asked there was no real reason for it, they shifted the blame onto Xiren and Zijuan, saying, "Why aren't you taking proper care of them? Now that they've made this fuss, neither of you is managing anything!" So they scolded and lectured the two of them together. Neither could say a word, they could only listen. In the end it was the Lady Dowager who took Baoyu away with her, and things finally calmed down.

The next day, the third day of the month, was Xue Pan's birthday. His family had set up a banquet and opera performance and invited the Jia household. Baoyu, having offended Lin Daiyu, had not seen her for two days. He was already filled with regret and in such low spirits that he had no heart to go watch the opera, so he pleaded illness and stayed home. Lin Daiyu had only caught a touch of summer heat the day before and was not seriously ill. Hearing that he wasn't going, she thought to himself: "He loves feasting and watching operas—if he's not going today, it's surely because he's still angry from yesterday. Or else, seeing that I'm not going, he has no heart to go either. It's just that yesterday, a thousand times wrong and ten thousand times wrong, I cut the tassel on that jade. I'm certain he'll never wear it again—I'll have to thread a new one before he'll wear it." So she was filled with regret.

The Lady Dowager, seeing that both of them were still angry, had thought that if they went to watch the opera over there today, the two of them would meet and that would be the end of it. She hadn't expected that neither would go. The old lady said in distressed complaint: "What karma from a previous life brought me these two unreasonable little adversaries? Not a single day passes without them giving me worry. As the saying goes, 'Enemies are destined to meet.' When I close my eyes and stop breathing, I'll let these two adversaries make all the trouble they want—if I can't see it and my heart won't be troubled, so be it. But I just can't swallow this breath." She complained to herself and began to cry. These words reached the ears of Baoyu and Daiyu. It turned out that neither of them had ever heard the saying "Enemies are destined to meet." Now suddenly hearing these words, it was as if they were meditating on a Zen koan. They both lowered their heads and pondered the flavor of this saying, and both could not help shedding tears. Though they had not met face to face, one shed tears to the wind in the Bamboo Lodge, and the other sighed longingly at the moon in Happy Red Court—were they not two people dwelling in two places, yet their hearts beating as one!

Xiren urged Baoyu, saying, "You're absolutely wrong—it's all your fault. In the past, when the young pages in the household quarreled with their sisters or when husband and wife fell out, you would hear about it and scold the pages for being so foolish and insensitive to the girls' feelings. And now you've gone and done the same thing. Tomorrow is the fifth, a major festival. If you two carry on like sworn enemies, the Old Lady will be even angrier, and it will surely make everyone uneasy. My advice is that you swallow your pride, apologize, and then everything can go back to normal. That would be the best thing all around."

Whether Baoyu heeded her words or not, you will find out in the next chapter.