by Cao Xueqin
An old story, known to all Chinese readers, lies behind Dai-yu’s remark about ‘a Rhapsody of Hills and Streams’,1 In ancient times, a famous luteplayer, Bo Ya, became friendly with a humble woodcutter, Zhong Ziqi. Zhong was so perfectly in tune with his friend’s mind that when Bo ‘played about’ hills Zhong could see Mount Tai rise before his eyes, and when Bo ‘played about’ streams he could visualize a headlong torrent. When Zhong died, Bo broke his lute and never played again. Readers wishing to explore the fascinating world of the Qin will find it described in loving detail by an accomplished player and connoisseur (and scholar), Robert Van Gulik, in The Lore of the Chinest Lute (published in Tokyo in 1940).
Appendix IV
Iron Threshold Temple and Water-moon Priory
In chapter 93, I have had to make a few alterations, in order to straighten out a muddled original text. I hope the result is at least simple to follow, and makes for a consistent plot.
Jia Qin’s duties (according to my revised text) are to supervise the twenty-four novices at the Iron Threshold Temple, with additional authority over the Priory, while Xi-feng’s shady connection is only with Euergesia, the Prioress at Water-moon Priory (see Vol. 1, pp. 296–301). The two establishments are first introduced in chapter 15, where we are told that Water-moon Priory is situated at no great distance from the Temple of the Iron Threshold (Vol. 1, p. 294). The additional detail, that the Priory is an ‘offshoot of Water-moon Abbey’, is absent from all manuscripts and seems to have been a last minute addition by Gao E, which far from making things any clearer, only adds to the confusion.
If we imagine the two establishments as loosely affiliated foundations supported by the Jia family, it is the the plausible for Jia Qin to try seducing Parfumée at the Priory. To have her living at the Temple would be inconsistent with information contaied in chapter 77.
Characters In Vol 4
ABBOT ZHANG an old Taoist, chief priest of the Lunar Queen Temple
ADAMANTINA a genteel and eccentric young nun residing in Prospect Garden
AMBER maid of Grandmother Jia
AROMA principal maid of Bao-yu
AUNT XUE widowed sister of Lady Wang and mother of Xue Pan and Bao-chai
AUNT ZHAO concubine of Jia Zheng and mother of Tan-chun and Jia Huan
AUNT ZHOU Jia Zheng’s other concubine
AUTUMN concubine given to Jia Lian by his father
BAO-CHAI see XUE BAO-CHAI
BAO ER servant employed by Cousin Zhen
BAO-QIN see XUE BAO-QIN
BAO YONG Zhen family servant seeking employment with the Jias
BAO-YU see JIA BAO-YU
BI ZHI-AN a down-and-out physician
BIG JIAO an old retainer of the Ning-guo Jias
BIJOU stage name of JIANG YU-HAN
BRIGHTIE and BRIGHTIE’S WIFE couple employed by Jia Lian and Wang Xi-feng
CALTROP Xue Pan’s ‘chamber wife’; the kidnapped daughter of Zhen Shi-yin
CANDIDA maid of Li Wan
CASTA maid of Li Wan
CHAI see XUE BAO-CHAI
CHESS principal maid of Ying-chun
COOK LIU in charge of the kitchen for Prospect Garden; mother of Fivey
COUSIN BAO (I) see JIA BAO-YU (2) see XUE BAO-CHAI
COUSIN CHAI see XUE BAO-CHAI
COUSIN DAI see LIN DAI-YU
COUSIN FENG see WANG XI-FENG
COUSIN LIAN see JIA LIAN
COUSIN LIN see LIN DAI-YU
COUSIN PAN see XUE PAN
COUSIN QIN see XUE BAO-QIN
COUSIN SHI see SHI XIANG-YUN
COUSIN TAN see JIA TAN-CHUN
COUSIN WAN see LI WAN
COUSIN XI see JIA XI-CHUN
COUSIN XUE see XUE PAN
COUSIN YING see JIA YING-CHUN
COUSIN YUN see SHI XIANG-YUN
COUSIN ZHEN son of Jia Jing; head of the senior (Ning-guo) branch of the Jia family
CRIMSON maid employed by Xi-feng
CRUCIBLE a young Taoist nun seduced by Jia Qin
DAI see LIN DAI-YU
DAI-RU see JIA DAI-RU
DAI-YU see LIN DAI-YU
DR WANG See WANG JI-REN
EARL OF LIN-AN aristocratic friend of the Jias
EBONY maid of Tan-chun
FAITHFUL principal maid of Grandmother Jia
FELICITY maid attendant on Xi-feng
FENG see WANG XI-FENG
FENG ZI-YING family friend of the Jias
FIVEY daughter of Cook Liu; taken on as one of Bao-yu’s maids
FROWNER see LIN DAI-YU
FU QIU-FANG unmarried sister of Fu Shi
FU SHI ambitious protégé of Jia Zheng
GAFFER LI proprietor of Li’s Bar
GRANDMOTHER JIA née Shi; widow of Bao-yu’s paternal grandfather and head of the Rong-guo branch of the Jia family
HER GRACE see JIA YUAN-CHUN
HE SAN Zhou Rui’s adopted son
HU-SHI Jia Rong’s second wife
HUAN see JIA HUAN
INKY one of Bao-yu’s pages
INTENDANT HU father of Hu-shi
IRON CRUTCH LI a Taoist Immortal
IRON MOUTH LIU a fortune-teller, specializing in word-divining or logomancy
JIA BAO-YU incarnation of the Stone; the eldest surviving son of Jia Zheng and Lady Wang of Rong-guo House
JIA DAI-RU the Preceptor, in charge of the Jia family school
JIA HUAN Bao-yu’s half-brother; the son of Jia Zheng and his concubine, ‘Aunt’ Zhao
JIA LAN Li Wan’s son
JIA LIAN son of Jia She and Lady Xing and husband of Wang Xi-feng
JIA QIAO-JIE little daughter of Jia Lian and Wang Xi-feng
JIA QIN junior member of the clan employed by the Rong-guo Jias to look after the nuns from Prospect Garden in the family temple outside the city
JIA RONG son of Cousin Zhen and You-shi
JIA SHE Jia Zheng’s elder brother; father of Jia Lian and Ying-chun
JIA TAN-CHUN daughter of Jia Zheng and ‘Aunt’ Zhao; half-sister of Bao-yu and second of the ‘Three Springs’
JIA XI-CHUN daughter of Jia Jing and younger sister of Cousin Zhen; youngest of the ‘Three Springs’
JIA YING-CHUN daughter of Jia She by a concubine; eldest of the ‘Three Springs’
JIA YU-CUN a careerist claiming relationship with the Jia family
JIA YUAN-CHUN daughter of Jia Zheng and Lady Wang and elder sister of Bao-yu; the Imperial Concubine
JIA YUN poor relation of the Rong-guo Jias, once employed by Xi-feng in Prospect Garden
JIA ZHENG Bao-yu’s father; the younger of Grandmother Jia’s two sons
JIA ZHU deceased elder brother of Bao-yu; husband of Li Wan and father of her son Jia Lan
JIANG YU-HAN a female impersonator, now turned actor manager
JIN-GUI see XIA JIN-GUI
KINGFISHER Shi Xiang-yun’s maid
LADY JIA see GRANDMOTHER JIA
LADY WANG wife of Jia Zheng, and mother of Jia Zhu, Yuan-chun and Bao-yu
LADY XING wife of Jia She and mother of Jia Lian
LAI DA Chief Steward of Rong-guo mansion
LAI SHENG Chief Steward of Ning-guo mansion
LANDSCAPE maid of Xi-chun
LI DE a servant at Rong-guo House
LI GUI Nannie Li’s son; Bao-yu’s foster-brother and chief groom
LI QI Li Wan’s cousin; younger sister of Li Wen
LI WAN widow of Bao-yu’s deceased elder brother, Jia Zhu, and. mother of Jia Lan
LI WEN LiWan’s cousin; elder sister of Li Qi
LI XIANG Xue family servant
LILY name given to Caltrop by Xia Jin-gui
LIN-AN, EARL OF see EARL OF LIN-AN
LIN DAI-YU incarnation of the Crimson Pearl Flower; orphaned daughter of Lin Ru-hai and Jia Zheng’s sister, Jia Min
LIN ZHI-XIAO and LIN ZHI-XIAO’S WIFE domestics holding the highest position in the Rong household under the Chief Steward Lai Da
MASTER BAO see JIA BAO-
YU
MISS BAO see XUE BAO-CHAI
MISS LIN see LIN DAI-YU
MISS QIAO-JIE see JIA QIAO-JIE
MISS SHI see SHI XIANG-YUN
MISS XING see XING XIU-YAN
MOONBEAM maid of Xia Jin-gui
MOTHER MA a Wise Woman; Bao-yu’s godmother
MR LIAN see JIA LIAN
MR QIN see JIA QIN
MR SUN see SUN SHAO-ZU
MR YUN see JIA YUN
MR ZHEN see COUSIN ZHEN
MRS LIAN see WANG XI-FENG
MRS XUE see AUNT XUE
MRS ZHANG née Wang; impoverished rustic, mother of Zhang San
MRS ZHAO see AUNT ZHAO
MRS ZHEN see YOU-SHI
MRS ZHOU see ZHOU RUI’S WIFE
MRS ZHU see LI WAN
MUSK maid of Bao-yu
NANNIE LI (1) Bao-yu’s former wet-nurse (2) Qiao-jie’s nurse
NANNIE LIU Another of Qiao-jie’s nurses
NANNIE WANG Dai-yu’s former wet-nurse
NIGHTINGALE principal maid of Dai-yu
ORIOLE principal maid of Bao-chai
PAN SAN-BAO informant against Mother Ma
PAN YOU-AN cousin and lover of Chess
PARFUMÉE ex-actress, now a nun at Water-moon Priory
PATIENCE chief maid and confidante of Wang Xi-feng
PEARL maid of Grandmother Jia’s, elder sister of Simple
PLOUGHBOY one of Bao-yu’s pages
PRECEPTOR, THE see JIA DAI-RU
PRINCE OF BEI-JING; THE princely connection of the Jias, friendly with Bao-yu
PRINCE OF NAN-AN, THE patron of Jiang Yu-han’s theatrical troupe
PROSPER maid to Aunt Xue
QIAO-JIE see JIA QIAO-JIE
QIN-ZHONG dead friend of Bao-yu; younger brother of Jia Rong’s deceased first wife
RIPPLE maid of Bao-yu
SCRIBE principal maid of Tan-chun
SHI XIANG-YUN orphaned great-niece of Grandmother Jia, niece of Shi Ding, the Marquis of Zhong-jing
SIMPLE a maid in Grandmother Jia’s apartment, younger sister of Pearl
SIR SHE see JIA SHE
SIR ZHENG see JIA ZHENG
SKYBRIGHT one of Bao-yu’s maids, now dead
SNOWGOOSE maid of Dai-yu
STEWARD LIN see LIN ZHI-XIAO
SUN SHAO-ZU Jia Ying-chun’s callous husband
SUNCLOUD and SUNSET maids of Lady Wang
SUNSHINE page employed by Wang Xi-feng for clerical duties
SWEEPER one of Bao-yu’s pages
TAN-CHUN see JIA TAN-CHUN
TEALEAF Bao-yu’s principal page
THURIBLE a young Buddhist nun, seduced by Jia Qin
WANG ER-TIAO ‘Go-between’ Wang; one of Jia Zheng’s literary gentlemen
WANG JI-REN doctor in regular attendance on Rong-guo Jias
WANG REN Wang Xi-feng’s elder brother
WANG XI-FENG wife of Jia Lian and niece of Lady Wang, Aunt Xue and Wang Zi-teng
WANG ZI-SHENG younger brother of Wang Zi-teng
WANG ZI-TENG elder brother of Wang Zi-sheng, Lady Wang and Aunt Xue
WU, EXCELLENCY GOVERNOR high-ranking civil servant, friend of Jia Zheng
WU GUI Skybright’s cousin
WU LIANG Xue Pan’s fairweather friend
XI-CHUN see JIA XI-CHUN
XI-FENG see WANG XI-FENG
XIA JIN-GUI wife of Xue Pan; a termagant
XIA SAN adopted brother of Xia Jin-gui
XIANG-YUN see SHI XIANG-YUN
XING XIU-YAN Lady Xing’s niece; gifted daughter of improvident and sponging parents, betrothed to Xue Ke
XUE BAO-CHAI daughter of Aunt Xue
XUE BAO-QIN niece of Aunt Xue and younger sister of Xue Ke
XUE KE ue Bao-quin’s elder brother, betrothed to Xing Xiu-yan
XUE PAN the ‘Oaf King’; son of Aunt Xue and elder brother of Bao-chai
YING see JIA YING-CHUN
YING-CHUN see JIA YING-CHUN
YOU ER-JIE Jia Lian’s mistress, now dead
YOU-SHI wife of Cousin Zhen and mother of Jia Rong
YU-CUN see JIA YU-CUN
YUAN-CHUN see JIA YUAN-CHUN
YUN (1) see SHI XIANG-YUN (2) see JIA YUN
ZHAN GUANG one of Jia Zhang’s literary gentlemen
ZHANG DE-HUI manager of Xue Pan’s largest pawnshop
ZHANG ER brother-in-law of Mrs Zhang, uncle of Zhang San
ZHANG, EXCELLENCY (I) wealthy father of Miss Zhang (2) colleague of Jia Zheng’s at the Board of Works (3) a Privy Councillor
ZHANG MISS only daughter of Excellency Zhang (1), proposed as match for Bao-yu
ZHANG SAN waiter, only surviving son of Mrs Zhang
ZHENS a wealthy Southern family having close ties with the Jias
ZHEN BAO-YU son of Zhen Ying-jia; a ‘reformed character’
ZHEN YING-JIA friend of Jia Zheng’s; father of Zhen Bao-yu
ZHOU RUI and ZHOU RUI’S WIFE couple employed on the staff of Rong-guo House
Genealogy of the Ning-guo and Rong-guo Houses of the Jia Clan
The Wang Family
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This translation first published 1982
Translation copyright © John Minford, 1982
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Except in the United States of America, this book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or
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ISBN: 978-0-14-196891-9
1. For these, see Appendix II, pp. 389–90
2. For this, see Tun Li-ch’en (trans. Bodde), Annual Customs and Festivals in Peking, 2nd edn, Hong Kong, 1965, p. 69.
3. See Jia Yu-cun’s list in ch. 2, The Golden Days, p. 79.
4. Yuan Mei, London, 1956, p. 187.
5. Hong-xue yin-yuan tu-ji. Extracts from this have recently been translated by T. C. Lai and published, together with some of the superb illustrations, under the title A Wild Swan’s Trail, Hong Kong, 1978.
6. For an introduction to the latest controversy on the authorship of The Stone, see David Hawkes, ‘The Translator, the Mirror and the Dream’, in Renditions, no 13. Spring 1980.
* Young scholars of that time were wont to use these affectionate abbreviations to refer to those two other venerable texts of Scripture, the Magna Scientia or Great Learning and the Medium Immutabile or Doctrine of the Mean.
* It may be helpful at this point to provide some idea of the pedagogic principles that guided Dai-ru in his selection of Themes for his young pupil. His plan was roughly speaking as follows:
1. John C. Y. Wang, Chin Sheng-t’an, New York, 1972, p. 26.
2. Henry McAleavy, Wang T’ao, London, 1953, p. 7.
3. Father Angelo Zottoli, Cursus Litteraturae Sinicae neo-missionariis accomodatus, 5 vols., Shanghai, 1879–93.
1. See Chapter 86, p. 153.