A Dream of Red Mansion

by Cao Xueqin

  “It doesn’t matter,” she answered with a smile. “Whatever sum’s given, who would dare to complain?”

  “Nonsense!” retorted Tanchun pleasantly. “I would just as soon give a hundred taels; but if I didn’t go by the rules, not only would you laugh at me but I shouldn’t be able to face the Second Mistress.”

  “In that case I’ll go and look up the old accounts,” offered Mrs. Wu. “I can’t for the moment remember.”

  “You’re an old hand at this,” Tanchun pointed out. “Yet you claim to have forgotten, so as to make things awkward for us. Do you have to go and look up the accounts when you report to the Second Mistress? If so, Xifeng would count as lenient, not as exacting. Fetch those accounts at once. One more day’s delay, and instead of blaming you for negligence people will accuse us of incompetence.”

  Mrs. Wu flushed scarlet and hurried out, while the other stewards’ wives stuck out their tongues in dismay. Then other matters were reported.

  Soon Mrs. Wu came back with the old accounts. Tanchun, taking them, found that two concubines who had been family servants had received twenty taels apiece, and two from outside forty. Two others from outside had received a hundred taels and sixty taels respectively; but it was recorded that this was because the first was allowed an extra sixty to have her parents’ coffins moved to another province; the second was allowed an extra twenty to buy a burial ground.

  Tanchun showed these items to Li Wan.

  “Give her twenty taels,” she ordered Mrs. Wu.

  “And leave these accounts here for us to go through carefully.”

  Mrs. Wu assented and withdrew.

  Suddenly Concubine Zhao burst in. Li Wan and Tanchun at once asked her to be seated.

  “Everyone in this house tramples on my head!” she stormed. “I should think you at least, miss, should take my side!” She began to sob and snivel as she was speaking.

  “Whom are you accusing, madam?” asked Tanchun. “I don’t understand. Who’s trampling on your head? If you’ll tell me, I’ll take your side.”

  “You’re the one—so whom can I complain to?”

  Tanchun hastily rose to protest, “I wouldn’t dare.”

  Li Wan also stood up to act as a peacemaker.

  “Sit down, please, and listen to me!” cried the concubine. “I’ve been treated like dirt in this house all these years, though I’ve borne you and your brother, and now I rank even lower than Xiren. What face have I got left? Not only me this makes you lose face too.”

  “So that’s it.” Tanchun smiled. “As if I dared take the law into my own hands!”

  Sitting down again, she showed Concubine Zhao the account books and read out the items to her.

  “These are the rules handed down by our ancestors,” she declared. “We all have to abide by them—how could I change them? Xiren isn’t a special case. If Huan takes a concubine from outside later on, she’ll naturally rank the same as Xiren. This isn’t a question of competing for status, it has nothing to do with face. If someone’s in our mistress’ service, I can only go by the rules. The sum’s given thanks to the kindness of our ancestors and our mistress. If that someone thinks it unfair and is too stupid to know when she’s well off, I can’t stop her complaining. If our mistress were to give away the whole house, I’d get no face from it. If she didn’t give a cent, it wouldn’t make me lose face either.

  “Take my advice and have a quiet rest while the mistress is out. Why work yourself up? The mistress is kindness itself to me, but you’ve grieved her more than once by the way you make trouble. If I were a boy, able to leave this house, I’d have gone long ago to make my own way in the world, for then of course I’d know what to do. It’s too bad that I’m only a girl and mustn’t say a word out of turn. The mistress fully understands, and thinks well enough of me to put me in charge; but before I’ve managed to be of any use you come and start picking on me. If she found out and relieved me of the job so as not to embarrass me, then I’d really lose face. And so would you as well.” By this time she was sobbing bitterly.

  The concubine having no other answer to this retorted, “If the mistress is partial to you, that’s all the more reason to lend us a helping hand. But you’ve quite forgotten us in your eagerness to curry favour with her.”

  “Who says I’ve forgotten you? How am I to lend a helping hand? You have to ask yourselves: Don’t all mistresses like inferiors who make themselves useful? Good people don’t need the kind offices of others.”

  Li Wan put in soothingly, “Don’t be angry, madam. It’s not her fault. She’s only too eager to help you, but how can she say so?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, sister-in-law!” cried Tanchun. “Who do you mean I’m to help? Does the daughter of any house help servants? You should know what they are—their affairs are none of my business.”

  “Who asked you to help others?” fumed the concubine. “If you weren’t in charge I wouldn’t have come to you. Now if you say one it’s one, if you say two it’s two. If you gave an extra twenty or thirty taels for your uncle’s funeral, why should the mistress object? Everyone knows how good she is—it’s you people who are so singy. It’s too bad she has no chance to show her kindness. But don’t worry, miss, it’s not your own silver you’re saving. I’d always hoped, after you married, you’d show more consideration to the Zhao family; but now before your feathers have grown you’ve forgotten your roots, you’re so keen to fly to the very top of the tree.”

  Before she had finished, Tanchun’s face was white with anger.

  Nearly choking with sobs she demanded, “Who’s my uncle? My uncle’s just been appointed Military Inspector of Nine Provinces. What other uncles do I have? Is this my reward for always observing the ruler of propriety—to have all these relative foisted off on me? If what you say were true, why did Zho Guoji have to stand up whenever Huan went out? Why follow him to school? Why didn’t he behave like an uncle?

  “Do you have to make such a scene? Everyone knows I’m a child by a concubine, yet you needs must bring it up every few months and rub it in, as if you had to make it plain for fear they didn’t know. Who’s making the other lose face? It’s lucky I’ve sense enough to remember my manners, or you’d have driven me frantic long ago!”

  Li Wan tried desperately to pacify them, but the concubine went on ranting. She did not stop until it was announced:

  “Miss Pinger has come with a message from the Second Mistress.”

  Concubine Zhao greeted Pinger with a smile and urged her to take a seat.

  “Is your mistress better?” she asked. “I’ve been meaning to call on her but haven’t yet found the time.” Li Wan asked Pinger her business.

  “The Second Mistress thought you ladies might not know what the usual allowance would be in connection with the death of Concubine Zhao’s brother,” answered Pinger. “The rule is to give only twenty taels, but it’s up to you to decide. You can give more if you want.”

  “Why make an exception in this case?” retorted Tanchun who had now dried her eyes. “Was he a prodigy who took twenty-four months to be born, or someone who saved his master’s life in the army? How clever your mistress is, wanting me to break the rules while she gets the credit, buying herself goodwill at our mistress’ expense! Tell her I don’t dare to increase or cut down amounts for no good reason. If she wants to be charitable and add something, she’ll have to wait till she’s better.”

  Pinger had sensed as soon as she came in that something was wrong. After this tirade she grasped the situation. And since Tanchun was glowering instead of replying with one of her usual jokes she waited there in a respectful silence.

  At this point Baochai arrived too from Lady Wang’s apartments. Tanchun and the others rose to offer her a seat; but before they could enter into conversation another woman came in to make her report. And as Tanchun’s face was tear-stained, three or four young maids brought in a basin, towels and a mirror with a handle. One of them knelt before Tanchun, who was cross-legged on
the couch, and held the basin out to her while two others knelt beside her with the towels, mirror and cosmetics. Seeing that Daishu was not there to help, Pinger stepped forward to roll up Tanchun’s sleeves, take off her bracelets, and drape a large towel over the front of her clothes. Tanchun had just dipped her hands into the basin when the woman who had come in announced:

  “If you please, my ladies, the family school has sent for this year’s allowance for Master Huan and Master Lan.”

  “What’s the hurry?” scolded Pinger. “Can’t you see the young lady is washing? You should wait outside, not come butting in like this. Would you be so impertinent to the Second Mistress? The young lady may be kind-hearted, but don’t blame me if my mistress hears of this and your lack of respect gets you all into trouble.”

  “How stupid of me!” cried the woman in dismay, then hastily left the room.

  Tanchun, now powdering her face, smiled ironically at Pinger.

  “You came just too late to see something still more ridiculous,” she said. “Even an old hand like Mrs. Wu came without checking up on her facts in order to trip us up. When challenged, she’d the nerve to say she’d forgotten. I asked if that was the way she reported to the Second Mistress. I doubt whether that mistress of yours would put up with it.”

  “If she tried that just once, I can promise you she’d have her legs broken,” replied Pinger. “You can’t trust these people an inch, miss. They’re trying to take advantage, because Madam Zhu’s a real Bodhisattva and you’re such a gentle young lady.” Turning towards the door she called to the women outside, “All right, just take all the liberties you like. Wait till Madam Lian’s well again, and we’ll settle scores with you!”

  The matrons outside answered, “You’re most understanding, miss. You know the saying: ‘if a man does wrong, he alone must take the blame.’ We’d never presume to deceive Miss Tanchun. We’d deserve to die and go unburied if we provoked a delicate young lady like her.”

  “So long as you know that,” replied Pinger scornfully. Then she turned with a smile to Tanchun. “You know how busy Madam Lian was, miss. She couldn’t cope with everything and is bound to have overlooked certain things. As the proverb says, ‘The spectator sees most of the sport.’ As a detached observer all these years, you may have noticed cases where she failed to make suitable cuts or additions. If you’ll set these right, you’ll first of all be helping the mistress in her work and showing your friendship for my lady as well...”

  “What a clever girl!” exclaimed Baochai and Li Wan, smiling, before Pinger could finish. “No wonder Xifeng is so attached to you. We’d no intention of making any changes, but after what you’ve said we shall reconsider one or two cases to show our appreciation.”

  “I was so furious I wanted to work off my feelings on her mistress.” Tanchun laughed. “But turning up and talking like this she has quite taken the wind out of my sails.” She called in the woman who had just come and asked her, “What are these annual allowances for Master Huan and Master Lan for?”

  “For a year’s refreshments at school and the remainder for stationery,” was the reply. “Each gets eight taels of silver a year.”

  “All the young master’s expenses are covered by the monthly allowances for the different apartments,” countered Tanchun. “Huan’s two taels a month are given to Concubine Zhao, Baoyu’s to the old lady’s maid Xiren; and Lan’s to Madam Zhu’s maid. So why this extra eight taels for the school? Do they go to school for the sake of this eight taels? From now on this will be cancelled. Tell your mistress this from me, Pinger, when you go back. Say I think there’s no need for it.”

  “This should have been cut long ago,” said the maid with a smile. “Last year my mistress did speak of doing it, but with all the bustle over New Year she forgot.”

  Then the matron had to assent and take herself off. Now servants from Grand View Garden brought lunch hampers, and Pinger set out the dishes on the small table put ready by Daishu and Suyun.

  “You can go and attend to your business now that you’ve had your say,” Tanchun told her. “You don’t have to help out here.”

  “I’m free now,” replied Pinger, smiling. “The Second Mistress sent me partly to give you that message, partly to help the girls wait on you if I found you short-handed.”

  “Where’s Miss Baochai’s lunch?” asked Tanchun.

  Some girls hurried out to notify the matrons, “Miss Baochai’s lunching here too. Have her food brought over.”

  Hearing this Tanchun said loudly, “Don’t start ordering them about. They’re all the wives of chief stewards, not people you can send to fetch rice and tea! Have you no manners? Pinger has nothing to do here. Let her go.”

  Pinger promptly agreed and went out.

  The stewards’ wives quietly drew her aside and said, “There’s no need for you to go, miss. We’ve already sent someone.” They dusted off the steps with their handkerchiefs and urged her to have a rest there in the sun after standing for so long.

  As soon as she sat down, two women from the boiler house brought over a mattress.

  “That stone’s cold, miss,” they said. “This is quite clean, do use it.”

  As she thanked them with a smile, someone else brought her a bowl of good freshly brewed tea.

  “This isn’t our usual tea but some for the young ladies,” she whispered. “Do try it.”

  Pinger inclined her head and accepted it.

  Then wagging finger at them all she scolded, “You’ve really gone too far. She’s only a girl and, quite properly, doesn’t like to lose her temper; but that’s no reason why you should be rude to her. If you really made her angry, at worst she could be blamed for flaring up but you’d get into big trouble. If she made a scene, even Lady Wang would have to humour her, and there’s nothing the Second Mistress could do either. How have you the nerve to slight her in that way? It’s like an egg dashing itself against a rock.”

  “How dare we?” they protested. “It was all Concubine Zhao’s fault.”

  “That’s enough, my good women,” whispered Pinger. ‘If a wall starts tottering, everyone gives it a shove.’ Concubine Zhao does tend to turn things upside down, I grant you, but when there’s trouble you put all the blame on her. I’ve seen for myself these years the airs you give yourselves and the tricks you play. If the Second Mistress weren’t so able, you fine ladies would have got the upper hand of her long ago. Every chance you get, you still try to land her in trouble. Several times she’s only just missed falling into your traps.

  “People say you’re scared of her because she’s such a terror,” Pinger continued. “But I who know her best can tell you she’s afraid of you too. Only the other day, we were saying things couldn’t go on like this —there were bound to be a couple of rumpuses. Though Miss Tanchun’s an unmarried young lady, you’ve all misjudged her. She’s the only one of the young ladies that my mistress is half afraid of; yet you think you can treat her any way you please!”

  They were interrupted by Qiuwen’s arrival. All the matrons greeted her and urged her to rest for a while.

  “They’re having lunch inside,” they explained. “You’d better not go in till they’ve finished.”

  “What time have I to wait?” retorted Qiuwen. “I’m not like you.”

  She was walking in when Pinger called her back. At sight of her Qiuwen smiled.

  “What are you doing here? Acting as an extra bodyguard?” she asked, sitting down by her on the mattress.

  “What business brings you here?” asked Pinger softly.

  “We want to know when the monthly allowances for Baoyu and the rest of us will be issued.”

  “Very important. I must say! Go back quickly and tell Xiren from me not to try to settle any business today. Every single request you make will be refused.”

  Qiuwen asked the reason and all of them promptly told her.

  “They’re looking for some big issues and someone who counts to make an example of as a warning to everyone
,” Pinger explained. “Why should you bump your head against this brick wall? If you go in now, they can hardly make an example of you, out of deference to Their Ladyships; but if they don’t they may be accused of bias, of not daring to touch those backed by Their Ladyships and just picking on the weak instead. Wait and see. They’re even countermanding a few of the Second Mistress’ rulings too—that’s their only way to stop gossip.” Qiuwen stuck out her tongue in dismay.

  “Thank goodness you came here. Sister Pinger!” she cried. “You’ve saved me from a snubbing. I’ll go straight back and tell them.” With that she left.

  At this point Baochai’s meal arrived and Pinger sent in to serve her. Concubine Zhao had now left and the three others were eating on the couch, Baochai facing south, Tanchun west and Li Wan east. The matrons waited quietly outside on the verandah, none but personal serving-maids venturing to go in.

  “We’d better watch our step and not try anything on,” said the matrons softly. “Mrs. Wu was went off with a flea in her ear, and do we have more face than she does?” They decided not to go in until lunch was over.

  All was quiet now inside, with no clatter of bowls or chopsticks. Presently a maid raised the portiere and two others carried out the table. Three girls from the boiler house had brought three basins of water, and as soon as the table was removed they went in, reappearing before long with the basins and rinse-bowls. Then Daishu, Suyun and Yinger took in three covered bowls of tea on trays.

  When these three came out again Daishu instructed the younger maids, “You must see to things here till we come back from our meal. Don’t sneak off to have a rest.”

  Then, slowly, the matrons made their reports in turn, not presuming to behave with their previous impertinence.

  Tanchun, somewhat mollified, remarked to Pinger. “I’ve just happened to remember something important I’ve been meaning to discuss with your mistress. Come back straight after your meal, will you? As Miss Baochai is here too, the four of us can talk it over before asking your mistress whether she agrees or not.” Pinger assented and left.