第三十九回

第三十九回 村姥姥是信口开河 情哥哥偏寻根究底

话说众人见平儿来了，都说：“你们奶奶作什么呢，怎么不来了？”平儿笑道：“他那里得空儿来。因为说没有好生吃得，又不得来，所以叫我来问还有没有，叫我要几个拿了家去吃罢。”湘云道：“有，多着呢。”忙令人拿了十个极大的。平儿道：“多拿几个团脐的。”众人又拉平儿坐，平儿不肯。

李纨拉着他笑道：“偏要你坐。”拉着他身旁坐下，端了一杯酒送到他嘴边。平儿忙喝了一口就要走。李纨道：“偏不许你去。显见得只有凤丫头，就不听我的话了。”说着又命：“嬷嬷们先送了盒子去，就说我留下平儿了。”

那婆子一时拿了盒子回来说：“二奶奶说，叫奶奶和姑娘们别笑话要嘴吃。这个盒子里是方才舅太太那里送来的菱粉糕和鸡油卷儿，给奶奶姑娘们吃的。”又向平儿道：“说使你来你就贪住顽不去了。劝你少喝一杯儿罢。”平儿笑道：“多喝了又把我怎么样？”一面说，一面只管喝，又吃螃蟹。

李纨揽着他笑道：“可惜这么个好体面模样儿，命却平常，只落得屋里使唤。不知道的人，谁不拿你当作奶奶太太看。”平儿一面和宝钗湘云等吃喝，一面回头笑道：“奶奶，别只摸的我怪痒的。”李氏道：“嗳哟！这硬的是什么？”平儿道：“钥匙。”李氏道：“什么钥匙？要紧梯己东西怕人偷了去，却带在身上。我成日家和人说笑，有个唐僧取经，就有个白马来驮他[2]；有个刘智远打天下，就有个瓜精来送盔甲[3]；有个凤丫头，就有个你。你就是你奶奶的一把总钥匙，还要这钥匙作什么。”平儿笑道：“奶奶吃了酒，又拿了我来打趣着取笑儿了。”

宝钗笑道：“这倒是真话。我们没事评论起人来，你们这几个都是百个里头挑不出一个来的，妙在各人有各人的好处。”李纨道：“大小都有个天理。比如老太太屋里，要没那个鸳鸯如何使得。从太太起，那一个敢驳老太太的回，现在他敢驳回。偏老太太只听他一个人的话。老太太那些穿戴的，别人不记得，他都记得，要不是他经管着，不知叫人诓骗了多少去呢。那孩子心也公道，虽然这样，倒常替人说好话儿，还倒不依势欺人的。”惜春笑道：“老太太昨儿还说呢，他比我们还强呢。”平儿道：“那原是个好的，我们那里比的上他。”宝玉道：“太太屋里的彩霞，是个老实人。”探春道：“可不是，外头老实，心里有数儿。太太是那么佛爷似的，事情上不留心，他都知道。凡百[4]一应事都是他提着太太行。连老爷在家出外去的一应大小事，他都知道。太太忘了，他背地里告诉太太。”李纨道：“那也罢了。”指着宝玉道：“这一个小爷屋里要不是袭人，你们度量到个什么田地！凤丫头就是楚霸王，也得这两只膀子好举千斤鼎[5]。他不是这丫头，就得这么周到了！”

平儿笑道：“先时陪了四个丫头，死的死，去的去，只剩下我一个孤鬼了。”李纨道：“你倒是有造化的。凤丫头也是有造化的。想当初你珠大爷在日，何曾也没两个人。你们看我还是那容不下人的？天天只见他两个不自在。所以你珠大爷一没了，趁年轻我都打发了。若有一个守得住，我倒有个膀臂。”说着滴下泪来。众人都道：“又何必伤心，不如散了倒好。”说着便都洗了手，大家约往贾母王夫人处问安。

众婆子丫头打扫亭子，收拾杯盘。袭人和平儿一同往前去，袭人因〔一〕让平儿到房里坐坐，再喝一杯茶。平儿说：“不喝茶了，再来罢。”说着便要出去。袭人又叫住问道：“这个月的月钱，连老太太和太太还没放呢，是为什么？”平儿见问，忙转身至袭人跟前，见左近无人，才悄悄说道：“你快别问，横竖再迟几天就放了。”

袭人笑道：“这是为什么，唬得你这样？”平儿悄悄告诉他道：“这个月的月钱，我们奶奶早已支了，放给人使呢。等别处的利钱收了来，凑齐了才放呢。因为是你，我才告诉你，你可不许告诉一个人去。”袭人道：“难道他还短钱使，还没个足厌？何苦还操这心。”平儿笑道：“何曾不是呢。这几年拿着这一项银子，翻出有几百来了。他的公费月例又使不着，十两八两零碎攒了放出去，只他这梯己利钱〔二〕，一年不到，上千的银子呢。”

袭人笑道：“拿着我们的钱，你们主子奴才赚利钱，哄的我们呆呆的等着。”平儿道：“你又说没良心的话。你难道还少钱使？”袭人道：“我虽不少，只是我也没地方使去，就只预备我们那一个。”平儿道：“你倘若有要紧的事用钱使时，我那里还有几两银子，你先拿来使，明儿我扣下你的就是了。”袭人道：“此时也用不着，怕一时要用起来不够了，我打发人去取就是了。”

平儿答应着，一径出了园门，来至家内，只见凤姐儿不在房里。忽见上回来打抽丰[8]的那刘姥姥和板儿又来了，坐在那边屋里，还有张材家的周瑞家的陪着，又有两三个丫头在地下倒口袋里的枣子倭瓜并些野菜。

众人见他进来，都忙站起来了。刘姥姥因上次来过，知道平儿的身分，忙跳下地来问“姑娘好”，又说：“家里都问好。早要来请姑奶奶的安看姑娘来的，因为庄家忙。好容易今年多打了两石粮食，瓜果菜蔬也丰盛。这是头一起摘下来的，并没敢卖呢，留的尖儿[9]孝敬姑奶奶姑娘们尝尝。姑娘们天天山珍海味的也吃腻了，这个吃个野意儿，也算是我们的穷心。”平儿忙道：“多谢费心。”又让坐，自己也坐了。又让“张婶子周大娘坐”，又令小丫头子倒茶去。

周瑞张材两家的因笑道：“姑娘今儿脸上有些春色，眼圈儿都红了。”平儿笑道：“可不是。我原是不吃的，大奶奶和姑娘们只是拉着死灌，不得已喝了两盅，脸就红了。”张材家的笑道：“我倒想着要吃呢，又没人让我。明儿再有人请姑娘，可带了我去罢。”说着大家都笑了。周瑞家的道：“早起我就看见那螃蟹了，一斤只好秤两个三个。这么三大篓，想是有七八十斤呢。”周瑞家的道：“若是上上下下只怕还不够。”平儿道：“那里够，不过都是有名儿的吃两个子。那些散众的，也有摸得着的，也有摸不着的〔三〕。”

刘姥姥道：“这样螃蟹，今年就值五分一斤。十斤五钱，五五二两五，三五一十五，再搭上酒菜，一共倒有二十多两银子。阿弥陀佛！这一顿的钱够我们庄家人过一年了。”平儿因问：“想是见过奶奶了？”刘姥姥道：“见过了，叫我们等着呢。”说着又往窗外看天气，说道：“天好早晚了，我们也去罢，别出不去城才是饥荒呢。”周瑞家的道：“这话倒是，我替你瞧瞧去。”说着一径去了，半日方来，笑道：“可是你老的福来了，竟投了这两个人的缘了。”

平儿等问怎么样，周瑞家的笑道：“二奶奶在老太太的跟前呢。我原是悄悄的告诉二奶奶，‘刘姥姥要家去呢，怕晚了赶不出城去。’二奶奶说：‘大远的，难为他扛了那些沉东西来，晚了就住一夜明儿再去。’这可不是投上二奶奶的缘了。这也罢了，偏生老太太又听见了，问刘姥姥是谁。二奶奶便回明白了。老太太说：‘我正想个积古的老人家说话儿，请了来我见一见。’这可不是想不到投上缘分了。”说着，催刘姥姥下来前去。刘姥姥道：“我这生像儿怎好见的。好嫂子，你就说我去了罢。”平儿忙道：“你快去罢，不相干的。我们老太太最是惜老怜贫的，比不得那个狂三诈四的那些人。想是你怯上，我和周大娘送你去。”说着，同周瑞家的引了刘姥姥往贾母这边来。

二门口该班的小厮们见了平儿出来，都站起来了，又有两个跑上来，赶着平儿叫“姑娘”。平儿问：“又说什么？”那小厮笑道：“这会子也好早晚了，我妈病了，等着我去请大夫。好姑娘，我讨半日假可使的？”平儿道：“你们倒好，都商议定了，一天一个告假，又不回奶奶，只和我胡缠。前儿住儿去了，二爷偏生叫他，叫不着，我应起来了，还说我作了情。你今儿又来了。”周瑞家的道：“当真的他妈病了，姑娘也替他应着，放了他罢。”平儿道：“明儿一早来。听着，我还要使你呢，再睡的日头晒着屁股再来！你这一去，带个信儿给旺儿，就说奶奶的话，问着他那剩的利钱。明儿若不交了来，奶奶也不要了，就越性送他使罢。”那小厮欢天喜地答应去了。

平儿等来至贾母房中，彼时大观园中姊妹们都在贾母前承奉。刘姥姥进去，只见满屋里珠围翠绕，花枝招展，并不知都系何人。只见一张榻上歪着一位老婆婆，身后坐着一个纱罗裹的美人一般的一个丫鬟在那里捶腿，凤姐儿站着正说笑。刘姥姥便知是贾母了，忙上来陪着笑，道了万福[11]，口里说：“请老寿星安。”贾母亦欠身问好，又命周瑞家的端过椅子来坐着。那板儿仍是怯人，不知问候。

贾母道：“老亲家，你今年多大年纪了？”刘姥姥忙立身答道：“我今年七十五了。”贾母向众人道：“这么大年纪了，还这么健朗。比我大好几岁呢。我要到这么大年纪，还不知怎么动不得呢。”刘姥姥笑道：“我们生来是受苦的人，老太太生来是享福的。若我们也这样，那些庄家活也没人作了。”贾母道：“眼睛牙齿都还好？”刘姥姥道：“都还好，就是今年左边的槽牙活动了。”贾母道：“我老了，都不中用了，眼也花，耳也聋，记性也没了。你们这些老亲戚，我都不记得了。亲戚们来了，我怕人笑我，我都不会，不过嚼的动的吃两口，困了睡一觉，闷了时和这些孙子孙女儿顽笑一回就完了。”刘姥姥笑道：“这正是老太太的福了。我们想这么着也不能。”贾母道：“什么福，不过是个老废物罢了。”说的大家都笑了。

贾母又笑道：“我才听见凤哥儿说，你带了好些瓜菜来，叫他快收拾去了，我正想个地里现撷的瓜儿菜儿吃。外头买的，不像你们田地里的好吃。”刘姥姥笑道：“这是野意儿，不过吃个新鲜。依我们想鱼肉吃，只是吃不起。”贾母又道：“今儿既认着了亲，别空空儿的就去。不嫌我这里，就住一两天再去。我们也有个园子，园子里头也有果子，你明日也尝尝，带些家去，你也算看亲戚一趟。”

凤姐儿见贾母喜欢，也忙留道：“我们这里虽不比你们的场院大，空屋子还有两间。你住两天罢，把你们那里的新闻故事儿说些与我们老太太听听。”贾母笑道：“凤丫头别拿他取笑儿。他是乡屯里的人，老实，那里搁的住你打趣他。”说着，又命人去先抓果子与板儿吃。板儿见人多了，又不敢吃。贾母又命拿些钱给他，叫小幺儿们带他外头顽去。刘姥姥吃了茶，便把些乡村中所见所闻的事情说与贾母，贾母益发得了趣味。正说着，凤姐儿便令人来请刘姥姥吃晚饭。贾母又将自己的菜拣了几样，命人送过去与刘姥姥吃。

凤姐知道合了贾母的心，吃了饭便又打发过来。鸳鸯忙令老婆子带了刘姥姥去洗了澡，自己挑了两件随常的衣服令给刘姥姥换上。那刘姥姥那里见过这般行事，忙换了衣裳出来，坐在贾母榻前，又搜寻些话出来说。彼时宝玉姊妹们也都在这里坐着，他们何曾听见过这些话，自觉比那些瞽目先生说的书还好听。

那刘姥姥虽是个村野人，却生来的有些见识，况且年纪老了，世情上经历过的，见头一个贾母高兴，第二见这些哥儿姐儿们都爱听，便没了说的也编出些话来讲。因说道：“我们村庄上种地种菜，每年每日，春夏秋冬，风里雨里，那有个坐着的空儿，天天都是在那地头子上作歇马凉亭[12]，什么奇奇怪怪的事不见呢。就像去年冬天，接连下了几天雪，地下压了三四尺深。我那日起的早，还没出房门，只听外头柴草响。我想着必定是有人偷柴草来了。我爬着窗户眼儿一瞧，却不是我们村庄上的人。”贾母道：“必定是过路的客人们冷了，见现成的柴，抽些烤火去也是有的。”刘姥姥笑道：“也并不是客人，所以说来奇怪。老寿星当个什么人？原来是一个十七八岁的极标致的一个小姑娘，梳着溜油光的头，穿着大红袄儿，白绫裙子——”

刚说到这里，忽听外面人吵嚷起来，又说：“不相干的，别唬着老太太。”贾母等听了，忙问怎么了，丫鬟回说“南院马棚里走了水[13]，不相干，已经救下去了。”贾母最胆小的，听了这个话，忙起身扶了人出至廊上来瞧，只见东南上火光犹亮。贾母唬的口内念佛，忙命人去火神跟前烧香。王夫人等也忙都过来请安，又回说“已经下去了，老太太请进房去罢。”贾母足的[14]看着火光息了方领众人进来。宝玉且忙着问刘姥姥：“那女孩儿大雪地作什么抽柴草？倘或冻出病来呢？”贾母道：“都是才说抽柴草惹出火来了，你还问呢。别说这个了，再说别的罢。”宝玉听说，心内虽不乐，也只得罢了。

刘姥姥便又想了一篇，说道：“我们庄子东边庄上，有个老奶奶子，今年九十多岁了。他天天吃斋念佛，谁知就感动了观音菩萨夜里来托梦说：‘你这样虔心，原来你该绝后的，如今奏了玉皇，给你个孙子。’原来这老奶奶只有一个儿子，这儿子也只一个儿子，好容易养到十七八岁上死了，哭的什么似的。后果然又养了一个，今年才十三四岁，生的雪团儿一般，聪明伶俐非常。可见这些神佛是有的。”这一席话，实合了贾母王夫人的心事，连王夫人也都听住了。

宝玉心中只记挂着抽柴的故事，因闷闷的心中筹画。探春因问他“昨日扰了史大妹妹，咱们回去商议着邀一社，又还了席，也请老太太赏菊花，何如？”宝玉笑道：“老太太说了，还要摆酒还史妹妹的席，叫咱们作陪呢。等着吃了老太太的，咱们再请不迟。”探春道：“越往前去越冷了，老太太未必高兴。”宝玉道：“老太太又喜欢下雨下雪的。不如咱们等下头场雪，请老太太赏雪岂不好？咱们雪下吟诗，也更有趣了。”林黛玉忙笑道：“咱们雪下吟诗？依我说，还不如弄一捆柴火，雪下抽柴，还更有趣儿呢。”说着，宝钗等都笑了。宝玉瞅了他一眼，也不答话。

一时散了，背地里宝玉足的拉了刘姥姥，细问那女孩儿是谁。刘姥姥只得编了告诉他道：“那原是我们庄北沿地埂子上有一个小祠堂里供的，不是神佛，当先有个什么老爷。”说着又想名姓。宝玉道：“不拘什么名姓，你不必想了，只说原故就是了。”刘姥姥道：“这老爷没有儿子，只有一位小姐，名叫茗玉。小姐知书识字，老爷太太爱如珍宝。可惜这茗玉小姐生到十七岁，一病死了。”宝玉听了，跌足叹惜，又问后来怎么样。刘姥姥道：“因为老爷太太思念不尽，便盖了这祠堂，塑了这茗玉小姐的像，派了人烧香拨火。如今日久年深的，人也没了，庙也烂了，那个像就成了精。”宝玉忙道：“不是成精，规矩这样人是虽死不死的。”刘姥姥道：“阿弥陀佛！原来如此。不是哥儿说，我们都当他成精。他时常变了人出来各村庄店道上闲逛。我才说这抽柴火的就是他了。我们村庄上的人还商议着要打了这塑像平了庙呢。”宝玉忙道：“快别如此。若平了庙，罪过不小。”刘姥姥道：“幸亏哥儿告诉我，我明儿回去告诉他们就是了。”

宝玉道：“我们老太太、太太都是善人，合家大小也都好善喜舍，最爱修庙塑神的。我明儿做一个疏头[15]，替你化些布施，你就做香头[16]，攒了钱把这庙修盖，再装潢了泥像，每月给你香火钱烧香岂不好？”刘姥姥道：“若这样，我托那小姐的福，也有几个钱使了。”宝玉又问他地名庄名，来往远近，坐落何方。刘姥姥便顺口胡诌了出来。

宝玉信以为真，回至房中，盘算了一夜。次日一早，便出来给了茗烟几百钱，按着刘姥姥说的方向地名，着茗烟去先踏看明白，回来再做主意。那茗烟去后，宝玉左等也不来，右等也不来，急的热锅上的蚂蚁一般。

好容易等到日落，方见茗烟兴兴头头的回来。宝玉忙问：“可有庙了？”茗烟笑道：“爷听的不明白，叫我好找。那地名坐落不似爷说的一样，所以找了一日，找到东北上田埂子上才有一个破庙。”宝玉听说，喜的眉开眼笑，忙说道：“刘姥姥有年纪的人，一时错记了也是有的。你且说你见的。”茗烟道：“那庙门却倒是朝南开，也是稀破的。我找的正没好气，一见这个，我说‘可好了’，连忙进去。一看泥胎，唬的我跑出来了，活似真的一般。”宝玉喜的笑道：“他能变化人了，自然有些生气。”茗烟拍手道：“那里有什么女孩儿，竟是一位青脸红发的瘟神爷。”宝玉听了，啐了一口，骂道：“真是一个无用的杀才！这点子事也干不来。”茗烟道：“二爷又不知看了什么书，或者听了谁的混话，信真了，把这件没头脑的事派我去碰头[17]，怎么说我没用呢？”宝玉见他急了，忙抚慰他道：“你别急。改日闲了你再找去。若是他哄我们呢，自然没了，若真是有的，你岂不也积了阴骘。我必重重的赏你。”正说着，只见二门上的小厮来说：“老太太房里的姑娘们站在二门口找二爷呢。”

[1] 信口开河——又写作“信口开合”、“信口开喝”。意为随口乱说。王实甫《西厢记》二本三折：“你那里休聒，不当一个信口开合。”

[2] 有个唐僧取经，就有个白马来驮他——唐代僧人玄奘，曾去天竺（即印度）取经。龙王三太子化成白马，驮着唐僧去西天取经的故事，见明代吴承恩《西游记》第十五回。

[3] 刘智远打天下，就有个瓜精来送盔甲——刘智远，五代时后汉王朝的建立者。“瓜精送盔甲”见明初无名氏的南戏《白兔记》第十五出《看瓜》。

[4] 凡百——表示概括的词，含有众多、所有、全部的意思。《诗经·小雅·雨无正》：“凡百君子，各敬尔身。”“凡百君子，莫肯用讯。”杜甫《夔府书怀四十韵》：“南宫载勋世，凡百慎交绥。”

[5] 楚霸王举千斤鼎——楚霸王即项羽，名籍，战国末楚国贵族之后，参加了秦末农民起义，秦亡后，自立为西楚霸王。《史记·项羽本纪》说：“籍长八尺馀，力能扛鼎。”

〔一〕 “袭人因”，据俄藏、杨藏、舒序、甲辰本增。

〔二〕 “再喝一杯”至“利钱”一段，原作“便问道：‘这个月的月钱为什么还不放？’平儿见问，忙悄悄说道：‘迟两天就放了。这个月的月钱，我们奶奶早已支了，放给人使了，等利钱收齐了才放呢。你可不许告诉一个人去。’袭人笑道：‘难道他还短钱使，何苦操这心。’平儿笑道：‘这几年拿着这一项银子，他的月例公费放出去，利钱’”。己卯、蒙府、戚序本基本相同，梦稿、甲辰、舒序本较详，文字亦有小异。此从梦稿本改。

[8] 打抽丰——也叫“打秋风”，旧时利用各种关系取得有钱人的赠与。本含“分肥”的意思。明代郎瑛《七修类稿》：“米芾札中有‘抽丰’二字，即世云‘秋风’之义，盖彼处丰稔，往抽分之耳。”一说旧时衙役于秋风起时以作棉衣为名向富户募钱。

[9] 尖儿——上好的，也称“尖子”。

〔三〕 “也有摸得着的，也有摸不着的”，原作“也没有摸着吃的，也少”，从各本改（“得”或作“的”）。

[11] 道了万福——这里指旧日女子与人相见时的一种礼节，也叫“万福”。行礼时上身略弯，两手抱拳在胸前右上方上下移动。

[12] 歇马凉亭——本指旧时驿路上供行人歇马休息的亭子，这里是说农民把地头当作“歇马凉亭”来休息。

[13] 走了水——即“失火”的意思。旧日迷信，忌讳说“失火”，故用“走水”来代替，取水能灭火的意思。

[14] 足的——足足的、到底的。

[15] 疏头——旧时称分条陈述事情的文字及僧道拜忏所焚化的祝文等叫“疏”，也称“疏头”。这里指修庙募捐的“启事”。

[16] 香头——寺庙中管香火的头目。

[17] 碰头——此处意为漫无目的乱闯。

CHAPTER 39. An inventive old countrywoman tells a story of somewhat questionable veracity And an impressionable young listener insists on getting to the bottom of the matter

PATIENCE, you will recall, had just returned to the party.

‘What’s happened to your mistress?’ the others asked her. ‘Why doesn’t she come back and join us?’

‘She hasn’t got time,’ said Patience, laughing. ‘She’s sent me to ask if you’ve got any crabs left. She says she didn’t get a proper chance to eat any earlier on, and as she hasn’t got time to come here herself, would I ask you, if you’ve still got any, to let me take a few back for her.’

‘We’ve got plenty left,’ said Xiang-yun, and gave orders for ten of the largest to be put in a box for her to take.

‘Pick as many as you can with the round “navels”,’ said Patience to the old servant who was departing to do Xiang-yun’s bidding.

Li Wan tried to make Patience sit down with them, but she refused.

‘You shall sit down!’ said Li Wan, eyeing her skittishly; and taking her by the hand, she drew her down beside her and held a cup of wine up to her lips so that she was forced to drink. Patience gulped down a mouthful of it and then rose again to go.

‘I won’t let you go!’ said Li Wan. ‘The only person you ever take any notice of is that precious Feng of yours; you think you don’t need to obey me; but you shall.’ She turned to the old woman, now waiting in readiness with the box of crabs, and told her to go on ahead with them and tell Xi-feng that Patience was being detained. The old woman went away.

She returned a short while after, still carrying the box, with a message.

‘Mrs Lian says thank you very much, and she hopes you didn’t think her greedy for asking. She’s put some caltrop-cakes and some chicken-fat rolls in the box, that have just been sent her by the elder Lady Wang. She thought you and the young ladies might like to try them.’

There was a further message for Patience:

‘Mrs Lian says she thought she sent you to fetch something for her, not to stay here and amuse yourself. Anyway, she says, tell her not to drink too much.’

‘Oh,’ said Patience, laughing, ‘and what will happen to me if I do?’

As if in defiance of her mistress’s instructions, she fell to eating and drinking with great gusto. Li Wan meanwhile encircled her waist in an affectionate embrace.

‘What a pity that so distinguished-looking a young woman should have been born to so humble a fate!’ said Li Wan. ‘It’s you who should have been the mistress. You would have made such a good lady. No one who didn’t know would ever take you for a maid.’

Patience, who had continued eating and drinking with Bao-chai and Xiang-yun while Li Wan was saying this, now turned round and looked at her with a giggle.

‘Stop it, Mrs Zhu! You’re tickling me!’

‘Aiyo!’ said Li Wan. ‘What’s this great hard thing here?’

‘Keys,’ said Patience.

‘Keys?’ said Li Wan. ‘What has your mistress got so precious that you need to carry keys round all the time? Do you know what I tell people about you? I tell them: Just as you can’t imagine a Tripitaka going off to India to fetch the scriptures without his white horse or a Liu Zhi-yuan conquering the Empire without a Spirit of the Melon Fields to give him his armour, so you can’t imagine a Wang Xi-feng without a Patience alongside helping her. You are your mistress’s master-key. What does she need to make you carry these things around with you for?’

Patience laughed embarrassedly.

‘You are making fun of me, Mrs Zhu. I’m afraid you’ve had too much to drink.’

‘No, it’s true,’ said Bao-chai. ‘Whenever we start gossiping about personalities, we nearly always end up by agreeing what exceptional people you and the other chief maids are. And all exceptional in your own different ways, too – that’s what’s so interesting.’

‘It’s almost as though Nature had in each case designed the mistress and the maid to suit each other,’ said Li Wan. ‘Take Grandmother and Faithful, for example. Grandmother would be completely lost without Faithful. Who in the family from Lady Wang downwards would ever dare answer Grandmother back? Yet Faithful does. And what’s more, Grandmother will listen to her. And look at all the things that Grandmother has. No one else could ever remember them the way that Faithful can. Just think how Grandmother would be plundered and cheated if Faithful weren’t there to look after them. And on top of it all, she’s a very fair person. She’ll often put in a good word for someone. And though she has so much influence with Grandmother, she never, never uses it to do anyone else down.’

Xi-chun smiled.

‘Yesterday when Grannie was talking about Faithful she said, “She’s better than all you grandchildren!” ’

‘Faithful’s a good sort,’ said Patience. ‘I don’t consider myself in her class at all.’

‘Mother’s Suncloud is a good, honest soul,’ said Bao-yu.

‘She certainly is,’ said Tan-chun. ‘She’s got a mind of her own, though. You know what a Holy Buddha Mother is: she doesn’t notice a half of what goes on around her. But Suncloud does. And she is the one who always has to remind Mother about everything. She even knows about outside matters. When Father is at home, it’s Suncloud who has to remind Mother about them when she forgets.’

‘I don’t know about Mother and Suncloud,’ said Li Wan, ‘but what about this young gentleman here?’ She pointed to Bao-yu. ‘Can you imagine the sort of state he would be in if he hadn’t got his Aroma to look after him? And Feng too. Even though she’s a regular Tyrant King, she still needs her Patience in order to be so efficient, just as much as the real Tyrant King needed his two strong arms in order to be able to lift up those hundredweight tripods.’

‘There were four of us when I first came here with Mrs Lian,’ said Patience, ‘but the others all either died or left. I’m the only one who’s stayed with her all along.’

‘You’re lucky then,’ said Li Wan. ‘And Feng is lucky, too. When I first came here to Mr Zhu, I had several maids, too, but – I don’t know why it was, for I’m sure you wouldn’t call me a hard mistress – they were always dissatisfied. So when Mr Zhu died, I took advantage of their being still young to get rid of them all. If only I’d had a dependable girl like you that I could have kept on with me, I shouldn’t feel quite so helpless now.’

Her eyes began to redden as she said this, and she seemed about to cry.

‘Oh, come now!’ said the others. ‘There’s no need to upset yourself. If you’re going to be like this, we might just as well break up the party.’

They did in fact begin washing their hands then and presently decided to go off in a body to pay their duty calls on Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang. Meanwhile the old women and maids busied themselves with sweeping out the pavilion and stacking and washing up the cups and dishes.

Aroma left in the company of Patience. On the way back she asked Patience into Green Delights. She made her sit down and invited her to take tea, but Patience declined, saying that she would drop in another time, and rose to go. Aroma had something to ask her, however, and called after her as she was going.

‘What’s happened to this month’s allowances?’ she said. ‘Even Her Old Ladyship’s and Her Ladyship’s people haven’t had theirs yet.’

Patience spun round when she heard this and came back again.

‘Don’t ask me about that, please!’ she said in a low, agitated voice, after first glancing round to make sure that no one else was present. ‘Whatever it is, you’ll only have another day or two to wait, I promise you.’

Aroma was amused to see her so agitated.

‘Why, what’s the matter? Why should you be in such a state about it?’

Patience dropped her voice even lower.

‘Mrs Lian has already put the money for this month’s allowances out at interest. She’s waiting for the interest on some of her other loans to pay your allowances with. It’s all right for me to tell you this, but whatever you do, don’t let anyone else know about it!’

Aroma laughed.

‘But she’s not short of money, she’s got plenty. What does she want to go giving herself all this extra worry for?’

‘She’s certainly not short of money,’ said Patience. ‘Just in the few years since she started doing this, the amount she has got out on loan must have grown to several hundred times the original premium. And she doesn’t spend all of her own allowance, either. Whenever she’s got nine or ten taels saved up out of it, she invests them too. Why, just her profits alone after she’s deducted the allowances from the interest must be in the region of a thousand taels a year.’

‘You and your mistress are a nice pair, I must say!’ said Aroma. Keeping the rest of us short while you use our money to feather your own nests with! ’

‘That’s most unfair!’ said Patience indignantly. ‘Any way, I’m sure you can’t really be short of money.’

‘Not myself, it’s true,’ said Aroma. ‘In any case, I haven’t got anything to spend it on. I was thinking more of my young gentleman. I like to keep some by me in case he ever needs any.’

‘Look, if you’re in urgent need of money, I’ve got a few taels put by myself that I can let you have,’ said Patience. ‘You can have them as an advance on this month’s allowance, if you like.’

‘I don’t really need any at the moment,’ said Aroma, ‘but may I take you up on your offer if I ever do?’

‘Of course,’ said Patience, and left without further ceremony.

Outside the courtyard gate a maid from Xi-feng’s was looking for her.

‘The Mistress wants to see you about something.’

‘What has she got so urgent that she has to keep pestering me like this?’ said Patience. ‘I’ve just had Mrs Zhu all over me to make me stay and talk to her. It’s not as if I’d run away.’

‘Better ask her yourself,’ said the girl. ‘It wasn’t my idea to fetch you.’

‘Cheeky devil!’ said Patience, and continued on her way.

When she got there, however, it was not Xi-feng she found waiting for her, but the old countrywoman she had admitted on a previous occasion as a suppliant, Grannie Liu, with her little grandson Ban-er. They were sitting in the side room on the kang with Zhang Cai’s wife and Zhou Rui’s wife on either side of them, while maids were emptying sacks of jujubes, melons and other farm produce on the floor below. The company rose hurriedly to their feet as Patience entered. Grannie Liu, who recognized her from her last visit, scrambled down from the kang and greeted her at once as ‘Miss Patience’ without any of the previous time’s confusion.

‘The family all send their regards, Miss. They’d have come themselves long since to see you and pay their respects to their Aunt Lian, only they’ve been too busy with the farm-work. Anyways, they’ve had a good harvest this year, thanks be, and it’s been a good year for the fruit and vegetables. This here that I’ve brought is the first pickings. We didn’t like to sell them, because we wanted our first-fruits to go to Mrs Lian and the young ladies. We thought that mayhap eating the rarities of earth and sea every day of their lives they might sometimes tire of delicate food and fancy a bit of plain country stuff for a change. Anyway, there you are! It’s a poor gift, but it’s given with a warm heart!’

‘It’s very good of you to have brought it,’ said Patience, and begged her to be seated, sitting down herself as she did so. She invited Zhou Rui’s wife and Zhang Cai’s wife to be seated as well, and ordered one of the junior maids to pour tea.

Mesdames Zhou and Zhang chaffed her on her appearance.

‘You’ve got the spring in your face, Miss. Your eyes are all red.’

Patience laughed.

‘I know. I don’t drink normally, but today Mrs Zhu and the young ladies got hold of me and just forced it down me. I was made to drink, against my will. That’s why my face is so red.’

‘Well I don’t know,’ said Zhang Cai’s wife. ‘Here’s me just dying for a drink, but nobody offers me one. Next time anyone invites you, Miss, you must take me with you.’

The others laughed.

‘I saw those crabs this morning,’ said Zhou Rui’s wife. ‘Great big things. There couldn’t have been more than two or three to a catty. And I should think altogether there must have been seventy or eighty catties in those hampers. Even so,’ she said reflectively, ‘there probably wouldn’t have been enough for all the staff to have some.’

‘Lots of them didn’t,’ said Patience. ‘It was only the top ones that got one or two crabs to themselves. The rest of them only got a taste – some of them not even that.’

‘Good crabs like that are selling at a pennyweight a catty this year,’ said Grannie Liu. ‘If one catty is a pennyweight, fifty catties is two taels ten, and another thirty is one and ten; ten and two is twelve and twice ten is a tael, that’s thirteen, and then there’s the wine and the other dishes. It couldn’t have cost less than twenty taels in all. Bless us and save us! that’d keep a farmer and his family for a year!’

‘I take it you’ve already seen Mrs Lian,’ said Patience.

‘Yes,’ said Grannie Liu. ‘She told us to wait.’

She glanced through the open window as she said this and noticed that the day was drawing on towards evening.

‘It’s getting dark earlier these days,’ she said. ‘We’d better be on our way. We don’t want to find the city gates shut, or we shall be in a proper pickle.’

‘Just wait while I slip over and find out what the Mistress is up to,’ said Zhou Rui’s wife. She left the room and was gone for some considerable time. When she eventually returned, she was full of smiles.

‘It’s Grannie’s lucky day,’ she said. ‘She’s struck lucky with both of them.’

‘How do you mean?’ said Patience.

‘Well,’ said Zhou Rui’s wife, ‘Mrs Lian was with Her Old Ladyship when I got there, so I went up to her and told her on the side that Grannie wanted to go now to make sure of getting to the gates in time. “Oh,” she said, “she came such a long way with all that stuff. If it’s getting late, she’d better spend the night here and leave tomorrow morning.” Well, that was one piece of luck; but that’s nothing to what followed, because Her Old Ladyship had overheard this and asked her who this “Grannie Liu” was, and when Mrs Lian told her, she said, “Oh, I’ve been just longing for someone with a bit of age and experience to talk to! Bring her here! Introduce her to me!” Now that really was a stroke of luck!’ She urged Grannie Liu to leave her place on the kang and go over to the other apartment; but the old countrywoman was seized with a sudden attack of shyness.

‘Look at me! Dear soul, I’m in no fit state to see her now! Tell her I’ve already left!’

‘Go on, you go and see her!’ said Patience. ‘It’ll be all right. Our old lady is always very nice to poor or elderly people She’s not the least bit pretentious or stuck-up like some I could mention. If you’re nervous about meeting high-ups, Mrs Zhou and I will go with you to give you confidence.’

She proceeded, with Mrs Zhou’s assistance, to conduct the old woman to her interview.

When they saw Patience coming out of the courtyard, the pages on duty at the gate stood up, and two of them came running up to her.

‘Miss! Miss!’

‘What’s it this time?’ said Patience.

‘I’ve been waiting to catch you for hours, Miss,’ said the first of the boys. ‘My ma’s took ill and I’ve got to go and fetch the doctor for her. Will it be all right if I take the night off?’

‘You’re a nice lot!’ said Patience. ‘It’s my belief that you’ve got it all worked out between you so that one of you gets a holiday every day. And instead of telling the Mistress properly, as you’re supposed to do, you come round to me with these sad stories and make me take the responsibility. When Stoppo did this the other day, the Master called for him while he was still away and I got into trouble by speaking up for him. The Master accused me of doing favours. And now you want to do the same thing.’

‘His ma really is ill, Miss,’ said Zhou Rui’s wife. ‘I’m sure it would be in order for you to let him go.’

‘All right, then. But mind you’re back first thing tomorrow,’ Patience told the boy. ‘Now you heard that, didn’t you? First thing. Because I’ve got work for you to do. No lying in bed until you can feel the sun on your backside! And I want you to take a message to Brightie for me on the way. Tell him the Mistress says that if he hasn’t handed in the rest of that interest by tomorrow, she won’t ask him for it again, because she’ll know that he’s keeping it for himself.’

The boy promised to deliver the message and scampered off, delighted to be released.

By the time Patience and her charges arrived at Grandmother Jia’s apartment, all the young denizens of Prospect Garden had for some time been assembled there in attendance, so that as Grannie Liu entered the room, she was confronted by a bevy of unfamiliar young ladies, all resplendent in ornaments of pearl and kingfisher, like a bed of beautiful flowers, none of which she could give a name to. In their midst a venerable old lady reclined on a couch. A young woman, pretty as a picture and dressed in silk and satin from top to toe, sat behind her, gently pounding her legs. Xi-feng, the only person there she could recognize, was standing to one side of her, evidently in the midst of telling her something amusing. Deducing that the old lady on the couch must be Grandmother Jia, Grannie Liu hurried up to her and made her an antique curtsey.

‘Your servant, my lady!’

Grandmother Jia inclined herself politely from the couch and asked Zhou Rui’s wife to bring up a chair for her to sit on. Ban-er, bashful as ever, would not attempt a greeting.

‘Now, old kinswoman,’ said Grandmother Jia, ‘and what would your age be?’

‘Seventy-five this year,’ said Grannie Liu.

Grandmother Jia turned round to the others present.

‘That’s several years older than me. Fancy still being so fit and lively! Heaven only knows what I shall be like at that age!’

Grannie Liu laughed.

‘I was born for a hard life, d’ye see, just as Your Ladyship was born for a soft one. We couldn’t all be like Your Ladyship, or there’d be no one to do the farming.’

‘Are your eyes and teeth still good?’ Grandmother Jia asked her.

‘All bar a back tooth on the left-hand side that’s getting a bit loose this year.’

‘There! and I’m already a useless old woman,’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘Poor eyesight, poor hearing, memory going – I can’t even remember the names of old kinsfolk like yourself any longer. I’m scared to meet them when they come visiting, for fear they might laugh at me. There’s not much I can do nowadays except eat – what I can get my teeth into – and sleep. Apart from that, I share a joke or two with these young people when I need a bit of diversion, and that’s about all.’

‘Your Ladyship is lucky,’ said Grannie Liu. ‘I couldn’t have such a life if I wanted it.’

‘Lucky? No!’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘I’m just an old crock!’

The others all laughed.

‘Our Feng has been telling me that you’ve brought a lot of fruit and vegetables with you,’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘I’ve asked the servants to bring them over. I’m so looking forward to some nice, fresh farm vegetables. The stuff we buy outside isn’t as tasty as your home-grown stuff, you know.’

‘That’s the countryman’s idea of a treat,’ said Grannie Liu. ‘He can’t afford meat and fish, so when he fancies a little luxury, he likes to eat his food fresh from the ground.’

‘Now that you’re one of the family,’ said Grandmother Jia, ‘I hope you will stay long enough to enjoy your visit. Don’t go hurrying back again. Stay here a couple of days or so, if you can put up with us. We’ve got a garden too, you know, and we grow a certain amount of fruit in it. Tomorrow you must try some of our stuff – and you must take some back home with you when you go. It will seem more like a proper visit to relations if you stay a bit, instead of popping in and popping straight out again.’

Xi-feng could see that Grandmother Jia took pleasure in the old woman’s company and added her own persuasion.

‘It’s probably not as roomy here as your farmyard, but I expect we’ll manage to tuck you in somewhere. And you’ll be able to tell our old lady all the village gossip.’

‘Feng!’ said Grandmother Jia, laughing in spite of herself. ‘Don’t make fun! She’s a simple countrywoman. You can’t expect her to stand up to your teasing in the way that we can.’

She gave orders for Ban-er to be given some sweetmeats. He was unwilling to eat in front of so many people, however, so she told them to give him some money instead, and to get some of the younger pages to take him outside to play.

After Grannie Liu had taken tea, she regaled Grandmother Jia with some anecdotes of village life, thus further endearing herself to her new acquaintance. She was still holding forth when Xi-feng, who had slipped out some time previously, sent someone round to invite her back for dinner. Grandmother Jia selected some food from her own dishes and sent them to Xi-feng’s place for Grannie Liu to try in addition to what Xi-feng was giving her.

Xi-feng could see that Grandmother Jia had taken a fancy to the old woman, so after dinner she sent her back to Grandmother Jia’s apartment. As soon as she arrived, Faithful ordered some of the older domestics to conduct her to a bath. She herself went off to fetch her a change of clothes. She selected two fairly modest items from her own wardrobe and sent them to the bathroom with instructions that Grannie Liu should change into them after her bath. Such goings-on were outside even the old grannie’s extensive experience, but she took them all in good part, and having submitted to the ordeal of the bath, quickly dressed herself in the proffered clothes and went in to take her place once more beside the couch and resume her role of raconteuse. In this she was eminently successful, since Bao-yu and the girls, now seated on all sides around her, found her simple country talk much more fascinating than any of the fictions told by the blind ballad-singers who sometimes visited the house.

Indeed, there was more than an element of fiction in what she told them: for Grannie Liu, though born and bred in the country, was a shrewd old soul to whom the years had given a pretty good understanding of human weakness, and when she sensed the old lady’s pleased excitement and the avid attention of her younger listeners, she did her best not to disappoint them by supplying from her own invention whatever memory and experience were inadequate to provide.

‘We country-folk working out there on the land – year in, year out, rain or fine, spring, summer, autumn and winter – we never get any time off,’ she told them. ‘If we rest, it’s only as you might say “napping in harness”, like the old post-horse in the story. And many a strange happening do we see, out there on the land.

‘Take what happened last winter, for instance. It had been snowing for several days without a stop and the snow was two or three feet thick on the ground, and this particular morning I rose up early, and while I was still indoors, I heard the sound of something stirring outside in the woodpile. I thought to myself, “That’ll be someone stealing the firewood.” So I put my eye to the hole in the shutter, and sure enough there was someone there; but it wasn’t anyone from the village –’

‘It was probably some traveller,’ Grandmother Jia interrupted. ‘He was feeling cold and helped himself to a bit to make a fire with, so that he could get warm.’

‘Ah, but it wasn’t a traveller,’ said Grannie Liu. ‘That was the strange thing about it. Now who do you think it was, my old soul? ‘Twas a young woman, seventeen or eighteen years of age seemingly, pretty as a picture, and with no more on her but a red dress and a white satin skirt, and the hair on her bare head combed as sleek and shining as black lacquer paint –’

At that point her story was interrupted by a confused hubbub of voices outside. One of them could be heard above the rest saying, ‘It isn’t serious. There’s no point in frightening Her Old Ladyship.’

‘What is it?’ the old lady asked in some alarm.

‘A fire has broken out in the South Court stables,’ said one of the maids. ‘It isn’t serious, though. They’ve already got it under control.’

Always the most timorous of mortals where fire was concerned, Grandmother Jia struggled to her feet, and supported by the maids, led the others out onto the loggia to see what was happening. Somewhere beyond the south-east corner of the courtyard the glare of flames was still distinctly visible. Terrified out of her wits, she began calling on the names of the Buddha, and hurriedly sent someone to burn incense before the image of the Fire God.

By now Lady Wang had arrived with the younger women, and added her voice to the others’ in assuring the old lady that the fire was well under control and urging her to go indoors; but Grandmother Jia insisted on staying outside until the last of the flames had been extinguished.

As soon as they were all inside again, Bao-yu began questioning Grannie Liu about her interrupted story.

‘Why was the girl out in all that snow stealing firewood?’ he asked her. ‘She might have caught her death of cold.’

‘For goodness’ sake don’t ask about that!’ said Grandmother Jia. ‘It was talking about firewood that started that fire just now. Think of something else to talk about for goodness’ sake!’

Though privately far from satisfied, Bao-yu was obliged to let the matter rest while Grannie Liu turned her inventive faculties in another direction.

‘In a farmstead east of ours there was an old dame of more than ninety who had fasted and prayed to the Buddha every day of her life. At last the Blessed Guanyin was moved by her prayers and appeared to her one night in a dream. “It was to have been your fate to be cut off without an heir,” the Blessed Mother told her, “but because of your great piety, I have petitioned the Jade Emperor to give you a grandson.”

‘Now this old dame had an only son, and the son, too, had an only son who in spite of all their care had died when he was only seventeen or eighteen, to their sore and bitter grief. But after she had this dream a second grandson was born. He’d be thirteen or fourteen now – a very handsome lad, with skin as white as snow, and that sharp and clever you’d hardly credit it. So you see there are gods and Buddhas watching over us, whatever folk may say!’

The circumstances of this tale so perfectly accorded with the idea they had privately formed of their own situation, that both the senior ladies in her audience – Lady Wang no less than Grandmother Jia – were quite captivated by it. But Bao-yu, whose thoughts were still on the beautiful pilferer of firewood, looked glum and preoccupied. His sister Tan-chun observed this and sought to distract him.

‘We’ve got to make some sort of return for Cousin Shi’s party, Bao. Why don’t we go back now and discuss when the next poetry meeting is to be? We can have our party for Cousin Shi at the same time, and Grandma will be able to come and look at the chrysanthemums.’

‘Grandma’s already promised to give a return party for Cousin Shi herself,’ said Bao-yu, ‘and we are all invited. We’d better wait until that’s over before putting on anything of our own.’

‘The longer we delay, the colder the weather will be,’ said Tan-chun. ‘It won’t be much fun for Grandma if it’s too cold.’

‘But she loves parties when it’s raining or snowing,’ said Bao-yu. ‘Why don’t we wait until the first snowfall and have it then? Call it a snow-viewing party. Think how romantic: chanting poems in the falling snow!’

‘It would be more romantic still,’ said Dai-yu drily, ‘if instead of chanting poems we had a big bundle of firewood and took it in turns to tiptoe through the snow and pull out sticks from it.’

Bao-chai and the other girls all laughed, but Bao-yu stared at Dai-yu rather crossly and said nothing.

After the company had dispersed, Bao-yu finally managed to get Grannie Liu into a corner and question her in detail about the mysterious snow maiden. Grannie Liu’s inventiveness was once more put to the test.

‘On the embankment that runs along the north side of our land,’ she said, ‘there is a little shrine. The image inside it is not a god or a Buddha, though. There used at one time to be a gentleman living in our parts —’

She broke off at this point and appeared to be trying to remember a name.

‘Never mind his name,’ said Bao-yu. ‘Don’t try to remember it. Just tell me what happened.’

‘This gentleman had no son, but he had an only daughter called – I think it was Ruo-yu. She could read books as well as any scholar, this Ruo-yu, and the gentleman loved her more than all the treasure in the world. But sad to say, she took sick and died when she was only seventeen years old — ’

Bao-yu groaned and stamped his foot.

‘So what happened then?’

‘Because the gentleman loved her so dearly, he had this shrine built for her out in the fields and had a likeness of her made out of wood and clay to put inside it; and he arranged for someone to burn incense there and always keep a spark of fire going inside the burner. But as the years went by, both the gentleman and the people who used to tend the shrine for him all died, and now the shrine is falling into ruin and the statue has come to life and started haunting people.’

‘No, no,’ Bao-yu interrupted hurriedly, ‘that wouldn’t be the statue coming to life. People like that are never really dead, even after they have died.’

‘Holy Name!’ said Grannie Liu. ‘Fancy that now! And me thinking all along it was the statue. Well, whatever it is, every so often it takes on human shape and goes wandering broad troubling people. And that’s what I saw when I looked out that time and saw someone taking our firewood. The people in our village are talking of breaking up the image and knocking the shrine down so as to put a stop to the haunting.’

‘Good gracious! they mustn’t do that!’ said Bao-yu. ‘That’s a terrible sin, knocking a temple down!’

‘Now I am glad you told me that,’ said Grannie Liu gravely. ‘When I get back, I shall do my best to stop them.’

‘My grandmother and Lady Wang and in fact just about everyone in this family is terribly keen on good works,’ said Bao-yu. ‘There’s nothing they like better than repairing temples and restoring things. Tomorrow I’ll write out an appeal and collect some subscriptions for you. You can be the fund’s Treasurer, and when we’ve got enough money together, you can supervise the restoration. And I’ll get them to send you some money every month for incense. How would that be?’

‘Statue or spirit or whatever she is,’ said Grannie Liu, ‘I shall certainly be grateful to her for the money.’

Bao-yu pressed her for the names of the nearest farms and villages and the exact location of the shrine in relation to them as well as the distance to it and the general direction in which it lay. Answering all these questions with whatever came first into her head, Grannie Liu supplied a set of fictitious directions which Bao-yu, believing them to be genuine, carefully committed to memory and carried back to his room, where he lay awake half the night planning what he would do for the beautiful wood-thief in the days ahead.

He went out of the Garden first thing next morning, and handing Tealeaf a few hundred cash, told him the directions for getting to the shrine as given him by Grannie Liu the night before, and instructed him to follow them, inspect the shrine, and report back on what he saw. He would await Tealeaf’s report before deciding what to do next.

But once Tealeaf had gone he found the waiting very tedious, and as the day wore on and Tealeaf still failed to return, he became as fidgety as a worm on hot earth. He was obliged to wait until sundown before Tealeaf finally came back. When he did, however, he was looking extremely pleased with himself.

‘You managed to find it then?’ Bao-yu asked him eagerly.

‘Yes,’ said Tealeaf, smiling broadly, ‘but you couldn’t have heard the directions right. I had a terrible job finding it. The place where it is and the way to it are nothing like you said. That’s why I took so long. I was all day looking for it. In the end I found that there is a ruined temple in that area, but it’s not where you said: it’s at the east end of the north embankment, on a corner.’

Bao-yu’s face beamed with pleasure.

‘Grannie Liu’s a very old woman,’ he said. ‘It’s quite possible that she misremembered when she gave me those directions. Anyway, tell me what you saw.’

‘The temple was south-facing, like you said,’ Tealeaf replied, ‘and it was in a very tumble-down condition. I’d been searching nearly all day by then, so of course when I saw that, I was very relieved and hurried straight inside. But oh lor! when I looked at the image, I was so scared I hurried straight out again – it was so real!’

Bao-yu laughed delightedly.

‘Of course. If she’s capable of coming to life, you’d expect a certain liveliness in the statue.’

‘She?’ said Tealeaf. ‘This was no she. It was an ugly great Plague God with a blue face and red hair!’

‘Useless dolt!’ said Bao-yu angrily. ‘You can’t even do a simple little errand like this for me.’

‘That’s most unfair,’ said Tealeaf in a deeply aggrieved tone of voice. ‘You send me off on a wild-goose chase to look for something you’ve read about in some book or other or heard about in some old-wives’ tale, and then when I can’t find it (because there’s probably no such thing any way) you start abusing me.’

Bao-yu saw that he had hurt his feelings, and hastened to comfort him.

‘There, there, don’t be upset! Some time when you’re not too busy you shall have another look for it. If the old woman is deceiving us, you naturally won’t be able to find it. But if there really is such a place and you do, then you will have a share in the merit when it’s restored. And of course, I shall give you a very big reward.’

While he was talking to Tealeaf, one of the pages from the inner gate came up and said that ‘one of the young ladies from Her Old Ladyship’s room’ was at the gate asking for Master Bao.

Who it was and what she wanted will be revealed in the following chapter.