The failure to account for Mrs You’s disappearance is so obviously due to an editorial oversight that I thought no reader could object to my liquidating her myself. Xi-feng’s turning up at the house in half mourning was almost certainly meant to be a reminder that Jia Lian had married Er-jie illegally in a period of national and family mourning – what we should nowadays call a ‘put-down’. I have deliberately misinterpreted it as a gesture of sympathy for Er-jie’s bereavement in order to have an excuse for introducing a couple of lines about old Mrs You’s demise. They are not to be found in any Chinese text.
APPENDIX V
Fivey, Bao Er and The Mattress
In one of the two versions of chapter 64 the domestic arrangements made for the house in Little Flower Lane where Er-jie is to be installed after her secret marriage are entirely in the hands of Cousin Zhen. They include the transfer to this new establishment of a married couple called Bao Er and his wife from the staff of Ning-guo House. Thereafter, in chapter 65 et seq., the woman is invariably referred to as ‘Bao Er’s wife’. In the more colourful version followed by Gao E it is Jia Lian who chooses the couple and Bao Er is identified with the servant whom Jia Lian cuckolded in chapter 44 and whose unfortunate wife hanged herself after the discovery of her adultery by Xi-feng. His new wife, we are told, is none other than our old friend The Mattress. Her husband, the drunken cook Droopy Duo, had finally succumbed to the drink and she had married Bao Er en secondes noces. That this is a late afterthought in the development of the plot is confirmed by the fact that in chapter 65 the wife is referred to merely as ‘Bao Er’s woman’.
This late identification of Er-jie’s housekeeper with The Mattress creates problems farther on in the novel. In chapter 77, when Bao-yu visits the dying Skybright in her cousin’s squalid house and is nearly seduced by his wife, one version identifies the cousin and his wife with Droopy Duo and The Mattress. (The Chinese name for The Mattress in this chapter is slightly different from the one given in chapter 21, but it is fairly clear that the same person is intended.) In this version the woman abandons her assault on Bao-yu’s virtue out of respect for his decency towards Skybright. In the version which Gao E followed, Skybright’s cousin is a young man called Wu Gui – a pun on the Chinese word for ‘cuckold’ – and his wife is left anonymous. Bao-yu is rescued not by the wife’s change of heart but by the arrival of Fivey and her mother on an errand from Aroma.
The earlier version is in no sense a ‘better’ one, because what it tells us about Droopy conflicts with what we are told about him in chapter 21. (In chapter 21 he appears to be a houseborn servant with parents still living; in chapter 77 he appears to be an orphan who was originally in service outside.) My translation fairly consistently follows the version found in Gao E’s edition, but I have left Skybright’s cousin anonymous.
The duplication of the name ‘Bao Er’ found in the earlier version of chapter 64 (one a servant of Jia Lian and one a servant of Cousin Zhen) was no doubt unintentional. If we regard it as an error, we can say that nevertheless it was a creative one, since it suggested the wholly successful identification of the two characters – the cuckold of chapter 44 and the housekeeper’s husband of chapter 65. It can be paralleled by other, less creative duplications which I have deliberately not reproduced in my translation in order to avoid confusion. In the Chinese text there are two pages called ‘Shou-er’. One, in chapter 28, is Bao-yu’s page. I call him ‘Oldie’. The other is Cousin Zhen’s page and appears in chapter 65. I call him ‘Lively’. There are also two pages called ‘Xing-er’. One, who appears in chapter 53, is Cousin Zhen’s page. I call him ‘Merry’. The other is Jia Lian’s page ‘Joker’, who appears in chapters 65, 66, 67 and 68.
APPENDIX VI
Euergesia and the Little Actresses
In the Chinese text of chapter 77 there are not one but two nuns staying with Lady Wang after the Mid-Autumn Festival, one from Water Moon Priory and one from the Convent of the Saviour King. The names given them do not appear anywhere else in the novel. That given to the nun from Water Moon Priory, ‘Zhi-tong’, is reminiscent of the Chinese names of Euergesia’s little acolytes in chapter 15, Zhi-shan (whom I call ‘Benevolentia’) and Zhi-neng (whom I call ‘Sapientia’). It is presumably Mother Euergesia – although the Chinese text does not name her there – who visits the mansion with Sapientia in chapter 7 (The Golden Days, p. 172). In chapter 77 Parfumée goes off with Zhi-tong to Water Moon Priory while the other two ex-actresses, Étamine and Nénuphar, go with the other nun to the Convent of the Saviour King. Later on, in chapter 93, however, it seems to be implied that the three girls are all living together at Water Moon Priory. Chapter 93 contains a further confusion involving the name of the priory and that of the family’s Temple of the Iron Threshold which my friend John Minford has explained in an Appendix to Volume Four. In order to anticipate what is said in chapter 93, I have eliminated one of the two nuns in chapter 77 and transformed the other one into Mother Euergesia. I have, in any case, a strong suspicion that Euergesia is intended here and that Xueqin simply forgot what he had called her in that much earlier part of the novel.
CHARACTERS IN VOL 3
ABBOT ZHANG an old Taoist, chief priest of the Lunar Queen Temple
ACADEMICIAN MEI Xue Bao-qin’s prospective father-in-law
ADAMANTINA a genteel and eccentric young nun residing in Prospect Garden
ADVENT Caltrop’s maid
ALTHÉE one of the Jia family’s troupe of child actresses, later attached to Shi Xiang-yun
AMBER maid of Grandmother Jia
AROMA principal maid of Bao-yu
ARTÉMISIE one of the Jia family’s troupe of child actresses, later attached to Tan-chun
AUBERGINE one of the Jia family’s troupe of child actresses, later attached to You-shi
AUNT ER see YOU ER-JIE
AUNT FENG see WANG XI-FENG
AUNT SAN see YOU SAN-JIE
AUNT XING see LADY XING
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
AVENTURIN see PARFUMÉE
AVIS
}
maids of Lady Wang
AVOCET
AZURE one of Jia She’s girl concubines
BAO-CHAI see XUE BAO-CHAI
BAO ER servant of Jia Lian cuckolded by his master and later installed by him in Er-jie’s household
BAO-QIN see XUE BAO-QIN
BAO-YU see JIA BAO-YU
BRIGHTIE
}
couple employed by Xi-feng in various
kinds of confidential business
BRIGHTIE’S WIFE
BUTTERFLY You-shi’s maid
CALTROP Xue Pan’s ‘chamber wife’; originally daughter of Zhen Shi-yin, kidnapped in infancy
CANDIDA maid of Li Wan
CARDAMOME youngest of Jia family troupe of child actresses, later attached to Xue Bao-qin
CARMINE concubine purchased by Jia She
CASTA maid of Li Wan
CHAI see XUE BAO-CHAI
CHAMBERLAIN ZHOU eunuch official in the Imperial Palace
CHEERFUL page employed by Xi-feng
CHESS principal maid of Ying-chun
CICADA junior maid working for Tan-chun
CIGGY see CICADA
CITRONELLA see NUMBER FOUR
‘CLOUD MAIDEN’ poetry club pseudonym of SHI XIANG-YUN
COOK LIU chief cook in the Prospect Garden kitchen; mother of Fivey
COUSIN BAO see JIA BAO-YU
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 OAF’ see XUE PAN
COUSIN PAN see XUE PAN
COUSIN T
AN see JIA TAN-CHUN
COUSIN WAN see LI WAN
COUSIN XING see XING XIU-YAN
COUSIN YING see JIA YING-CHUN
COUSIN ZHEN son of Jia Jing; acting head of the senior (Ning-guo) branch of the Jia family
DADDY XIA see XIA BING-ZHONG
DAI-YU see LIN DAI-YU
DOVE concubine of Cousin Zhen
DOWAGER PRINCESS OF NAN-AN, THE high-ranking acquaintance of Grandmother Jia
DR WANG see WANG JI-REN
EBONY maid of Tan-chun
ÉLÉGANTE member of the Jia family troupe of child actresses, later attached to Grandmother Jia
EMERALD maid of Bao-yu
ER-JIE see YOU ER-JIE
ÉTAMINE member of the Jia family troupe of child actresses, later attached to Bao-chai
EUERGESIA elderly nun in charge of Water Moon Priory
FAITHFUL principal maid of Grandmother Jia
‘FARMER SWEETRICE’ poetry club pseudonym of LI WAN
FATHER WANG see ONE PLASTER WANG
FELICITY maid attendant on Xi-feng
FENG see WANG XI-FENG
FIVEY consumptive daughter of Cook Liu
FLOWER concubine of Cousin Zhen
FORTUNE maid of Aunt Zhao
‘FROWNER’ see LIN DAI-YU
GOODY FEI trusted elder servant of Lady Xing
GRANDMOTHER Jia widow of Bao-yu’s paternal grandfather and head of the Rong-guo branch of the Jia family
GRANDMOTHER YOU see MRS YOU
HAPPY page of Cousin Zhen
HU JUN-RONG a dangerously incompetent physician
HU-SHI Jia Rong’s second wife
HUAN see JIA HUAN
JIA BAO-YU incarnation of the Stone; the eldest surviving son of Jia Zheng and Lady Wang of Rong-guo House
JIA BIN obscure member of the Jia family in the same generation as Cousin Zhen and Jia Lian
JIA CHANG junior member of the clan given casual employment by the Jias
JIA CONG little son of one of Jia She’s concubines
JIA GUANG obscure member of the clan in the same generation as Cousin Zhen and Jia Lian
JIA HENG (I) obscure member of the clan in Jia Guang’s generation
JIA HUAN Bao-yu’s half-brother; the son of Jia Zheng and his concubine ‘Aunt’ Zhao
JIA JING father of Cousin Zhen and nominal head of the Ningguo branch of the family, living in retirement in a Taoist monastery outside the city
JIA JUN young schoolboy attending the Jia family school
JIA LAN Li Wan’s little son
JIA LIAN son of Jia She and Lady Xing and husband of Wang Xi-feng
JIA LING junior member of the clan given casual employment by the Rong-guo Jias
JIA QIAO-JIE little daughter of Jia Lian and Wang Xi-feng
JIA QIONG obscure member of the Jia family in the same generation as Cousin Zhen and Jia Lian
JIA RONG son of Cousin Zhen and You-shi
JIA SHE Jia Zheng’s elder brother; father of Jia Lian and Ying-chun
JIA SI-JIE younger sister of Jia Qiong made much of by Grandmother Jia
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 XI-LUAN younger sister of Jia Bin, made much of by Grandmother Jia
JIA YING-CHUN daughter of Jia She by a concubine; eldest of the ‘Three Springs’
JIA YUAN-CHUN daughter of Jia Zheng and Lady Wang and elder sister of Bao-yu; the Imperial Concubine
JIA ZHEN see COUSIN ZHEN
JIA ZHENG Bao-yu’s father; the younger of Grandmother Jia’s two sons
JIN-GUI see XIA JIN-GUI
JOKER trusted page of Jia Lian
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
LADY ZHEN wife of Sir Zhen of Nanking and mother of Bao-yu’s double
LAI DA Chief Steward of the Rong-guo mansion
LAI SHENG Chief Steward of the Ning-guo mansion
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 Li Wan’s cousin; elder sister of Li Qi
LIAN see JIA LIAN
LILY name given to Caltrop by Xia Jin-gui
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
LIN ZHI-XIAO’S WIFE
}
domestics holding the highest position
in the Rong household under the Chief
Steward Lai Da
‘LITTLE XUE’ poetry club pseudonym of XUE BAO-QIN
LIU XIANG-LIAN young man of independent means friendly with the younger Jias; later betrothed to You San-jie
LIVELY page of Cousin Zhen
LOTUS junior maid of Ying-chun
LOU-SHI Jia Jun’s mother
LOVEY concubine of Cousin Zhen
MAGPIE maid of Aunt Zhao
MAMMA HE Swallow’s mother and foster-mother of Parfumée
MAMMA XIA old woman assigned share of work in Garden; Swallow’s aunt and Cicada’s maternal grandmother
MAMMA SONG old servant attached to Bao-yu’s apartment, mainly employed on errands
MAMMA TIAN old servant in charge of gardening at Sweet-rice Farm
MAMMA YE old woman in charge of gardening at Green Delights; Tealeaf’s mother and godmother of Bao-chai’s maid Oriole
MAMMA ZHU old woman in charge of bamboo cultivation in Prospect Garden
MARQUIS OF JIN-XIANG, THE nobleman on visiting terms with the Jia family
MASTER BAO see JIA BAO-YU
MASTER HUAN see JIA HUAN
MASTER LAN see JIA LAN
MASTER RONG see JIA RONG
MATTRESS, THE widow of Droopy Duo; later installed with her second husband Bao Er as Er-jie’s housekeeper
MERCY maid assigned to You Er-jie by Wang Xi-feng
MISS BAO see XUE BAO-CHAI
MISS LIN see LIN DAI-YU
MISS LIS, THE see LI WEN and LI QI
MISS QIN see XUE BAO-QIN
MISS SHI see SHI XIANG-YUN
MISS TAN see JIA TAN-CHUN
MISS XI see JIA XI-CHUN
MISS XIA see XIA JIN-GUI
MISS YING see JIA YING-CHUN
MISS YUN see SHI XIANG-YUN
MOONBEAM maid of Xia Jin-gui favoured by Xue Pan
MOONRISE younger sister of Lady Wang’s maid Sunset
MOTHER EUERGESIA see EUERGESIA
MR LIU see LIU XIANG-LIAN
MR ZHEN see COUSIN ZHEN
MRS ER see YOU ER-JIE
MRS FEI see GOODY FEI
MRS LI Li Wan’s widowed aunt; mother of Li Wen and Li Qi
MRS LIAN see WANG XI-FENG
MRS LIN see LIN ZHI-XIAO’s WIFE
MRS LIU see COOK LIU
MRS SHAN see WIDOW SHAN
MRS WANG see WANG SHAN-BAO’s WIFE
MRS XIA Xia Jin-gui’s widowed mother; Xue Pan’s mother-in-law
MRS XUE see AUNT XUE
MRS YOU You-shi’s widowed step-mother; mother of You Er-jie and You San-jie
MRS ZHAO see AUNT ZHAO
MRS ZHEN see YOU-SHI
MRS ZHU see LI WAN
MUSK maid of Bao-yu
NANNIE LI Bao-yu’s former wet-nurse
NÉNUPHAR member of the Jia family troupe of child actresses, later attached to Dai-yu
NIGHTINGALE principal maid of Dai-yu
NUMBER FOUR junior maid of Bao-yu, formerly called CITRONELLA
‘OAF KING, THE’ see XUE PAN
OLD MRS ZHU official marriage-broker acting for the Sun family
ONE PLASTER WANG a Taoist quack-doctor acting as priest-in-charge at the Tian Qi Temple
ORFIE junior maid of Xia Jin-gui
ORIOLE principal maid of Bao-chai
PAN see XUE PAN
PAN TOU-AN cousin and childhood sweetheart of Ying-chun’s maid Chess
PARFUMÉE member of the Jia family troupe of child actresses later attached to Bao-yu and renamed by him first YELÜ HUNNI and then AVENTURIN
PARROT maid of Grandmother Jia
PATIENCE chief maid and confidante of Wang Xi-feng
PEARL maid of Grandmother Jia
PERIWINKLE Bao-qin’s maid
PICTURE principal maid of Xi-chun
‘PLANTAIN LOVER’ poetry club pseudonym of JIA TAN-CHUN
PRINCE OF BEI-JING, THE see SHUI RONG
QIAN HUAI Aunt Zhao’s nephew; unsuccessful suitor for the hand of Cook Liu’s daughter Fivey
QIAO-JIE see JIA QIAO-JIE
QIN see XUE BAO-QIN
QIN XIAN’s WIFE aunt of Chess given brief control over Cook Liu’s kitchen
RICH trusted page of Jia Lian
RIPPLE maid of Bao-yu
‘RIVER QUEEN’ poetry club pseudonym of LIN DAI-YU
RONG see JIA RONG
SAN-JIE see YOU SAN-JIE
SCRIBE principal maid of Tan-chun
SHI XIANG-YUN orphaned great-niece of Grandmother Jia
SHUI RONG Prince of Bei-jing; princely connection of the Jia family friendly with Bao-yu
SI-JIE see JIA SI-JIE
SIGNET Xing Xiu-yan’s maid
SILVER maid of Lady Wang; younger sister of her deceased maid Golden
SIMPLE half-witted maid of Grandmother Jia
SIR JING see JIA JING
SIR SHE see JIA SHE
SIR WANG see WANG ZI-TENG
SIR ZHENG see JIA ZHENG
SKYBRIGHT maid of Bao-yu, posthumously worshipped by him as a flower-spirit