Dream of the Red Chamber Revisited

Author: (Qing) Chen Shaohai, edited by Wang Juan and Wu Daying
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-01-01
Features: Red Dream of the Ruined Mansion is a 100-chapter work generally believed to have been written by Chen Shaohai of the Qing Dynasty, also known as Nanyang. He used the sobriquets Xiangyue, Hongyu, Xiaohe Mountainwood, and Pinhua Xianshi. The book continues from Red Dream of the Constructed Mansion, depicting the rebirth and reunion of Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu, among others, of the twelve beauties of Jinling. Given that it involves rebirth and reunion, the story naturally abounds with all sorts of coincidences in the plot, as well as connections between the heavens, the mortal world, and the underworld. However, the ultimate purpose of these coincidences and connections is all for the sake of "affection," as the caption of the original book's illustrations aptly states: "Lovesick passion sows a romantic seed, once again gathering the twelve beauties of Jinling." Throughout the book, these coincidences and connections make the narrative seem fantastical, winding, and captivating. Therefore, anyone who reads or loves Dream of the Red Chamber cannot help but read or love Red Dream of the Ruined Mansion. The book originally existed in multiple printed editions. For this publication, the reprint of the Louhuan Zhai edition preserved in the Peking University Library, published by Shanghai Guji Press, was used as the base text, with revisions made using other editions.