Speaking of the Dream of the Red Chamber: Red scholars reveal the Dream of the Red Chamber

Author: Hu Shi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-05-01
Features: The place where Qin Keqing meets her fate is called Tianxiang Lou. What is Tianxiang? Every word by Cao Xueqin is meticulously crafted, not idle talk. Tianxiang has two meanings, both related to flowers and plants. One describes peonies, called "National Beauty, Heavenly Fragrance," and is revered to an extreme. But I won’t dwell on the peonies any longer. The other describes osmanthus, and I will elaborate on it—because it is too important to Dream of the Red Chamber. According to Meng Chai’s Bi Shu Poem, the Tang Dynasty poet Song Zhiyuan wrote a poem about Lingyin Temple on West Lake, with one couplet: "Osmanthus falls in the moonlight, Heavenly Fragrance drifts beyond the clouds." This is the origin of Tianxiang (unrelated to "National Beauty") referring to osmanthus. Another example is from the Song Dynasty poet Yu Chou’s Zunbai Tang Ji, where he wrote: "Lotus weeps in dew at the slope, Osmanthus scents the moonlit night." Clearly, this is also an adaptation of Song Zhiyuan’s original line. These two examples prove: Osmanthus is called Tianxiang because it comes from the moon, making it a celestial flower, superior to ordinary ones. The moon goddess Chang'e and the osmanthus tree are well-known among the masses. However, this Tianxiang treasure tree has a man named Wu Gang, who holds a giant axe and chops it every day. Chang'e herself is a tragedy, and her precious osmanthus flower is also a tragedy. From this, we can infer: Qin Keqing, a person from the "heavens," is not the daughter of ordinary mortal families. Her temperament is as fragrant as osmanthus, and her appearance is as bright as the moon. Why did she hang herself? It was certainly not because of the slanderous tale of an "affair" with her stepfather Jia Zhen. Qin Keqing’s prototype is the granddaughter of Yinreng and the daughter of Hongxi. Due to the political upheavals of her grandfather and father, her true name was hidden, and she was raised by Qin Ye, a "Yingshan Lang" (a junior official in the Imperial Construction Department). A "Yingshan Lang" is a junior official (or assistant) in the Imperial Construction Bureau. This family could no longer raise her and handed her over to the "Jia (Cao) family." This "hidden" "truth" was one of the charges against the Cao family during their second confiscation. This is truly a matter of great significance, and Cao Xueqin eventually cut out all the details of her true death and found another way to "write" about her. P257 One of these methods is to use Xiangling to narrate about Keqing. Xiangling’s name is deliberately chosen with the character "Xiang" (fragrance); her original name is Yinglian (meaning "to pity"), the beloved daughter of Zhen Shiyin (meaning "true events hidden").()()，。 Xiangling looks extremely like Keqing—this is another instance of Cao Xueqin’s "twisting of the narrative." When Zhou Rui’s wife delivers palace flowers, the first time she encounters Xiangling, there is a detailed description—Zhou Rui’s wife asks him (Jin Chuan): "That little maid Xiangling, is she the one you mentioned was bought before coming to the capital and got into a murder case?" Jin Chuan replies: "Exactly." Just then, Xiangling walks over smiling. Zhou Rui’s wife takes his hand, looks at him closely for a while, and then laughs at Jin Chuan: "What a lovely appearance! She’s quite like the character of Rong Grandmother in the East Mansion." Jin Chuan smiles back: "I said the same thing." This connects Keqing and Xiangling. Zhou Rui’s wife’s sympathy and pity for Xiangling are the same as the feelings and attitudes of the people in Ning and Rong Mansions toward Keqing. The delivery of palace flowers—how did it suddenly have anything to do with Keqing? It seems inexplicable. But it was actually instructed by Aunt Xue, who had the palace flowers taken from Xiangling’s hands and given to Fengjie, who then ordered them to be distributed to Keqing. Everything seems extremely natural. Yet Cao Xueqin’s meticulous weaving of details is beyond most people’s understanding, and this is evident here. The delivery of palace flowers serves many purposes, such as the courtyard route, various foreshadowings (Xichun saying "becoming a nun"), Daiyu’s personality (being the one who gets the leftovers), etc. (a fine example of my so-called "using one stroke for multiple purposes"), but Keqing is indeed an important subject, which is even harder to discern. The title poem for this chapter reads: "Twelve flower faces, fresh in hue, Who will cherish them? Who knows who? If you meet her, ask her name, She hails from Jiangnan, her surname is Qin." This serves as proof. This chapter follows the "dream journey" and is immediately followed by Liu Laolao’s first visit to Rongguo Mansion. Laolao is a crucial figure in saving Qiao Jie from the remnants of the family, and she is far from "trivial." Yet Xiangling and Keqing appear or "manifest" at this time, with such distant foreshadowing—how extraordinary! Returning to the main point from "Tianxiang": Keqing was originally an "unfortunate person from the heavens," or someone from the imperial family who had fallen on hard times. She shared a deep bond with Fengjie, her sister-in-law, both being "heroines of cosmetics," equally concerned about the family’s finances. They were truly heart-to-heart, disregarding men. Her character was "completely beautiful," and Baoyu’s heartfelt admiration for her was undeniable. Keqing’s death was certainly not due to "lewdness"—that was a smokescreen or a deliberately fabricated slander. At that time, the ruling authorities had likely received secret intelligence about this woman’s true identity, revealing that she was a hidden descendant of Yinreng and Hongxi, a "dangerous figure" among political opponents. She was also a source of trouble, and they would not tolerate her existence. Keqing, with her open mind and keen insights, understood everything. She did not want her own fate to bring ruin upon the two families, so she took her own life with a noose, finding peace only in this way. Only Jia Zhen and others truly understood this, which is why their grief was so profound. Words can be terrifying. Jia Zhen, who had already acted inappropriately, was seized upon by his enemies as grounds for spreading rumors. "A moment of joy turned to sorrow," and soon, "the family perished, and people scattered" in a great tragedy, which was also a great injustice. The poem goes: "Heavenly Fragrance and osmanthus bloom in the moonlight, The tale of Xiangling and the moon is truly sorrowful. True events are like a dream, who will send flowers to the palace now?"