A good excerpt from the reading notes of "A Dream of Red Mansions"
1. Go to court the next day and pick out a group of famous criminals. Yucun conducted a detailed interrogation and found out that the Feng family had a small population and was relying on it to get some money for burial. The Xue family relied on power and favor and refused to give in, so the situation was reversed. Yucun bent the law and judged the case randomly. The Feng family got a lot of money for burial, so they had nothing to say. Yucun then hurriedly wrote two letters to Jia Zheng and Wang Ziteng, the military envoy in the capital camp, and sent them with the words "My nephew's affairs have been completed, there is no need to worry about it". This was all done by the new disciple of the novice monk in the Calabash Temple. Yucun was afraid that he would tell others about the poverty and poverty of the day, so he was very unhappy. Later, I finally found out something was wrong with him, so I paid him back from afar.
2. The next day was April 26th. It turned out that this day was not the time for the Ear Grain Festival. Ancient custom: On this day of the Grain Grain Festival, various gifts should be arranged to pay tribute to the God of Flowers. It is said that once the Grain Grain Festival is over, it will be summer, all the flowers will be unloaded, and the God of Flowers will abdicate and a farewell ceremony is needed. This custom became more popular in the boudoir, so everyone in the Grand View Garden got up early. The girls, some made sedan horses out of petals and willow branches, or folded silk and brocade gauze into trunks, were all tied with colorful threads. They were tied on every tree head and every flower. These things. The garden was full of embroidered ribbons fluttering and flowers blooming, and these people were so dressed up that they were so embarrassed that they felt jealous and ashamed.
3. Time passes easily when we are free, and suddenly it is the Lantern Festival again. Shi Yin ordered his family member Huo Qi to hug Yinglian and go to see the sparkling lanterns. Huo Qi wanted to relieve himself in the middle of the night, so he placed Yinglian on the doorstep of a house and sat down. When he finished urinating and came to hug him, was there any trace of Yinglian? Anxious Huo Qizhi searched for him for half the night. When he disappeared at dawn, Huo Qi did not dare to come back to see his master, so he fled to another country. When the Shiyin couple saw their daughter not coming home all night, they knew something was wrong. They sent several people to look for her, but when she came back, there was no impact at all. The couple had only had this daughter for half their lives. Once they lost her, they would be so upset that they cried day and night, almost without regard for their lives.
4. When Sister Baochai and Feng went away, Daiyu said to Baoyu: "You are trying to be more powerful than me. Everyone is as clumsy as I am, let others tell you!" "Baoyu was bored because of Baochai's carelessness. When he saw Daiyu asking him, he became even more unhappy. I wanted to say a few words, but I was afraid that Daiyu would be too worried, so she couldn't bear it, was listless, and kept coming out.
5. The tea was finished in a moment, and the cups and plates had already been set, not to mention the fine wine and food. The two of them returned to sit down, first they drank slowly, and gradually the conversation became more intense, and they suddenly drank wine. stand up. At that time, every household in the neighborhood played flutes and every household played music and songs, while the bright moon was shining brightly. The two of them became more and more excited, and the wine was dry. At this time, Yucun was already 70 to 80% drunk, and he couldn't help but be wildly excited. He had a deep love for the moon and his mouth was full of clouds.
6. The stubborn stone on the back of the psychic jade also recorded his illusion and the seal script engraved by the leper monk. Now it is also based on the picture on the back. However, its true form is the smallest, and can only be taken from the mouth of a child in the womb. If it is drawn according to the style, it is afraid that the handwriting is too fine, which will spoil the viewer's eyesight, and it will not be convenient, so it is slightly displayed so that it can be drunk under the lamp. Readable. Now that we have noted this, how can the child in the womb carry this wolf if its mouth is so big? Stupid and big things are ridiculed.
7. Unexpectedly, at the end of winter that year, Lin Ruhai wrote a book to take Daiyu back because he was seriously ill. After hearing this, Jia Mu felt even more depressed, so she had to hurriedly help Daiyu get up. Baoyu felt very uncomfortable, and it was hard to stop him from fighting over the relationship between father and daughter. So Jia Mu decided to ask Jia Lian to send him away, but also asked him to bring him back. Needless to say, the fee for a local ceremony must be appropriate. Zuo quickly decided on a date, and Jia Lian and Dai Yu said goodbye to everyone, led their servants, and boarded a boat to Yangzhou.
8. Shi Yin wanted to follow him, but when he started to take steps, he suddenly heard a thunderbolt like a mountain collapsing and the ground collapsed. I forgot half of the matter. Then I saw the wet nurse coming with Yinglian in her arms. Shi Yin saw that his daughter was getting more and more beautiful and well-behaved, so he reached out to pick her up, held her in his arms and played with her for a while, and then took her to the street to watch the excitement of the party. When he was about to come in, he saw a monk coming from the other side. The monk with a scabby head and bare feet, the lame man with a shaggy head, were crazy, squandering, chatting and laughing.
9. But it is said that the sky is cloudy and sunny, and a cloud can cause rain. Suddenly a cool breeze passes by, and a burst of rain falls. Baoyu saw water dripping from the girl's head, making her clothes wet immediately. Baoyu thought: "It's raining. How can his body withstand the sudden rain?" So he couldn't help but said: "No need to write, you can see that he is all wet." When the girl heard that, she was shocked. He jumped, looked up, and saw someone outside the flower telling him "no need to write." One Baoyu has a handsome face, the other has luxuriant flowers and leaves, the top and bottom are hidden by branches and leaves, and only half of the face is exposed: the girl just thinks she is a girl, no longer wants to be Baoyu, because she smiled and said: "Thank you sister for reminding me." "Is there any shelter for my sister outside?" Baoyu said "Hey" and felt cold all over. He looked down at himself and saw that he was also wet. He said, "No!" and ran back to Yihongyuan angrily. But in my heart, I still remembered that the girl had no place to take shelter from the rain.
10. Taken together, there are more than 300 people in Rong Mansion from top to bottom, and there are ten or twenty things happening a day. It is like a mess, with no clue to make a plan.
I was thinking of writing about that incident and that person, but suddenly I happened to come from a small family thousands of miles away. Because I had some connections with Rongfu, I was coming to Rongfu that day. Let’s talk about this family, but we still have a clue.
11. Looking forward to the evening, I found my way into the Rong Mansion in the dark and got into the hall while the door was closed. As expected, it was dark and no one was coming or going. The door to Jia Mu's side was locked, and only the door to the east was left open. Jia Rui listened intently, but no one came for a long time. Suddenly there was a thud and the door to the east was closed. Jia Rui was so anxious that he didn't dare to say anything, so he came out quietly, shook the door, and closed it like an iron barrel. It is impossible to go out at this time. There are big walls to the north and south, and there is no way to climb if you want to jump. It was windy and empty inside the house again. It was now the twelfth lunar month, the nights were long, the new wind was strong, it invaded the muscles and cracked the bones, and it almost didn't freeze to death overnight. After finally looking forward to morning, I saw an old woman opening the east door first and going to call the west door. Jia Rui saw her face turned away and ran out with her arms in her arms. Fortunately, it was still early and no one got up, so they ran home through the back door.
12. The precious jade was in a trance, and according to the instructions of Jinghuan, it was inevitable that he would do things for his children, and it would be difficult to describe them all. By the next day, she was full of tenderness and gentle words, and was inseparable from Ke Qing. Because when the two of them went out to play hand in hand, they suddenly came to a place where they saw thorns and thorns everywhere, wolves and tigers walking together, and a black stream blocking the road, with no bridge to pass.
13. Mr. Liu just thanked him profusely, took the money, and followed Zhou Rui's family outside. Zhou Rui's family said: "My mother! How come you can't speak when you see him? It's your nephew who speaks. I'm not afraid of annoying you: even my nephew should speak softly. Then Rong Rong The uncle is his nephew. How come he has such a nephew again?" Old Liu said with a smile: "My sister-in-law! Are you ready to talk?" The two of them said and sat at Zhou Rui's house for a while. Mr. Liu wanted to leave a piece of silver to buy fruit for the Zhou family's children, but Zhou Rui's family looked down upon him and refused. Mr. Liu was grateful and went through the back door.
14. Jia Rong and two others often come to ask for money, and he is afraid that his grandfather will know. It's just that the lovesickness is unbearable, plus debts have been added to the debt, and daytime work is tight; he is in his twenties and has not yet gotten married. Thinking about not getting Sister Feng, he can't help but feel "fingers are exhausted"; what's more, I also had two episodes of running around with cold and annoyance: so I was attacked from all sides, and I suddenly got a disease: my heart was swollen, my mouth was tasteless, my feet were like cotton, my eyes were like vinegar, I had fever at night, I was tired every day, and I had nocturnal emissions. Symptoms such as coughing up phlegm with blood in it were all gone in less than a year. So I couldn't support it, so I lay down on my head, closed my eyes, and was still dreaming, talking nonsense, and being extremely frightened. I sought medical treatment in every possible way. I took dozens of kilograms of medicines such as cinnamon, aconite, turtle shell, Ophiopogon japonicus, and Polygonatum odoratum, but there was no movement.
15. The ground is covered with yellow flowers and white willows line the slopes. A small bridge leads to Ruoye Creek, and a winding path connects to the rooftop road. There is clear water dripping in the stones, and the fragrance is flowing from the fence. The red leaves are fluttering on the treetops, and the sparse forest is picturesque. The west wind blows suddenly, and you can still hear the orioles singing; Nuan's daily chatter adds to the chatter. Looking to the southeast, there are several pavilions built near the mountains; looking closer to the northwest, there are three pavilions facing the water. The seats are filled with reeds and shengs, adding a sense of elegance; the robes of silk threads pass through the forest, adding to the charm.
16. Therefore, if the sage abandons wisdom, the big thief will stop; if the jade destroys the pearl, the small thief will not be able to afford it. Burn the talisman and break the seal, but the people will be simple and humble; fight and break the balance, but the people will not fight; destroy the sacred law of the world, but the people will be able to discuss it. Promote the chaos of the six laws, cut off the yu harp, plug the ears of Gu Kuang, but the founder of the world has his wisdom; destroy the article, scatter the five colors, glue away the eyes of Zhu, but the founder of the world has his wisdom; destroy the hook and rope , and abandon the rules? The craftsman hangs his finger, but the founder of the world has his cleverness.
17. Nowadays, Confucians have no choice but to prepare for the funeral and go around to report it. On the third day, I started to pray, and on the seventh day, I sent my spirit to the back of Tiekang Temple. Suddenly, everyone in the Jia family came to ask questions. Jia She of the Rong Prefecture gave twenty taels of silver, Jia Zheng also had twenty taels, and Jia Zhen of the Ning Prefecture also had twenty taels. The rest of the tribes were rich and poor, ranging from one, two, three, or four taels. In addition, various classmates' families shared their funds and collected twenty or thirty taels. Although contemporary Confucianism was weak, with this help, it was able to enrich the matter.
18. Daiyu was crying to herself when she suddenly heard the sound of the courtyard door and saw Baochai coming out. Baoyu attacked a group of people and sent them out. When he was about to go up to ask Baoyu, he was afraid of embarrassing Baoyu in front of everyone, so he stepped aside and let Baochai go. Baoyu waited until he went in and closed the door, then turned around, looking at the door and shedding a few tears. Feeling tasteless, I turned around and came back, listlessly removing the remaining makeup. Zijuan Xueyan always knew Daiyu's temperament: she would sit sullenly with nothing to do, either frowning or sighing, and she didn't know why, and she would often stop crying. Some people tried to comfort him beforehand, perhaps because they were afraid that he would miss his parents and hometown and be wronged, so they tried to comfort him with words. Unexpectedly, it would happen every year in January. I got used to it and didn’t even think about it anymore. So no one paid attention to him, he just sat there and went about his business outside. Daiyu leaned against the railing of the bed, hugging her knees with both hands, her eyes filled with tears, like a wood carving and clay sculpture. She sat there until two or more days before falling asleep. A night without words.
19. Daiyu stared at him for a long time, then said angrily and was speechless. Seeing that Baoyu's other face was purple, he gritted his teeth, stabbed him hard on the forehead with his finger, let out a "hum" and said, "You..." Just after saying three words, he sighed again. After a breath, he still picked up the silk to wipe his tears.
Baoyu had infinite worries in his heart, and he said the wrong thing, and was regretting it. He saw Daiyu poke him again, and couldn't say anything, so she sighed and cried. Therefore, she felt something, and she shed tears unconsciously. Come. I had to wipe it with silk, but if I didn't want to forget to bring it again, I wiped it with my shirt sleeve. Although Daiyu was crying, she saw him wearing a brand-new lotus root gauze shirt and went to wipe her tears. While wiping her tears, she turned around, picked up a piece of silk handkerchief on the pillow and threw it into Baoyu's arms without saying a word. , still covering his face and crying.
20. On the case is the precious mirror that Wu Zetian had set up in the mirror room at that time. On one side is a golden plate on which Zhao Feiyan is standing and dancing. In the plate is a papaya that An Lushan threw and injured Taizhen's breasts. . On it is the treasure couch where Princess Shouchang lies on His Royal Highness Hanzhang, and hanging on it is a beaded tent made by Princess Tongchang. Baoyu said with a smile: "It's good here, it's good here!" Qin said with a smile: "My house can probably be lived in by gods." After saying that, he unfolded the gauze quilt that Xi Shi had hugged and moved the mandarin duck that the matchmaker had hugged. pillow. So all the maids laid down to serve Baoyu and dispersed, leaving only four maids, Xiren, Qingwen, Sheyue and Qiuwen, as companions. Mrs. Qin asked the little maids to sit under the eaves and watch the cats fight.