The author arranged this chapter. He asked Jia Baoyu to see Xue Baochai's illness according to his own artistic conception. In this process, he first wrote The Golden Lock by Strange Destiny and The Psychic by Chance, pointed out the "golden fate", initially contacted Xue Jia, and began to formally describe the love tragedy between Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu. The work suggests that, as far as Xue Baochai is concerned, she has read the words "Don't forget, don't forget, live forever Heng Chang" engraved on Baoyu's psychic film twice in a row, and pointed out that she has realized that these two words are just a couple on her collar. She was filled with joy, but refused to show it. As far as Baoyu is concerned, at this time he is envious of Xue Baochai's beauty and healthy body. "Baoyu is sitting side by side with Baochai at this time", which is very intimate. Then, can the "golden jade and good marriage" really be successfully concluded? This has created a suspense for readers. Then, the author arranged "Teacher Lin is coming". As a result, the three protagonists appeared together, the contradictory struggle unfolded, and the story became lively.
When Lin Daiyu came, her witty remarks were amazing. The first sentence says, "Ouch! I came at a bad time! " Then he added, "If I had known he was coming, I wouldn't have come." Look, three people just sat together. Although "Baoyu got up and sat down", Daiyu said it with a smile. On the surface, they are polite and live in harmony, but this can't hide the tense atmosphere of tit for tat. The conflicts between the three protagonists appeared from the beginning.
If we say that, in the author's works, contradictions and conflicts only stay in the old frame of love triangle, and if Daiyu's unhappiness is just general jealousy and "narrow-mindedness", then the writing style falls into a stereotype and is extremely general. The author's genius lies in his conscious expression of the contradictions between the characters as conflicts with social significance, so that this fragment does not deviate from the center of the book at all and effectively serves to deepen the theme. Then, Aunt Xue invited them to drink tea in the novel, which is exactly the arrangement.
Aunt Xue often buys wine. Let's see how the author skillfully creates flowers and puts different characters in the same event through the plot of drinking. When Aunt Xue saw Baoyu and Daiyu coming, she naturally "put on some exquisite teas and let them drink tea and eat fruit". It happened that Baoyu praised the goose web that Sister-in-law Jane had eaten the day before yesterday, so Aunt Xue quickly gave him her own bad one to taste. Baoyu said with a smile, "This wine is delicious!" The plot naturally developed into "wine". Baoyu said that he only likes to drink cold; Aunt Xue immediately objected, "The writer shivers after eating cold wine." This seems to be related to the temperament of the elderly, but it is not. "The writer is trembling" is a great event for a person who is ready to learn and make progress. Aunt Xue's infinite concern for Jia Baoyu's fame in imperial examinations is precisely reflected in this sensitive point. As for Xue Baochai, she totally agrees with her mother. But she said from another angle:
Brother Bao, thanks to your daily chores, don't you know that wine is the hottest? If you want to eat it while it is hot, it will condense in it, so it's okay to warm him with five internal organs? Nothing has changed since then. Don't eat that cold food.
On the surface, Baochai is talking with Baoyu about fitness. No, what she really means is: "Thanks to your daily chores." . On the surface, there seems to be some praise. However, as Zhi Yanzhai pointed out when he read here, "it is lucky not to read the front of the book." This sentence should be read backwards. Baochai said that Baoyu's Miscellaneous Studies was actually ironic. She has always been the most opposed to Baoyu's preference for "miscellaneous studies" and refused to focus on the "serious" knowledge of the Four Books and Five Classics. She wholeheartedly hopes that Baoyu will achieve fame and fortune as soon as possible through his career. This is the same as her mother's worry that "the writer's trembling" will affect her reading and fame. Therefore, whenever there is an opportunity, it will be revealed in unison. "I haven't changed it since then." This is very sincere, but it is actually accusing Baoyu of being unruly and persuading him to take the road of feudal orthodoxy. The deep-rooted feudal traditional concepts of Xue's mother and daughter are vividly displayed here.
In the face of the scene just now, Lin Daiyu "chewed melon seeds and just smiled." What is she laughing at? She seems to have no interest in "cold wine", "hot wine" and "writer's trembling" and said nothing. And this silence can also show a tendency. Then, the author cleverly arranged a wonderful detail, "It happened that Xueyan, Daiyu's maid, came to give Daiyu a small stove". You see:
Daiyu said with a smile, "Who told you to send it? Don't disturb him. -It's freezing there! " Xueyan said, "Sister Zijuan is afraid of the cold and asked me to bring it." Daiyu took it, held it in her arms and said with a smile, "It's a pity that you listened to him. What I say to you on weekdays goes in one ear and out the other. How can you obey what he said, faster than the imperial edict! "
This is really a vivid pen, which vividly depicts Alin Daiyu. "Don't disturb him-it will kill me!" On the surface, it is sent to a small stove. In fact, it is said to Baochai: drink some cold wine, you will freeze to death there. You don't have to be so serious and take such pains! "Thanks to you listening to him!" On the surface, it is strange that Xueyan only listens to Zijuan, but in fact it is aimed at Baoyu. It means, how can you listen to Baochai so much? According to her words, it is "faster than the imperial edict!" Of course, Daiyu's words also show her love for Baoyu. She loves Baoyu with all her heart, and I hope Baoyu loves her too. So there is no room for a third party to intervene. But from a deeper level, she actually indirectly expressed her disagreement with what Baochai just said. "Just smile with a pinch of your mouth", this expression is obviously dissatisfied with Baochai's "remark", with contempt and ridicule. Besides, if she thought Baochai's words were really reasonable, she wouldn't be so angry now when Baoyu heard Baochai's words and accused him of taking Baochai's words as an imperial edict. Here, through the description of Dai Yu's pun and disdainful expression, the work points out her dissatisfaction with feudal ethics. Through this plot, the author begins to show us two opposing ideological figures.
In order to make the contrast between the characters more intense, the author further puts the characters in sharper and deeper contradictions and conflicts, so that they can have a more intense ideological confrontation. Follow the plot of drinking and write about Baoyu's past three cups. Just when he was "sweet", his wet nurse, Mammy Li, came up and stopped him and said, "Be careful at home today, and be careful to ask you books!" This is a genius move. Baoyu and his father Jia Zheng, one is a feudal rebel and the other is a feudal guardian, who have always had sharp contradictions on the issue of studying and being an official. Even at the beginning of this book, when Baoyu went to Xue's house, the author did not forget to point out that Baoyu "would rather take a long way" to avoid his father's house. The tension between father and son can be imagined. Now Mammy Li has moved out of the "master" to exert feudal moral pressure on Baoyu who dared to resist. Although Jia Zheng didn't appear, that short sentence just wrote that Jia Zheng's feudal guardian lost face. From such an ordinary drinking plot, we can dig so deeply, which not only shows such a profound contradiction between Baoyu and his son, but also shows the turmoil in the banquet, involving the characters in the whirlpool of contradiction between Baoyu and his son (in fact, the struggle between feudal ethics and rebellious thoughts). This really makes people admire the author's extraordinary insight and performance on reality.
Baoyu listened to Mammy Li. "He was very unhappy. He slowly put down the wine and hung his head. ”。 This work shows the inherent contradiction between his unwillingness to be bound by feudal ethics and his dependence on feudal families. Just then, "Daiyu said quickly," don't spoil everyone's fun! Baoyu also gambles and fights. "。 Here, in the face of feudal ethics, Daiyu dared to stand up. Where is Xue Baochai? After listening to Mammy Li, she was silent. This is a sharp contrast. Let's recall that when Aunt Xue said that "people who eat cold wine tremble", how did the girl Xue, who has always been "silent", respond immediately and make a passionate statement; At that time, Daiyu was silent. Now when it comes to the master's "ask you a book", on the contrary, Baochai said nothing; Although Daiyu just spat at Baoyu, she did not hesitate to support Baoyu to fight back immediately, but Chai Dai and her actions were so different. It is no accident when a character speaks and when he doesn't speak. This is determined by his ideological character, which is ultimately restricted by the fundamental factor of social class. Therefore, through this plot, they not only depict their distinct personalities, but also reveal that they are two opposing artistic images with completely different ideological essence.
In a work, the author conceives a plot and depicts a fragment, always trying to make it an integral part of the whole story. So is the "drinking" plot here. It not only brought the three protagonists together for the first time, but also laid the groundwork for the future development of the story, and even predicted the inevitable tragic ending of the protagonist. For example, Chapter 33 of "Various Gifts" below "Beware of Asking Your Letter" paved the way for Jia Zheng to brutally kill Baoyu. It is unimaginable that without the accumulation of many contradictions reflected by trivial matters such as "drinking wine" this time, it will suddenly develop into the climax of a life-and-death battle. Another example is Jia Baoyu going back to the old lady's room after drinking. The author seems to have inadvertently ordered this sentence: "The old lady hasn't had dinner yet, and she likes it even more when she knows that it is from Aunt Xue." The word "Geng" actually indicates that love will eventually end in tragedy. Because feudal marriage is determined by "parents' orders" after all. The ending of this drinking plot originally contained such a profound meaning.
In addition, in this episode, I also wrote how Sister-in-law Jane and Aunt Xue received Baoyu with goose's feet, tea and wine. It is written that Baoyu usually goes to Xue's house across the wall, but there are a lot of old nurses and maids following him. Such things, seemingly trivial, are actually not idle pens. Highlight Baoyu's special position as a "favored son of heaven" in that noble family and write that his life is extremely rich. It is of great significance that the author tries to exaggerate this point. It reveals that although Baoyu is rich, he is not free in spiritual life. Even if he is happy, he will drink, and the feudal pressure represented by his father will never let him go. Therefore, although he lived in luxury, he still longed to get rid of the feudal shackles; Although Lady Jia likes Baochai, she still asks herself to choose a partner to love Daiyu who despises Li Lu and shares his interests. It can be seen that the luxury of Baoyu's life just sets off something more valuable than it, that is, freedom.
To sum up, Cao Xueqin vividly portrayed the characters' personalities and profoundly exposed the contradictions and conflicts through the description of trivial matters in daily life, and the accumulation of these contradictions promoted the development of the story. So, how can we regard it as writing, eating, drinking and reading? In the history of China literature, Sima Qian wrote "The Hongmen Banquet". On the surface, it was intertwined, but in fact it was manipulated. "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" wrote "Cao Cao cooks wine on heroes". On the surface, it looks elegant, but in fact it is full of dangers. Eating, drinking and having fun like that can certainly shape a distinctive character. We read this clip while drinking tea and laughing, didn't we also write the characters vividly? It saw the struggle in the banquet, the agitation in the calm, and the profound meaning in the ordinary, which is undoubtedly the treasure of novel art. The Qing people always talked about Cao Xueqin's poems and praised him for his "three-inch golden tongue, omnipotent", and wrote the world incisively and vividly, which was really well-deserved. And Zou? The words "pen and ink are deep and subtle, which are ignored at first reading, and will add emotion to more reading" mentioned in the three conversations about A Dream of Red Mansions should be very enlightening for us to read and appreciate this classic novel repeatedly and carefully.
In the eighth episode, there are two special diners whose names are also quite meaningful and humorous. For example, the character Zhan Guang first appeared in the eighth episode. He is Jia Zheng's servant Xianggong. He is good at drawing exquisite towers and participating in the planning and design of Grand View Garden. Usually I only play chess and chat with Jia Zheng. Seeing Baoyu's flattery, I was extremely ugly. Jia Zheng lost power and people resigned. Zhi Yanzhai said that the author (Cao Xueqin) criticized the diners by name in a teasing tone, and so did Zhan Guang's "Hood" (Jia Rongben).
Another example: the character Shan Renren also appeared for the first time in the eighth cycle. He is also a diner "xianggong" under Jia Zheng. In this name, it means "good at deceiving others" (Jia Rongben). In order to welcome Yuan Fei back to the province, he used to hire teachers, go shopping, buy girls and buy musical instruments with Jia Qiang.