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Last time on Grafting Life: Lin Dai Yu returns to her father’s home. Father and daughter cry their hearts out.
Chapter 11 – Red Chamber (11)
“What are you crying about?!” Lin Yu Tong walked in with Lin Yu Yang from outside. Both siblings were not pleased but they knew what was important. If they really did not show up today, they were making a display. It was not worth it taking on such a crime just because of this trifling matter.
But seeing this delicate young girl with two swollen eyes, these eyes did not seem to be so beautiful.
She usually spoke directly. She did not like people who easily cried, even if it was Sister Lin who had become a goddess because of her tears.
So she immediately asked, “What are you crying about?!”
Lin Dai Yu heard the voice, clear and authoritative, and could not help but put away her tears. The incoming woman looked just a few years older than her, but was a head taller, and had an upright figure. In terms of looks, she could count as very beautiful.
Before she could speak, she heard her father say, “Yu Tong, come quickly. This is your younger sister Dai Yu.” He looked very eager.
Lin Dai Yu walked over and curtsied. “Greetings to Eldest Sister.”
Lin Yu Tong returned the greeting and helped her up. She turned to say to Lin Ru Hai, “Even if you know Younger Sister was slighted in the Jia Family, you can’t cry like this. Second Master Lian is still in the residence. What will he think if he knows?”
Lin Ru Hai frowned. “The Jia Family slighted Yu’er!”
Lin Dai Yu’s tears came down again. “No-no……” The old mistress loved her and Bao Yu kept her company. If anything happened and she would have a bit of a temper, they would come to comfort her. She had not been slighted. However, it was her fault that she could not stop her tears from coming down and caused Eldest Sister to misunderstand upon their first meeting.
Lin Yu Tong helped Lin Ru Hai sit down. “Father, avoid strong emotions. We can slowly talk about matters.”
Lin Ru Hai’s gaze lingered on Lin Dai Yu. Seeing her keep on wiping away her tears, he believed more in his eldest daughter’s words. This child had been slighted in the Jia Family. Seeing her cry and refuse, he felt even more sad. “You have returned home, there is only Father, and your brother and sister here. You can speak of your grievances.”
Lin Dai Yu hurriedly shook her head. “The elders are all loving. I have the company of the sisters and even Bao Yu is very good.”
Lin Ru Hai frowned. “How do you know that Bao Yu is very good?” A youth of thirteen or fourteen, his daughter was in the inner courtyard, how would she know?
Lin Yu Tong wanted to praise her sister. She started off with blackening Jia Bao Yu.
Lin Dai Yu stilled. Very good was very good. How could she answer her dad’s question?
Lin Yu Tong glanced at Lin Yu Yang and saw her brother turn his head. He probably was trying not to laugh.
Lin Ru Hai saw his youngest daughter silent and turned to his oldest daughter. When a girl grew up, a father could not interfere too much and could not ask some questions.
Lin Yu Tong sighed and said, “Sister, you do not have to keep it a secret. This time, the family servants investigated everything about you in the Jia Family. You were slighted!”
Lin Dai Yu’s eyes went wide. Lin Yu Tong did not give her a chance to speak.
“You went to the Jia Family, and when you got off the ship, there were only some lower rank grannies of the Jia Family there to receive you, correct?” Lin Yu Tong said with pity on her face. “A noble miss of our Lin Family is not worthy of troubling the masters of the Jia Family, and not even their higher ranked servants.”
“I heard that when Sister went, you went in the corner door of the Jia Family. You are a blood granddaughter of the Jia Family, how could you go through the same entrance as servants? I originally thought that the Jia Family had no etiquette, and the servants may have neglected this, but I also heard that when the Imperial Merchant Xue Family entered the capital, the main gates were opened for them. What status does the Xue Family have, what status does our Lin Family have? What is the relationship between the Xue and Jia families? This is not just a question of closeness, but also a reversal of status, how can you not be aggrieved?”
“I heard when Sister entered the Jia Family, they were wearing red or green. It was still the mourning period for Mistress back then. Our mistress was a daughter of the Jia Family, the aunt of the juniors, it was the mourning period, we do not ask for much, but they should at least dress more plainly. It is fine if they do not care for the Lin Family, but they should care about your feelings during the mourning period. You must have been very hurt.”
“I heard that after Sister arrived, you slept in the screened sectioned room1. What rationale is this? Does the Jia Family not even have an empty yard? If they sincerely wanted you to stay, why didn’t they prepare a yard for you? Father is honest, and thought that their constant letters asking to raise you was sincere, but they were just pretending. Sister must have been very embarrassed then.”
“I heard that Bao Yu lived with you, sleeping outside the screened sectioned room, one inside, one outside. I don’t know the etiquette of the Jia Family, but this screened sectioned room, a place to change clothing, is very popular in the Jia Family. A male over the age of seven lives with a miss in the same rooms. That doesn’t matter? My sister is a person of noble status, is she the Jia Family’s child bride? They ruined you so, Sister, you must have been helpless back then!”
“I heard the servants of the Jia Family say that Sister’s character and appearance are not like a maternal granddaughter of the Jia Old Mistress, but like a paternal granddaughter. Sister must have been very angry back then. Is our grandmother not comparable to the old mistress of the Jia Family? Is the Lin Family inferior to the Jia Family? Our Lin Family is from the ranks of marquises, our father placed third in the imperial examinations, and is valued by the emperor. But you were dismissed when you arrived at the Jia Family. Sister, you must have felt injustice for the Lin Family, but you were young back then and unable to argue. Sister, you do not have to blame yourself, Elder Sister knows.”
“I heard when the Second Mistress met Sister for the first time, she asked about the monthly stipend and sent people to make clothing for you. Sister, you did not have much money on hand back then, and must have been very embarrassed. This is Father’s fault, he did not think that us misses should be given some silver when we visit someone else’s home. Father only thought, Mother gave the income from the Lin Family each year to the Jia Family, so they should treat you well. He did not think that the tea cools so quickly after the person leaves.2 Tomorrow, Sister will send you the gift lists for the Jia Family. Take a look, and feel better. Know that in these years, it was the Lin Family who supported the Jia Family, and it is not like what they say, that everything you used was from the Jia Family.”
“I heard that this Jia Bao Yu is determined to give Sister a literary name, I see that he does not value Sister. There is the saying “waiting for a name in the chamber.” It is always the father or the husband who gives a miss their name, how can he treat this so frivolously? Sister, how come you did not refute the name “Pin’er” immediately, and let the name meaning Frowny be known? I heard that the miss from the Xue Family calls Sister this all the time. What status does she have, what status does Sister have? There is no sense of decorum. Without Father there, no one was there to support Sister, you were degraded by a daughter of an imperial merchant! Sister, you truly had a hard time.”
“I heard the servants of the residence say that you are petty, and not as dignified and kind as Miss Bao. If those servants did not have implicit permission from their masters, they likely would not dare to gossip so openly. Your uncle is your blood uncle, but your aunt is not! This Second Mistress likely likes her own niece better. But no matter how much she likes the other, she cannot let a daughter of an imperial merchant use Sister as a stepping stone to elevate the other. The two masters of the Jia Family did not even meet Sister, much less give any care. No wonder the mistress in charge of the household dares to neglect you so. Your own uncle neglects you, can you hope that your aunt will care for you? Sister, you must have been very hurt.”
“I heard that it is known throughout the Jia Family that Sister and Jia Bao Yu live together. This is not something good. It does not care for Sister’s reputation. I know that this is not something that Sister did! These matters are just gossip from the servants. Sister must have been very hurt then and unable to speak up. I don’t believe such things. That Jia Bao Yu is a person who always talks about nonsense such as ‘corrupt officials’.3 Based on his words, isn’t Father a corrupt official! He insults Father in front of Sister. Sister can no longer be on good terms with such a person. This sister knows that you are innocent.”
“I heard that Jia Bao Yu says that married women are ‘fish eyes.’ I don’t know what to say! Won’t someone manage the Jia Family! Based on this, what is the old mistress of the Jia Family, what is the mistress? Also, how can girls not marry? All of them will become “fish eyes”4 one day. However, I really pity the future Mistress Bao. Even before she marries, she is fated to be neglected.”
“Sister’s days have been really hard. I really regret coming for you late. Father also likely regrets having sent you there.”
Lin Yu Tong finished speaking and turned to look at Lin Ru Hai. She saw that Lin Ru Hai was breathing heavily, his chest rising up and down, clearly very angry.
Lin Yu Yang stroked Lin Ru Hai’s back as he comforted in a low voice.
Lin Dai Yu forgot to cry and listened dazedly, feeling that her world had been broken!
Had she been slighted? Before her eldest sister exposed this, she did not have such a thought, so of course she did not feel slighted.
But when she found another side to her seemingly perfect world, did she feel slighted? Yes! She had been slighted!
Eldest Sister’s words were like blades on her heart. This did not just reflect the unbearable nature of the Jia Family but also Jia Bao Yu and even herself.
The blood drained from her face and she turned as pale as paper.
Lin Yu Tong supported her and felt a bit of regret. This lesson may have been a bit harsh!
Translator Ramblings: So there’s this whole long rant in the middle of the chapter regarding how the Jia Family treated Lin Dai Yu. I always feel like there is a “Victorian” sense of propriety about certain times in historical China, ie cannot meet men alone, emphasis on purity and virginity, and separation of the sexes among the upper class. Marriage also can occur quite early, notably with the princes who sometimes married during their early teens, and so while we think both Lin Dai Yu and Jia Bao Yu are quite young, Lin Dai Yu could be of an age to be engaged, depending on how long the negotiation period takes.
The thing with the corner door appears a bit debatable, honestly. The proper gates of an establishment aren’t usually open, that’s only for important occasions, ie important visitors, marriages, funerals, imperial decrees. Most people would enter/leave through the corner doors, and the back door was for servants/lower ranks. So this one isn’t really the Jia Family devaluing Lin Dai Yu.
The novel itself doesn’t say the Xue Family entered through the main gates (I think it was a TV adaptation thing). One can argue that there was a bigger welcome for the Xue Family because it was a whole family, not just one person, and Lin Dai Yu was a junior, a grandchild visiting her maternal home, while the Xue are guests, and needed a more formal welcome. Remember, the Jia and Xue are “in-laws” because Madam Wang’s sister married into the Xue Family.
Editor’s ramblings: Sorry I’m late! I’ll try to go back and edit the first ten chapters while keeping up with new releases. Life’s been busy for me lately, but should calm down in a few weeks.
- Grafting Life Chapter 10 – Red Chamber (10)
- Grafting Life Chapter 12 – Red Chamber (12)
- Grafting Life Chapter 13 – Red Chamber (13)
- https://n.sinaimg.cn/sinacn10120/118/w640h278/20191011/bb29-ifvwfti6966159.jpg. Lin Dai Yu sleeps in the rightmost room (see the wood screen), Bao Yu to the left of the screen, while Mother Jia would have slept in the leftmost room. ↩
- From the opera Shajiabang to describe the indifference of people. When people in power leave, and are worthless to others, the others will dismiss them. ↩
- Jia Bao Yu held a disdainful attitude towards officials in the novel, despite his own father being an official. ↩
- Jia Bao Yu said that unmarried girls were pearls, while married women were fish eyes. ↩
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