I am re-reading Cao Xueqin's Story of the Stone also known as The Dream of the Red Chamber. It tells the story of a boy growing up among hundreds of girls - cousins, servants, slaves - in a powerful wealthy house in China, under the Manchu regime (about 1700). The Red Chamber means the palatial rooms where the members of the family lived, and it is dream, because it seems so impossible from the perspective of the impoverished old man who is writing his memories.
Jia zuo zhen shi zhen yi jia
Wu wei you chu yiu buan wu.
Truth becomes fiction when fiction is true
Reality is an illusion when dreams are real.
Chinese books have to read several times to be understood. The first time I read the book a few years ago, I threw it away as it seemed to me about girlish intrigues in a rich house, totally frivolous and meaningless. Then I re-read the book and understood the background, of a big wealthy house of mandarin suddenly falling and losing all their position and money. Now I am starting to understand the underlying drama - the family is a Manchu Bondholder related to the Emperor, and the new Emperor is replacing one by one these old functionaires by people of his confidence.
The background of the story is the growing tension and fear in the household, while the small intrigues occupy the minds of the young people. I am starting to re-read the story searching for sexual clues - the Stone was an adolescent prince among hundreds of beautiful and willing young girls, but I can find little on this aspect. It should have been a wild orgy, but these are Chinese and cannot find a word on the subject.
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