Learning:
The Journey of a Lifetime
A Cloud Chamber of the Mind

2006 Literature Notebook

Crimson. [24, 26] One of Bao-yu's maids.

Jia Yun. [24, 26] A poor relation of the Rong-guo Jias employed by Wang Xi-feng.

Trinket. [26] One of Bao-yu's maids.

Bao-yu. [3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26] The Stone.

Lin Dai-yu. [2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26] Young daughter of Lin Ru-hai. She received tutoring from Jai Yu-cun but now she is being brought up by the Jias of Rong-guo mansion.

Crimson and Jia Yun exchange meaningful glances. Trinket tells Jia Yun that Crimson has lost her handkerchief and Jia Run says he found one but didn'y know who it belonged to. He gives it to Trinket to give to Crimson.

Bao-yu and Dai-yu have another chat that ends in another quarrel. She comes back later, but is locked out through a misunderstanding by the maids. She is disconsolate and sits down and begins to cry.

The first volume ends with a simple statement that the story continues with volume 2.

The number of characters is outside my experience with novels (with the possible exception of Underworld by Don DeLillo).

Although Bao-yu and Dai-yu always seem to be quarrelling, they are the two main protangonists. I wonder what will happen to their relationship in volume?

Xi-feng received a warning that after 3 years of prosperity, her situation would suddenly become very difficult. That is still to come.