Chapter 79 260 Cao Xueqin wrote "Dream of Red Mansions"

Emperor Qianlong used troops year after year, spending a lot of money on military expenses; he toured the south of the Yangtze River six times, which was very extravagant and wasteful.Coupled with the corruption and waste of officials below, the country gradually weakened. At this time, there was a novel circulating in the capital, called.At first, people still couldn't figure out who the author was, but after research, they found out that the author of the book was Cao Xueqin. Cao Xueqin was originally a child of a noble family.His great-grandfather Cao Xi (sound xi) was once favored by Emperor Kangxi and was sent to the south to weave in Jiangning.Jiangning is a wealthy place in the south, weaving is specially for making clothes for the royal family, and it is an errand to save money.After Cao Xi's death, Cao Xueqin's grandfather Cao Yin and father Cao  (sound fu) took over the job. The family worked as weaving officials for 60 to 70 years for three generations.

After Emperor Yongzheng ascended the throne, Cao's family was implicated because of internal disputes in the royal family. Emperor Yongzheng believed that the Cao family had opposed him, so he not only dismissed Cao's post, but also ordered their homes to be seized.At that time, Cao Xueqin was a ten-year-old child who was already sensible. Seeing such a catastrophe for the family suffered a great blow to her young heart. His father lost his job and couldn't stay in Jiangning, so he had to return to his hometown in Beijing. Life became poorer and poorer, and family disasters happened one after another.Later, his father Cao Cao also died.Cao Xueqin's life was even more difficult, so he had to move to the western suburbs of Beijing and study in a few simple houses.Sometimes, even food is not enough to eat, so I have to drink some thin porridge to satisfy my hunger.

Cao Xueqin lives in the suburbs, and the environment has changed. After meeting some poor people, and thinking of the luxurious life at home when he was a child, he will inevitably feel a lot of emotions.Later, he decided to write a novel reflecting the social life at that time based on his personal experience, and this is it. Cao Xueqin wrote the story of the Jia family, a large noble family, from prosperity to decline.In that aristocratic family, most of them are parasites who spend money and enjoy themselves, talk about eating, drinking and having fun, lending money and collecting rent.Some people are innocent on the surface, but dirty and mean on the inside.The protagonists of the novel, Jia Baoyu, son of the Jia family, and Lin Daiyu, his cousin, are a pair of young people who dislike noble habits and oppose feudal ethics.In that environment, they wanted to get rid of the shackles of the old ethics, but there was no way out.As a result, Lin Daiyu was discriminated against and died of illness; Jia Baoyu ran away from home; and that noble family, after enjoying all the glory and wealth, suddenly collapsed like a decaying mansion.

Cao Xueqin wrote about the pair of young men and women and some maidservants who were oppressed and humiliated in a very sympathetic style, and also exposed the corruption and crimes of the feudal ruling class with full of anger.In the book, there is a story of "official talisman", which specifically exposes how these bureaucrats and rich families colluded to oppress the people. The Jia family in the novel has a relative, the Xue family.Xue Pan, the son of the Xue family, beat someone to death because he competed with others for a maid.The victim's servant reported to Yingtian Mansion that Jia Yucun, the prefect, was about to send an official to Xue's house to arrest the murderer, but his servant hinted him not to do so.After leaving the hall, Jia Yucun left the servant behind and asked him why he prevented him from catching the murderer.The servant took out a piece of paper from the bag, on which was a copy of a popular ballad called "Guardian Talisman", "Jia is not fake, white jade is a horse for gold".

Efang Palace, three hundred miles away, cannot accommodate a history of Jinling. There is a shortage of white jade beds in the East China Sea, so the Dragon King came to invite the King of Jinling. There is a lot of "snow" in a good year, and pearls are like earth and gold is like iron. Jia Yucun couldn't understand.After the servant explained, I learned that there are four wealthy families in Nanjing: the Jia family is a relative of the emperor, the Shi family and the Wang family are big bureaucrats in Jinling (that is, Nanjing); "Xue" and "Xue" have the same pronunciation, referring to a local wealthy businessman The Xue family.

These four families became relatives and colluded with each other, and their influence was beyond description.If an official wants to protect his official position, he must not offend these four wealthy families.The servant reminded Jia Yucun that the murderer this time was none other than Mr. Xue's family. If he offended them, not only would he lose his official position, but his life might be lost. Jia Yucun was shocked when he heard the servant's words, and immediately gave up the idea of ​​arresting the murderer, and followed the servant's suggestion, saying that the person who was beaten to death died of a sudden illness.A murder case was closed in such a muddle-headed way.

Cao Xueqin spent ten years writing this novel in the western suburbs of Beijing. Hard work and illness made him very weak.When he finished writing eighty chapters, one of his beloved children fell ill and died.Cao Xueqin couldn't bear the blow, and finally put down his unfinished works and passed away. After Cao Xueqin's death, his novel manuscripts were copied by friends and gradually spread.After reading this novel, many people admire and are moved.But it is always a pity that such an outstanding work has not been completed.Later, another writer, Gao E (sound e), continued to write forty chapters, making it a novel with a complete structure.

After repeated copying and reprinting, the novel spread more and more widely.Until modern times, it is generally recognized as the most outstanding novel in ancient my country.People not only appreciate its superb artistic achievements, but also learn about the history and social conditions of my country's feudal society that is about to decline.Until now, many scholars from home and abroad have studied and verified this great work, and people call this study "Red Studies".