Dream of the Red Chamber

Dream of the Red Chamber

Commentary

Jia Lian and Jia Baoyu

A contrast in styles

Daniel Evensen's avatar
Daniel Evensen
Jul 02, 2026
∙ Paid

Jia Lian and Jia Baoyu

You’d probably think that there isn’t much interesting going on in segments like the one in yesterday’s translation post.

There really wasn’t too much to it. Jia Zheng asked Jia Zhen how many things are ready. Jia Zhen gave one of those answers that made it clear that he didn’t know any actual details. Jia Zheng asked Jia Lian to come over and give more information. Jia Lian came over, read from a piece of paper, and that was that.

So why do we have this strange interlude? Why stop all of Jia Baoyu’s poetry to tell us this?

User's avatar

Continue reading this post for free, courtesy of Daniel Evensen.

Or purchase a paid subscription.
© 2026 Daniel Evensen · Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start your SubstackGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture