The Sexual Politics of the Jia Family
Okay, now it’s time to get to the juicy stuff.
You don’t have to be a genius to figure out why Aunt Xue didn’t want Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu going back home with a couple of younger maids:
薛姨媽忙道：「跟你們的媽媽都還沒來呢，且略等等兒。」寶玉道：「我們倒等著他們！有丫頭們跟著就是了。」薛姨媽不放心，吩咐兩個女人送了他兄妹們去。
“But the older maids who look after you haven’t arrived yet,” said Aunt Xue when she saw they were about to leave. “You should wait for them a moment.
“We can’t wait for them!” replied Baoyu. “The younger maids will do.”
But Aunt Xue felt uneasy, and ordered two older servants to accompany Baoyu and Daiyu.
The sexual implications here are obvious. After all, there wasn’t much the young maids could have done to prevent an obviously inebriated Jia Baoyu from doing whatever he wanted with Lin Daiyu.
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