Why Jia She Refused Lin Daiyu

A dive into indirect communication

Apologies if you received a post in your email last night. I inadvertently sent a post intended for about 2 weeks from now to send

Why Jia She Refused Lin Daiyu

As we saw in yesterday’s translation post, Jia She refused to see his niece, Lin Daiyu, as she arrived at the Rong Mansion. He sent a servant to Lin Daiyu, who reported his message:

連日身上不好，見了姑娘，彼此傷心，暫且不忍相見。勸姑娘不必傷懷想家，跟著老太太和舅母是和家裡一樣的。姐妹們雖拙，大家一處作伴，也可以解些煩悶。或有委屈之處，只管說，別外道了才是。

Since I’ve been unwell these days, a meeting with the young lady would only grieve us both; I can’t meet her for now. Tell her that she shouldn’t think too much of home. Staying with Grandmother Jia and her aunts is just like being among family. Though her cousins might be a bit foolish, they’ll at least keep her company. If she has any trouble, she should let me know and not treat me like a stranger.

But, of course, this is just an excuse. It’s not likely true that Jia She was actually sick.

How do we know this was an excuse? Simple: we can see it in his statement.