Volume Ii Part 39 (1/2)
Clapping his hands; ”My third cousin,” he laughed, ”is the one eminently polished; I'll go at once to-day and talk matters over with her.”
As he spoke, he started immediately, followed by Ts'ui Mo. As soon as they reached the Hsin Fang pavilion, they espied the matron, on duty that day at the back door of the garden, advancing towards them with a note in her hand. The moment she perceived Pao-yu she forthwith came up to meet him. ”Mr. Yun,” she said, ”presents his compliments to you. He is waiting for you at the back gate. This is a note he bade me bring you.”
Upon opening the note, Pao-yu found it to read as follows: ”An unfilial son, Yun, reverently inquires about his worthy father's boundless happiness and precious health. Remembering the honour conferred upon me by your recognising me, in your heavenly bounty, as your son, I tried both day as well as night to do something in evidence of my pious obedience, but no opportunity could I find to perform anything filial.
When I had, some time back, to purchase flowers and plants, I succeeded, thanks to your vast influence, venerable senior, in finally making friends with several gardeners and in seeing a good number of gardens.
As the other day I unexpectedly came across a white begonia, of a rare species, I exhausted every possible means to get some and managed to obtain just two pots. If you, worthy senior, regard your son as your own very son, do keep them to feast your eyes upon! But with this hot weather to-day, the young ladies in the garden will, I fear, not be at their ease. I do not consequently presume to come and see you in person, so I present you this letter, written with due respect, while knocking my head before your table. Your son, Yun, on his knees, lays this epistle at your feet. A joke!”
After reading this note, Pao-yu laughed. ”Has he come alone?” he asked.
”Or has he any one else with him?”
”He's got two flower pots as well,” rejoined the matron.
”You go and tell him,” Pao-yu urged, ”that I've informed myself of the contents of his note, and that there are few who think of me as he does!
If you also take the flowers and, put them in my room, it will be all right.”
So saying, he came with Ts'ui Mo into the Ch'iu Shuang study, where he discovered Pao-ch'ai, Tai-yu, Ying Ch'un and Hsi Ch'un already a.s.sembled. When they saw him drop in upon them, they all burst out laughing. ”Here comes still another!” they exclaimed.
”I'm not a boor,” smiled T'an Ch'un, ”so when the idea casually crossed my mind, I wrote a few notes to try and see who would come. But who'd have thought that, as soon as I asked you, you would all come.”
”It's unfortunately late,” Pao-yu smilingly observed. ”We should have started this society long ago.”
”You can't call this late!” Tai-yu interposed, ”so why give way to regret! The only thing is, you must form your society, without including me in the number; for I daren't be one of you.”
”If you daren't,” Ying Ch'un smiled, ”who can presume to do so?”
”This is,” suggested Pao-yu, ”a legitimate and great purpose; and we should all exert our energies. You shouldn't be modest, and I yielding; but every one of us, who thinks of anything, should freely express it for general discussion. So senior cousin Pao-ch'ai do make some suggestion; and you junior cousin Lin Tai-yu say something.”
”What are you in this hurry for?” Pao-ch'ai exclaimed. ”We are not all here yet.”
This remark was barely concluded, when Li Wan also arrived. As soon as she crossed the threshold, ”It's an excellent proposal,” she laughingly cried, ”this of starting a poetical society. I recommend myself as controller. Some time ago in spring, I thought of this, 'but,' I mused, 'I am unable to compose verses, so what's the use of making a mess of things?' This is why I dispelled the idea from my mind, and made no mention about it. But since it's your good pleasure, cousin Tertia, to start it, I'll help you to set it on foot.”
”As you've made up your minds,” Tai-yu put in, ”to initiate a poetical society, every one of us will be poets, so we should, as a first step, do away with those various appellations of cousin and uncle and aunt, and thus avoid everything that bears a semblance of vulgarity.”
”First rate,” exclaimed Li Wan, ”and why should we not fix upon some new designations by which to address ourselves? This will be a far more refined way! As for my own, I've selected that of the 'Old farmer of Tao Hsiang;' so let none of you encroach on it.”
”I'll then call myself the 'resident-scholar of the Ch'iu Shuang,' and have done,” T'an Ch'un observed with a smile.
”'Resident-scholar or master' is, in fact, not to the point. It's clumsy, besides,” Pao-yu interposed. ”The place here is full of dryandra and banana trees, and if one could possibly hit upon some name bearing upon the dryandra and banana, it would be preferable.”
”I've got one,” shouted T'an Ch'un smilingly. ”I'll style myself 'the guest under the banana trees.'”
”How uncommon!” they unanimously cried. ”It's a nice one!”
”You had better,” laughed Tai-yu, ”be quick and drag her away and stew some slices of her flesh, for people to eat with their wine.”
No one grasped her meaning, ”Ch'uang-tzu,” Tai-yu proceeded to explain, smiling, ”says: 'The banana leaves shelter the deer,' and as she styles herself the guest under the banana tree, is she not a deer? So be quick and make pieces of dried venison of her.”
At these words, the whole company laughed.