Kuiguan
葵官
“Only a Hero Shows His True Colours”
Her Story
One of the twelve girl actors of Pear Tree Court, and hers was the painted-face line — 大花面, the loud roles played behind a mask of colour. At the company’s dissolution in Chapter 58 she goes to Shi Xiangyun. In Chapter 63 Xiangyun has her got up as a boy and renames her 韦大英, from the line 惟大英雄能本色 — only a true hero shows his true colours. That renaming is most of what the novel keeps her for.
In Xiang Li's Hands
She turns back over her shoulder, hair hanging straight past her waist, a red ribbon flying loose behind. A gold robe covered in small cloud scrolls under a mauve-brown coat, coral cloth over one arm, grey foliage all round. Nothing of the painted face — the prettiest robe in the group.
The Calligraphy
葵官, the stage name only, and not the 韦大英 that Xiangyun fastened on her.
Connections
- Shi Xiangyun 史湘云 — the mistress she is given to, who dresses her as a boy and renames her.
- Fangguan 芳官 — of the same company, the lead to her painted face.
- Jia Qiang 贾蔷 — sent to Suzhou to buy the twelve girls and run the troupe.
Others of the same kind · actress – Pear Tree Court troupe (梨香院十二官) Fangguan 芳官 · Ruiguan 蕊官 · Ouguan 藕官 · Douguan 豆官 · Aiguan 艾官 · Qieguan 茄官 · Lingguan 龄官 · Baoguan 宝官 · Yuguan 玉官 · Diguan 菂官
Dream of the Red Chamber
Xiang Li painted all 413 characters of the novel between 1975 and 1985, the first person to complete the entire cast. See the whole collection · Chinese Empresses
