Lai Da jia de
赖大家的
“The Steward's Wife”
Her Story
Wife of Lai Da, chief steward of Rongguo House, and daughter-in-law of Nannie Lai. The Lais are the most powerful servant family in the establishment, rich enough to keep a garden of their own; in Chapter 45 they give a feast in it to celebrate Lai Shangrong, her son, released from bond service and appointed to a magistracy. She herself moves among the senior women who wait on the ladies and keep the staff in order, and is given almost nothing to say.
In Xiang Li's Hands
The strangest sheet here. Black robe, red headband, a broad smile; she holds a thin string running up to an enormous red-and-orange double fish riding the air beside her like a kite. Behind her a ritual bronze vessel in pale blue outline. The inscription sits inside painted ink circles.
The Calligraphy
赖大娘 — “Goodwife Lai,” the short spoken form rather than the ledger’s 赖大家的, and it sits inside the painted circles instead of clear in the margin.
Connections
- Lai Da 赖大 — her husband, chief steward of Rongguo House.
- Nannie Lai 赖嬷嬷 — her mother-in-law, whose standing protects the whole family.
- Lai Shangrong 赖尚荣 — her son, freed from service and made a magistrate.
Others of the same kind · servant's wife / senior serving-woman Zhou Rui jia de 周瑞家的 · Lin Zhixiao jia de 林之孝家的 · Wang Shanbao jia de 王善保家的 · Wu Xindeng xifu 吴新登媳妇 · Wang'er xifu 旺儿媳妇 · Zhang Cai jia de 张材家的 · Zheng Hua jia de 郑华家的 · Wu Xing jia de 吴兴家的 · Laixi jia de 来喜家的 · Qin Xian jia de 秦显家的 · Bao Er jia de 鲍二家的 · Liu jia de 柳家的 · Shan Daniang 单大娘 · Jin Wenxiang xifu 金文翔媳妇 and 10 more
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
