The story begins with a simple, exquisite wooden hairpin, which unravels the long-buried past of Ninth Master Du. For this reason, the book is titled "Tales of the Mansion," or alternatively, "The Blood Hairpin." As these titles suggest, it is a heavy and somber tale.
The wooden hairpin, the crucial artifact at the heart of all the turmoil, was a token of love between Ninth Master Du and his first love, Miss Qin. The two met fifty or sixty years ago in Bianjing. At the time, Ninth Master Du was just in his early twenties, a carpenter’s apprentice who had left his hometown to learn a trade and earn a living.
One day, a heavy downpour blocked Miss Qin, who was out and about, and it was then that Ninth Master Du fell in love at first sight with the young lady as she scrambled to hide from the rain. Ignoring the customer still waiting for his order, he gave the wooden umbrella he had been working on to Miss Qin. The result was predictable: because he failed to deliver the goods on time, the customer complained, and Ninth Master Du was severely beaten by his Master and left hungry for two days for losing the merchandise. Yet, he had no regrets.
Chapter 127