The oldest member of the House of Rong-guo is Grandmother Jia. She is the mother of Jia Zheng and Jia She, and the grandmother of both Jia Bao-yu and Lin Dai-yu. To the left is a picture of Grandmother Jia welcoming Lin Dai-yu to the household in Chapter 3. As she is in this picture, you will usually find Grandmother Jia in the midst of a crowd of maids and female relatives. Her chief maid is Faithful. Grandmother Jia is a generation above the oldest member of the Ning-guo house, Jia Jing. Thus, members of the Jia family from both houses all defer to her. While Grandmother Jia is without a doubt the most important and powerful member of the Jia family, in the novel most of the narrative attention centers on the younger members of the Jia household--Bao-yu, his girl cousins, and their maids. They are listed with brief descriptions below.
| Jia Bao-yu |
Jia Bao-yu is the central character in the novel. He was born with a piece of jade the size of a fan pendant in his mouth and is thus connected to the mythical stone of the first chapter of the novel. Bao-yu is the son of Grandmother Jia's second son, Jia Zheng and Lady Wang. Jia Zheng and Lady Wang had three children together, Bao-yu is the youngest of the three by quite a bit. He is Grandmother Jia's favorite grandchild, and much doted on by most of his female relatives much to the distress of Jia Zheng who would like to see Bao-yu lead a more disciplined life. In Chapter Five Bao-yu has a prophetic dream in which he is given hints about his future and that of twelve girls closely associated to him. In the dream they are called "The Twelve Beauties of Jinling." Bao-yu has a whole host of maids; two of the most important are Aroma and Skybright. |
| Lin Dai-yu |
Lin Dai-yu is the daughter of Lin Ru-hai and Grandmother Jia's daughter, Jia Min. She is thus Bao-yu's cousin on his paternal side. Through both her surname (wood) and her propensity toward tears she is connected to the mythical "Crimson Pearl Flower" who appeared in Chapter One. Her maid is Nightingale. |
| Xue Bao-chai |
Xue Bao-chai is the daughter of Aunt Xue, who is the sister of Bao-yu's mother Lady Wang. Thus, Bao-chai is Bao-yu's maternal cousin, but she is a courtesy granddaughter only to Grandmother Jia. Unlike Dai-yu, who is tempermental and takes offense easily, Bao-chai is even tempered and well liked by all. Bao-chai has one brother; his name is Xue Pan, he is also known as the "Oaf King". His chamber wife (who occasionally lives with Bao-chai) is Caltrop. Bao-chai's maid is Oriole. |
| Jia Yuan-chun |
Jia Yuan-chun is the daughter of Jia Zheng and Lady Wang--that is, she is Bao-yu's older sister. At the beginning of the novel she is already living in the Imperial Palace. In Chapter Sixteen she is promoted to Imperial Concubine. Prospect Garden was built in preparation for her visit home in Chapter Eighteen. |
| Jia Ying-chun |
Ying-chun is the daughter of Jia She (Grandmother Jia's oldest son) and a concubine. She is the oldest of the three girl Jia cousins still at home (they are sometimes called the "Three Springs," the other two are Tan-chun and Xi-chun), but she doesn't tend to stand out. Her chief characteristic is her easy-going nature. |
| Jia Tan-chun |
Tan-chun is the daughter of Jia Zheng and a concubine (Aunt Zhao). Thus, she is Bao-yu's half-sister. Tan-chun also has a brother named Jia Huan. Tan-chun stands out as being the smartest and most capable of the "Three Springs." |
| Jia Xi-chun |
Xi-chun is the youngest of the "Three Springs." She is the daughter of Jia Jing (the eldest member of the Ning-guo house) and a concubine. Like her father, Xi-chun
is attracted to the idea of retirement from the world. She is the half-sister of Cousin Zhen. |
| Shi Xiang-yun |
Shi Xiang-yun is the grand-niece of Grandmother Jia. She is not, strictly speaking, a member of the Jia household, but she visits frequently. Xiang-yun has a lively, slightly tomboyish personality, and all the Jia cousins look forward to her visits. |
| Li Wan |
Li Wan is the widow of Jia Zheng and Lady Wang's eldest son, Jia Zhu. Thus, she is Bao-yu's sister-in-law. Li Wan has one son, Jia Lan. Li Wan is respected by the Jias because she is such a virtuous widow and a model mother. In the picture linked to this entry she is teaching her young son to write. |
| Wang Xi-feng |
Wang Xi-feng is the niece of Lady Wang and Aunt Xue, and the wife of Jia She and Lady Xing's son Jia Lian--thus, she is doubly related to Bao-yu by both blood and marriage. Because Wang Xi-feng is both clever and capable the older members of the family delegate a good deal of the day to day management of the Rong-guo household to her. Like Bao-yu, Xi-feng is a particular favorite of Grandmother Jia. Xi-feng's chief maid is Patience. |
| Qiao-jie |
Qiao-jie is the daughter of Wang Xi-feng and Jia Lian. She is just a baby at the beginning of the novel, and is the youngest member of the "Twelve Beauties of Jinling". |
| Qin Keqin |
Qin Keqin is the wife of Cousin Zhen and Youshi's son Jia Rong. Bao-yu has his prophetic dream in Chapter Five while napping in her bedroom. Her younger brother Qin Zhong is Bao-yu's good friend. |
| Adamantina |
Adamantina is the only member of the "Twelve Beauties of Jinling" who is not related to Jia Bao-yu by either blood or marriage. She is an orphan of a good family who has taken Buddhist vows as an "unshaved nun." Adamantina makes her first appearance in Chapter Seventeen when she is invited by the Jia family to come live in the "Green Bower Hermitage" in Prospect Garden. |
