The Dream of the Red Chamber

Daiyu, frail and grieving, is brought to the Jia family following her mother's passing. She is received into the household and forms the foundation of a close bond with Baoyu. The two spend their early years reading literature and reciting poetry together, forging a deep connection.

Baoyu and Daiyu's shared love of poetry forms the basis of their strong friendship. They spend countless days reading, discussing classics, and reciting verses. This companionship grows into an intimate understanding that rivals ordinary sibling-like affection.

Xue Baochai joins the Jia household and captivates Baoyu with her knowledge of weiqi, drawing his interest away from Daiyu. Daiyu's jealousy surfaces as she sees Baochai gaining Baoyu's attention. The shift marks the beginning of underlying tension and melancholia for Daiyu.

Baoyu's strained relationship with his father, Jia Zheng, grows as he resists the strict exam-focused path. He aids the escape of the prince's favorite actor, drawing his father's anger. Baoyu is beaten by Jia Zheng but is rescued by loyal servants and Grandmother Jia.

Baochai visits and admonishes Baoyu for his friendship with an actor, highlighting the social expectations the family tries to impose. In contrast, Daiyu's brief, tearful visit afterward underscores her ongoing fragility and deepening vulnerability.

Daiyu witnesses Baochai departing Baoyu's residence, triggering a renewed rift and her decision to withdraw emotionally. Baoyu searches for reassurance and reiterates his love, but Daiyu remains unconvinced and emotionally withdrawn.

Zijuan tricks Baoyu into believing Daiyu is moving out, provoking a manic breakdown in him. Grandmother Jia intervenes, ordering that Daiyu stay, and later allies with Lady Wang and Xifeng to influence Baoyu's future. The event precipitates further manipulation within the household.

Grandmother Jia, Lady Wang, and Xifeng plot to marry Baoyu to Baochai to stabilize the family line and supposedly cure his madness. They scheme to make Baoyu believe he is entering a marriage arrangement that involves Daiyu, deepening the deception surrounding his affections.

A maid leaks the plan for Baoyu's marriage to Baochai to Daiyu, compounding her anxiety and accelerating her physical and mental decline. The revelation crystallizes the sense that Daiyu's place in Baoyu's life is slipping away.

Daiyu remembers their shared love and succumbs to her illness as she hears the wedding banquet echoing across the mansion. Her death marks a defining turn in the family's tragedy and the collapse of Baoyu and Daiyu's hopes.

During the ceremony, Baoyu lifts the bride's veil only to find Baochai waiting for him. He is devastated by the realization that Daiyu has died and pleads with the elders to allow him to be with her, though the wedding moves forward.

News of Daiyu's death reaches the main house, and a funeral is held with only Zijuan and Baoyu present. Baoyu mourns deeply, his lamentations interwoven with remorse and lingering love for Daiyu.

At dawn, palace officials arrive with the emperor's decree, removing Jia Zheng from his government post and confiscating the Jia family's assets for failure to maintain the emperor's trust. The family’s power and wealth unravel in an instant.

With the Jia family's downfall complete, Baoyu departs the Jia mansion and discards worldly ties, choosing a monastic life as a Buddhist monk. His exile marks the final severing of the once-great clan from its former glory.