Bringing Joy to the Hall, Baoyu Praises an Orphan; Upholding Family Discipline, Jia Zhen Whips a Violent Servant

Xichun was studying a weiqi manual when she suddenly heard someone in the courtyard call for Caiping. The voice was Yuanyang’s. Caiping went out and led Yuanyang inside. Behind Yuanyang came a little maid carrying a small yellow silk bundle. Xichun asked with a smile, “What is it?” Yuanyang said, “The Old Ancestor will be eighty-one next year. That is a ‘hidden nine,’ so a nine-day, nine-night ceremony of prayer and blessing is to be held. They plan to have three thousand six hundred and fifty-one copies of the Diamond Sutra made. Some have already been given out to people outside to copy. There is a popular saying that the Diamond Sutra is like the outer shell of a Daoist talisman, while the Heart Sutra is the core within. So when copying the Diamond Sutra, one must always include the Heart Sutra inside; only then is the merit complete. The Old Ancestor thinks the Heart Sutra is even more important, and since Bodhisattva Guanyin is a female bodhisattva, she wants the ladies and young ladies of the family to copy three hundred and sixty-five copies with their own......