On the issue of the capital city in "Dream of Red Mansions"

I originally sent a reply to a reader to comment on this chapter, but for some reason I couldn't post it.

I'll just post a single chapter.

In the first chapter of the original Dream of Red Mansions, he said:

Jia Yucun sighed: "If you are a late student and talk arrogantly after drinking, if you are talking about fashion studies, you might as well be a late student to make a name for yourself. But now you have no money to pay for your travel expenses. Shenjing is a long way away and you can't get there just by selling calligraphy and writing articles."

The only city that can be called a sacred city is Chang'an, the ancient capital of the Thirteen Dynasties.

There are also many experts in redology from the textual research school who believe that this is a false reference.

That is to say, Shenjing only means the capital of the country.

But looking at the later text, as soon as Grandma Liu entered the Rongguo Mansion, Grandma Liu and her son-in-law Gou'er said: "... Although we live away from the city now, we are still under the emperor's feet. In Chang'an City, there is money everywhere. It's a pity that no one will take it. Even dancing at home is useless."

Looking back at the text later, Wang Xifeng once took control of the Iron Kan Temple, "... Lai Wang'er already knew it in his heart. He hurried into the city to find the husband who wrote the article. Under the guise of Jia Lian's instructions, he revised a letter and went to Chang'an County overnight, but it didn't take more than a hundred years. After two days of travel, they had already compromised. The Jiedushi's name was Yun Guang, and he had seen Jia's family for a long time. How could there be any reason not to allow such a small thing? .”

If the capital of the country is Beijing, and the journey from Beijing to Xi'an is just over a thousand kilometers, my dear, Lai Wang'er will be exhausted.

Later, the words "Da Ming Palace" and other words point to Chang'an.

Therefore, the capital city in Dream of Red Mansions should undoubtedly be Chang'an.

So what is going on in Beijing?

The textual research school of Red Mansions believes that the Dream of Red Mansions is about Xue Qin’s family affairs, and the story of Red Mansions alludes to the affairs of Kang and Yong dynasties.

But I have always had reservations, so let’s not talk about it for now.

As for the Beijing flavor in the article, you may have forgotten that Xue Qin was from the Qing Dynasty and lived in Beijing in his later years, which is naturally revealed in his choice of words and sentences.

I am writing a book about Chang'an, the capital of the country, but I have never been to Chang'an once.

Of course, the opening chapter of Red Mansions states that dynasties and states cannot be examined. To put it bluntly, it is a world in itself, so don’t take it too seriously.

But judging from the original text, the fictional capital should be Chang'an.

In fact, none of the above is very important. I put the capital in Chang'an just to facilitate the fabrication of troubled times. Chen Han had strong mountains and rivers and would not repeat the mistakes of the Ming Dynasty and the fall of the Ming Dynasty.

Of course, this book is also an imaginary world view.