The location was in Nanjing at that time.
A Dream of Red Mansions was born at the end of the feudal society in China in the 18th century. At that time, the Qing government closed its doors to the outside world, and the whole country was intoxicated with the dream of a prosperous Kangxi and Qianlong period and a heavenly kingdom. On the surface, this period seems peaceful, but various social contradictions in the bones are intensifying and the whole dynasty has reached a turning point of prosperity and decline.
During the Kangxi and Yongzheng Dynasties, Cao Jiazu Sun San worked as a weaver in Jiangning for four generations for 58 years. When the Cao family was in its heyday, it had done four wide trips to pick up drivers. Cao Xueqin grew up in Nanjing, and experienced a rich and prosperous aristocratic life in his youth. However, the family gradually declined. In the sixth year of Yongzheng (1728), Cao Xueqin's family moved back to Beijing.
after returning to Beijing, he once worked as a handyman in charge of literature and ink in a royal school, Right-wing Zongxue. His situation was poor and his life was difficult. In his later years, he moved to the western suburbs of Beijing, and his life was even poorer. He was "full of Artemisia scoparia" and "the whole family often ate porridge and wine on credit". A Dream of Red Mansions was written by Cao Xueqin in poverty after he went bankrupt. The creation time is from the early years of Qianlong to about thirty years of Qianlong.
Extended information
The main character of A Dream of Red Mansions
Jia Baoyu, the son of Rong Guofu who was born with a jade, and the second son of Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang, is regarded as the apple of his eye by the whole government, and has high hopes for him. However, he has embarked on the road of rebellion, hated stereotyped writing, criticized Cheng Zhu's Neo-Confucianism, and named those who studied as officials "the traitor Lu Kun".
He doesn't like serious books, but prefers miscellaneous books such as Peony Pavilion and The West Chamber. He hangs out with the girls at home all day, loves their beauty and purity, and mourns their tragic fate.
Lin Daiyu is the crown of twelve women in Jinling (tied with Baochai). Lin Ruhai and Jia Min's daughter, Baoyu's aunt and cousin, lived in Rongguo Mansion. She is aloof, sentimental and quick-witted. She and Baoyu really love each other, which is Baoyu's alliance against feudal ethics and is a firm pursuer of free love.
87th edition of Xue Baochai Xue Baochai, the crown of twelve women in Jinling (tied with Daiyu), comes from the Xue family of four big families, the daughter of Aunt Xue, and Baoyu's aunt and cousin. She is generous and elegant, and her manners are graceful. She hated the darkness of officialdom, but she still advised Baoyu to study and be an official. There is a golden lock, and the psychic Baoyu with Jia Baoyu is called a golden marriage by outsiders.
Jia Yuanchun, the third of the twelve women in Jinling, is the eldest daughter of Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang, and the eldest lady of Jia Fu. Because of virtue and filial piety, he chose to enter the palace as a female history. Shortly after Qin Keqing's funeral, Yuan Chun was promoted to the imperial concubine. Jia Fu built the Grand View Garden to welcome her mother. She brought "fire cooking oil, flowers blooming with brocade" to the family, but she was claustrophobic and unable to enjoy her family.
Jia Tanchun, the fourth of the twelve women in Jinling, was born to Jia Zheng and Aunt Zhao, and was Miss Jia Fu. She is smart and strong-willed, and has the nickname "Rose". When checking the Grand View Garden, she slapped Wang Shanbao's family in public. She was deeply touched by the crisis of Jiafu, and used the reform of promoting advantages and eliminating disadvantages to save it. Although the reform was successful, it didn't help anything.
reference sources? Baidu Encyclopedia-A Dream of Red Mansions (a novel about human feelings in Qing Dynasty)