Cao Xueqin’s life: Kangxi Chronology In the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi (1715 AD), one says that in the second year of Yongzheng (1724), Cao Xueqin was born in Jinling (Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province), and his ancestral home is Liaoyang. Yu Rui's "Zaochuang Xianbi" recorded: "He (Xueqin) is fat, has a broad head and a black color. He is good at talking, elegant games, and is inspired by the situation. Hearing his strange talks makes people tireless all day long. ,——The book is so exquisite. "On the eighth day of February in the forty-eighth year of Kangxi's reign (Ji Chou in 1709), Cao Yin married a daughter, who was also a princess. In March of the fiftieth year of Kangxi (Xinmao, 1711), (Cao Yin's second son) Cao Zhen died. Cao_ was about fifteen years old, "Cheng Zhuli must explore". Name: Meng Ruan, also known as Xueqin, also known as Qinxi and Qinpu. Era: Qing Dynasty. Birthplace: Jiangning (now Nanjing). Time of birth: approximately May 28, 1715 (April 26, the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi). Time of death: approximately February 12, 1763 (New Year's Eve of Renwu, Qianlong reign). Nickname: Cao Xueqin. Main works: "Ode to Burial Flowers", "Moon on the Xijiang River", "The Twelve Beauties of Jinling - Qingwen", "Twelve Songs of a Dream of Red Mansions - Xu Hua Wu", "Twelve Songs of a Dream of Red Mansions - Happy Enemies", etc.
We will introduce you to the details about Cao Xueqin from the following aspects:
1. Cao Xueqin’s poems
"Ode to the White Begonia", " "Good Song", "Ode to Burial Flowers", "Ying Chrysanthemums", "Couplets on the Upper Room of Ning Mansion", "Moon over the Xijiang River", "The Complete Book of the Twelve Hairpins in Jinling - Chai and Dai", "Apricot Curtain in View", " "Couplet of Taixu Illusion", "Annotation of the Good Song", "A Dream of Red Mansions - Remaining in the Qing Dynasty", "Hairpin Chrysanthemum", "Autumn Window Stormy Evening", "The Twelve Hairpins of Jinling and a Sub-volume - Qingwen", "A Dream of Red Mansions" Twelve Songs - Introduction", "Praise to Lin Daiyu", "Ask the Chrysanthemum", "Ode to the Fantasy Fairy", "__Ci", "Twelve Songs from a Dream of Red Mansions - Birds Go to the Forest".
2. Novel Creation
The book "A Dream of Red Mansions" reflects the social life in the Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong eras of the Qing Dynasty. It is the so-called Qianlong era in history. In fact, Behind the prosperity of the dynasty, there are various contradictions and hidden crises.
In the last years of Kangxi, the princes formed cliques and fought for power and position. Finally, the fourth prince Yinzhen won the throne and became Emperor Yongzheng. After Yongzheng ascended the throne, he immediately launched a ferocious struggle to eliminate political opponents and brutally persecuted his brothers and dissident political forces who competed with him for the throne. Cao Xueqin's heir, Cao_, was dismissed from office and his house was ransacked because he was involved in a struggle with royal factions.
Cao Xueqin's "Dream of Red Mansions" is based on the decline of himself and his relatives and family, so it has a certain nature of memories; however, his "Dream of Red Mansions" is a novel rather than an autobiography. "A Dream of Red Mansions" is treated as Cao Xueqin's autobiography.
At the end of 1727 (the fifth year of Yongzheng's reign) and the beginning of 1728 (the sixth year of Yongzheng's reign), Cao_ was ordered to have his home searched for crimes such as extorting money from the inn and embezzlement of public funds by weaving officers. Cao_ was "shackled" "Cao Yin's widow and her family moved back to Beijing and lived on the small amount of houses outside Chongwen Gate that were returned. The Cao family fell into decline. After experiencing such family changes, Cao Xueqin gained a deep experience of the darkness and sin of an aristocratic family, which became an important life foundation for his creation of "A Dream of Red Mansions". When the creation of "Dream of Red Mansions" began, Xue Qin was not yet twenty. He spent ten years and went through five additions, deletions and revisions. Before he was 30 years old, the book had a few chapters that had not yet been divided, so individual chapters had to be re-drafted and finalized, and there were a few missing poems that needed to be filled in. The main text has been basically drafted (the last chapter is called "Police Fantasy Love List"), and the manuscript was hurriedly delivered to his relatives and friends Zhi Yanzhai and others for additional review and transcription. Xueqin spent the last ten years or so in a mountain village in the western suburbs of Beijing. I don’t know whether it was due to transportation inconvenience or other reasons, but he seemed to have had very little contact with Zhi Yanzhai and others, and he did not finish the manuscript. There was no sign that he had even read and corrected the part of the manuscript that had been copied. Perhaps due to the need to make a living, I had to temporarily stop writing and start writing "Daoliang Plan". His friend Duncheng once wrote a poem to advise him, hoping that although he lived in a remote mountain village, he could continue to write books as before: "I advise you not to play the role of a diner, and I advise you not to knock on the door of the rich. The remaining cup is cold and virtuous." , it is better to write a book about Huangye Village.
"("In Memory of Cao Xueqin")
3. Birth and Birthplace
About Cao Xueqin, it is still difficult to draw conclusions in many aspects. Apart from the controversy over his birth and death years, his name and nickname cannot be It is quite certain that according to Zhang Yiquan, Cao Xueqin’s friend, his surname should be Cao, his given name is Zhan, his given name is Mengruan, and his given name is Qinxi Jushi. However, some researchers believe that his “name” is “Qinpu” and his “name” is “Qinpu”. "Xueqin". The issue of his birth and death has been debated for decades. There are two main opinions on his birth year. One is that he was born in 1715 AD, which was the 54th year of Kangxi; It is said that he was born in 1724 AD, which is the second year of Yongzheng's reign. There are three main views on the year of his death. One is that he died on February 12, 1763 AD, which is Renwu New Year's Eve in the 27th year of Qianlong's reign; Another view is that he died on February 1, 1764 AD, which was the New Year's Eve of the 28th year of Qianlong's reign; another view is that he died in the early spring of 1764 AD, which was the beginning of the Jiashen year of the 29th year of Qianlong's reign. Cao Xueqin's father, Cao_, is the prototype of Jia's mother, Li's adopted son (nephew of Li's husband, Cao Yin). There are several opinions on Cao Xueqin's birthplace. One is Fengrun, Hebei, in the Ming Dynasty. During the reign of Yongle (the reign of Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, 1403-1424), he also went to Tieling, Liaodong, and later followed the Qing troops into the Pass. The first was Liaoyang. His ancestor Cao Zhenyan was originally a junior officer stationed in Liaodong in the Ming Dynasty. About six years after Tianming, the Jin Dynasty attacked He surrendered when he arrived in Liaoyang, and later entered the Pass with the Qing army.
After Cao Zhenyan returned to the Jin Dynasty, he was first under the jurisdiction of Tong Liangzheng, and later returned to the Zhengbai Banner of Manzhou under Dorgon. He immediately followed the Qing troops into the Pass. Cao Zhenyan had made outstanding contributions in the Ming and Jin wars before entering the Pass and in the Pingjiang rebellion after entering the Pass. He served successively as the magistrate of Jizhou and Yanghe in Shanxi. The fortune of the Cao family actually began with Cao Zhenyan, the prefect of the prefecture, and Cao Xi's wife Sun Shi became Kangxi's nanny in 1663 (the second year of Kangxi's reign). He was first appointed to the post of Jiangning Weaving Company and served for a long time. In 1684 (the 23rd year of Kangxi reign), he died of illness while serving as Jiangning Weaving Company. Kangxi immediately appointed his son Cao Yin to serve as Suzhou Weaving Company, and later succeeded Jiangning Weaving Company, Lianghuai Patrol Salt Censor, etc. He was also ordered to compile "Complete Poems of the Tang Dynasty" and "Peiwen Yunfu" in Yangzhou. The reason why Cao Yin was trusted and appreciated by Kangxi was because his mother was Kangxi's most important nun. When someone introduced Cao Yin's mother, they said: "This is the old man in my family." (Fifty-one years of Kangxi) Cao Yin was critically ill in Yangzhou. Kangxi ordered Qianlima to deliver medicine to save him. Unfortunately, Cao Yin died. After Kangxi loved Cao Yin very much, he asked his son Cao to succeed Jiangning. Weaving (it seems that hereditary inheritance was not allowed at that time). Unfortunately, Cao_ died of illness in 1714 (the fifty-third year of Kangxi), and Kangxi specially ordered Cao_, the son of Cao Yin's brother Cao Quan (Xuan), to be adopted by Cao Yin's wife Li. He inherited the position of weaving until December 24, 1727 (the fifth year of Emperor Yongzheng's reign), when Cao's family was confiscated and destroyed. The Cao family had a history of more than 60 years in Jiangnan through three generations. Cao Xueqin was born in Nanjing. It was not until 1728 (the sixth year of Yongzheng reign) that the Cao family was confiscated and the family returned to Beijing. At that time, Cao Xueqin was still young. According to his birth date in Yiwei, he was four years old, and according to his birth date in Jiachen, he was five years old. There are few records of the situation of the Cao family after they returned to Beijing. Cao once said in a memorial to Kangxi: "There are only two houses in the middle of the capital, one empty house in Xianyukou in the outer city, and 600 acres of land in Tongzhou. The Zhang family There is a pawnshop in Wanwan with a principal of seven thousand taels of silver" and so on. Cao Xueqin died in poverty and poverty in 1763 or 1764 AD, that is, on New Year's Eve in the 27th or 28th year of Qianlong's reign. The first 80 chapters of his immortal masterpiece "The Story of the Stone" had been copied and published about ten years before his death; the second half of the book, according to experts' research, is considered to have been basically completed, but it could not be copied for some reason. After traveling through the world, he was finally lost. This is an irreparable loss.
Wu Yang said that the "Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang" was published 300 years ago. Cao Village in Wuyang Town is the ancestral home of Cao Xueqin. April 8, 2010, at Zhejiang Library. The 300-year-old "Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang" was found. This is a well-preserved manuscript of the "Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang" 300 years ago. In this "Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang" compiled in 1693, it is clearly recorded that "In the second year of Yongle, the ancestor Bo Lianggong crossed the Yangtze River from Wuyang, Yuzhang to join his younger brother and went northward, and settled in Fengrun Xianning. Yibu lives in Tielingwei, Liaodong.
Then Wuyang is the place where the ancestor of Xunwu originated. "It is exactly the same as the genealogical record of Cao family in Wuyang. History has clear records. Facts speak louder than words. The Cao family in Wuyang Town is Cao Xueqin's ancestral home in the Southern Song Dynasty. It is absolutely true. Cao Xueqin's ancestral home in the Southern Song Dynasty is in Wuyang. Since CCTV Since the report in 1994, it has aroused great repercussions across the country. Many experts in Hongxue and Cao studies across the country have devoted a lot of effort to the Cao family in Wuyang for in-depth research and investigation. Zhou Ruchang has studied Cao Xueqin’s ancestral home even more deeply, and has The handwritten inscription: "Cao Xueqin's ancestral home is Wuyang Town". The emergence of this "Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang, Jiangxi" in the 32nd year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (AD 1693) not only proves the authenticity of the Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang. , and also provides important research basis for experts who study Hongxue and Caoxue. The Genealogy of the Cao Family in Wuyang, Nanchang not only records the lineage and order of the Cao family, but also clearly records the migration history and ancestral hall of the Cao family. From this genealogy, we can know that Cao Xueqin’s ancestral home in the Southern Song Dynasty was in Wuyang Town, which was authentically recorded and identified 300 years ago! After ten years of debate, investigation, and research on Cao Xueqin’s ancestral home, the truth has now become clear. Fortunately, many experts can see that their research results are exactly the same as historical records, and they should be relieved.
Rushan said that according to the latest research. The results show that Cao Xi, the great ancestor of Cao Xueqin, was captured by the Qing army from the Jiaodong Peninsula and was adopted by Cao Zhenyan because of the same surname. Therefore, the study of Cao Xueqin's ancestral home should focus on Cao Xi, and the ancestral home of Cao Zhenyan cannot be regarded as the ancestral home of Cao Xueqin. Mr. Cao Zuyi, who studies red studies, has put forward the idea that Cao Xueqin is a descendant of Cao Mao and is a relative of Cao Zuyi. He has published his research results at the National Red Study Conference, which has been recognized by some red scholars. Cao Zuyi said that Cao Xueqin's ancestral home is in Rushan. Both historical data and the genealogy written by Cao Xueqin in the book, as well as Cao Zuyi's genealogy, fully prove that Cao Xueqin is a descendant of Cao Pi and Cao Mao. In addition, the rules for naming Cao Xueqin's and Cao Zuyi's families are complete. Unification, these are all powerful proofs. In his many years of research on "Dream of Red Mansions", Cao Zuyi found that Cao Xueqin wrote their family's genealogy in the 51st chapter of "Dream of Red Mansions" using the method of "Ten Nostalgia Poems". It can be seen that Cao Xueqin's family and his relatives, the Cao family in Dagushan, Donggang City, are of the same origin, which can prove that they are from the same genealogy. In this way, Cao Zuyi and Cao Xueqin have the same origin. Ancestral home - Henan Village, Ninghai Prefecture at that time. Fudan University conducted DNA testing on people with the surname Cao in China. The existing DNA data of the surname Cao supports the "Rushan theory" of Cao Xueqin's ancestral home, but does not support the "Fengrun theory". "Liaoyang Theory" and many other theories
4. Ethnic Discrimination
Manchu or Han? Cao Xueqin's ancestor Cao Xiyuan joined the Manchu ethnic group as early as the Later Jin Dynasty. , affiliated with the Zhengbai Banner of Manchuria. By Cao Xueqin's generation, the Cao family has lived among the Manchus for more than 100 years, and Manchu culture has penetrated into all aspects of the Cao family, both in Cao Xueqin himself and in his book "A Dream of Red Mansions". Culture is inextricably linked. Cao Xueqin should be a Han Chinese who has been Manchuized, or he can be said to be a Manchu. Starting from the Later Jin Dynasty, a large number of Han, Mongolian, and Korean people poured into the Manchu "community". They had long-term "exchanges" in this "community", lived together, and integrated into the Manchu people. One body. Although their bloodlines are different, no one can deny that they are Manchus, and they are in the same ethnic "unity". Looking at the "wicker edge" and "mancheng" of the Qing Dynasty - the guilty conscience of the Chinese dove occupying the magpie's nest, this article can introduce in detail the process of how the national unity was formed. There is no doubt that Cao Xueqin’s family is of Han descent. But by Cao Xueqin's generation, his family had joined the Eight Banners of Manchuria (Baoyi), and had lived in the Manchu circle for more than a hundred years, and their thoughts, feelings, customs and habits had become Manchu. The Cao family joined the Manchu nationality and was not only recognized by the Manchus, but also by Emperor Qianlong. The most powerful evidence is that the Cao family has been included in the "Eight Banners Manchu Clan Genealogy" as early as the Qianlong period. "Eight Banners Manchu Clan Genealogy" (80 volumes) is also called "Eight Banners Manchuria Clan Genealogy" because it was compiled under the order of Emperor Qianlong. The book contains a total of 1,114 Manchu surnames other than the royal family Aixinjueluo. It mainly records the time of their surrender, their place of origin, their official deeds, and biographies of important figures in each surname.
It is worth noting that this is a general genealogy of the Manchu clans of the Eight Banners, not a general genealogy of the Mongolian clans of the Eight Banners, let alone a general genealogy of the Han army clans of the Eight Banners. The reason why the Cao family can be included in the "Eight Banners Manchu Clan Genealogy" shows that their family has belonged to the Eight Banners of Manchuria, and their Manchu nationality has also been recognized. Since this book was "imperially issued" by Emperor Qianlong, in a certain sense, the Manchu nationality of the Cao family was also recognized by Emperor Qianlong. According to Volume 74 of "Eight Banners Genealogy of Manchu Clan", Cao Xiyuan, a Baoyi man from Zhengbai Banner, lived in Shenyang for a long time. There is no date of arrival and return. His son Cao Zhenyan was originally appointed as Zhejiang Yanfa Dao. Sun Caoxi was formerly the Minister of the Ministry of Industry; Cao Erzheng was formerly the Assistant Leader. The great-grandson Cao Yin was formerly the envoy to the general affairs department and the envoy to the general affairs department; Cao Yi was the former military counselor and assistant leader; Cao Quan was the former treasurer. Cao_, the grandson of the Yuan Dynasty, was formerly a doctor; Cao_, was formerly a Yuanwailang; Cao Qi, was a second-class bodyguard and assistant leader; Cao Tianhu, is currently the governor. From the "General Genealogy of Manchu Clan in Eight Banners", it can be seen that the clan name of the Cao family should be: Zhengbai Banner of the Manchuria Internal Affairs Bureau. Cao Xueqin should do the same. Zhengbai Banner is one of the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty. After the ancestors of the Cao family were captured, they belonged to the Zhengbai Banner of Manchuria. In other words, from then on, the Cao family officially joined the Manchus and became a member of the Manchus. Naturally, they were married to the Manchus and had Manchu ancestry. The Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty were further divided into the Eight Banners of Manchuria, the Eight Banners of the Han Army, and the Eight Banners of the Mongolia. The Cao family was affiliated with the Eight Banners of Manchuria, and undoubtedly joined the Manchu ethnic group. In addition, Cao Yin's eldest daughter married Nersu, the king of Pingjun. In the early Qing Dynasty, especially during the Kangxi Dynasty, intermarriage between Manchus and Han was strictly prohibited. This marriage undoubtedly showed that the Cao family's Manchu identity had been recognized by the Qing Dynasty. . In addition, "Jiangnan Tongzhi" clearly records that the Cao family is Manchurian. "Jiangnan Tongzhi" Volume 15 "Zhiguanzhi": Jiangning Weaving: "Cao Xi, a Manchurian, was appointed in the second year of Kangxi's reign." "Jiangnan Tongzhi" Volume 15 "Zhiguanzhi": Suzhou Weaving: "Cao Yin, a Manchurian, was appointed in the 29th year of Kangxi." "Jiangnan Tongzhi" Volume 15 "Zhiguanzhi": Jiangning Weaving: "Cao_, a Manchurian, was appointed in the 52nd year of Kangxi." "Jiangnan Tongzhi" Volume 15 "Zhiguanzhi": Jiangning Weaving: "Cao_, a Manchurian, served in the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi's reign." The Eight Banners of Manchuria are the direct predecessors and one of the main sources of the contemporary Manchus. The Eight Banners of Manchuria, according to current theory, are Manchus.
The Han people say that in the "General Genealogy of the Eight Banners Manchu Clan" compiled by Qianlong at the beginning, it is written: "On the eighth day of December in the fifth year of Qianlong's reign, it was decided: Mongolia, Korea, Nikan, and Tainikan. (Han people outside Kaiyuan Bianmen), Fushun Nikan and other people who entered the Manchurian flag in the past. If they are very old, the reasons of Yi and others are indicated and appended to the Manchu surname." (Excerpted from Zhao Zongpu's "Explanation of Cao Xueqin's Flag Registration Issues") 252 pages). There are two problems here: first, although Cao Xueqin's family is included in the "General Genealogy of Manchu Clan", they are classified according to ethnic groups such as Mongolia, Goryeo, and Nikan (Han people); second, this inclusion is "Attached to" "after the Manchu surname". It is shown here that the long-standing Cao family and other families affiliated with the Manchu Empire did not change their ethnic identity. Instead, it indicates that they are still Han Chinese. Emperor Kangxi replied in the memorial to Cao Xueqin's grandfather Cao Yin and Li Xu asking the Manchus to temporarily serve as salt transport envoys in Mandu: The two Huaihe transport envoys are closely related, so the selection of the nine ministers has been decided; Manchuria has never been an example of luck envoys, which is inconsistent. In the seventh year of Yongzheng's reign, the Ministry of Internal Affairs asked the emperor to hand-pick a list to fill the vacancies for the three-banner military commanders and other vacancies in the imperial palace: Cao Yi, who was under the command of Shang Zhi and Shun Zuo, had been in charge of the military academy for thirty-three years. Cao Erzheng's son, Han. In addition, from the analysis of Cao Xueqin’s ethnic outlook, he himself did not identify as a Manchu. Chapter 63 of "A Dream of Red Mansions" originally described Jia Baoyu's "birthday", and the chapter reads "Shou Yi Hong Qun Fang has a night banquet, and the death gold "Dan Duyan was in mourning", and there was a description in it: "Seeing Fangguan combing his hair again, he rolled up (髟+zan) and brought some flowers and green flowers. He hurriedly ordered him to change his makeup and ordered him to shave the short hair around him. He went away, revealing his green scalp, with a big top in the middle, and said: "In winter, I make a big squirrel lying down with a child belt, and wear small tiger-headed clouds and colorful combat boots on my feet, or leave my trouser legs loose, and only wear thick-soled clean socks." Inlaid shoes. ” He also said: “Fangguan’s name is not good, so he changed it to a male name to be unique. "Because it was changed to "Xiongnu"... Baoyu called him "Yelü Xiongnu"." Cao Xueqin dressed up in Manchu Qing Dynasty costumes, which was for Baoyu's birthday. In this article, Cao Xueqin publicly denounced the border ethnic minorities as "little Tufan'er" and denounced their "fanname" as "Yeluxiong slaves" like "Quirong". The title of this ethnic view is particularly conspicuous.
Ethnicity is a relatively new concept. China only identified the Manchus after the Republic of China. Many Han, Koreans, and Mongols in the Eight Banners of Manchuria were classified back to their own ethnic groups after the fall of the Qing Dynasty. Cao Xueqin is of Han descent and inherits the Han nationality. Culture, when he wrote "Dream of Red Mansions", Manchu was the Mandarin language of the Qing Dynasty. If Cao Xueqin was a Manchu, why didn't he write a Chinese version of "A Dream of Red Mansions" in Manchu? Based on the above facts, Cao Xueqin is a Han nationality.
Family origin: The Cao family was from the Zhengbai Banner (Baoyi) of Manchuria and had been officials for generations. By the time of Cao Xueqin's great-grandfather, Cao Xi, he had already held the important position of Minister of the Ministry of Industry. Cao Xi also served as "Jiangning Weaving". The book "Tongzhi of Jiangnan" directly states that Cao Xi is a Manchurian, "Jiangning Weaving: Cao Xi, a Manchurian, served in the second year of Kangxi's reign." Cao Xueqin's grandfather, Cao Yin, was also an important writer. He wrote five volumes of "Nem Pavilion Poetry Notes" and one volume of "Ci Notes". He also presided over the editor of "Complete Poems of the Tang Dynasty" and also left several drama works. By Cao Yin's generation, the Cao family could be said to have reached its peak. Cao Yin's mother was Kangxi's wet nurse, and she was called memeeniye (maternal mother) in Manchu. Among the Manchus, the status of wet nurses is very high. It can be said that she is as close as a biological mother, but also better than a biological mother, because she not only has to raise the prince, but also educates him from an early age. According to Chen Kangqi's "Three Biography of Lang Qian Jiwen" (Volume 1): In April of the summer of Jimao, Kangxi went to the south to tour and stayed in Cao Yin's mansion in Jiangning. Cao Shi received the favor of the country and was among his relatives and ministers. Yuan paid a visit to his mother and Sun family. When he saw him, he looked happy and said to him, "This is an old man in my family." The reward was very generous. Xuanhua flowers were in full bloom in the court, so the emperor wrote three words "Xuan Ruitang" as a gift. Cao Yin and Kangxi had a close relationship since childhood, and they were both his reading companions. He has held the position of "weaver" in the south for a long time. He was nominally in charge of the weaving affairs within the palace, but in fact he was very powerful. Yuan Mei recorded such an incident in his book "Suiyuan Shihua", "During the Kangxi period, Cao Fu Pavilion was weaving for Jiangning. Every time he went out, he would carry a book and watch and play. People asked: 'Mr. Why do you want to learn?" He said: "No. I am not a local official, but the people will stand up when they see me, so I use this to cover my ears and eyes." The prominence of its status is evident. During Kangxi's reign, he made six tours to the south, four of which were visited by Cao Yin when he was in office, and his Zhizhi Mansion was used as the emperor's palace. At the same time, Cao Yin often reported Jiangnan affairs and received Zhu's approval from Emperor Kangxi. Once, Kangxi commented in his memorial that in the future, all relevant local affairs "must be reported in a secret memorial". Another time, when Kangxi learned that Cao Yin had malaria, he immediately gave him medicine and made an exception by sending it to Cao Yin on a starry night. All of this shows the close relationship between Cao Yin's family and the royal family. Cao Yin's two daughters, that is, Cao Xueqin's two biological aunts, were married to Manchu princes respectively. One of them was "suitable to mount a red flag, Prince Pingjun Nersu", and the other was "suitable to be a prince's bodyguard". The Cao family has a very close relationship with the Kangxi Emperor's family and with Manchu relatives.