Chin Chen returns from the capital for a month's home-leave, just in time for the celebration of Lady Dowager's eightieth birthday. All of the royal relatives, including the Prince of Peiching, the Prince of Nanan, and the Imperial Consort, Yuan-chun, come to offer congratulations. The celebration is marked by ostentation and extravagance; streams of messengers arrive with so many gifts that a large table covered with red felt has to be set up in order to display all the old lady's gifts. All of the ladies, the masters, the mistresses, and the maids and servants in the Jung Mansion are kept on their toes. Madame Yu leaves the Ning Mansion and comes to help Hsi-feng manage the domestic affairs and help entertain the guests.
Because two of Madame Yu's maids who are in charge of meal service are negligent, Hsi-feng has them tied up, awaiting their punishment. When Lady Hsing learns about this, she is deeply resentful because one of the women is a relative. She loudly criticizes Hsi-feng the next day in front of everybody, hoping to make Hsi-feng lose face. This episode exposes the raw nerves of the tension between a mother-in-law and her daughter-in-law; at the same time, the fact that Hsi-feng orders Madame Yu's maids to be tied up reveals a rivalry between the Jung and Ning Mansions. The old lady's eightieth birthday is another turning point in the fortunes of the Chin family. From now on, they will rapidly decline, socially and economically, with avalanche speed.
The chapter ends with Yuan-yang's discovering Ssu-chi (Ying-chun's maid) making love with her cousin, and Yuan-yang promising not to tell anyone.
Fearing terrible consequences, Ssu-chi's cousin is reported to have run away, and Ssu-chi herself is confined to her bed as a result of over-worry. Yuan-yang comes to her to restate her vow of silence, and Ssu-chi is extremely grateful.
Meanwhile, Hsi-feng has been out of sorts for a month, so Yuan-yang goes to see her. Chin Lien seizes this opportunity to ask Yuan-yang to borrow a case of the old lady's gold and silver utensils so that he can pawn them and thereby cover his enormous debts. This episode is additional proof that the Chin family is financially strapped due to their long years of extravagant waste. It will be extremely difficult for the Chin family to survive much longer.
In Chapter 73, Chin Cheng decides that he will test Pao-yu's scholarship, and Pao-yu naturally becomes very nervous. He is "saved," however when Venturina dashes in and says that someone has just "jumped down from the top of the wall." Pao-yu pretends to fall ill from shock, and thus he avoids being tested by his father. This incident makes everybody very on-edge.
Tan-chun goes to Lady Dowager and tells her that ever since Hsi-feng has been ill, the servants have been disorderly. Some have even formed gambling clubs—drinking and leaving the gates unlocked. Fraught with anger, the old lady orders that the culprits be caught, given forty lashes, and dismissed from service. Furthermore, all the cards and dice are to be burned.
Later, Numskull, the old lady's maid, shows Lady Hsing a pouch on which two naked figures are locked in an embrace. Lady Hsing is shocked at this piece of pornography. Immediately she goes to see Yingchun and asks her to be more strict with her nurse. Ying-chun's maid Hsiu-chu reminds Ying-chun that a gold filigree phoenix tiara is missing; her nurse must have pawned it to raise money for gambling. Yingchun, however, dare not ask the nanny about it.
The detailed description of Ying-chun's weakness exposes fully the conflicts between the masters and the servants, who are reluctant to lead a conventional life and, in turn, try to rebel against their masters. Accordingly, the masters of the Chia family have to suppress their servants in order to maintain their absolute rule.
In Chapter 74, Lady Hsing presents the pornographic pouch to Lady Wang, who is choked with rage the moment she sees it. She leaves immediately, planning to blame Hsi-feng for her carelessness—leaving a thing like that on a rock in the Garden in broad daylight! Hsi-feng easily counters Lady Wang's accusations by enumerating five reasons why the pouch does not belong to her. Then she suggests using this "discovery" as a pretext to dismiss some of the old, obstreperous servants. But, on second thought, they decide instead to make a thorough—and surprise—search that evening of all the maids' rooms.
The search begins with Hsi-jen's cases. When it is Ching-wen's turn, she angrily flings back the lid of one of her cases and then raises the case bottom-side up in both hands, emptying out all the contents. Her bold resistance to the unfair, imperious command is fully revealed here. Her indomitable, rebellious spirit will not allow her to meekly succumb to unfair accusations—especially when Lady Wang calls her a vamp and orders her out of Pao-yu's quarters.
When the search team arrives at Tan-chun's quarters, she too feels insulted and orders her maids to open her cases and her dressing-case so that everything can be inspected by the haughty Hsi-feng and Mrs. Wang Shan-pao, Lady Hsing's "eyes and ears." When Tan-chun expresses her indignation at the search, Mrs. Wang makes an insulting, belittling comment that Tan-chun answers with a slap across Mrs. Wang's ears.
Unfortunately, her resistance doesn't stop the search, nor can she do anything to help the unfortunate fate of the maids. When the search team uncovers some stolen goods from Hsi-chun's maid in Ju-hua's case, the eccentric Hsi-chun decides to ask Madame Yu to take Ju-hua away.
Ying-chun is asleep when the search party arrives; her maid, Ssu-chi, is Mrs. Wang's granddaughter. A love-knot and a letter and a man's silk socks are found in Ssu-chi's case, making Mrs. Wang feel overwhelmed with shame and mortification.
This chapter, focusing on a thorough search of the maids' things, is an important chapter in the book because it is a portent of the ever-quickening decline of the Chin family. The search is also proof of the large-scale suppression by the Chia family. In addition, the search is an impressive demonstration of the intensification of the contradictions among the feudal ruling members and the sharp conflicts between the aristocratic masters and their rebellious servants.
Chapter 75 opens with the news that the Chen family has been raided, their property confiscated, and the family members fetched to the capital to stand trial. This is an ominous sign; later, the Chin family will also be raided.
Unable to go out to amuse himself because of mourning rites, Chin Chen invites some profligates from wealthy families, including Hsueh Pan and Hsing Teh-chuan (Lady Hsing's brother) to while away their time at his home. First, they practice archery, and then they indulge in gambling, drinking, and debauchery, another instance of the aristocrats' lecherous and shameful way of life.
