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.
