The Rouge of the North

The Rouge of the North is a novel by Zhang Ailing that describes the hard life of a poor 19th-century Chinese woman who married into a rich family.

action

The main character Yindi, whose brother owns a sesame oil business and thus belongs to the lower social class, marries the son of a wealthy family named Second Master, who is ill with tuberculosis. Because of her social background, she is humiliated by the family. She is dissatisfied with her marriage and falls in love with his younger brother Third Master shortly after the wedding. Third Master later gets into financial distress due to his opium addiction and numerous visits to brothels - to which he also takes Yindi's son Yensheng - and has to borrow money from Yindi.

Eventually Yindi married her son Yensheng to prevent him from visiting brothels with third masters. Since Yensheng's wife is not having children, Yindi fears that she will not have grandchildren. For this reason, she gives the slave girl Dungmei to Yensheng as her lover. Shortly after Dungmei gives birth to her third child, Yindi dies in her home.

main characters

• Yindi - The main character comes from a lower social class.
• Second Master - Yindi's husband, who comes from a wealthy family.
• Third Master - The younger brother of Yindi's husband.
• Yensheng - The son of Yindi.
• Dungmei - The slave girl of the family who is the mistress of Yensheng.