Taking the life trajectory of Cao Xueqin as the core, it connects his journey from a young man in brocade clothes in Jiangning Weaving Mansion to his family being confiscated due to the change of imperial power and becoming a poor man in the western suburbs, and finally writing "The Story of the Stone" ("Dream of Red Mansions") alone.
The first half of the novel restores the scene of the Cao family's heyday, such as the bells ringing and the dining table, the poem gathering in the mansion, and the daily routine around the stove, all of which are the prototype of the Grand View Garden in "A Dream of Red Mansions"; the second half focuses on his declining years, writing about him selling paintings to make a living, socializing with literati, and more delicately portraying "Stones" The perseverance and regrets in the creation of "The Chronicle" - poverty, illness, the loss of the manuscript, and the death of his youngest son did not defeat him. He continued to polish the manuscript until the end of his life, which ultimately made this unfinished work the pinnacle of classical literature, and also made his character of "poor and writing" passed down to the world.
