51 pages 1 hour read

Eileen Chang, Transl. Karen S. Kingsbury

Love in a Fallen City

Fiction | Short Story Collection | Adult | Published in 1943

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

“The Golden Cangue”Chapter Summaries & Analyses

“The Golden Cangue” Summary

“The Golden Cangue” is set in early 20th-century Shanghai, just before the end of the Qing dynasty. It opens with Feng-hsiao asleep in the servant’s quarters of the Chiang household. She is an enslaved girl who has been brought there by the newly arrived Third Mistress. Feng-hsiao talks with the personal maid of the Second Mistress, Little Shuang. Shuang tells her that the Second Mistress, Ch’i-ch’iao, comes from the Ts’ao family, who owns a sesame oil shop and is of a lower class than the Chiangs; despite this class difference, the marriage was approved because Second Master has a disability and the family needs someone to look after him. Little Shuang tells Feng-hsiao that Ch’i-ch’iao and Second Master have been married for five years with two children and that Ch’i-ch’iao’s brother is suspected of having stolen things from the house. Old Mrs. Chao tells them to stop gossiping and go to bed.

The next day, Feng-hsiao is helping Third Mistress Lan-hsien get dressed when Eldest Mistress Tai-chen comes in. She tells Third Mistress that Second Master and Ch’i-ch’iao smoke opium together. Third Mistress and Eldest Mistress Tai-chen wait outside Old Mistress’s room to greet her. While they wait, they help the second daughter, Yün-tse, crack walnuts.

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 51 pages of this Study Guide
Plus, gain access to 8,500+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features:
+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools