袭人送母殡后，业已回来，麝月便将平儿所说宋妈、坠儿一事，并晴雯撵逐坠儿出去，也曾回过宝玉等话，一一的告诉了一遍。
our story passes on to the return of Aroma, which occurred shortly after her mother's funeral.
As soon as she got back, Musk told her all about Trinket and how Skybright had dismissed her first and reported the dismissal afterwards to Bao-yu.
袭人也没说别的，只说：“太性急了。”
Aroma merely remarked that Skybright had been ‘too hasty', but made no further comment.
只因李纨亦因时气感冒，邢夫人又正害火眼，迎春、岫烟皆过去朝夕侍药；李婶之弟又接了李婶和李纹、李绮家去住几日；宝玉又见袭人常常思母含悲，晴雯犹未大愈，因此诗社之日，皆未有人作兴，便空了几社。
These days Li Wan also had a cold on account of the bad weather; Yingchun and Xiuyan were fully occupied attending to Lady Xing, who was suffering from an inflammation of the eyes; Aunt Li and her two daughters had been invited by her younger brother to his home for a few days; and Baoyu was worried by Xiren's depression after her mother's death, as well as by Qingwen's delayed recovery.So no one was in the mood for poetry gatherings, and several of the appointed dates passed unobserved.
当下已是腊月，离年日近，王夫人和凤姐儿治办年事。
It was now well into the twelfth month and Lady Wang and Xi-feng were busily preparing for the New Year.
王子腾升了九省都检点，贾雨村补授了大司马，协理军机，参赞朝政，不提。
The season of appointments brought news that Wang Zi-teng had been promoted to the post of Inspector-General of Armies in the Nine Provinces and that Jia Yu-cun was to become Under Secretary to the President of the Board of War with occasional duties at Court.
且说贾珍那边开了宗祠，着人打扫，收拾供器，请神主，又打扫土房，以备悬供遗真影像。
Over in the Ning mansion Cousin Zhen had opened up the Hall of the Ancestors and set his people to work sweeping it, setting the vessels out in readiness for the New Year sacrifices, and welcoming the spirits back into the ancestral tablets.
这日宁府中尤氏正起来同贾蓉之妻打点送贾母这边的针线礼物，正值丫头捧了一茶盘押岁锞子进来，回说:"兴儿回奶奶，前儿那一包碎金子共是一百五十三 两六钱七分，里头成色不等，共总倾了二百二十个锞子。”
One morning in the Ning Mansion, Madam You and her daughter-in-law were preparing embroidery and other gifts for those in the other mansion when a maid came in with a trayful of gold New-Year ingots.“Xinger reports that that packet of loose gold of a mixed quality the other day amounted to a hundred and fifty-three taels and sixty-seven cents, madam,” she announced.“It's made two hundred and twenty ingots in all.”
说着递上去。
She presented them for inspection
尤氏看了一看，只见也有梅花式的，也有海棠式的，也有“笔锭如意”的，也有“八宝联春”的。
On it there were medallions shaped like plum-flowers,crabflower-shaped medallions, medallions with ‘heart's desire' rebus patterns of ingot, brush and sceptre, and others with patterns of auspicious flowers.
尤氏命人:"收起这个来，叫他把银锞子快快交了进来。”
‘Yes,' said You-shi, ‘they seem to be all right.
Tell him to take them inside immediately.”
丫鬟答应去了。
The maid had not been gone long on this errand
贾珍因问尤氏: "咱们春祭的恩赏可领了不曾？"
Jia Zhen asked his wife, “Have we fetched the Imperial Bounty yet for the spring sacrifice?”
贾珍道:"咱们家虽不等这几两银子使，多少是皇上天恩。
“Of course, our family doesn't depend on these few taels,” observed her husband.“Still they are a mark of the Imperial favour.
早关了来，给那边老太太送过去，置办祖宗的供，上领皇上的恩，下则是托祖宗的福。
We should collect this silver early to show the old lady in the other mansion before using it to prepare the ancestral sacrifice; for this is evidence that we are honoured by the Emperor's favour and benefit from the good fortune of our forbears.
咱们那怕用一万银子供祖宗，到底不如这个又体面，又是沾恩锡福的。
Even if we spent ten thousand taels on this sacrifice, it would convey less distinction than the use of this bounty so graciously conferred.
除咱们这样一两家之外，那些世袭穷官儿家，若不仗着这个银子，拿什么上供过年?真正皇恩浩荡，想的周到。”
And we have to remember that apart from the one or two great families like ours who don't really need this money, there are many, many families of poor hereditary officials who do actually depend on it for their ancestral sacrifices and who wouldn't be able to celebrate New Year properly without it.
二人正说着，只见人回:"哥儿来了。”
Just then a servant announced their son's return,
只见贾蓉捧了一个小黄布口袋进来，贾珍道:"怎么去了这一日？"
Jia Rong came in, carrying in both hands a small yellow bag.“Why have you been so long?” demanded his father.
贾蓉陪笑回说:"今儿不在礼部关了，又分在光禄寺库上，因又到了光禄寺才领了下来。
Jia Rong answered with a smile, “I had to go to the Office of Imperial Banquets for the bounty, as it isn't issued by the Ministry of Rites nowadays.
光禄寺的官儿们都说，问父亲好，多日不见，都着实想念。”
The people at the Imperial Victuallers' office all asked after you, by the way.
They say they haven't seen you for a long time, but they often think about you.”
贾珍笑道:"他们那里是想我?这又到了年下了，不是想我的东西，就是想我的戏酒了。”
“It's not me they're thinking of,” laughed his father.“Now that New Year's coming, it's presents they want from me or an invitation to a banquet and opera.”
一面说，一面瞧那黄布口袋，上有印，就是 "皇恩永锡"四个大字，那一边又有礼部祠祭司的印记，又写着一行小字，道是"宁国公贾演荣国公贾源恩赐永远春祭赏共二分，净折银若干两，某年月日龙禁尉候补侍卫贾蓉当堂领讫，值年寺丞某人"，下面一个朱笔花押。
and some columns of smaller characters: Annual grant awarded in perpetuity to Jia Yan, Duke of Ning-guo, and Jia Yuan, Duke of Rong-guo, for New Year Sacrifices: goods to the value of―taels net Cash received by: Jia Rong, Captain, Imperial Body- guard, Inner Palace, on (date)
贾珍看了，吃过饭，盥漱毕，换了靴帽，命贾蓉捧着银子跟了来，回过贾母、王夫人，又至这边回过贾赦、邢夫人，方回家去，取出银子，命将口袋向宗祠大炉内焚了。
After inspecting the yellow bag, Cousin Zhen had his lunch; then, when he had washed his hands and rinsed his mouth out, he changed into formal hat and boots and, ordering Jia Rong to follow him with the bag, set off for the other mansion to report the arrival of the bounty-money, first to Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang and then to Jia She and Lady Xing next door.
When they got back he took out the money and ordered the bag to be carried into the Hall of the Ancestors and burnt there in the great incense-burner in front of the ancestral tablets.
又命贾蓉道：“你去问问你那边二婶娘，正月里请吃年酒的日子拟了没有？
After this he told his son, “Go and ask your Second Aunt whether they've fixed on dates or not for their New-Year feasts in the first month.