Lianhuan

Lianhuan is a novel by Hong Kong writer Yi Shu, published in the "Selected Works of Yi Shu" series. The story opens with a heavy rainstorm: the parents of a boy named Lianhuan finally get the chance to work for the Xiang family as driver and housemaid, and the family moves into the servants' quarters, drawing Lianhuan into the Xiang household's world of glamour, privilege, and tangled interests. Xiang Zishan, the Xiangs' younger daughter, grows up close to Lianhuan, and the two are childhood sweethearts; but the Xiang sisters each scheme over their father's vast inheritance, and Zishan tries to use Lianhuan's feelings for her to compete with her elder sister. As Lianhuan grows up, he comes to see clearly his place in the Xiang household and the true nature of this relationship: he has always been someone to be ordered about, never someone treasured. In the end he marries Lin Xiangqin, who has always loved him deeply, and tries to settle into an ordinary life, yet the shadow of Xiang Zishan lingers in his heart. The novel portrays a triple bind of class, dependence, and love: a person may climb to a new position through hard work but cannot necessarily escape the old structure of relationships. In her usual spare, restrained, even coolly detached style, Yi Shu turns what looks like a conventional love triangle into a story about choices and their costs. Through her characters she observes: those who strive to better themselves do not always succeed, but those who give up are certain to get what they want.