In this chapter, we are introduced to a number of characters, each of whom is a member of the "spirit court" or "root spirit" . The first person we meet is Lady Dedlock, who tells us that she has just heard that Zshao and his daughter have gone to see Madame Pernelle. She tells us to go to her mother's house right now, because she can't bear to let her niece, Yao Qianqian, have anything to do with the matter. When she hears that the flower that her aunt gave her today is laced with poison, she is all, "damn it, damn it!" . She