15. When Wang Lung's cousin comes to the house with soldiers to quarter there, he desires one of the slaves. Which one does he want?
From Quiz Buck's "The Good Earth"
Answer:
Pear Blossom
Wang Lung's cousin wants Pear Blossom, the beautiful pale child that waits on Lotus Flower, Wang Lung's concubine. However, Pear Blossom fears him and she appeals to Wang Lung to protect her. He says that she doesn't have to go, and a nameless wench happily accepts the offer. The cousin sleeps with the wench and leaves her pregnant. Lotus Flower gets angry with her slave for a while.
Later on, Wang Lung desires to sleep with Pear Blossom, and since she constantly says that she likes old man, she of course agrees to do so. However, Wang Lung also wanted to marry her to his youngest son to keep him from joining the war. He failed in this endeavor.
O-lan, Wang Lung's wife, was a slave of the House of Hwang until Wang Lung married her. Cuckoo was Lotus Flower's old servant before Pear Blossom came along.