Letter and Envelope: Zhang discusses a two year project that she will be working on.

Letter: Zhang updates Dr. Hsai on her current work and essay for publications she is working on. She asks that if he has the time, since his wife is pregnant,to look over the drafts.

Letter: Zhang updates Dr. Hsia on the progress of her esssay. She informs him that Chalmers Johnson thinks that the pieces are very good and ready to be sent to the publisher, but she still wants to do a few more edits before submission to Asian Survey.

Letter: Zhang discusses her delight at finally finishing her essay on Hong Lou Meng (Dream of the Red Chamber), a project that she has been wanting to finish for some time. She also mentions reasons why Esquire magazine has reached out to her.

Letter: Zhang tells Dr. Hsia that she has finished a portion of her project and asks him, if he has time, to look over it. She also informs Dr. Hsia about the arrival of the National Endowment for the Arts application that she has received and is already working on even though the deadline is seven months away. Lastly, she muses about academic problems, i.e.f trying to acquire texts without sufficient funding.

Letter: Zhang updates Dr. Hsia on the progress of her National Endowment for the Humanities grant, his inclusion of her works in his anthology Twentieth Century Chinese Short Stories (Xiandai Zhongguo Xiaoshuo), and her reasons for wanting to move away from northern California.

Letter: Zhang tells Dr. Hsia about her agent, Mrs. Marie Rodell, who suggested that she write a short book. Zhang requests that Dr. Hsia send a particular essay to her agent.

Letter: Zhang continues to discuss the idea of writing a book which her agent suggested. Zhang explains that the topic appeals to a wide audience and is timeless. She updates Dr. Hsia on possible essays/projects with Esquire and China Quarterly. She also tells Dr. Hsia that she has decided to relocate to southern California.

Letter: Zhang expresses her frustration at not being able to complete some of her projects. She discusses how the weather in Northern California is affecting her health and ultimately impacting her work. She has decided to move to a location that is consistently warm since she believes she works best in warmer weather.

Card: Zhang updates Dr. Hsia on her move. She expresses delight in finding a very suitable place to live. Zhang tells Dr. Hsia the general vicinity of her new apartment and asks that he not divulge her address to other people. She concludes by asking about his wife Della and baby daughter Natalie.