What does flowers of war mean?

Flowers of war refers to the twelve chivalrous women in a dream of red mansions, plus a little boy (disguised as a woman to replace the first 13 woman), a total of 13 people. They are all from the dusty families along the Qinhuai River in Nanjing, so they are called "flowers of war".

The twelve prostitutes are Qin Keqing, Baochai, Daiyu, Miaoyu, Er Qiao, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, Xiangyun, Xifeng, Li Wan, Qiaojie and Qingwen. These characters all have their own unique personalities and destinies, and many of them end in tragedy.

Flowers of war is regarded as a humble profession because it comes from a dusty family, but they show noble qualities and emotions in A Dream of Red Mansions and become highly respected figures in the novel.