English Rendering
Begging the Han envoy to pass on a message, she said
"To get me back when will a ransom of gold be paid?
If His Majesty should ask about my looks,
Don't say I'm not so charming as I was in the palace."
Wang Zhaojun
- Poetry of Bai Juyi
《王昭君》
Original Text (中文原文)
汉使却回凭寄语，黄金何日赎蛾眉？
君王若问妾颜色，莫道不知宫里时。
Analysis & Context
By Bai Juyi
Reader's Companion
The Essence of the Verse
Classical Chinese poetry thrives on Concision and Ambiguity. Without tense or number, the words create a timeless space where the reader becomes the co-creator of the poem's meaning.
Reading Between the Lines
Look for Contrasts: light and shadow, movement and stillness. Don't just translate the words; feel the Yijing (artistic conception) that lingers long after the last character.
- Yiai Temple
- Early Spring
- The Zither
- On Qiantang Lake in Spring
- Spring View in Hangzhou
- Song of Willow Branch
- The Summit Temple
- <Prelude to Water Melody> Sent to Ziyou on Mid-autumn Festival
- Invitation to Wine
- Question and Answer in the Mountains
- Cold sheet
- Coming Home ( Returning Home )
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