Original text:
Yong Yule sent Chen Renhe back eastward. In the year when Chen arrived in Shangrao, he was very happy to have a son.
Xin Qiji [Song Dynasty]
On the purple road of Chang'an, young people watch flowers and sing and dance endlessly. I pity you with white hair, but I look for you late, and the wind and rain roll over the ground. I ask you if you know that the wine carried by the barbarian is not like the bottle in the well. If you think about it carefully, you will always find yourself nowhere to be found in dreams of joy and sorrow.
Mango shoes and bamboo sticks, the Heavenly Teaching has been returned, a beautiful saying from Yuxi through the ages. Returning to the east in despair, winning in romance, and leaving the apple of your eye. Looking in the mirror, fortunately, Nanguan has brushed away the dust of the past. Xiang Jundao, the sky is thousands of miles away, but this time it is steady.
Brief explanation:
Chen Renhe, named Deming and courtesy name Guangzong, once served as the magistrate of Renhe County. He was embezzled and illegally demoted to Xinzhou and was not allowed to leave without permission. According to the title of the poem, he returned eastward after being pardoned a year later, and was happy to have a son. The author writes this as a gift.
"On the purple road of Chang'an, young people can see flowers and sing and dance endlessly." On the busy road of Chang'an, Chen Renhe, a young man, passed the exam and walked around looking at flowers, having banquets, singing and dancing, and the scenery was endless.
Purple Road: A dusty road with many cars and horses.
Looking at flowers: a celebration held by people in the Tang and Song dynasties to explore and pick famous flowers in famous gardens.
Tang Dynasty/Meng Jiao's "After Admission": "The spring breeze is so proud that the horse's hoof is sick, and I can see all the flowers in Chang'an in one day." This layer recalls Chen Renhe's experience of passing the exam when he was young. "My white hair pity you, I look for your beauty too late, and the earth is shaken by the storm." What is regrettable is that Chen Jun has gray hair now. It is too late to look for the famous flower that he fell in love with when he was a boy. The famous flower It had already been shaken down by the wind and rain. Here, famous flowers are used as a metaphor for the ideal of making achievements, wind and rain are used as a metaphor for the setbacks of reality, and Chen Renhe's current ideals are frustrated.
"Ask you, do you know that the way a barbarian carries wine is not like a bottle in a well?" Ask Chen Jun if he knows that if someone like Fan Li, who carries wine and wanders around the five lakes to live in seclusion, there will be no golden vase. The disaster of falling into a well and leaving without news. Guiyi carries wine: Guiyi is a leather bag containing wine. In the Spring and Autumn Period, Fan Li resigned from office and went boating in the five lakes after helping Yue to destroy Wu. He named himself Yizipi. Refers to seclusion. Well bottle body error: Well bottle, a device for drawing water from a well. Li Bai's "Send Away": "There is no news about the golden vase falling into the well, which makes people sigh and sit back and think." It means that the vase falling into the well is inevitable, which is a metaphor for the ups and downs in officialdom. "If you think about it carefully, in dreams of sorrow and joy, there is always nowhere to find it." If you think about it carefully, the sadness and joy in the past are like dreams, and no trace of them can be found after waking up. This layer means that the joys and sorrows of the past are over and don’t need to be taken to heart. The first film reviews the ups and downs of Chen Renhe's life and comforts him that since he has chosen the path of fame, he will inevitably have ups and downs in his career, so he shouldn't worry too much about it.
"The mango shoes and bamboo stick are returned by the teachings of heaven, a beautiful saying from Yuxi through the ages." Although you are relegated to Xinzhou, you wear mango shoes and hold a bamboo stick all day long to visit the mountains and rivers of Xinzhou. God allows you to give back. The beautiful poems and verses about the landscape of Shinshu have been passed down through the ages. Teach: Let. Also: give back, give back. Yuxi: The name of a stream in Xinzhou, referring to the landscape of Xinzhou. "Return eastward in despair, win in romance, and go home as the apple of your eye." Although you lost your official position and returned home, your love won you a son who is as beautiful as the apple of your eye. Down and out: Refers to Chen Renhe who lost his official position and was relegated. Return to the east: Chen Renhe's family is in Wuzhong (now Suzhou), east of Xinzhou. Romance: refers to Chen Renhe's love for his lover. The apple of the eye: a metaphor for children who are loved by their parents. This refers to Chen Renhe's son. "I got up and looked in the mirror. Fortunately, Nanguan has brushed away the dust of the past." I stood up and looked in the mirror. The hat I brought from my hometown is still intact. The dust of the past has been swept away, and a new look appears. Nanguan: The crown of Chu people in the Spring and Autumn Period. Zhong Yi, a native of Chu, still wore the Nanguan crown after being captured by the Jin State, showing that he did not forget his homeland. Later generations also often used Nanguan to refer to prisoners. This not only refers to Chen Renhe's longing for his hometown, but also fits Chen Renhe's exiled status. Brushing away the dust of the past: It means that Chen Renhe has removed the stains on his body and can start a new life. It refers to Chen Renhe's pardon and his transformation from a sinner to a free man. "Xiang Jundao, the sky is thousands of miles away, but this time it is steady." I tell you, after this setback, your road to the sky will be more stable in the future.
Thousands of miles in the sky: a metaphor for lofty aspirations.
This poem is a farewell to a person who has been forgiven for his sins. The author has neither cheap comfort nor frivolous politeness, but speaks from the bottom of his heart. He points out that a life of seclusion is safer than an official career, but he also hopes for friends. Never give up on career advancement. This is also a reflection of the author's own mentality.