There is only "the courtyard is empty and clear like accumulated water, with algae and waterlilies intertwined in the water, covered with bamboo and cypress shadows."
It means that the moonlight shines on the courtyard as if it is filled with clear water. The water was clear and transparent, with algae and waterlilies crisscrossing it, which turned out to be the shadow of bamboo and cypress.
The original text is as follows:
Remember the night tour of Chengtian Temple?
Song Dynasty: Su Shi
The night of October 12th, the sixth year of Yuanfeng , undressing and about to sleep, the moonlight entered the house, and happily set off. Thinking of nothing and being happy, I went to Chengtian Temple to look for Zhang Huaimin. Huai Min also stayed up and walked with each other in the atrium.
The sky under the courtyard looks like accumulated water, with algae and lilies intertwined in the water, covered with bamboo and cypress shadows. What night is there without a moon? Where are there no bamboos or cypresses? But there are few idle people like the two of us.
Translation:
On the night of October 12th, the sixth year of Yuanfeng (or the night of October 12th, 1083 AD, it does not need to be translated), (I) took off my clothes and got ready to sleep. , happened to see the moonlight shining on the door, (so I) happily got up and went out for a walk. It occurred to me that I had no one with whom to play, so I went to Chengtian Temple to look for Zhang Huaimin. Huai Min didn't sleep either, so we walked in the courtyard together.
The moonlight shining on the courtyard was as clear and transparent as if it were filled with clear water. Algae and waterlilies in the water were crisscrossed in a crisscross pattern, which turned out to be the shadow of bamboo and cypress. Which night is without moonlight? (Again) Which place does not have bamboo and cypress trees? It’s just that there is a lack of people with leisure time like the two of us.
Writing background
This article was written in the sixth year of Yuanfeng (1083), the reign of Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty. At that time, the author had been demoted to Huangzhou for four years. In July of the second year of Yuanfeng, there was the famous "Wutai Poetry Case" in history. The censor Li Ding and others excerpted Su Shi's poems about the new law and said that he had slandered him with his poems. In August, he was arrested and imprisoned. After a long period of interrogation and torture, he was almost killed.
In December, the author was released from prison and was demoted to Huangzhou as the deputy envoy of Tuanlian, but he was not allowed to "sign official documents", which meant that he was an idle official with duties but no power. Under such circumstances, the author wrote this short article, which gave a wonderful description of the scenery on a moonlit night and truly recorded a fragment of his life at that time. It also reflects his deep friendship with Zhang Huaimin and his infinite emotion at having so few close friends.
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