Caiwei's ancient poem is as follows:
Original text: I am gone in the past, and the willows are still there. Now that I'm thinking about it, it's raining and snowing. The journey is slow and full of thirst and hunger. My heart is sad, I don’t know how sad I am!
Translation: I recall that when I went on the expedition, the willows were still blowing in the wind; now on my way back, heavy snow is flying all over the sky. The roads were muddy and difficult to walk on, and we were tired from thirst and hunger. Full of sadness and sadness. Who can understand my sorrow?
Notes: 1. Past: Once upon a time, the text refers to the time of war.
2. Past: Joined the army.
3. 矣: modal particle.
4. Yiyi: describes the way the branches are weak and swaying in the wind.
5. Thoughts: Modal particles are used at the end of sentences and have no real meaning.
6. Rain and snow: snowing. Rain is used as a verb here.
7. Feifei: the appearance of flying snowflakes.
8. Chichi: Slow appearance.
Appreciation:
"Plucking Wei" is an article in "The Book of Songs Xiaoya". Annotators in the past have different opinions about the year of its writing. However, according to its content and the verification of other historical records, it is more likely that it is a work from the era of King Xuan of Zhou Dynasty. In the Zhou Dynasty, the yangnu (later known as the Xiongnu) in the north were very powerful and often invaded the Central Plains, bringing many disasters to the lives of the people in the north at that time.
There are many records in history of the Emperor Zhou sending troops to guard the borders and ordering soldiers to send troops to defeat the 烃狋. Judging from the content of "Caiwei", it was probably written when soldiers were returning from hard work. The poem sings about the hard life and longing for home of the soldiers in the army.
?
The whole poem is divided into six chapters. The first three chapters are overlapped. They are inspired by picking weeds and describe how soft and strong the weeds are. The soldiers in the garrison are far away from their hometown and have not returned for a long time. They feel homesick. Worried!