"On the Military March" by Yang Jiong of the Tang Dynasty, from "Collection of Yuefu Poems":
The beacon fire shines on Xijing, and I feel uneasy. Yazhang bid farewell to Fengque, and the iron cavalry circled Dragon City.
The snow is dark, the flag paintings are withered, and the wind is heavy with the sound of drums. It is better to be a centurion than a scholar.
Vernacular interpretation:
The warning beacon from the frontier fortress reached Chang'an, and the warrior's heart could not be calm. After bidding farewell to the palace, the general left with his military talisman in hand; the enemy attacked the city, and the elite cavalry was extremely brave.
The heavy snow fell, and the military flag was eclipsed; the strong wind roared, mixed with the thumping of war drums. I would rather be a low-level officer and fight for the country than be a white-faced scholar who can only write sentences and find chapters.
Notes:
1. Joining the Army: This is an old title of Yuefu's "Xianghege·Pingdiaoqu" and mostly writes about military life.
2. Beacon: Fireworks used for emergency border defense in ancient times. Xijing: Chang'an.
3. Yazhang: A military talisman used to send troops in ancient times. It is divided into two pieces, and the joint is shaped like a tooth. The court and the commander each hold one half. Refers to a general who is ordered to go on an expedition.
4. Dragon City: Also known as Dragon Court, it is located on the east bank of the Orkhon River in present-day Mongolia. An important place for the Xiongnu during the Han Dynasty. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent Wei Qing to attack the Xiongnu, and he won here. This refers to the enemy stronghold outside the wall.
5. Wither: The original meaning is that the vegetation has withered and withered, which means that it has lost its bright color.
Extended information:
This poem borrows the old Yuefu title "Joining the Army" to describe the whole process of a scholar joining the army at the frontier and participating in the battle. In just forty words, it not only reveals the psychological activities of the characters, but also exaggerates the atmosphere of the environment. The writing is extremely powerful.
The poem adopts a jumping structure, jumping from one typical scene to another, developing and advancing in leaps and bounds. This jumping structure gives the poem a lively rhythm, just like the rapids on the cliff, giving people a straight-forward and indomitable momentum, which effectively highlights the scholar's strong patriotic passion and the morale of the Tang army's generals.