"The poet is in the New Year early in the morning." The winter in the north is cold and long. When the harsh winter has just ended and the lingering cold is still severe, it goes without saying that the feeling of surprise when you suddenly feel the news of the coming of spring, even if it is just a little bit of fresh green and the sound of a bird chirping. This quatrain written by Yang Zai expresses his joy at the end of spring after a long winter.
"The snow in the city is beginning to disappear and the shepherd's purse is raw" points out the location and season. "City" here refers to the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, which was the political center at that time. In the eyes of ancient Chinese feudal scholars, the capital often carried their political hopes, and the ups and downs of an official career were often determined by staying in the capital or leaving the capital. Therefore, the deeper meaning of this place cannot be easily ignored. "Initial dissipation" means that the snow has just dissipated, and there may still be some left. But the cold can no longer cover the earth. Isn't it? Clusters of shepherd's purse in several places have broken through the loose frozen soil, revealing their vitality. It may still be very weak, but in the desolate early spring, any bit of fresh green is a symbol of vigorous life and contains endless hope. So this detail cannot be ignored.
"There are few people walking in the deep alleys of Jiaomen" uses the silence and loneliness of the environment to illustrate the desolation of the poet's situation. "Jiaomen" refers to the side door, which is the door of the poet's residence after arriving in the capital. "Deep Alley" refers to a remote alley. In the Yuan Dynasty, the status, future and situation of Confucian scholars has always been an acute social issue. There was ethnic discrimination in the appointment of Confucian scholars as officials, as well as the related unequal distribution of power; the imperial examination system in the Yuan Dynasty was in and out of use, and the imperial examination system itself had many regulations that were not conducive to Han scholars. Therefore, the opportunities for Han scholars to enter officialdom were very limited. Yang Zai had read extensively since he was a child and hoped to "be famous enough to reach the emperor". However, it was not until he was in his forties that he was appointed as the editor of the Academy of National History by Bu Yizhao. Therefore, when I first arrived in the capital, I was deserted in front of the door, feeling like "I am poor and no one cares about me in the busy city".
However, in this lonely and lonely alley, suddenly "the oriole language was heard in the willow branches", and a crisp bird song came down from the willow branches, breaking all the silence. The oriole was originally ruthless, but now it had words. This is not so much the chirping of an oriole as a cheer from the depths of the poet's heart: Although his official career is difficult, hasn't he already been ordered to Beijing? Hope is just around the corner! "This is the first sound of spring" vividly expresses the surprise in the poet's heart. Although "birds singing and dancing everywhere" is more lively and lively, it no longer has the freshness of "the first sound of spring". The two sentences in the poem "Spring Snow" by Han Yu, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, "There is no youth in the new year, and I am surprised to see the grass buds in early February" vividly depict the psychological state just before the arrival of spring. A few faint green buds make people surprised and happy, not to mention the first bird song! Not to mention the considerate Oriole. He sang a cheer deep in his heart!
The book "Poetry and Legalists" written by Yang Zai once mentioned that "the meaning of the scene" should be used when describing a scene. The scenes set in this poem are all expressions of the poet's inner emotions, and they have indeed achieved "the meaning in the scene". "The meaning in the scene" is the blending of scenes. This quatrain is written lightly and seems to be casual, but its mood is natural and its artistic conception is beautiful. It has won the third taste of the Tang people and can be regarded as a successful work in the "Zong Tang" style of the Yuan Dynasty.