#✘一梦江湖 | A Dream of Jianghu

[auvaluciano631]

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I'm in the mood where I miss playing A Dream of Jianghu (一梦江湖) and I'm having extreme loner-boner moments thinking about my beloved 姜疏. So I decided to poke fun of the fact that, in the game, you can beat up certain NPCs on the map to hire them for your manor. Since I can't date such a minor character in the game, might as well kidnap (beat him in a fight to get hired into the manor) him over and over again as a form of courting.

Chinese Version (Pending; A friend helped me with the translation!)

[extraordinarilyextreme]

Zeng Shunxi's Goodbye to Fang Duobing

Original video on Weibo:

去岁初夏逢君¹盛² Last year, at the beginning of summer, I met the flourishing you. 今朝花落²梦方醒 Now, as the flowers fall, Fang wakes from his dream. 故事到此收笔 This story has since reached its end, 但人生还长 But life still goes on, 江湖路远 And the roads of the jianghu stretch far. 意气江湖正道³安 The spirit of the jianghu lies in following the correct path; 风华正茂⁴是少年 At life’s blossoming is the youth. 愿将来的方小包 I wish that the future Fang Xiaobao 经历风雨⁵ Will forge through wind and storms 不忘少年初心⁶ Without forgetting the original aspirations of his youth. 走遍人间 Even after walking to the ends of the mortal world, 仍有他路可寻 There remain other roads that can be sought for. 山高��长见日光⁷ The mountains are lofty and the rivers are long; everyday, may you see the light of the sun; 始终不忘少年样 And from the beginning to the end, may you not forget your younger self. 前路存知己⁸ The road ahead harbors the one who knows your heart, 江湖有相逢 for in the jianghu, there exist reunions. 于道各努力⁹ Work hard on every path you take; 千里自同风⁹ Even separated by a thousand li, he and you are buffeted by the same wind. 方多病 Fang Duobing, 希望你不服众望¹⁰ I hope you will not disappoint everyone’s expectations, 成为下一个传奇 And become the next legend.

Detailed explanations (footnotes) under the cut!

Any mistakes are my own.

1. 君 is a formal and literary way to say “you.” It can also be used to refer to lords, monarchs, rulers, etc. 

2. Note the juxtaposition of 盛 “flourishing” (also: splendorous; vigorous; blooming) and 落 “falling” flowers.

3. The 正道 can also be understood as the “orthodox path.” In Buddhism, it is the right way: it is the path of correct principles and of doing the right things.

4. 风华正茂 is an idiom that simply means “in one’s prime.” I chose to invoke imagery that would call back to the beginning two lines about flowers.

5. 经历风雨 is an idiom that means “to go through thick and thin.” 

6. 初心 is a commonly invoked theme in such coming-of-age stories (which this thematically may as well be, for FDB) and translates literally to “the heart at one’s beginning.” For FDB, it would mean keeping his principles of justice and goodness in mind, no matter what he goes through.

7. 山高水长 can be an idiom that describes one’s personality and/or character. This line can also be understood as praising FDB’s noble and optimistic/positive character (见日光: seeing sunlight; sunny-dispositioned; always looking on the bright side).

8. 前路存知己 is very similar in phrasing to a line from Tang Dynasty poet Gao Shi’s 《别董大》 (Farewell to My Friend Dong): 

莫愁前路无知己 Worry not, on the road ahead, that you will lack someone who knows your heart. 天下谁人不识君  Beneath these skies, who will not know your name?

If you watched 《说英雄谁是英雄》 Heroes (2022), this line will probably be familiar.

9. These two lines come from the end of Song Dynasty poet Zhou Xingji’s 《送友人东归》 (Sending My Friend to Return East), which I believe laments the pains of a long-distance friendship. The lines that ZSX has quoted here essentially encourages FDB to continue working hard on the life path he has chosen, despite how the sadness of separation can feel unbearable, for even if he and his friend (LLH) are a thousand li apart, they will ultimately reach the same goal and destination.

10. I thought it was interesting that he uses 服 and 望, because the phrasing is very similar to LLH’s letter at the end of the series, when he apologizes to DFS (终有服君之所望): “I have failed you ultimately.”

[freisende]

Faraway Wanderers (天涯客/Tian Ya Ke) Audio Drama Season 2 Ending Song - Wandering for Spring Faraway (天涯寻春/Tian Ya Xun Chun) Lyrics & Translation

Youtube Music Lyric Video: here

📌Original Production Team ℗ 2021 猫耳FM:

•Vocal Solo: Kē Mùqīng (柯暮卿)

•Composer: Wáng hányīlín (王韩伊淋)

•Lyricist: Míng huáng (冥凰)

•Arranger: Lǐ Dàbái (李大白) & Dèng jié len (邓杰len)

•Guitar: Dà Niú (大牛)

•Harmony Vocals: Wáng Hányīlín (王韩伊淋)

•Mixing Engineer: Zhǎng Yuān (长渊)

•Supervisor: Gūgū (咕咕)

•Executive Producer: Māoěr FM (猫耳FM)

——————————————

Wandering for Spring Faraway

Lyrics:

Verse 1:

客行天涯谁敌谁友

Kè xíng tiān yá shéi dí shéi yǒu 

十载烟云一杯酒

shí zài yān yún yī bēi jiǔ 

身似飞絮过江南锦绣

shēn shì fēi xù guò jiāng nán jǐn xiù 

冰消后 

bīng xiāo hòu

花月遥对平江柳 

huā yuè yáo duì píngjiāng liǔ 

Pre-chorus 1:

江湖一醉大梦三秋

jiānghú yī zuì dà mèng sān qiū 

人心善恶只为情仇

rén xīn shàn è zhǐ wéi qíng ch��u

却不忘萍水知交许白首

què bù wàng píng shuǐ zhī jiāo xǔ bái shǒu 

Chorus:

不过蓬蒿旧梦

bù guò péng hāo jiù mèng 

自在余生 懒知欢与恨

zì zài yú shēng lǎn zhī huān yǔ hèn 

偏要刀剑交锋 

piān yào dāo jiàn jiāo fēng 

把盏笑问 慰这孤独人

bǎ zhǎn xiào wèn wèi zhè gūdú rén 

渺渺黄泉 只葬狂嗔

miǎomiǎo huáng quán zhǐ zàng kuáng chēn 

茫茫鬼蜮 谁为谁掌灯

mángmáng guǐ yù shéi wèi shéi zhǎng dēng 

此处长明 有红尘

cǐ chù cháng míng yǒu hóngchén 

Verse 2:

万鬼成窟 寸光微漏

wàn guǐ chéng kū cùn guāng wēi lòu 

一面惊鸿白衣瘦

yī miàn jīng hóng bái yī shòu 

倾心日久薄衾胜貉裘

qīng xīn rì jiǔ báo qīn shèng háo qiú 

如厮守 巴山夜雪也暖昼

rú sī shǒu bāshān yè xuě yě nuǎn zhòu

Pre-chorus 2:

玉壶冰心辗转谁手

yù hú bīng xīn niǎn zhuǎn shéi shǒu 

情丝剥尽才知剔透

qíng sī bō jǐn cái zhī tī tòu 

最不忍一眼春风难如旧

zuì bù rěn yī yǎn chūn fēng nán rú jiù 

Chorus:

不过蓬蒿旧梦

bù guò péng hāo jiù mèng 

自在余生 懒知欢与恨

zì zài yú shēng lǎn zhī huān yǔ hèn 

偏要刀剑交锋 

piān yào dāo jiàn jiāo fēng 

把盏笑问 慰这孤独人

bǎ zhǎn xiào wèn wèi zhè gūdú rén 

渺渺黄泉 只葬狂嗔

miǎomiǎo huáng quán zhǐ zàng kuáng chēn 

茫茫鬼蜮 谁为谁掌灯

mángmáng guǐ yù shéi wèi shéi zhǎng dēng 

此处长明 有红尘

cǐ chù cháng míng yǒu hóngchén 

Last Chorus:

不过 天光一缕

bù guò tiān guāng yī lǚ 

生死几轮 何幸付热忱

shēng sǐ jǐ lún hé xìng fù rè chén 

哪管 前尘旧闻

nǎ guǎn qián chén jiù wén 

是假是真 心动有余温

shì jiǎ shì zhēn xīn dòng yǒu yú wēn 

迢迢风崖 无可容身

tiáo tiáo fēng yá wú kě róng shēn 

痴痴人间 从不止方寸

chī chī rén jiān cóng bù zhǐ fāng cùn 

天涯解剑 好寻春

tiān yá jiě jiàn hǎo xún chūn

English Translation:

Verse 1:

Wandering faraway; who is the enemy and who is a friend of the wanderer?

During these ten years of mist and clouds along with a cup of wine,

This body is like a fluttering silk flying through the beautiful city of Jiangnan;

After the ice melts, the flowers and the moon are far away facing towards the willows of Pingjiang river.

Pre-chorus 1:

Intoxicated in a drunken dream of three autumns[1] in the Jianghu,[2]

The good and evil of the human heart are solely for love and grievance,

Yet still not able to forget the promise with a lifelong friend to age old together…

Chorus:

Yet like this ancient dream of grasses,

Now unrestrained for the rest of lifetime, too apathetic to know pleasure and regrets.

Only longing to engage in a battle of dancing with swords,

Holding a cup of wine, inquiring with a smile to comfort this solitude man.

Deep madness and anger merely buried in the vast Underworld,[3]

Yet who is the one holding the lantern in the spectral ghost valley and for whom?

Here in this place forever, exists the mundane world[4] with eternal light.

Verse 2:

Ten thousand ghosts fill through the opening of the light ray exposure;

Turning to one side, there is the lean, graceful white robe of a certain person.

Enchanted and fell in love after long days, even a thin quilt feels much warmer than a raccoon fur coat. 

As long as we stay together, even the cold, snowy night in Bashan feels as warm as it does during the day.

Pre-chorus 2:

Whose hand is it that passes right through the jade pot of an icily cold heart?

Not unless this thread of love is plucked out [5] that the truth can be clear;

The most unbearable thing to look at is the fact that this spring breeze will never be the same anymore.

Chorus:

Yet like this ancient dream of grasses,

Now unrestrained for the rest of lifetime, too apathetic to know pleasure and regrets.

Only longing to engage in a battle of dancing with swords,

Holding a cup of wine, inquiring with a smile to comfort this solitude man.

Deep madness and anger merely buried in the vast Underworld,

Yet who is the one holding the lantern in the spectral ghost valley [6] and for whom?

Here in this exact place forever, exists the mundane world with eternal light.

Break:

But through this one ray of light,

How fortunate to be able to pay back this passion surrounding several rounds of life and death?

Yet who cares about those past events?

Truth or false; this heartbeat clearly still lingers with warmth!

Last Chorus:

The wind peak cliff is far away; there is no place to shelter in,

This foolish world is never limited to a square inch.

Unsheathing the sword, wandering for good spring in faraway.

——————————————

*Translator's Notes:

The literal title of this song is “Looking for Spring in the End of the World”, but I translated it more in Faraway Wanderers’ version: “Wandering for Spring Faraway”.

[1]: Chinese proverb, one day like three autumns: missing someone (most cases, lovers) felt eternally long, even one day feels like waiting three autumns to pass. 

[2]: Jianghu, refers to Chinese wuxia, xianxia world (the martial arts world)

[3]: literally written “The Yellow Springs”, which means the Underworld (where the dead go in the afterlife)

[4]: Red dust means mundane world

[5]: in my opinion, can also refer to the phrase “tug/pluck at one’s heartstrings” which means to stir up emotions. 

[6]: Ghost den, but in case of Tian Ya Ke I would like to translate it as valley :D

*Jiangnan, Pinjiang are the names of region in China.

Don't forget to check the Youtube Music Lyric video here.

Thank you for reading. Have a good day!

Navigation: ✤ For translations, here. ✤ For more discussions and perspectives, here. ✤ Read my fics here! (●'◡'●) ✤ For meme, here! If you like my writing, please consider giving me a tip through Ko-fi! 😊 ✤ More information (commission, messages, requests): Carrd

[liberty-or-death]

铁马冰河 Armoured Horse Icy River; SVSSS' Luo Binghe's Name and Blood of Youth's Li Hanyi's sword. (Storm on the Eleven Month Fourth Day 十一月四日风雨大作 by Lu You 陆游)

When I first watched 少年歌行 Blood of Youth, I was thought Li Hanyi’s sword 铁马冰河 Armoured Horse Icy River sounded awfully familiar.  It took me half the series to realise that I was also looking at SVSSS’ 洛冰河 Luo Binghe’s name quite literally LOL.  In fact Icy River = Binghe.  IT WAS RIGHT THERE. 🤦🏻‍♀️

The “Storm on the Eleven Month Fourth Day 十一月四日风雨大作” was written by the poet Lu You 陆游 in 1192. He was living in the countryside of his hometown, Shanyin, after his dismissal from the government in the 16th year of the Southern Song Dynasty (1189 AD). The poet was 68 years old at that time, but his strong desire to improve the country was impossible for him to come to fruition in reality, so on a "stormy" night, his feelings arose, and he realised his wish of galloping to the Central Plains in his dream.  Throughout his life, Lu You wrote 11000 poems but he’s known for his various patriotic poetries, and this was one of his more famous pieces.  

风卷江湖雨暗村，四山声作海涛翻。

The wind has swept across the Jianghu.  Rain has fallen on the the village, seemingly dimming it.   There is the sound of wind and rain from all four sides of the mountain, like the waves rolling over the sea.

溪柴火软蛮毡暖，我与狸奴不出门。

The bundles of firewood from Ruye Stream and the felt wraps around me to keep me warm.  I stay at home with my cat. 蛮毡 This was a type of felt that was produced in the Southwest China and some areas in the South.

僵卧孤村不自哀，尚思为国戍轮台。

Living in a poor and lonely village; I’m not sad over the state I’m in.  In my heart, I have still have thoughts about guarding the frontiers for my country.

戍轮台 This was a common defensive structure in Xinjiang during the ancient times. 

夜阑卧听风吹雨，铁马冰河入梦来。

Night is coming to an end as  I lay in bed and listen to the storm outside.  I dreamt that I was riding an armoured warhorse across a frozen river to the northern frontier.

风吹雨 This is literally translated as “listening to the wind blowing the rain” but I’ve summed it up as the storm in my translation.  This is an allusion to turmoil within the Song Dynasty’s court, which was why the poet couldn’t sleep at night.

Analysis

I think 铁马冰河 Armoured Horse Icy River’s sends a pretty obvious image; it’s that of someone charging into war.  In the case of Blood of Youth, this sword was supposed to be one of the most powerful in the Jianghu.  So it is indeed a very pretty name. 

In the case of SVSSS, it’s also a fitting name for a protagonist of a stallion novel.  I’m guessing MXTX wanted a name that sounded like the lead character of an action novel lol.  His surname 洛 Luo does sound like the River Luo, or it could a possible wordplay on the word 落. Luo (ie. His name would be “Fallen into the Icy River” which was where hew as found). However, I felt that it could also be a reference to the river goddess 洛神 Luo Shen who was known for her beauty and her love story.  I’ve previously analysed a famous poem that describes her.  Perhaps MXTX wanted a “softer” surname to balance out his name XD

Additional Links

Li Hanyi's Name

More Blood of Youth Meta

Poetry Analysis

[5water-kohaku]

One of these days, I need to make a creepy guy.

[mtkay13]

"That day at the Prince's estate, I dreamt of that mountain of peach blossoms, of shixiong telling me how we would roam the jianghu together. I thought if I died, I would be content, even if it was just a dream... Now, if I die here, I would have done right by Sir Jiang--no longer afraid of not having the face to meet Xiao Xue by the Yellow Springs."

The text above is a retranslation, by me and @bluemorningsoup, of Jiuxiao's last words in Qi Ye.

Original quote :

我那日在王爷那梦见满山的桃花，还有师兄说带我一起浪迹江湖，觉得死了也满足了，虽然只是个梦……而我若死在这里，也算对得起蒋大人了，不怕下了黄泉没脸见小雪。

Now allow me a few words about this. I had the opportunity to discuss at length both with my 姐 and with Bichen about whether or not Jiuxiao had reached closure by the end of Qi Ye, and what were his feelings towards Zishu at that moment. I think that, taking these final words as a reference, he did, within the context of the battle, feel that high, that enlightening galvanisation that made him feel at peace. I would say that him referring to the peach blossoms dream isn't so much about clinging to a past, dream-like version of Zishu, rather than an acceptance of something still worth cherishing within him (Zishu) that he will not let go of. Jiuxiao remained himself, or became himself again -this heroic, lofty self- despite how crushing his last interactions with Zishu and Beiyuan were.

I think that, beyond the reality of Zishu's actions, it is Zishu showing signs of panic and anxiety that really marked and stuck with Jiuxiao. It is the moment Zishu steps down from being his shixiong to being a vulnerable human being; and if anything should have made it hard for Jiuxiao to reach closure, I would argue that it's precisely this. Something happened within Zishu, but what exactly? I think Jiuxiao is lucid enough to realise that it's neither guilt nor remorse-- and thus, I can picture him thinking about this and wanting more, wanting to know and understand, figure out what Zishu is thinking, his actual perspective rather than what he let show. I think that this glimpse of humanity is part of what allowed Jiuxiao to cling onto that dream, though. Once it became obvious that the chances of communicating about this again were running low, Jiuxiao would have eventually let go, at peace with this dream of his, because he felt deep down that it wasn't... fake. It was a dream worthy of bringing along in death.

[shanhelingmoving]

How does a person become haunted? The same way a house does. Through love, through anger, through grief. Oh, but what is grief, if not the ghost of love?

↳ Haunt Me – @poetryoutloud​

用情太真不可碰 / Affection is too deep to be touched 放不下所有的回忆都像 一场孤梦 / Can’t put down all of the memories, they’re all like a lonely dream 江湖几番沉沦枉为余生 / Jianghu repeatedly sinks into vice, in vain for the rest of life 是否辜负几人才会让梦 起了风 / How many must be let down, to let dreams be picked up by the wind 恍然之间都成见证 / Suddenly, in between, it all becomes a testimony

↳ 孤梦 (Lonely Dream) – 张哲瀚 / translation mine

[hunxi-guilai]

曲尽陈情 QUJINCHENQING / A FULL EXPLANATION

INTRODUCTION:

曲尽陈情 Qujinchenqing (spotify link here, YouTube link here) is the fifth track on the CQL companion album, and the first track that is not an iteration of 无羁 Wuji. It is Wei Wuxian’s character song, and performed by Xiao Zhan.

The song’s title involves several layers of wordplay—first, 曲尽 qujin on its own means “to exhaustively detail,” and is part of the chengyu 曲尽其妙 qujinqimiao, which Pleco glosses as “to bring out (a quality, point, etc.) in a subtle and skillful way.” The chengyu has its origins in Lu You’s 《文赋序》 Wenfu Xu / “Preface to the Rhapsody on Language,” where he uses it to describe the ability of the text to both thoroughly describe and brilliantly render the subtle excellence of literary performance. Meanwhile, 陈情 chenqing is a fairly complex binome that I get into in this post. Its literary definition, derived from the 《楚辞》 Chuci, means “to give a full account/to explain oneself fully.” Pieced together, the song’s title then becomes something along the lines of “to give a full account in an exhaustive and detailed manner.”

Alternatively, the characters 曲尽 qujin can be broken down into “song” and “end,” and as such, a plausible alternate song title might be “by song’s end, a full account.” Since this song is functionally Wei Wuxian’s autobiography, this interpretation of the song’s title plays on both the medium and the content. Pushing the language even farther, and taking the 陈情 chenqing of the title to refer to Wei Wuxian’s ghost flute, one might conceivably go so far as to interpret this title as “songs end with Chenqing,” which resonates nicely with the phrase 陈情一曲领天下 Chenqing yiqu ling tianxia / “a song from Chenqing commands all under heaven.”

PRODUCTION STAFF:

Lyricist: 易者连消醉清酒 Yizhe Lianxiao Zuiqingjiu

Composer: within_轶名

Arranger: 向往 Xiang Wang

Mixing / Mastering: within_轶名

Operatic Voice: aki 阿杰

Additional Voices: 阿南sara

Flute: 囚牛 Qiong Niu

Recorder: 浩渺天心_刘宇航 Haomiao Tianxin_Liu Yuhang

Producer: 黄喜Luffy Huang/within_轶名

Supervisor: 黄喜Luffy Huang/王鑫 Wang Xin

Performed by: 肖战 Xiao Zhan

LYRICS + TRANSLATION:

纵棹趁夜风小眠 / I man the oars, setting sail with the night wind, then rest

载一舟江烟 / carrying a boat of river mists

晚来揽星归 / I return late, with an armful of stars

摘片柳叶[1]吹彻天边 / I pick willow leaves and blow them to the sky’s edge

展开泛黄的纸鸢 / Spreading the wings of a yellowed kite,

回首旧人间 / I look back on a world before

江灯飘遥远 / Red lanterns drift away

往事随波如又一篇 / Past affairs, like waves—a new one washes to shore

高台倚栏前 / On a high platform, I leaned against the railing

衔杯观花满长街 / raising a cup, I watched as flowers filled the street

玄武洞天 / In the Xuanwu’s cave,

也曾浇血洗剑 / I once washed my sword with blood

讥评堪过耳 / I endured mocking words and criticisms

心本勇绝何惧人言 / If my heart is courageous, why should I fear the words of others?

纵入火海[2] / Even should I sink into an ocean of flames

仍抱怀垂怜 / I would still harbor this hope of helping the world in my heart

也曾笑夺酒坛 / I once laughed, stealing a jar of wine

剑挑姑苏十里春[3] / teasing Gusu’s spring wind with my sword

无关生死事 / I didn’t think about affairs of life or death

老来尽作江湖诗中人[4] / just imagined that I would be known in poems of the jianghu when I passed

窗外玉兰影深 / Outside the window, the shadows of the magnolia flowers deepen—

前生是梦还是真 / was this past life a dream, or reality?

隔世春秋后 / A world later, springs and autumns later,

昔年因果皆是“曾听闻” / the events of past years have all become “I once heard…”

身陨不夜天 / I fell at Nightless City

谁信年少无虚言 / Who would believe that, in my youth, my words were not empty?

为义之诺 / For a promise of righteousness

也曾削笛舍剑 / I once carved a flute and discarded the sword

流言任在前 / Though rumors still swirl before me,

丹心犹热[5]何须来辩 / this righteous and loyal heart still beats—what need is there for debate?

世事皆千人 千言千面 / The affairs of the world, retold by a thousand people, have a thousand names, wear a thousand faces

也曾惊鸿过眼[6] / I once caught a glimpse of a startled swan,

指���轻挑卷云纹 / teasing lightly at curling cloud embroidery with my fingertips

无端引弦震 / For no reason, I would provoke the strings to quake—

缘何梦中深记那一瞬 / why do I remember that moment so vividly in dreams?

树下落英纷纷 / Beneath the trees, flower petals scatter—

此刻是梦还是真 / is this moment a dream, or reality?

偕行云游后 / After our wanderings together

世外江湖皆是“据传闻” / stories of us in the jianghu become “according to legend…”

丹心何须言在口 / With a loyal heart, what need is there to constantly speak it out?

横笛闲吹落星斗[7] / I raise my flute, playing idly until the stars fall

使我徒有身后名 / Even if my name were to live on after death

不如及时一杯酒[8] / that would be no match for a cup of wine right now

也曾怀拥人间 / I once held the mortal realm in my heart

使我独享一枝春[9] / which made me, alone, appreciate a single sprig of spring

无关生死事 / I don’t think about affairs of life or death—

缘何尽作江湖诗中人 / why not become a character in jianghu poems?

门外声浅影深 / Outside the door, sounds are few, the shadows deep—

相逢是梦还是真 / is our meeting a dream, or reality?

隔世春秋后 / A world later, springs and autumns later,

前生因果终会落成痕 / the events of my past life will eventually settle, leaving behind only traces

ANNOTATIONS:

[1] Willows, and their leaves, are commonly associated with 1) beautiful women, and 2) parting/farewells in the Chinese literary tradition.

[2] 火海 huohai, literally “oceans of flame,” is the second half of the chengyu 刀山火海 daoshan huohai—“mountains of daggers, oceans of flame.” It is used to describe trials of great difficulty in the vein of “crossing mountains made of daggers and fording oceans of flame.” As far as I can tell, it traces its origins to an early, Eastern Han 安士高 An Shigao translation of a Buddhist text , 《佛说鬼问目连经》—the particular line is “我一生已来，或登刀山剑树地狱。或堕火坑镬汤地狱,” which isn’t quite “oceans of flame” but gets very close.

[3] I’ve opted for a moderately literal translation here; full literal for 剑挑姑苏十里春 would have been something along the lines of “using my sword, I tease ten li of Gusu spring” (a li is a unit of distance, roughly half a kilometer) which makes no semantic sense, so thanks for that, Wei Wuxian. Some baidu-sleuthing brought me two poems: the first, 《春》 “Spring” by contemporary poet 冯唐 Feng Tang contains the lines “十里春风，不如你” / ten li of spring winds cannot compare to you. Looking farther back, there’s 《赠别二首·其一》 “Two Poems, Presented at Parting” by Tang Dynasty poet 杜牧 Du Mu, which contains the lines “十里春风扬州路，卷上珠帘都不如” / ten li of spring winds along the Yangzhou roads / pearl curtains, rolled up—none can compare to her. As far as I can tell, the evocation of “ten li of spring [winds]” is a 歇后语 xiehouyu (a particular subspecies of Chinese idiom where the first, spoken phrase implies a second, unspoken phrase) of sorts: both poems use the imagery of “ten miles of spring winds” to refer to the object/intended recipient of the poem, a person of great beauty. The first line of each of the three choruses in Wei Wuxian’s song refer to Lan Wangji.

[4] These two lines deserves a little detangling, I think: a fuller translation of 无关生死事，老来尽作江湖诗中人 might be “Regardless of affairs of life or death, [I imagined] that, by the time I died in my old age, I would be known as a character in the poems of the jianghu” (the jianghu, for anyone new to the wuxia/xianxia genres, refers to the liminal fantasy space where martial sects reign and roving heroes go on grand adventures). This line hearkens back to a younger, pre-Sunshot Wei Wuxian and those sunlit days in Gusu before the war came for all of them. Becoming a legend, to be immortalized in poems written about the jianghu, is a sentiment that resonates with the Jiang sect’s origins as a sect of 游侠 youxia / wandering heroes or knight-errants, and the corresponding connotations thereof.

[5] I translated 丹心犹热 as “this righteous and loyal heart still beats,” but literally, here, it’s more like “this righteous and loyal heart is still warm”—i.e., he’s not dead yet, don’t write him off so soon. The point is, his heart is still functioning, so I swapped out warmth for still beating because that’s a literary usage we’re more familiar with in English.

[6] 惊鸿过眼 jinghong guoyan, as far as I can tell, is a variation on the chengyu 惊鸿一瞥 jinghong yipie, literally “startled swan, fleeting glimpse,” or, teased out a bit, “the fleeting glimpse of a startled swan taking flight.” The chengyu evokes the feeling of barely catching a glimpse of something moving quickly out of the corner of your eye, but the sight still leaving behind a deep impression of beauty. The origin of this chengyu seems to lie in 曹植 Cao Zhi’s 《洛神赋》 “Rhapsody of the Luo River Goddess,” referring to said ethereally beautiful goddess. Once again, Wei Wuxian is referring to Lan Wangji.

[7] The way I’ve translated this line is a bit ambiguous—does his playing cause the stars to fall out of the sky? Or is he playing all night, such that the stars fall out of the sky by dawn? It’s a little less ambiguous in the original—he’s pulling a flute-sponsored all-nighter, until the stars fall below the horizon again and normal people get up.

[8] Wei Wuxian recites these same two lines in episode 29 of the show, quoting a passage from the 《世说新语》 Shishuoxinyu, a text from the Northern and Southern Dynasties, about a literati and civil servant who famously gave up his government post in favor of returning to his hometown and the delights of the alcohol and cuisine there.

[9] “A sprig of spring,” for the record, is a very faithful translation of 一枝春 yizhichun. It’s an ambiguous but evocative phrase that is usually used to describe a spray of plum blossoms (plum blossoms being one of the 岁寒三友 suihansanyou, the “Three Friends of Winter,” known as a symbol of beauty blooming in the face of adversity, among other virtuous traits). The point here is that, in addition to comparing him to spring winds and swans, Wei Wuxian is comparing Lan Wangji to plum blossoms.

ONCE MORE WITH CLARITY VERSION:

I man the oars, setting sail with the night wind, then rest

carrying a boat of river mists

I return late, with an armful of stars

I pick willow leaves and blow them to the sky’s edge

Spreading the wings of a yellowed kite,

I look back on a world before

Red lanterns drift away

Past affairs, like waves—a new one washes to shore

On a high platform, I leaned against the railing

raising a cup, I watched as flowers filled the street

In the Xuanwu’s cave,

I once washed my sword with blood

I endured mocking words and criticisms

If my heart is courageous, why should I fear the words of others?

Even should I sink into an ocean of flames

I would still harbor this hope of helping the world in my heart

I once laughed, stealing a jar of wine

teasing Gusu’s spring wind with my sword

I didn’t think about affairs of life or death

just imagined that I would be known in poems of the jianghu when I passed

Outside the window, the shadows of the magnolia flowers deepen—

was this past life a dream, or reality?

A world later, springs and autumns later,

the events of past years have all become “I once heard…”

I fell at Nightless City

Who would believe that, in my youth, my words were not empty?

For a promise of righteousness

I once carved a flute and discarded the sword

Though rumors still swirl before me,

this righteous and loyal heart still beats—what need is there for debate?

The affairs of the world, retold by a thousand people, have a thousand names, wear a thousand faces

I once caught a glimpse of a startled swan,

teasing lightly at curling cloud embroidery with my fingertips

For no reason, I would provoke the strings to quake—

why do I remember that moment so vividly in dreams?

Beneath the trees, flower petals scatter—

is this moment a dream, or reality?

After our wanderings together

stories of us in the jianghu become “according to legend…”

With a loyal heart, what need is there to constantly speak it out?

I raise my flute, playing idly until the stars fall

Even if my name were to live on after death

that would be no match for a cup of wine right now

I once held the mortal realm in my heart

which made me, alone, appreciate a single sprig of spring

I don’t think about affairs of life or death—

why not become a character in jianghu poems?

Outside the door, sounds are few, the shadows deep—

is our meeting a dream, or reality?

A world later, springs and autumns later,

the events of my past life will eventually settle, leaving behind only traces

MORE PL TRANSLATIONS:

masterlist

PL Translations: an introduction

无羁 Wuji

[tofufei]

萧忆情 《如寄》 — A Temporary Stay by Xiao Yiqing

一路大雪纷飞 踏上归程 门外几株桃枝 宛若故人 雪中​​你眉眼如旧 唇角笑意深 一句问候却微微颤著声 The whirling snow falls thick on my journey back home. The few peach blossom branches outside the door remind me of old friends. Amidst the snow you look as ever before, the laugh lines deep. But when you ask how I’ve been doing, your voice trembles slightly.

听你温柔细数 清闲平生 笑我两鬓华发 消瘦几分 只捧起陈年的酒 又一杯满斟 这口酒竟比风雪还要冷 I listen to you softly recount your peaceful quiet life. You laugh how my hair has grayed and how I’ve become a bit thinner. I only lift the aged wine and pour myself another full cup, The wine is unexpectedly even colder than the biting wind.

是不是再多念想挨不过时光利刃 终究化成寒暄三两声 那一年相伴相护的承诺 散作了浮尘 负尽少年心 也未曾负过你深恩 Isn’t it right — regardless of however deep the longing is, it cannot endure the sharp blade of time? In the end it all dissolves into a few words of pleasantries exchanged. The promise from that year past of accompanying and protecting each other has dispersed like dust in wind. Though I might have failed our youthful intentions, I have never betrayed the debt of gratitude I owe you.

如今刀尖造梦 功名渐成 难逃俗世纷争 飘摇红尘 多少次闹市擦肩 将身影错认 灯火阑珊处心似座荒城 Now dreams are forged by the sword; reputation slowly established. It’s impossible to escape from the disputes of this world, to live a free unbound life. How many times have my shoulders brushed a stranger’s on a busy street, and I mistaken them for you? Where the lights are sparse, my heart is a wasteland of a city.

问你经年孤身 又为谁等 却答无心吟歌 琴案蒙尘 轻声叹人不如新 抚眉间折痕 说不忍看我沧桑的眼神 Being alone all these years — I ask — who were you waiting for? You however answer that you’re in no mind to play songs, layers of dust covering the qin table. Softly sighing that we are already old, your hands brush against the wrinkles between my brows, And you say that you cannot bear my eyes filled with traces of hardship.

听人说后来我们都变成江湖传闻 茶楼酒肆里说完一生 你只道昔年情谊皆封存 何必有悔恨 愿前路安稳 不再为旧事执念深 I heard that later we all became jianghu hearsay, In mere teahouses and taverns our whole life’s tale told to the end. You only say our feelings of the past are all safely locked away, why feel regret? Wishing for my journey ahead to be safe, that I won’t hold onto the past any longer.

回望你执伞伫立雪纷纷 黯然失魂 剑上新穗还留有余温 你知我一心向江湖而生 终为江湖困 人间本如寄 此一生再也无归程 I gaze back at you holding an umbrella, standing still under the whirling snow, dimly panic-stricken. There’s still remaining warmth left on the sword tassel. You know that I came into being in the jianghu and am thus bound by it. We are but passing guests in this world, there won’t ever be a way back home this lifetime.

[watch-grok-brainrot]

Gu Meng Translation

孤梦 - 张哲瀚 [1]

Lonely Dream - Zhang Zhehan

昨夜东风把心吹落到空城

Last night the east wind carried my heart to a deserted city

落入凡尘细无声

Falling silently into the mortal world

几轮指纹刻下年轮的虔诚 [2]

Over how many cycles have fingertips carved the sincerity of passing years？

用情太深不可争

Indisputable, feelings too deep

放不下所有的回忆都像 一场孤梦

All the memories I cannot let go are like a lonely dream

江湖几番沉沦枉为余生 [3]

The many deaths in this world leave this life in vain

是否辜负几人才会让梦 起了风 [4]

Will only disappointing people let this dream scatter?

恍然之间都成见证

Suddenly everything becomes evident

昨日细雨把心困住不由衷 [5]

Last night the drizzling rain trapped my heart with insincerity

空有坚韧亦无用

Futilely tenacious and pointless

几世经纶书写时间的宽容 [6]

Across how many lifetimes have silk threads documented the lenience of time?

用情太真不可碰

Untouchable, feelings too true

放不下所有的回忆都像 一场孤梦

All the memories I cannot let go are like a lonely dream

江湖几番沉沦枉为余生

The many deaths in this world leave this life in vain

是否辜负几人才会让梦 起了风

Will only disappointing people let this dream scatter?

恍然之间都成见证

Suddenly everything becomes evident

离不开所有的回忆都像 一场孤梦

All the memories I cannot leave are like a lonely dream

命运几番纠缠风起云涌

The many snags of fate surges in gathering storms

莫非看透红尘才会让梦 起了风

Must one see through humanity before this dream can be scattered?

霎那之间人去楼空 [7]

In an instant everything is deserted

霎那之间人去楼空

In an instant everything is deserted 

[1] 孤梦 Lonely dream, usually used to describe a mental state of desolation/isolation. 

[2] Literally 年轮 are tree rings. But i’m choosing to translate as passing years. The imagery in this line is really nice because the fingerprints tracing has the character for wheel/cycle but so does tree rings. And fingerprints and tree rings are all details on a surface. So the repetition of the character choice is mirrored by the parallel imagery. I love this line. 

[3] So I really struggled with this line. By characters, it’s something “Jianghu (the Wuxia/Xianxia world) has suffered how many sinkings/oblivions, in vain the rest of one’s life”. Another interpretation of oblivions is death and with the Jianghu stuff and zzs’s story I went with that… and the rest of the life in vain part -- I felt it was ambiguous in the Chinese as to who it was referring to. And I'm glad that sense of ambiguity was preserved. 

[4]起了风 is wind rises which I translated as scattered because in illusions and dreams i get a sense of fog and I extrapolated the imagery. Call it translator’s artistic license. 

[5]言不由衷 means insincerity: words not aligned with inner feelings. Here the last part of the phrase is used but the heart is captured by it. I felt like insincerity still worked so I kept it. 

[6] Silk threads here can also refer to state craft. I thought the original meaning of the words are prettier so I went with it.

[7] Literally “people have vanished and buildings” have emptied and the word empty echoes the word empty in the first line so i translated it with deserted to preserve that mood. 

I have been literally listening to this song on repeat for 2.5 weeks. I LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH! I am IN LOVE with how the song’s stanzas are more or less one giant couplet. Other than the second lines where I didn’t think i could keep parallel sentence structures, I tried to maintain sentence structure parallels in my translation. You can see it here side by side: 

I love this song so much. It just stabs me in all the right ways. I love how it sounds and how soft and gentle it is. It feels like rain falling on a fall day as the trees become bare. It feels like a wind blowing across branches that leaves me shivering in the cold. It feels like disappointment and self loathing and sorrow and all the most melancholic things about fall. I think it captures all the reasons why zzs decided to put the nails in himself and it just kills me. I love love love this song. 

30Mar21 edit: 

1)  昨日细雨把心困住不由衷 should be Yesterday the drizzling rain trapped my heart with insincerity. ope. i didn’t notice the 日 vs 夜 when i was translating. oops. (fixed it in the snip but not in the main text)

2) i’m wondering if scatter should be disperse. i think disperse would be nicer... 

[anambermusicbox]

故事又在催我 做下一个传说

The storyline is urging me once again to leave behind a legend

Zhou Shen in the MV for his new song “I, Jianghu” 《我，江湖》 released on 2021/01/23, an OST commemorating the third year anniversary of the game “A Dream of Jianghu” 《一梦江湖》

[seventeenville]

JUNHUI FOR THE ADVERTISEMENT OF THE NETEASE MOBILE GAME ‘DREAM OF JIANGHU 一梦江湖’

[youtiaoshutiao]

url song tag meme

task: to form an acronym with your url out of song names

tagged by @seventh-fantasy! thank youuuu ^^ (and i got to know some new songs through you as well! like the douyin song and the thai song).

this is so interesting but my url has so many repeated letters and there are some i seriously can’t think of songs for, so i’m going to be blatantly cheating here D: and I realised I'm just supposed to list the songs but I’m a bit of a 话痨/full of word vomit so please excuse the accidental random self-indulgent rambling ahaha i have lots of feels for songs I like and I actually could go on a lot more lmao :P

-

You Yuan Jing Meng (游园惊梦/Dream in the Garden) by 卡奇社/Carrchy: a really lovely fusion of bossa nova and gufeng [the lyrics/title are taken from a famous scene in the Kunqu opera 牡丹亭/The Peony Pavilion]

One Night In Beijing (北京一夜) by 陈升/Chen Sheng & 刘佳慧/Liu Jia Hui: okay I don’t know why it seems like people always sing this as a joke/laugh at this in karaoke  because every part of this song - the beijing opera elements/the lyrics/the Beijingness of it all gives me chills?!

gU Xiang De Yun (故乡的云/The Clouds of My Homeland) by Fei Xiang/费翔: the lyrics of this song always make me want to weep, even if I’ve never experienced leaving my homeland. This cover by Han Hong/韩红 is one of my faves ever)

Tang Yun (唐韵/Music of Tang) by Tan Jing/谭晶: From the Glory of Tang Dynasty OST, love the references to cultural elements in Tang and the imagery and Tan Jing’s voice is exquisiteeee in this :) Huge feels whenever I listen to it

In Christ Alone written by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend: Haha a bit of a jump from the rest of the songs but this is one of my favourite hymms/worship songs ever, the Gettys and Townend write really rich lyrics

Ai Lang Man De (爱浪漫的/We Who Love Romance) by 羽泉/Yu Quan: A super early work of soft rock duo Yu Quan. I had a huge admiration for Hu Haiquan a few years back and I especially love his lyrics/poetry from Yuquan’s heyday. He wrote this song when he was 19 and it is relatively simple but I love it so, especially because despite its name suggests, the song is actually written about the time his high school clique of friends whose friendship was purely platonic came to visit and stay over at his university and they stayed up late all night talking about life. “我们都是爱浪漫的人 用片刻的幻想筑起心灵的阁楼 我们是爱上浪漫的好朋友 在年轻的夜里品尝着彼此的拥有” I think of this song every time I have heart-to-heart-talks with my own friends and it fills me with such warmth <3

Over You by Cashew Chemists: home country representation!

Song Lin De Di Yu (松林的低语/Murmurings of the Pine Forest) by 凤飞飞/Fong Fei Fei: my favourite Fong Fei Fei song! so melancholic and full of longing in an understated way

Hua Luo Sui (花落随/Follow the Falling Flowers) by 袁耀发/Yuan Yao Fa: This is my favourite gufeng song of all time haha, it’s not packed to the brim with classical Chinese/poetic/historical references like other songs in the genre but it’s just so soft and tender :)

gU Lou (鼓楼/Drum Tower) by 赵雷/Zhao Lei: Zhao Lei is really good (of C-indie/民谣 genre) and this song really makes me want to go to Beijing

The Flow of Jianghu (江湖流/Jiang Hu Liu) by C-BLOCK & GAI: One of the few rap songs I know and (even with my limited understanding of what constitutes good rap) everything from the lyrics to the beat to the mv is amazing

xI Chuang De Yu (西窗的雨/The Rain of the West Window) by 好妹妹乐队/Good Little Sisters Band - Contrary to their name, HaoMeiMei is a male duo also in the C-indie/民谣 sphere. The two of them really love Chinese oldies and it reflects in a lot of their stylistic choices/cover choices. One of my fave songs from them, which they apparently sent to Tsai Qin because they thought she would be a perfect fit (which I concur, but Qin Hao of the duo has one of my favourite male voices too), but alas nothing came out of it. 

Ai (爱/Love) by 小虎队/The Little Tigers: I had an Alec Su phase a few years back hahahaha (still like him alot). This song is just so wholesome and pure and adorable (and has sign language actions too!!)

hOng Dou Ci 2000 (红豆词2000/Red Bean Song 2000) by 南方二重唱/Southern Duet: Lyrics taken from the famous 红豆词 of Dream of Red Chamber, and melody composed by one of Singapore’s most iconic songwriters 梁文福/Liang Wern Fook whom I loveeee and wish more young people know about his works beyond 细水长流. 南方二重唱 is a female duo that I really like too.

-

tagging: @shenmeizhuang @ggongzhu @nocturnalinseoul @travelingstrawberry @endlessthoughtsofafangirl @inmessionante @fwoopersongs (only if you want to hahaha) + anyone else interested!

[auvaluciano631]

Chinese Version below the cut:

---

I'm in the mood where I miss playing A Dream of Jianghu (一梦江湖) and I'm having extreme loner-boner moments thinking about my beloved 姜疏. So I decided to poke fun of the fact that, in the game, you can beat up certain NPCs on the map to hire them for your manor. Since I can't date such a minor character in the game, might as well kidnap (beat him in a fight to get hired into the manor) him over and over again as a form of courting.

Chinese Version (Pending; A friend helped me with the translation!)

[5water-kohaku]

The oldest daughter came along while my baby sister and I were playing A Dream of Jianghu (一梦江湖)

[5water-kohaku]

My baby sister talking to her second daughter while we're playing A Dream of Jianghu (一梦江湖)