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Song of Jiangcheng: Hunting at Mizhou

Su Shi · Song dynasty

Chinese · Pinyin · English
老lǎo夫fū聊liáo发fā少shào年nián狂kuáng,
左zuǒ牵qiān黄huáng,
右yòu擎qíng苍cāng,
锦jǐn帽mào貂diāo裘qiú,
千qiān骑qí卷juǎn平píng冈gāng。
为wèi报bào倾qīng城chéng随suí太tài守shǒu,
亲qīn射shè虎hǔ,
看kàn孙sūn郎láng。

Let an old man show a young man's wildness for once: on the left hand leading a yellow hound, on the right bearing a gray falcon; a brocade hat and a sable coat, and a thousand riders sweeping over the flat ridge. To repay the whole city that follows its governor, let me myself shoot the tiger, and show you a Sun Quan.

酒jiǔ酣hān胸xiōng胆dǎn尚shàng开kāi张zhāng。
鬓bìn微wēi霜shuāng,
又yòu何hé妨fáng!
持chí节jié云yún中zhōng,
何hé日rì遣qiǎn冯féng唐táng?
会huì挽wǎn雕diāo弓gōng如rú满mǎn月yuè,
西xī北běi望wàng,
射shè天tiān狼láng。

Wine warms me, and heart and gall open wide; a little frost upon my temples — what of it? Holding the tally at Yunzhong, when will Feng Tang be sent to me? I will draw the carved bow to a full round moon, and gazing northwest, shoot at the Wolf of Heaven.

Reading notes

苍 refers to a grey hawk, and 孙郎 to Sun Quan. 骑 in 千骑 is read qí in modern Mandarin; some older annotations give jì. The allusions to Sun Quan’s tiger hunt and Feng Tang’s mission express the speaker’s aspirations.