The Palace Walls of Taicheng
English translation and interpretation are being reviewed.
六朝如梦鸟空啼。
无情最是台城柳，
依旧烟笼十里堤。
English translation
Fine rain over the river, the river grass grows level, the Six Dynasties are like a dream, birds cry in vain.
Most unfeeling of all are the willows of Taicheng, still veiling in mist the ten-li embankment.
Meaning
The river is blurred with mist and rain, the banks are green with grass; the Six Dynasties are a dream, and only the river birds cry mournfully. Most heartless are the willows of Taicheng, still veiling the ten li of embankment like pale smoke.
Background
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Wei Zhuang lived at the end of the Tang, when the dynasty was in all-around decline; its former splendor had utterly vanished, replaced by the chaos of war and a people with no means of livelihood. In the third year of the Zhonghe era of Emperor Xizong of Tang (883), Wei Zhuang travelled as a sojourner in the south, and after seeing that the glory of Jinling, capital of the Six Dynasties, had been entirely consumed, he wrote this poem to give vent to his feelings.