Translating the Romance of the Western Chamber into Modern Chinese

Answer 1

"Romance of the West Chamber"("Cui Yingying Waiting for the Moon in the West Chamber") described the story of the scholar Zhang Sheng (Zhang Junrui) and the prime minister's daughter Cui Yingying, with the help of the maid matchmaker, breaking through the obstacles of Sun Feihu, Cui's mother, Zheng Heng and others, and finally getting married. The following are some of the original texts and translated examples:
- "Flowers fall and water flows red. I'm worried. I'm speechless and complain about the east wind." The falling flowers fell into the water one after another, dyeing the water red. There was an indescribable sorrow in his heart, silently complaining about the merciless east wind. (Red refers to falling flowers.) Worry: an indescribable sorrow.)
- "The precious sword of ten thousand gold is hidden in the autumn water, and the sorrow of the horse in spring is pressed against the embroidered saddle." I am full of talent and learning, but I have not yet achieved my fame. Like a precious sword that hides its radiance, I ride on my horse full of sorrow, as if this sorrow weighed down the embroidered saddle. (The phrase "ten thousand gold" means that one is full of talent but has not achieved fame, just like a precious sword hiding its radiance.)
- "The road to the clouds is 90,000 miles, and the window is full of fireflies for 20 years." The future is as bright as the wings of a roc that can reach 90,000 miles. I have studied hard for many years in a difficult environment. ("Pengcheng Wanli" means a bright future.)
- "Ten years of not knowing the face of the king, only then did I believe that Chanjuan can correct my mistakes." After many years of not being appreciated by the emperor, he believed that a beautiful woman would hinder him from seeking fame. (Chan Juan: A beautiful appearance is often used to replace a beautiful woman. Misleading people: Inducing people to be infatuated and delay their achievements.)
- "Love has touched the heart, and desire has provoked the liver and intestines." It means that the heart is affected by affection. (It means that all the internal organs and six bowels are affected by affection.)
- "A talented woman and a talented man look alike. My eyebrows are thin and thin, and I think of Zhang Chang. Spring is drifting and I think of Ruan Lang." Translator: A man and a woman should match each other in terms of talent and appearance. Seeing a woman's light eyebrows reminded him of Zhang Chang, who drew his wife's eyebrows. Seeing the spring scenery drifting away reminded him of the affectionate Ruan Lang. (Similar: It should match.) Imitation: It's like, it's similar. As if they were equal, matching each other.)
- "The jade skirt embroidered with golden lotuses is small, and the red sleeves are long." A green skirt embroidered with mandarin ducks covered a pair of small feet. She was wearing a red-sleeved dress embroidered with a phoenix with golden silk thread. Her fingers were slender. (The phrase "green skirt" meant that the green skirt embroidered with mandarin ducks covered a pair of small feet. Luan Pin: After the Luan Pin, embroidered with golden silk thread.)

In "Farewell at the Long Pavilion," the main palace, Zhengzheng is good: "The blue clouds are in the sky, the yellow flowers are in the ground, the west wind is tight, and the northern geese fly south. At dawn, who will dye the frost and get drunk in the forest? Always tears of separation." The sky was blue, the earth was covered with yellow flowers (chrysanthemums), the west wind was blowing fiercely, and the wild geese were flying from north to south. In the early morning, who dyed the frosted maple forest so red? Those were tears from others. This short twenty-five-word song combined heaven, earth, wind, wild geese, mountains, forests, and the protagonist into one, painting a vivid and touching picture with colorful colors. It produced a harmonious rhythmic beauty, using the technique of describing the sorrow of parting in ancient poetry to express the sorrow of the protagonist when he left.

There are also such as,"Is it because the steps shake the treasure, is it because the skirt is decorated with flowers, is it because the wind blows in front of the Iron Horse Pond, is it because the night bell in the palace of King Fan?" I am here to listen to the sound of the east wall, but it turns out that the people in the west wing are like silk. He did not want to be a cavalryman with a sword and spear, he did not want to let the monkey mountain and crane fly into the air, he did not want to be arrogant, he wanted his children to whisper in the small window. His thoughts have been poor roots have not been poor, all because of the loss of the female phoenix. Before the other songs were finished, my mind had already understood, and it was clear that the shrike was flying to the west and east. The song of heartbroken clothes is all in silence." The rough translation was,"Could it be the exquisite sound of the steps colliding on the head?" Could it be that the accessories on the dress were making a tinkling sound? Could it be that the wind was blowing the iron horse in front of the pond? Could it be the bell from the temple at night? I was quietly listening to the sound on the east side of the wall. It turned out that the people in the West Chamber were playing musical instruments. He didn't play the majestic sound of the iron cavalry's sword and spear, nor did he let go of the empty sound of the monkeys and cranes, nor did he express the lofty feelings related to romance. Instead, he was like a child whispering under a small window. His feelings seemed to have reached an end, but there was no end. It was all because he was as uncomfortable as a phoenix losing its partner. I understood him before he finished playing, like a shrike and a swallow parting ways. This song made people feel sad, and it was all in silence.

This was only part of the translation of the Romance of the Western Chamber. The original text contained a large number of beautiful and poetic lyrics, and the translation could not fully cover its charm.

The novel "Dream of Silk Fate" is equally exciting. Everyone is welcome to click and read it!