鱼玄机·《赠邻女》英译

羞日遮罗袖，愁春懒起妆。

易求无价宝，难得有心郎。

枕上潜垂泪，花间暗断肠。

自能窥宋玉，何必恨王昌。

To a Neighbor Girl

Yu Xuanji

The shyness of the daytime’s covered

by a silken sleeve;

the melancholy of springtime makes it

hard to rise and dress.

A priceless gem’s more easily found

than a man who has a heart.

Hidden tears on the pillow,

secret sorrows among the flowers;

if one could glimpse a righteous man,

why lament a mere playboy?

（Bannie Chow, Thomas Cleary 译）

Presented to the Girl Next Door

Yu Xuanji

Shying from the sun, I shade myself with gauze sleeves,

Made melancholy by spring, too listless to rise and put on my make-up.

It’s easy to seek a priceless treasure

But hard to find a man with a heart.

I let my tears fall unseen on my pillow,

I am secretly downcast among the flowers.

But if I can steal glances at Song Yu,

Why should I regret Wang Chang? ¹

1. Wang Chang is a name often used for a handsome and elegant lover. The line may also allude to an anonymous yuefu poem that describes a young bride as having every possible good fortune, except for one: “A life of wealth and honor what more could she desire? / She only wishes she had married her eastern neighbor Wang.”

（Jennifer Carpenter 译）