| Multiple poems at a time |
Those officers of the [old] capital,
With their hats of Tai leaves and small black caps! --
Those ladies of noble Houses.
With their hair so thick and straight! --
I do not see them [now],
And my heart is dissatisfied.
Those officers of the [old] capital,
With their ear-plugs of xiu-stones! --
Those ladies of noble Houses,
Each fit to be called a Yin or a Ji! --
I do not see them [now],
And my heart grieves with indissoluble sorrow.
Those officers of the [old] capital,
With their girdles hanging elegantly down! --
Those ladies of great Houses,
With their [side] hair curving up like a scorpion's tail! --
I do not see them [now],
[If I could], I would walk along after them.
Not that they purposely let their girdles hang down; --
The girdles were naturally long.
Not that they gave their hair that curve; --
The hair had a natural curl.
I do not see them [now],
And how do I long for them!
【Source】 The English translation text was taken from The Chinese Classics, vol. 4 by James Legge (1898) and checked against a reprinted edition by Wen Zhi Zhe chu pan she (Taiwan, 1971).