by Tang Xianzu
(In a sad mood)
Oops, I feel as if
“The dream displays no phoenix on the wing,
But links the yearning hearts with one tough string.”
(Walks)
Here’s the garden. As luck has it, the gate is left open and the gardener is not here. How the ground is scattered with fallen petals!
(To the tune of Lanhuamei)
This spring has strongly stirred my heart.
High above the garden walls,
The blooms and branches stretch and dart.
(Stumbles)
Oh, the raspberries are pulling at my skirt,
As if they tried to grasp my heart and flirt.
How the streamlet flows!
(To the previous tune)
Why should lovers try to find the same old place?
The blooms and streams must have left a trace.
For flowers, the heavens need not pay a cent
But people cried o’er fallen petals
As lovely spring thus came and went.
(Enter Chunxiang)
CHUNXIANG:
When I came back from breakfast, I lost sight of Miss Du. I have to look for her here and there.
Oh, here you are, Mistress!
(To the tune of Bushilu)
How come my pretty mistress stands
By plum trees with a twig in her hands?
What brings you to this zone
So early in the morn alone?
DU LINIANG:
On the corridor,
I saw the swallows build a nest
And followed them without a rest.
CHUNXIANG:
If Madam comes to you
And finds you out of view,
She’ll say, “Where’s she fooling around?
Where’s she fooling around?”
DU LINIANG (Feigns to be annoyed):
(To the previous tune)
I came here all by chance,
But you suggest I seek after leisure.
CHUNXIANG:
Well, you’re not seeking after leisure, but after pleasure.
DU LINIANG:
Don’t treat me as a child
And say the garden’s wild.
CHUNXIANG:
I dare not be so bold,
But Madam gave the order that
You do more needlework in spring
And scent the paper twofold.
DU LINIANG:
What else did she say?
CHUNXIANG:
This garden is a haunted place.
With ghosts and demons all apace.
Back to your secluded chambers!
Back to your secluded chambers!
DU LINIANG:
Yes, I see. You go first and make promise for me to my mother and I’ll be back in no time.
CHUNXIANG:
“Wild flowers lie unstirred
While caged birds utter many a foul word.”
(Exit)
DU LINIANG:
Now that Chunxiang is gone, it’s time for me to seek my dream.
(To the tune of Teteling)
Here the lakeside rocks are piled,
With the Peony Pavilion lying wild.
There the peonies dot the way,
And the twigs of willows sway;
The elm fruits dangling from the trees
Are mourning in the springtime breeze!
Oh, this is the place where the scholar asked me to write a poem in the name of willow twigs and forced me to make love with him. It’s a long, long story!
(To the tune of Jiaqingzi)
Who was the handsome man
That lured me through the garden tour?
I felt ashamed for sure.
He stroked me, my eyes blurred;
I tried to speak, but without a word.
(To the tune of Yinling)
How enticing the scholar is!
In my previous life I had not been his wife
And never saw him in this life.
In my afterlife I shall be his wife
And dream appears first in this life.
Overcome by his enticing charms,
I left myself in his strong arms.
What a splendid moment!
(To the tune of Pinling)
He leaned against the rocks and stones;
I stood beside him with faint groans.
He pulled me softly to the ground,
Permeated with springtime warmth around.
Above the fence,
Across the swing,
My skirt spread out from hence.
We lay on grass and faced the sky,
But what if heavens should spy?
It was eternal time
When we enjoyed life’s prime.
At the best time of the dream, some petals dropped from the flowers!
(To the tune of Douyehuang)
He grew much bolder
And kissed my shoulder.
I played with him in little haste,
But soon became less graced,
Soft and tender
With a sensual taste.
But floral rains that gleam
Bewildered me in my sweet dream.
Alas, here and there I seek my dream, but I’ve found nothing. The Peony Pavilion, the rose grove, how can they be so desolate! How can they be so lifeless! How the sight breaks my heart!
(Weeps)
(To the tune of Yujiaozhi)
In a place forlorn,
Without pavilions far and near,
How is it that I can neither see nor hear?
In the broad daylight,
I fail to find the dreamland sight.
The visions flash before my eye
And would not linger though I try.
Well, it’s here that we meet and sigh.
Oh that I see my man again!
(To the tune of Yueshanghaitang)
How can I explain
Why he appears again?
Here he comes at leisured pace;
There he leaves without a trace.
He is not far away —
Before the rain and cloud disperse,
Behind the blooms I see him stay.
At this time yesterday,
On this very spot,
I was transformed and went astray.
I’ll stay here for another moment.
(Looks around)
Why! In this lonely place where no one comes, a huge plum tree stands before me, hanging with lovely fruits.
(To the tune of Erfanyaoling)
How can its fragrance spread
And its leaves crown like a shed?
When plums are ripe and rain is clean,
The vernal leaves are thriving green.
How can the plum contain a bitter heart?
I love the shade provided by the tree,
For in my dream I’ll play another part.
Well, the plum tree is lovely indeed. After my death, I would be lucky enough if I could be buried underneath.
(To the tune of Jiangershui)
All of a sudden my heart is drawn
Toward this plum tree by the lawn.
If I were free to pick my bloom or grass,
If I were free to choose to live or die,
I would resign to fate without a sigh.
I’ll risk my life
And weather raging storms
To be your faithful wife.
(Sits down on the ground wearily)
(Enter Chunxiang)
CHUNXIANG:
“She tours the garden in spring days;
Her maid burns incense in court maze.”
Well, Miss Du is dossing off under the plum tree as she is tired from the garden tour.
(To the tune of Chuanbozhao)
How does the plum tree allure
You to end the garden tour?
DU LINIANG:
When l gaze,
When I gaze at the endless skies,
Woe and so
rrow moist my eyes.
(In tears)
DU LINIANG, CHUNXIANG:
Who knows from where the woe arises?
Who knows from where the tear arises?
CHUNXIANG:
What’s weighing on your mind, Mistress?
DU LINIANG (To the previous tune):
How absurd
That we gazed without a word!
I should have held,
I should have held the twig and yelled.
Now I regret,
Now I regret that not a word he did get.
CHUNXIANG:
What is the riddle you have set?
DU LINIANG, CHUNXIANG:
Who knows from where the woe arises?
Who knows from where the tear arises?
CHUNXIANG:
We’d better go back now.
DU LINIANG (Starts to move but stops again):
(To the previous tune)
Spring, stay a while
And linger in exile.
(Birds sing within)
Listen,
Listen to the cuckoo’s song.
Is it true that I can only come —
Come here to see the plum —
In dream or death that will prolong?
DU LINIANG, CHUNXIANG:
Who knows from where the woe arises?
Who knows from where the tear arises?
CHUNXIANG:
Here we are. Let’s go and see Madam, Mistress.
DU LINIANG:
Not now.
(To the tune of Yibujin)
I dragged my weary steps to my own room,
About to greet my mom,
But I alone sleep with bedside bloom.
Where on earth can fairy love be found?
CHUNXIANG:
The tourist’s zeal can hardly be profound.
DU LINIANG:
In dreams my man will show up off and on;
CHUNXIANG:
Eternal woe will ne’er be dead and gone.
Scene Thirteen
Leaving Home
(Enter Liu Mengmei)
LIU MENGMEI (To the tune of Xinghuatian):
Although my learning is beyond compare,
My stomach is empty most of the time,
Filled with dismal air.
In dreams I stalk in the splendid court,
But when I wake up in the hut,
My vision quickly thaws.
“When dragons leave, ink-slabs are dry;
When hares are gone, pen-brushes are bare.
I’ve tried in vain to find a way,
Like a bird that hovers here and there.”
I’m Liu Mengmei, an outstanding scholar in the Guangzhou academy. I have studied hard there for several winters and summers, but now I still have to live in a desolate garden and depend on my gardener for a living. The more I think about it, the more ashamed I feel. I’d better follow Han Zicai’s advice to move to some other county to seek a better living. As the saying goes,
“An empty house provides no food;
The scanty trees don’t brood a good mood.”
Where are you, gardener?
(Enter Hunchback Guo)
HUNCHBACK GUO (To the tune of Zizishuang):
With a curved front and a humped back,
I’m a hunchback.
Like fully stretched bows,
I pose.
To walk with bumble, tumble, stumble,
I’m humble.
To roll down the street like a ball,
I fall.
I am Hunchback Guo, the gardener. My ancestor who followed Prefect Liu to Liuzhou in the Tang Dynasty was also a hunchback. It’s been quite a few years since I followed his twenty-eighth generation descendant, Liu Mengmei’s father, to escape the war and settle down in Guangzhou. Now that I have sold the fruit, I’ll go and greet my master.
(Greets Liu Mengmei)
Hello, Master, how hard you’ve been working on your books!
LIU MENGMEI:
Well, gardener, I’ve something to discuss with you. After twenty years of studies, I still have no hope of getting into office. I think I’m still young, and how can I idle away my time here like this! Thank you for all you’ve done for me: carrying firewood and water for me. Now, all the fruit trees in the garden are yours. Listen to what I have to say:
(To the tune of Guihuasuonanzhi)
All these years I have relied on you:
Such faithful men like you are very few.
Life is hard and food is plain,
But I should owe all this to you.
What am I like in your eyes?
I sit and daydream like a fool all day,
And never give you help in any way.
My very daydream is a shame;
Who else am I to blame?
I’ll leave the garden trees to you;
That is all I can do.
HUNCHBACK GUO (To the previous tune):
For years with you I’ve stayed
And gardening is my family trade.
(Makes a bow)
As a hunchback I’m not of much use,
But I shall do my best without excuse.
By the way, may I ask where you’re going now that you’ve given me the garden?
LIU MENGMEI:
I’d rather go begging with a stick than sit idle and wait to eat at home.
HUNCHBACK GUO:
What do you mean by “go begging with a stick”?
LIU MENGMEI:
That’s another term for “going with the autumn wind”, that is, seeking favour from the rich.
HUNCHBACK GUO:
Good Gracious,
Rather than go begging from town to town,
You’d better study hard to win renown.
LIU MENGMEI:
Do you mean that “going with the autumn wind” is no good? Have you ever heard of the poem “Emperor Wu Goes with the Autumn Wind”? Life is short indeed, but he became the emperor in the end.
HUNCHBACK GUO:
No more of your allusions, Master. Which wind are you going with?
When luck is with you,
The wind will go with you.
When luck is against you,
The wind will go against you.
LIU MENGMEI:
As I’ve made up my mind, don’t try to stop me.
HUNCHBACK GUO:
I’ll pack some clothes for you.
(To the tune of Coda)
I’ll wash and pack your shabby dress;
LIU MENGMEI:
A scholar is a beggar in distress.
HUNCHBACK GUO:
Good-bye, master,
I hope to see you come back with success.
LIU MENGMEI:
I have to wander east and west,
HUNCHBACK GUO:
When blooms on trees are at their best.
LIU MENGMEI:
Where am I to seek the “autumn wind”?
HUNCHBACK GUO:
In spring you’d better pass the imperial test.
Scene Fourteen
Drawing Her Own Image
(Enter Du Liniang)
DU LINIANG (To the tune of Poqizhen):
The man fades with the garden dream;
The gems in chambers hear my soul scream.
Like blooms seen through the mist,
Like moonlight piercing through the cloud,
My precocious emotions will persist.
(Enter Chunxiang)
CHUNXIANG:
My mistress seems to get a troubled heart
And lends her ear to songs of shrikes;
With spring it’s hard for her to part.
DU LINIANG:
“Entangled in affairs I see and hear,
I linger in the dreamland now and here.
CHUNXIANG:
With sorrow painted on her brow,
She knows not where it comes and how.
DU LINIANG:
With endless grief,
In flims
y dress,
I shed teardrops in distress.
DU LINIANG, CHUNXIANG:
The fairy on Mount Wu is hard to depict,
Her fate still harder to predict.”
CHUNXIANG:
Mistress, since your stroll to the back garden, you have never had enough food or sleep. Is it your spring thoughts that make you pine away? Although I am not in a position to give you any advice, I’d venture to suggest that you never go to the back garden again.
DU LINIANG:
How can you get to know my mind! As the poem goes,
“A dream in spring contains the season’s flight;
The morning chill destroys the vernal sight.”
(To the tune of Shuazixufan)
(In a low voice)
When spring departs with chilly pace,
For days I keep a weary face
And sit alone with thoughts in a race.
I’d not have peace of mind
Unless the troubled thoughts declined
And the way of life gets realigned!
For him I smiled with hearty cheers;
In dreams I shed large drops of tears.
CHUNXIANG (To the tune of Zhunu’erfan):
Mistress,
Why has your passion not yet died?
Why have your cold tears not been dried?
It’s clear that the recent garden-tour
Has worn you out with songs of birds for sure.
Just think,
How you will make Madam’s heart sink!
If you go on with this downcast attitude,
Your beauty will be nothing but platitude.
DU LINIANG (In surprise):
Oh, do you mean that I’m utterly worn out? I’ll have a look in the mirror to see what has happened to me.
(Looks in the mirror and feels sad)
Where’s my former beauty! How can I look so haggard! If I don’t paint a picture of myself now to be preserved in the world, who will ever know of my beauty once I pass away? Chunxiang, fetch me some silk, ink and pen, and then watch how I paint.
CHUNXIANG (Goes off and re-enters with silk, ink and pen):
“It’s easy to paint a scene in springs,
But hard to paint how her heart stings.”
Here’s the silk, ink and pen.
DU LINIANG (In tears):
I’m painting a picture of myself at the age of sixteen. Why should things come to this!
(To the tune of Putianle)
My beauty in its fullest prime
Is spent within a few days’ time.
It’s true that youth can hardly last,
But why does it dissolve so fast?
There have been beauties in the world
Who pined away at early age, I’ve heard.
I’ll calm my burning soul
And wield the drawing pen
To paint my beauty on a scroll.