Foreign Modern Literature Volume - Appreciation of Literary Masterpieces

Author: Ouyang Youquan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: One is a middle-aged courtesan from the underworld, and the other is a frustrated official who has sunk in the political world. What brings them together in the resonance of "fellow travelers in the vast world" and compose a mournful and sorrowful "Pipa Xing"? Saying goodbye to a friend on a autumn night is already a heart-wrenching event. At this time, the poet has been exiled to Jiangzhou and is recovering from illness in the remote and desolate city of Xunyang, with few close friends to share his sorrows. Now that his friend is about to leave, it becomes even more unbearable. The light boat has already docked at the shore, and the boatman is ready to untie the ropes and push off. Pour three cups of light wine, fold a bright red maple leaf as a token of farewell, and ask the bright moon in the sky to remember the deep affection of this night, passing the longing to each other across the vast distances. At this moment, the heartbreaking sound of the pipa begins to play. Following the sound, it turns out to be a middle-aged woman on the neighboring boat. Her slightly weary face is marked by the hardships of time, and her dim eyes are filled with the helplessness of understanding the world. However, upon closer inspection, traces of her youthful beauty and elegance are still faintly visible in her every gesture. Who could have imagined that this ordinary woman was once a renowned courtesan in the capital, whose pipa playing won the admiration of countless men! But where has that joyful time gone now? Once the rosy cheeks fade with time, the life of a courtesan falls from the peak of glory to the depths of darkness. No matter how skilled the pipa playing may be, it cannot find a true appreciator in this worldly vanity. Her husband, who is greedy for wealth and profit, is far from a refined person who understands music. Every time she dreams at midnight, she thinks back to her youth, full of arrogance and high hopes, expecting a bright future. How could she have known that her future would be so ordinary and disappointing, so lowly as a yellowed and discarded pearl! The former famous courtesan plays the pipa with fierce indignation, sometimes rapid as rain, sometimes low and sorrowful as tears, sometimes dry and tearful, sometimes gentle as a song. P52