The east wind is full of Chongguang, [1]

The fragrant mist is filled with moonlight in the corridor.

I am just afraid that the flowers will fall asleep late at night, [2]

So I burn a high candle to illuminate my red makeup.

The allusion of "Begonia has not slept enough". (Citation from "Taizhen Gaiden")

The last two sentences of this poem go against the norm and compare flowers to beauties, which is refreshing and witty.

This quatrain was written in the third year of Yuanfeng (1080 AD), when Su Shi was demoted to Huangzhou (now Huanggang, Hubei). The first two sentences describe the environment, and the last two sentences describe the love affair. The title is "Begonia", but there is no description of Begonia at the beginning of the painting. This is an irregularity. "The east wind curls" describes the blowing state of the spring breeze, which is adapted from the sentence "the curling autumn wind" in "Chu Ci·Nine Songs·Mrs. Xiang". "Chongguang" refers to the growing spring scenery, with the word "pan" vividly describing the warmth of spring, which creates momentum for the blooming of crabapples. The second sentence describes Begonia in profile, "The fragrant mist is in the air" describes the fragrance of Begonia spreading in the mist, refreshing the heart and mind. "Moon Turns Corridor", the moon has turned over the corridor and cannot shine on the crabapple flowers; it implies that the night is deep and people have no sleep. Of course, you can also read a metaphor from it: living in a remote place, you can never meet King's favor.

"I'm just afraid that the flowers will fall asleep late at night", this sentence is written in a crazy way and is the key sentence of the whole poem. This sentence is a turning point, describing the mentality of flower appreciators. When the moonlight no longer shines on Begonia's beauty, the poet suddenly feels pity: Begonia is so young and splendid, how can we bear to let her live alone in the darkness? This flower that had been quietly blooming after a season of hard work was not appreciated by anyone. Wouldn't it make her very sad and disappointed? It is a quiet night, and I am so lonely that I cannot fall asleep. The flowers are so lonely and deserted that I want to fall asleep. How can I spend this long night alone? No, I am the only one who can listen to the sound of flowers blooming; the only one who can accompany me for a spiritual walk through the night is this lonely Begonia! The word "fear" describes my worry and fear caused by the torment of loneliness, and also conceals my persistence in spending a good night with flowers. The word "only" polarizes the flower lover's infatuation. Now he only has the bright smile of the flower in his heart, and all other unhappiness can be temporarily written off: this is a kind of "selflessness" and "selfless" detachment. realm.

The last sentence goes a step further, elevating the love of flowers to an extreme. "Gu" corresponds to the word "only for fear" above, which means doing something deliberately, showing the poet's special liking for Begonia. This sentence uses the allusion of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty using Yang Guifei's drunken appearance as "Begonia has not slept enough", and uses flowers as a metaphor for people, and the hint is integrated into the chant without any trace. "Burn the High Candle" is a distant successor to the "Moon Corridor" mentioned above. This is a wonderful contrast. The moonlight seems to be too jealous of the brightness of the blooming begonia, so mean and unkind, refusing to show it to her. A beautiful stage; then let me use a high-burning red candle to drive away the darkness of this long night for her! The poet's chivalry and kindness are vaguely visible here. "Shine in red makeup" echoes the three words "flowers fall asleep" in the previous sentence, which expresses the beauty and charm of Begonia. The words "burn" and "photograph" on the surface express my love and care for flowers, but in fact they can't help but reveal a little bit of the melancholy of a relegated life. He wants to gain detachment from pain in the "plaything" (flower viewing), even if it is just a moment of detachment. Although the flower is in full bloom, it is a step towards decline. Although the flower of the spirit is far away from the soil of reality after all, who can stop him from his positive attitude of living a life of his own way and enjoying himself? ?

The language of the whole poem is simple but profound. The poet Zha Shenxing of the Qing Dynasty said: "This poem is highly appreciated by the common people, but I am not of old age." When he wrote this poem, although the poet was already over 40 years old, this poem does not give people a sense of decadence or malaise. From the bright images of "east wind", "chongguang", "fragrant mist", "high candle" and "red makeup", we can clearly feel the poet's optimism and unrestrained mind.