Powder falls on Hundred-Flower Isle;
Fragrance fades at the Swallow Tower.
Cluster by cluster, they chase in balls.
Drifting—just like a person with a bitter fate;
Vain attachments, vain talk of romance.
Even grass and trees know grief;
Youth itself has turned white-haired.
Alas, in this life, who gathers and who discards?
Married off to the east wind—spring does not care;
Go where you will—how can I bear to linger?
English titles, text, and notes are AI-assisted for reading only; for scholarship cite the Chinese and authoritative editions.
Annotation
Daiyu's willow catkin lyric in Chapter 70, using the catkin's drifting as a metaphor for herself. 'Drifting, like a person with a bitter fate' directly expresses her feelings about her rootless existence. 'Married off to the east wind—spring does not care' echoes Song dynasty lyrics, depicting the catkin as an abandoned woman cast off by the wind. The entire piece carries Daiyu's characteristic melancholy.
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