Song Dynasty
青玉案·凌波不过横塘路
凌波不过横塘路，但目送、芳尘去。
锦瑟华年谁与度？
月桥花院，琐窗朱户，只有春知处。
飞云冉冉蘅皋暮，彩笔新题断肠句。
试问闲情都几许？
一川烟草，满城风絮，梅子黄时雨。
Translation
Her light steps never came down the road to Hengtang; I could only watch the fragrant dust of her departure. With whom will she spend her splendid years? Moonlit bridges, flowered courtyards, latticed windows and red doors—only spring knows where she is. Clouds drift slowly; evening falls over the fragrant marsh. With a colored brush I have just written lines of heartbreak. If you ask how much this idle sorrow is: it is a riverbank of misty grass, a city full of windblown catkins, and rain falling when the plums turn yellow.
Analysis
This is one of He Zhu’s most celebrated ci poems, famous above all for its final line: “a riverbank of misty grass, a city full of windblown catkins, and rain when the plums turn yellow.” The first stanza centers on distance. The woman’s light steps never pass along the road to Hengtang; the speaker can only watch her departure. The elegant spaces—moonlit bridge, flowered courtyard, latticed window, red door—suggest a world of beauty that remains closed to him. “Only spring knows where she is” turns the woman into an unreachable presence hidden within seasonal beauty. The second stanza internalizes this scene. Evening gathers over the fragrant marsh, and the poet writes new lines of heartbreak. The final question gives the poem its brilliance: how much sorrow is there? Instead of answering abstractly, He Zhu offers three images. Misty grass spreads without boundary; catkins fill the city in confusion; plum-season rain falls endlessly. Together they translate emotion into landscape. The poem is not loud in grief, but its imagery makes longing feel expansive, restless, and continuous.
About the Author
He Zhu, courtesy name Fanghui and literary name Qinghu Yilao, was a Northern Song ci poet associated with Shanyin and later Suzhou. Known for his strong character and unsuccessful official career, he nevertheless became highly respected as a lyricist. His work combines boldness and delicacy: he could write with heroic force, but also with intricate imagery and subtle emotional depth. “Green Jade Cup: She Did Not Pass Hengtang Road” is his most famous graceful lyric, and its phrase “rain when the plums turn yellow” earned him the nickname “He Meizi.”