Colored threads can hardly catch the pearls upon her face;
The ancient stains on the Xiang River have grown faint.
Before her window stand a thousand bamboo stalks—
Can she tell if fragrant traces mark them too?
English titles, text, and notes are AI-assisted for reading only; for scholarship cite the Chinese and authoritative editions.
Annotation
The third verse concludes with the Xiang River spotted bamboo legend. 'Ancient stains on the Xiang' directly references the tearstained bamboo myth. The Naiad's House where Daiyu lives is filled with bamboo, suggesting she, like the ancient consorts, lives in tears. The three verses progress from the emotion of the gift, to tear-stained face, to the bamboo metaphor—deepening in emotional resonance.
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