The Complete Dramatic Works of Tang Xianzu
Page 51
The swallows chatter and swiftly fly
While orioles sing their way across the sky.
DU LINIANG:
It’s time to leave.
CHUNXIANG:
There’s more than enough to be seen in the garden.
DU LINIANG:
No more about it.
(Du Liniang and Chunxiang begin to leave)
(To the tune of Quasi-coda)
It’s true that there’s more than enough to be seen,
But what though we visit all the scenic spots?
We’d better find more fun behind the screen.
(They arrive at the chamber)
CHUNXIANG:
“I open doors of chambers east and west
And sit on my own bed to take a rest.
I put azalea in the earthen vase
And add incense unto the proper place.”
Mistress, please take a rest now and I’ll go and see the madam.
(Exit)
DU LINIANG (Sighs):
“Back from a brief spring tour,
I know my beauty now for sure.”
Oh spring, now that I love you so much, what shall I do when you are gone? How dizzy I feel in such weather! Where’s Chunxiang?
(Looks around and lowers her head again, murmuring)
Oh heavens! Now I do believe that spring is annoying. There is some truth about what is written in various kinds of poems about maidens in ancient times, who felt passionate in spring and grieved in autumn. I’ve turned sixteen now, but no one has come to ask for my hand. Stirred by the spring passion, where can I come across one who will go after me? In the past, Lady Han met a scholar named Yu, and Scholar Zhang came across Miss Cui. Their love stories have been recorded in the books The Story of the Maple Leaves and The Life of Cui Hui. These lovely ladies and talented scholars started with furtive dating but ended in happy reunion.
(Heaves a long sigh)
Born and brought up in a renowned family of high officialdom, I’ve come of age but haven’t found a fiancé yet. I’m wasting my youth that will soon pass.
(Weeps)
What a pity that my face is as pretty as a flower but my fate is as dreary as a leaf!
(To the tune of Shanpoyang)
Indulged in springtime passion of all sorts,
I’m all of a sudden roused to plaintive thoughts.
I have a pretty face
And so my spouse must be as good,
With a noble place.
What is there to meet my fate
That I must waste my youth to wait!
When I go to bed, who’ll peep
At my shyness in my sleep?
With whom shall I lie in my secret dream,
Drifting down the springtime stream?
Tormented day by day,
To whom can I say
About my woe,
About my wretched fate?
Only the heavens know!
I feel dizzy. I’ll lean on the table and take a short nap.
(Falls asleep and begins to dream)
(Enter Liu Mengmei with a willow-twig in his hand)
LIU MENGMEI:
“In warm days orioles’ songs ring apace
While man in deep affection has a smiling face.
I chase the fragrant petals in the stream,
To find the fair lady in my dream.”
I follow the footsteps of Miss Du along the path, but how is it that I lose sight of her now?
(Looks back)
Hi, Miss Du! Hi, Miss Du!
(Du Liniang rises in astonishment and greets Liu Mengmei)
I’ve been looking for you here and there. Now I find you at last.
(Du Liniang looks aside without a word)
I just snapped a willow-twig in the garden. Miss Du, as you are well-versed in classics, why don’t you write a poem to honour the twig?
(In happy astonishment, Du Liniang is about to speak but holds back her tongue)
DU LINIANG (Aside):
I’ve never seen this young man before. Why does he come here?
LIU MENGMEI (With a smile):
I’m up to the neck in love with you. Miss Du!
(To the tune of Shantaohong)
For you, a maiden fair,
With beauty that will soon fade,
I’ve been searching here and there,
But alone in chamber you have stayed.
Come with me and let’s have a chat over there, Miss Du.
(Du Liniang smiles but does not move)
(Liu Mengmei pulls her by the sleeve)
DU LINIANG (In a subdued voice):
Where to?
LIU MENGMEI:
Beyond the rose grove,
Beside the mount we’ll rove.
DU LINIANG (In a subdued voice):
What to do, sir?
LIU MENGMEI (Also in a subdued voice):
I shall unbutton your gown
And strip it down.
You’ll bite your sleeve-top with your teeth,
Then make a hug and lie beneath.
(Du Liniang is shy, but Liu Mengmei comes forward to embrace her. She feigns to push him away)
LIU MENGMEI, DU LINIANG:
Is it absurd
That we seem to meet somewhere before
But stand here face to face without a word?
(Exit Liu Mengmei, holding Du Liniang in his arms)
(Enter Flower God with bundled hair, dressed in red and strewn with flowers)
FLOWER GOD:
“The flower god looks after flowers here
And keeps the springtime busy year by year.
When petals fall from flowers in a rain,
The flower gazer starts to dream in vain.”
I am the flower god in charge of the prefect’s back garden in Nan’an. As the prefect’s daughter Du Liniang and the scholar Liu Mengmei are predestined to get married, Miss Du is so affected by her spring tour that she has enticed Liu Mengmei into her dream. I am a flower god to take care of all the beauties in this area, and so I’ve come here to protect her in order that she will enjoy herself to the full.
(To the tune of Baolaocui)
In the surge of earth and sky,
He swirls like a busy bee
And looks into the flowery maiden’s eye.
That is a meeting in the dream,
A wedding in the mind,
An outcome of the fate
That brings defilement of the foulest kind.
I’ll drop a flower petal to wake her up.
(Scatters some petals to the entrance of the stage)
How can they tear themselves away from a dream?
They’ll wake up when the petals gleam.
The scholar is still indulged in his dream, but when he wakes up, he’ll see Miss Du to her chamber. I’ve got to go now.
(Exit)
(Enter Liu Mengmei and Du Liniang, hand in hand)
LIU MENGMEI (To the tune of Shantaohong):
With heaven and earth as our bridal room,
We sleep on grass and bloom.
Are you all right, my dear?
(Du Liniang lowers her head)
Look at her pretty hair,
Loosened here and there.
Please never forget the day when we
Lie together side by side,
Make love for hours and hours,
And hug as man and bride,
With your face red as flowers.
DU LINIANG:
Are you leaving now, my love?
LIU MENGMEI, DU LINIANG:
Is it absurd
That we seem to meet somewhere before
But stand here face to face without a word?
LIU MENGMEI:
You must be tired, my dear. Sleep awhile, sleep awhile!
(Sees Du Liniang to her sleeping position, and pats her on the back)
I’m going, my dear.
(Looks back)
Please sleep awhile, my dear, and I’ll come and
see you again.
“She comes like a gentle rain in spring
And wets me like clouds on the wing.”
(Exit)
DU LINIANG (Wakes up with a start and murmurs):
Are you leaving, my love?
(Dozes off again)
(Enter Lady Zhen)
LADY ZHEN:
“My husband holds high office here;
My daughter stays without much cheer.
Her worry comes from the skirts she wears,
Adorned with blooms and birds in pairs.”
How can you doze off like this, my child?
DU LINIANG (Wakes and calls the scholar):
Oh! Oh!
LADY ZHEN:
What’s wrong with you, my child?
DU LINIANG (Stands up with a start):
Oh, it’s you, Mom!
LADY ZHEN:
Why don’t you, my child, enjoy yourself by doing some needlework or reading some books?
Why are you dozing off like this?
DU LINIANG:
Just now I took a stroll in the back garden, but I was annoyed by the noise of the birds and so I came back to my chamber. As I could not find a way to while away the time, l dozed off for a moment. Please forgive me for having not greeted you at the door.
LADY ZHEN:
As the back garden is a desolate place, my child, don’t go there again.
DU LINIANG:
I’ll follow your advice, Mom.
LADY ZHEN:
Go and study in the classroom, my child.
DU LINIANG:
As the tutor is on leave, I have a few days off.
LADY ZHEN (Sighs):
A girl has her own emotions when she has come of age. I’d better leave her alone. As the saying goes,
“Busy for the children all her life,
A mother always has her strife.”
(Exit)
DU LINIANG (Sighs deeply and watches Lady Zhen leave):
Alas, heavens! I’m lucky enough today. A whimsical stroll to the back garden made me pathetic in spite of the beautiful scenery. After I came back in low spirits, I took a nap in my chamber. In my dream I saw a handsome scholar by the age of twenty. He broke a willow-twig in the garden and said to me with a smile, “Miss Du, as you are well-versed in classics, why don’t you write a poem to honour the twig?” I was about to reply when it occurred to me that I should not speak to him because he was a total stranger and I did not know his name yet. When I was hesitating, he came forward, spoke a few melancholy words and carried me to the Peony Pavilion. We made love there beside the peonies. With mutual passion, we stuck to each other in tenderness. When it was all over, he brought me back and said time and again, “Sleep awhile.” I was about to see the scholar to the door when my mother came and startled me out of my dream. I was wet in cold sweat from my daydream. I made haste to greet my mother and then had to listen to her talk. I kept silent but was still troubled in my heart. I seemed to be sitting on pins and needles, utterly at a loss. Oh, Mother, you told me to go back to my classroom, but what kind of books can bring me relief?
(Covers her eyes with her sleeve and weeps)
(To the tune of Miandaxu)
The youthful joy in love regime
Had reached the verge of dream
When Mother came into the room
And woke me back to my deep gloom.
With cold sweat that soaked my dress,
I was simply rooted to the ground,
My mind and hair in utter mess.
In a sunken mood,
Not knowing how to sit or stand,
I’d go and sleep in solitude.
(Enter Chunxiang)
CHUNXIANG:
“My make-up is undone at night.
With only incense burning bright.”
Your quilts have been scented, Mistress. It’s time to go to bed.
DU LINIANG (To the tune of Coda):
As the springtime tour has tired me out,
There is no need to scent my quilts.
Good heavens,
I wish that pleasant dreams would soon sprout.
A springtime tour from painted halls
Brings near the scent of bloom that falls.
If you should ask where lovers meet,
I say that hearts break where they greet.
Scene Eleven
Madam’s Admonishment
(Enter Lady Zhen)
LADY ZHEN:
“Each day becomes worse than the last;
Each year grows older than the past.
My daughter is deprived of weal,
Who stands before the window seal.”
I had not been to my daughter’s chamber for several days. When I went to see her at noontime, I found her listless and dozing alone in her room. She told me that she felt tired because she had just returned from the back garden. She’s too young to realise that girls should never visit a deserted place in full make-up. That must be all Chunxiang’s fault to give her the temptation. Where’s Chunxiang?
(Enter Chunxiang)
CHUNXIANG:
“A maid who wants a moment’s sleep
Will soon be called to clean and sweep.”
How is it that you haven’t gone to bed at such late hours, Madam?
LADY ZHEN:
Where’s your young mistress?
CHUNXIANG:
After you left her chamber, Madam, she kept murmuring to herself and gradually fell asleep. She must be dreaming now.
LADY ZHEN:
You good-for-nothing! You tempted the young mistress to the back garden. What if something should happen to her?
CHUNXIANG:
I won’t any more.
LADY ZHEN:
Now mark my words.
(To the tune of Zhenghubing)
A girl should stay in her own room,
To work with hands or at the loom.
As far as sewing is concerned,
A stitch more is a moment earned.
In summer when daytime is slow,
There’re lutes to play and books to read;
The garden isn’t the place to go.
CHUNXIANG:
There’re pretty things to see in the garden.
LADY ZHEN:
Let me tell you, ignorant maid,
(To the previous tune)
The garden is a lonely place by day,
With terraces and pavilions in decay.
Even when a mature lady like me has to go there,
I have to hesitate.
What are you girls to do o’er there?
Her luck depends upon her fate.
CHUNXIANG:
What if she’s ill-fated?
LADY ZHEN:
If it comes true
That something should go wrong,
What can her mother do?
As she didn’t have supper today, get her an early breakfast tomorrow. Tell her what I said to you.
In stormy woods the ghosts and demons groan,
CHUNXIANG:
But flower pickers seldom stay alone.
LADY ZHEN:
As pretty maidens have their way of life,
CHUNXIANG:
There are admonishments from Prefect’s wife.
Scene Twelve
Seeking the Dream
(Enter Chunxiang)
CHUNXIANG (To the tune of Yeyougong):
I wash my face at early dawn
And put on hairpins in the morn.
I serve the miss from morn till night
With drowsy eyes in candlelight:
Before the wardrobe,
Beside the dressing-table,
Between the painted screens.
I’m Chunxiang, maid to serve Miss Du. Miss Du has a tutor, who is like a cat watching over the mice. It happens that she was affected by The Book of Poetry and thus chose an auspicious day to have a walk in the back garden to while away the time. Miss Du was just dozing off when the madam dropped in. She scolded
Miss Du and laid the blame on me. I kept silent and then promised never to do that again, but the madam would not let me off and I had to vow and swear.
VOICE WITHIN:
What did you vow and swear, Sister Chunxiang?
CHUNXIANG:
“If I should make trouble again,” I said, “I would never be able to get married.” Although I answered like that, how can a crow control a phoenix? Miss Du tossed and turned all night. She got up early this morning and urged me to fetch water for her to make up. She has been talking to herself all the time till now the sun is shining over the flowers and windows.
VOICE WITHIN:
Hurry up! It’s time for Miss Du to have breakfast.
CHUNXIANG:
“The cook has word for me
To fetch the soup and tea.”
(Exit)
(Enter Du Liniang)
DU LINIANG (To the tune of Yueergao):
Like arching hills on painted screens,
My brows are drawn by various means.
Why couldn’t quilts conceal my care?
The moon doesn’t call for my weary stare.
Isn’t it the fallen bloom
That draws me from my room?
“Among the flowers rose a dream
That drove my thoughts to riotous stream.
I stayed awake with candlelight,
To watch my maid sleep well all night.”
A random spring stroll yesterday brought me face to face with someone in the dream. I fixed my eyes on him as if he had been my true love. When I sit alone thinking over the dream, I feel depressed. How piteous I am!
(In a depressed mood)
(Enter Chunxiang with tea and food)
CHUNXIANG:
“The tray contains pearl-like rice
And fragrant tea of good price.”
Breakfast is ready, Mistress.
DU LINIANG:
I’m not in a mood for breakfast.
(To the previous tune)
I have just washed and done my face
And left the glass not yet in place.
I see life as a total waste;
How can I have a pleasant taste?
CHUNXIANG:
The order from Madam is that you have an early breakfast.
DU LINIANG:
For you to use my mother’s word
To push a hungry soul appears absurd.
Do you know how people eat to keep alive?
CHUNXIANG:
Three meals a day.
DU LINIANG:
Alas,
Not strong enough to hold the bowl,
I’ve had enough as a hungry soul.
Take the breakfast away and have it by yourself.
CHUNXIANG:
“I would prefer the leftover food
To paints and rouge that are no good.”
(Exit)
DU LINIANG:
Chunxiang is gone at last. Oh heavens, the lake and the pavilion in yesterday’s dream were real enough. I tried to relive the old dream but new disappointment ensued. I tossed and turned all night without a moment’s sleep. Now that Chunxiang is gone, I’ll take this opportunity to sneak into the garden and have a look.