WU WENYING (c.1200-c.1260)

Not much is known of Wu Wenying's life. He came from Siming (today's Yinxian, Zhejiang Province), but lived mainly in the cities of Suzhou and Hangzhou, in each of which he kept a concubine. He worked in the Grain Transport Office, as a private secretary, and received royal patronage from Prince Rong. He was a prolific poet, and three hundred and fifty of his ci form lyric poems survive. He was a very personal poet and wrote extensively about his two concubines.
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To the Tune of "Wind Entering Pine Trees"

Listening to wind, listening to rain, I spend the Clear Brightness Day,
sad while drafting an inscription for buried flowers.
In front of the tower greenness darkens the road where we parted.
A willow twig pulls out an inch of soft feelings.
In cold spring I get drunk
till Oriels wake me from my morning dream.

In the west garden I sweep the pavilion in the trees each day.
I still appreciate a new day of sunrays.
Wasps again and again fly to the swing's ropes,
for once
the leaf fragrance of her tender hands froze there.
I feel despair for the absence of her two mandarin duck shoes.
The steps drown in moss overnight.

        ---Translated by Tony Barnstone and Chou Ping