Because of the Imperial System, I Am in the Palace Prison, Guards Approach, I May Not Have the Temperament to Endure Much Longer, May Not Be Able to Say Good-Bye to My Brother Ziyou, So I Compose There Two Poems and Give Them to a Guard: No. 2
(2)
予 以 事 系 御 史 台 狱， 狱 吏 稍 见 侵， 自 度 不 能 堪， 死 狱 中， 不 得 一 别 子 由， 故 作 二 诗 授 狱 卒 梁 成， 以 遗 子 由
柏 台 霜 气 夜 凄 凄
风 动 琅 珰 月 向 低。
梦 绕 云 山 心 似 鹿
魂 惊 汤 火 命 如 鸡。
眼 中 犀 角 真 吾 子
身 后 牛 衣 愧 老 妻。
百 岁 神 游 定 何 处
桐 乡 知 葬 浙 江 西。
Yu Yi Shi Xi Yu Shi Tai Yu Yu Li Shao Jian Qin,
Zi Du Bu Neng Kan Si Yu Zhong Bu De Yi Bie Zi You,
Gu Zuo Er Shi Shou Yu Zu Liang Cheng, Yi Yi Zi You
(2)
Bai tai shuang qi ye qi qi
Feng dong lang dang yue xiang di.
Meng rao yun shan xin si lu
Hun jing tang huo ming ru ji.
Yan zhong xi jiao zhen wu zi
Shen hou niu yi kui lao qi.
Bai sui shen you ding he chu
Tong xiang zhi zang zhe jiang xi.
Because of the Imperial System, I Am in the Palace Prison, Guards Approach, I May Not Have the Temperament to Endure Much Longer, May Not Be Able to Say Good-Bye to My Brother Ziyou, So I Compose There Two Poems and Give Them to a Guard: No. 2
Cedar Terrace prison with frosty evening air, cold and dreary
Under the moon, winds stir to make the chains move.
My dream clouds coil around mountains, my heart races like a deer
My spirit afraid that my destiny may be like a chicken dunked in boiling water.
My son (in my mind’s eye) as precious as rhino horn
Shameful, I have not enough to take care of my family.
After my death, take an imaginary trip to a place I have personally visited before
Bury me in Tong Xiang, western Zhejiang.