A thousand miles of mountains and rivers form the imperial state,
Ninefold gates stand tall at the palace wall.
Who knows the emperor's majesty without seeing his grand abode?
The royal seat lies where Xiaohan's strategic pass holds sway,
From Pleasant Wild to Dragon Mount, domains in due array.
Five planets align, their shadows near the starry way,
Eight rivers flow across the land's axis they convey.
Qin's frontier forts, one hundred twenty strong,
Han's detached palaces, thirty-six, stretch long.
Cassia halls face jade towers, high and sheer,
Pepper rooms, deep and fair, link chambers gold and dear.
Three boulevards, nine lanes grace the city's bend,
Myriad doors and households open as day begins.
Covered ways slant to Magpie Tower's sight,
Crossroads point straight to Phoenix Terrace's height.
With swords and shoes, they enter South Palace's gate,
With pins and tassels, from North Gate they congregate.
Their fame crowns the world, far and wide,
Cultural relics shine like stars in tide.
By Hook Array, orchid steps stand solemn and grand,
In jade ponds,槐市's reflection floats over the land.
Bronze weathervanes turn with the wind's command,
Golden stems hold dew-vessels, tall they stand.
Texts collated in Tianlu Pavilion's room,
War practiced by Kunming Lake's watery gloom.
Vermilion mansions rival Terrace's high view,
Yellow gates lead to relatives' avenue.
The Terrace and relatives' lane, with lofty walls entwined,
Feast on gold and jade, await the bell's call to dine.
Small halls with silk drapes, three thousand households' line,
Broad roads with blue towers, twelve layers in design.
Canopied carriages, carved saddles, horses with gold reins,
Orchid windows, embroidered pillars, jade dragons' remains.
Embroidered pillars, jade lintels, on white walls they glow,
Clang of gold, chime of jade, where nobles' splendors show.
Nobles and dignitaries, mostly the sovereign's aide,
Roam north lanes at morn, south neighbors at night's shade.
Lu Jia shared gold for feasts of delight,
Chen Zun threw linchpins to keep guests all night.
Zhao and Li passed by in intimacy deep,
Xiao and Zhu bonded close, their friendships keep.
Vermilion walls of Red Phoenix City fade in twilight hue,
Blue oxen, azure canopies through red dust pursue.
Knights with pearl pellets by willow-shaded way,
Singing girls with silver hooks on mulberry paths stray.
Singing houses' peach and plum bloom fair on their own,
Capital's roaming knights in light furs are widely known.
Yannian's sister, two phoenixes enter the scene,
Luofu's envoy returns with a thousand horsemen keen.
Hearts united in braided strands they weave,
Branches interlaced in woven clothes they leave.
Spring morn, cassia wine cups hold flavors a hundredfold,
Autumn night, orchid lamps shine with ninefold light untold.
Green screens and beaded curtains not alone in glow,
Clear songs and precious zithers in harmony flow.
Let's speak of thirty-six thousand days as they appear,
Who knows the faults of forty-nine years?
Since ancient times, glory and gain like fleeting clouds drift,
Life's ups and downs, truly hard to sift.
First see Tian and Dou's power shift and vie,
Soon hear Wei and Huo's deeds rise high.
Jinling's aura not yet spent, its force still near,
Stone coffin's text first opens, omens clear.
Vermilion gates no longer host Lord Zhang,
Who at Ba Pavilion fears General Li's gang?
Gazing at a hundred years, all await their fate,
Suddenly, all transformations change their state.
Cassia branches' fragrance has long decayed,
Where now is Boliang's high banquet displayed?
Springs come and go, in bitter haste they race,
Striving for fame and gain, a futile chase.
Long staying in low posts, no chance in sight,
Sweeping the minister's gate, who sees your plight?
Once in luxury they basked, proud and grand,
Boasting their pride would last a thousand years on land.
Suddenly, borne by wind, wings grew in flight,
In a moment, waves lost, they sank in sand's blight.
Yellow sparrows vainly nest in cassia trees,
By Blue Gate, they turn to melon-planting with ease.
Gold melts away, white silk changes its hue,
Friendship shows when high and low bid adieu.
Rosy cheeks of yesteryear now white-haired and new,
Coarse rice and hemp cloth make old friends seem few.
Old friends sink into oblivion's deep,
New acquaintances lack spirit to keep.
Han Anguo's ashes dead, cold and still,
Zhai Tingwei caught in net, wounded at will.
Enough! Let it be, away I'll go.
Sima Xiangru left Shu, with literary glow,
Yang Xiong served Han, but no good媒 to show.
Three winters' pride, deemed talent enough in sum,
Ten years unpromoted, how many turns become?
Ji An's firewood piled higher with each day,
Sun Hong's pavilion remained shut, no way.
Who pities the Tutor of Changsha's plight,
Alone bearing Luoyang's talent, out of sight?