Five-Character Regulated Verse: On the Zhangguan Road[1]

(1947)

Morning mist fills the jade-like firmament[2],

Warhorses neigh in the north wind[3].

Dew dampens the dust, hard to stain[4],

Frost shrouds the crows, unstartled[5].

Battle dress is like iron armor,

Beard and brows equal silver ice.

Hesitating[6] on the Zhangguan Road,

As if traveling beyond the frontier[7].

[1] On the Zhangguan Road: In mid-March 1947, Hu Zongnan commanded over 140,000 Nationalist troops in an offensive against Yan’an, the seat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. On the evening of March 18, Mao Zedong led the Central Committee organs in evacuating Yan’an. Subsequently, they maneuvered through Yanchuan, Qingjian, Zichang, Zizhou, Jingbian, and other counties in northern Shaanxi. Zhangguan Road was a route traversed during this period of mobile warfare.

[2] Jade-like firmament: i.e., jade heavens, referring to the sky.

[3] Warhorses: here referring to battle steeds. Neigh in the north wind: emitting long neighs amid the howling north wind.

[4] This line describes how cold dew dampens the loess earth, making it difficult for dust to stain clothing.

[5] This line describes how military uniforms, dampened by mist and dew, freeze into ice, becoming as heavy and stiff as iron garments.

[6] Hesitating: pacing back and forth without advancing.

[7] Beyond the frontier: remote border regions. Here referring to the areas north of the Great Wall in our country.