Inscription on Liu Yazi’s *Yilou Memorial Album*[1]

(May 5, 1949)

“By the pond spring grasses grow”; “From empty beams fall swallows’ mud”; “Beyond bamboos, two or three peach branches bloom; in warming spring waters, ducks are the first to know.” On May 5, 1949, Mr. Liu graced my humble abode with his visit, and we discussed the above poetic lines together. I write this as a memento.

[1] On May 5, 1949, Mao Zedong, who had just entered Beiping, received Liu Yazi at Shuangqing Villa for a conversation. The two giants of modern poetry talked with great enthusiasm about many poets and poems, ancient and modern. Upon parting, at Liu Yazi’s request, Mao wrote this inscription in his *Yilou Memorial Album*.