The story goes: In the court, there was a General Marquis [1], surname Liu, given name Jie, stylized as Jiecai [2]. He married his wife Lady Gu, took several concubines, and had two sons and two daughters. His eldest son, Kuiguang [3], was now the General Guard of the Yanmen Pass. His second son, Kuibi [4], had not yet begun his official career. He was sixteen years old and good at martial arts. They were both born by his principal wife. His eldest daughter, Yanzhu [5], was married as a concubine to a royal in the Timurid Empire. His second daughter Yanyu [6] was aged fifteen and had not married yet. Yanzhu was also born by Lady Gu, while Yanyu was born by the deceased concubine Lady Wu. Nowadays, Sir Liu took several of his beautiful concubines to live in the capital Beijing. Meanwhile, Lady Gu, his second son Kuibi, and the youngest daughter Yanyu were idly living in Yunnan.
Lady Gu together with her second son
Enjoyed a leisure life in their home
This young master had the nature of a playboy
He would go hunting or play ball throwing whenever he felt like it
Relying on his excellent martial arts, he bullied others
Despite his good-looks, his deeds let down his ancestors
Seeking a good marriage with a talented and beautiful woman
He would not easily settle down his marriage
He heard that in the household of the Minister of War
There was a beautiful daughter sitting in her boudoir
The essays on her table were penned with innovative sentences
Sentences of poems filled her window with traditional references
Causing the goose to fall and the fish to sink, her appearance was truly peerless
Causing pretty flowers to feel ashamed and the beautiful moon to hide, she was indeed matchless
An excellent man like him ought to marry an excellent woman like her, he thought
Admiring her illustrious name made his heart squeeze
He secretly begged his mother to act as an intermediary
Determined to attain this good marriage in this life
The madam loved her son and agreed to his plea
And hurriedly sent a matchmaker to the Meng family
Although Yanyu was the daughter of the Marquis
Few people cared for her as she lost her mother at a young age
Thankfully she had her wetnurse, Jiang the Third
Accompanying her day and night and asking whether she was hot or cold
They lived together in her boudoir like mother and daughter
While the madam did not care for her
Her appearance was pretty and otherworldly
Her personality was tender and extraordinary
She learned bits of classical poems
Her womanly work exceeded that of others
Every now and then, she felt sentimental about her bad fortune and the exhausting work
More often than not, she sighed about her youth and cried with blood and tears
Feeling solitude, she left a shadow on her bed-curtain
Feeling desolate, she stood in the backyard and looked upon the mountain
She prayed for her only wish to come true
To marry a talented and romantic young man
Let’s stop talking about the fair lady Liu Yanyu for the moment
And instead turn to how Lady Gu helped to fulfill Kuibi’s wish
She asked her younger brother Hongye [7]
To speak to the minister Meng Shiyuan:
“I sincerely plead the virtuous young miss in her fragrant boudoir
To willingly to form the tie of this good marriage
Don’t abandon our friendship as the fellow townsmen
Not to mention that this marriage will benefit the beautiful youths [8]
If Your Excellency agrees to this proposal wholeheartedly
We will give betrothal gifts immediately”
Master Gu used to work in the Court of State Ceremonial
He had taken sick leave and returned home for years
He was commissioned to come to the Meng family
To ask the young miss to form ties of good marriage
Putting aside how the marquis family managed to find a matchmaker
Let’s hear what Commissioner-in-chief Tingshan was going to do
He was a good friend of Master Meng
And often invited Master Meng to exquisite banquets in his house
He happened to know that Master Meng had a daughter with both talent and beauty
So he intended to unite her and his son in a joyful marriage
He wrote a letter to request Provincial Administration Commissioner Qin
To go to the Minister’s house to put in a few good words
He was going to ask the gentry girl to be with his son
Hoping that she would like to form ties of this destined marriage
Accepting this request, Master Qin hurriedly rushed onto a sedan
Making his way to the front of the Meng mansion
The Commissioner had given his orders
How could he dare not to make haste?
The fancy sedan went straight to the Minister’s mansion
Passersby dared not get in its way
Approaching the house, Master Qin heard shouts to shoo people away
Arriving, he saw—there was already another sedan being lowered in front of the mansion
[1] The title is yuanrong houjue 元戎侯爵. Yuanrong is a general name for general, while houjue equals the title of Marquis. This title indicates high recognition and praise for their achievements in the field of military affairs. [2] Jiecai 捷才. The name literally means quick thoughts. [3] Kuiguang 奎光. The name literally means star light. [4] Kuibi 奎璧. The name literally means star jasper. [5] Yanzhu 燕珠. The name literally means swift pearl. [6] Yanyu 燕玉. The name literally means swift jade. [7] Hongye 宏業. The name literally means grand achievements. [8] The original text is mei shaonian 美少年 [beautiful youths]. Refers to Meng Lijun and Liu Kuibi. It implies that the squabbling of old townsfolk, rumors, and what they think should be ignored, and that they should instead focus on the situation as a beautiful union of youths.
Here is an error:
Provincial Administration Commissioner Qin—did not GOT up until bowing onto his hands for three times
should be “did not GET up”
Here is a mistake:
One—a suave gentleman adorned with emerald-sleeved garbs and a garland atop his head
The other—a gallant woman suited in embroidered armor and a golden helmet
一個是，金盔繡甲風流客。(男)
一個是，翠袖花冠美貌君。（女）
“emerald-sleeved garbs and a garland atop” is a description for the woman
” in embroidered armor and a golden helmet” is a description for the gentleman