tīng听zhēng筝

This poem is about a woman playing the zheng. It uses a story about Zhou Yu from the Three Kingdoms period: Zhou Yu knew music so well that whenever someone played a wrong note, he would turn to look. The woman uses this trick and plays wrong notes on purpose, so that the person she cares about will look at her. Some versions call the poem "The Ringing Zheng". We do not know when or for what occasion it was written.

这首诗写一位弹筝的女子。诗里用了三国时周瑜的故事：周瑜精通音乐，别人弹错了他一定会回头看。弹筝的女子正是利用这一点，故意弹错，好让她在意的人看自己一眼。有的版本题目作《鸣筝》。这首诗的写作时间和具体场合不清楚。

Li Duan, also called Zhengji, was a Tang poet from Zhaozhou, in today's Hebei. Sources disagree on his dates; he lived in the second half of the eighth century. He was one of the "Ten Talents of the Dali Era", ten well-known poets of that period. His poems mostly describe daily life and time with friends. This small, playful poem is his best-known work.

李端（生卒年说法不一，约生活在唐代宗、德宗年间），字正已，赵州（今河北一带）人，唐代诗人，是“大历十才子”之一。“大历十才子”是唐代大历年间十位有名的诗人。他的诗多写日常生活和朋友间的往来，这首《听筝》写得小巧、有趣，是他最有名的作品。

The first two lines paint a picture: shining gold bridges, fair white hands, a lovely room. Everything is delicate. The best part comes in the last two lines. If you play well, no one may notice you. If you play a wrong note, the person who knows music will turn around. So she "every now and then plucks a wrong note", again and again, on purpose. It is a small, sweet trick, charming and a bit cheeky. The poet never says whom she likes. He only tells us she plays wrong notes, and we can guess what is in her heart. The story of Zhou Yu makes her little plan even more fun to think about.

前两句像在画画：金光闪闪的弦柱，白白的手，漂亮的房间，一切都很精致。后两句才是最妙的地方。弹得好不一定有人注意，弹错了，懂音乐的人反而会回头。于是这位女子“时时误拂弦”，一次又一次故意弹错。这是一个小小的心机，又可爱又有点俏皮。诗人没有直接说她喜欢谁，只写了她弹错音，我们就能猜到她的心思。用周郎的典故，让这份小心思显得更有趣、更有味道。