When I listened to the rain from a music house during my early youth, the
silk bed curtain was illuminated by candlelight 1. When I listened to
the rain on a passenger boat 2 in the prime of my life, the river was
broad, the clouds were low, and the lost wild goose cried in the wind. Now I
listen to the rain at a monastery. My hair has already turned gray. I finally
realize that joys and sorrows, partings and reunions are relentless changes. Let
the rain in front of the porch falls as it pleases, dripping until daybreak.
1
This sentence describes Jiang's romantic fantasy.
2
The phrase "passenger boat" has two meanings. First, it implies that Jiang
left his hometown and was busy making a living. Second, it implies Jiang thought
living in China under Kublai Khan's rule was like traveling to a a foreign
country and living there as a guest.