Li Bai (701-December 762), whose name was Taibai, was named Qinglianjushi, also known as “The Immortal”. A great romantic poet in the Tang Dynasty, he was hailed as “The Immortal of Poetry” by future generations, and he was called “The Immortal of Poetry” together with Du Fu.
子夜吴歌
（夏歌）
镜湖[1]三百里，
菡萏[2]发荷花。
五月西施采，
人看隘若耶[3]。
回舟不待月，
归去越王[4]家！
《夏歌》写的是西施，她具有更深一层的美丽。她的美就像是湖中竞开的荷花，明明镜湖三百里，却因她太美，以致前来看她的人群使若耶都变得狭隘。然而西施的命运却是如此令人感慨，同样是由于她倾国倾城的美，“回舟不待月，归去越王家”。
注释：
[1]镜湖：位于今浙江省绍兴市东南。
[2]菡（hàn）萏（dàn）：荷花的别称。古人将未开的荷花称为“菡萏”，即花苞。
[3]若耶（yē）：若耶溪，今浙江省绍兴市境内。溪边原有浣纱石古迹，相传西施曾在此浣纱，又名“浣纱溪”。
[4]越王：即越王勾践。
Ballads of Four Seasons
(Summer)
On Mirror Lake outspread for miles and miles,
The lotus lilies in full blossom teem.
In fifth moon Xi Shi gathers them with smiles,
Watchers o’erwhelm the bank of Yoya Stream.
Her boat turns back without waiting moonrise
To royal house amid amorous sighs.
“Summer Song” is about Xi Shi, who has a deeper level of beauty. Her beauty is like the lotus flowers blooming in the lake. The mirror lake is three hundred miles long, but because of her beauty, the crowds that came to see her made the city of Ruoye narrow. However, Xi Shi’s fate is so touching. It is also because of her stunning beauty that “she returned to the boat without waiting for the moon, and returned to the King of Yue’s house.”
