Men Far-Away On a Long Journey
夫 远 征
赵 卒 四 十 万
尽 为 坑 中 鬼
赵 王 未 信 赵 母 言
犹 点 新 兵 更 填 死。
填 死 之 兵 兵 气 索
秦 强 赵 破 括 敌 起
括 虽 专 命 起 尚 轻
何 况 牵 肘 之 人 牵 不 已。
坑 中 之 鬼 妻 在 营
髽 麻 戴 绖 鹅 雁 鸣；
送 夫 之 妇 又 行 哭
哭 声 送 死 非 送 行。
夫 远 征
远 征 不 必 戍 长 城
出 门 便 不 知 死 生！
Fu Yuan Zheng
Zhao zu si shi wan
Jin wei keng zhong gui
Zhao wang wei xin zhao mu yan
You dian xin bing geng tian si.
Tian si zhi bing bing qi suo
Qin qiang zhao po kuo di qi
Kuo sui zhuan ming qi shang qing
He kuang qian zhou zhi ren qian bu yi.
Keng zhong zhi gui qi zai ying
Zhua ma dai die e yan ming.
Song fu zhi fu you xing ku
Ku sheng song si fei song xing.
Fu yuan zheng
Yuan zheng bu bi shu chang cheng
Chu men bian bu zhi si sheng!
Men Far-Away On a Long Journey
Four hundred thousand Zhao soldiers
Met their fates in the middle of an ambush.
The Zhao king did not heed the warnings of his mother
He sent reinforcements with new weapons who got wiped out.
So many lives found failure even though heavily armed
Our enemies also rose up to defeat the Qin and Qiang armies.
Although General Kuo concentrated his smaller battalions
His mercenaries were not ready and able to take the field of battle.
Many of the soldier’s wives did what they could to help from their camp
Wearing their mourning clothes and hair buns, under honking wild geese.
Women continued to cry as more of their husbands were sent off to die
Their weeping sounds certain that those dispatched will not return.
Now our soldiers must defend the long city walls of the capital
Going out our gates, no one knows who will live and who will die.