Xuanji’s love poems are often in the form of letters to her lovers, among whom Wen Tingyun and Zi’an (Li Yi) were also well-known poets, so they wrote poems in response to each other, as was a popular practice among Chinese literati at the time. Wen was one of the most prominent Tang Dynasty poets, and a number of his poems could have been read as his letters to her. Zi’an, the man who ‘kept’ Xuanji for a short period as his concubine, was a successful official but a lesser poet, and none of his love poem letters to her were passed down to later generations.

To Zi’an, Looking out across Han River in Sorrow

Yu Xuanji (844–871)

Myriads of maple leaves

upon myriads of maple leaves

silhouetted against the bridge,

a few white sails return late in the dusk.

How do I miss you?

My thoughts of you run

like the water in the West River,

flowing eastward, never-ending,

day and night.

To Wen Tingyun

Yu Xuanji (844–871)

The crickets chirruping in confusion

by the stone steps, the crystal-clear

dewdrops glistening on the tree leaves

in the mist-enveloped courtyard,

the music floating from the neighbors

under the moonlight, I look out, alone,

from the high tower to the far-away view

of the lambent mountains. The wind chilly

on the bamboo mattress, I can only express

my sadness through the decorated zither.

Alas, you are too lazy to write a letter

to me. What else can possibly come

to console me in the autumn?

Letter to Zi’an across Han River

Yu Xuanji (844–871)

The south of the river looking,

looking across to the north

of the river, sorrowfully,

in vain. We keep on missing

and thinking of those moments

of reading our lines to each

other. Inseparable mandarin ducks

nestling on the warm sandbar,

and teals flying in pairs

through the tangerine groves,

a mist-enveloped song

barely audible in the dusk,

the moon shines gloomily

on the ferry. Alas, I am so far

from you, as if stranded

at the other end of the world,

feeling all the more unbearable

with the sound of the families beating,

washing their clothes in the river.

A number of Xuanji’s love poems to Zi’an present her standing by the river. While working at an official position somewhere else, Zi’an was also watched by his wife who was madly jealous of Xuanji, and he could not come down the river for her.

To a Girl in the Neighborhood

Yu Xuanji (844–871)

You cover your face with the silk sleeves,

bashful in the sunlight, too languid

to apply make-up in the worries

of the springtime. Alas, it is easier

to find an extremely valuable treasure

than a true-hearted lover.

Weeping against the tear-soaked pillow

at night, you suffer a heartbreak

walking in the midst of the flowers.

With a handsome talent like Song Yu

beside you, why should you feel bitter

about a cold-hearted Wang Chang?