Who should now deserve the fame without a fall
And Chen the slaves' king who once wielded
The battle ax of bronze as a call.
Now in the East breaks the day
Before I finish this epic lay.
石头磨过〕把石头磨成石器。石器时代是人类的“小儿时节”。
〔铜铁炉中翻火焰〕指青铜器时代和铁器时代。青铜器和铁器都要用炉火来冶炼和翻铸。
〔不过几千寒热〕这里作六字句，是此调的一体。赵朴初提出，照词律，这里一般是七字句，当作“不过是几千寒热”，可能写漏一个字。青铜器时代和铁器时代只经过几千年，和石器时代经过几十万年不同，说明人类的进化越来越快。
〔人世难逢开口笑〕唐杜牧《九日齐山登高》有“尘世难逢开口笑，菊花须插满头归”，语出《庄子·盗跖》，“人上寿百岁，中寿八十，下寿六十，除病瘦死伤忧患，其中开口而笑者，一月之中，不过四五日而已。”
〔人世难逢开口笑 上疆场彼此弯弓月〕全句指人类过去的历史充满了各种苦难和战争。北宋苏轼《江城子·密州出猎》：“会挽雕弓如满月”。
〔五帝三皇神圣事〕传说中国上古有三皇五帝，具体说法不一，总之都被认为是最高尚最有才能的神圣人物。
Reading History to the tune of Congratulating Bridegroom in Spring, 1964
Ape and man bowed goodbye to disengage;
The human beings' childhood stage
Was but a whetstone in the Stone Age.
In stoves were burning the bronze, iron and steel,
When did man learn the smelting skill?
Thousands of years passed but hot and cold for a while.
In the human world it is hard to find a grinning smile,
Killing his own brethren was man's practice vile.
Alas, the land so fair
Is soaked i blood everywhere.
My hair now is streaked with snow
When a volume is read through, so
I remember nothing but traces a few
Of the past happenings untrue.
Of five Emperors and Three Kings the recorded holy deeds
Deceived countless people, now and then, of all breeds.
How many genuine heroes were there in history after all?
Only, Zi the bandit and Jue the rebel
