Paiwei Back Alley

[Romanized:]
Meng hui pai wei hou xiang zui bu qi yan de jie jiao
Shui chang che dui de men kou zhe tiao xiang shi wo de ghetto
Yi zhuan yi wa yi mu yi liang wo ba zai zhe li chu sheng
Wo ye zai zhe li zhang da wo jia zai zhe tiao jie hou

Nai nai kai mu li ba ba ta zha cheng bing
Wu jiao qian yi ge yi ge quan dou huan cheng mi
Zuo zai tian tai de lou ding na shi wo hai bu zhi dao
Wei shen me ma yi shi yong lai xing rong wo he ni

Lin ju shuo nv hai mei yong zhang da le ye xu zuo tai
You ke neng zhuan de bi tou zai shen shang de duo
Wo xiang wo ma san lun che li mian de di tan huo
Shi wu kuai san jian huan ji ge kuai can juan

Ta bei zhe wo hai shi shi jin cai hai shi shi jin cai
Cai guo le er qiao cai dao gu jie luo jiao
Cai guo chun xia qiu dong cai guo hao ji ge si ji
Cai dao wo neng mo fang jia chang de zi ji

Wu yue de feng hai zai jing qiao qiao di chui
Shi ta de yan jing zong shi gei wo an wei
Ru guo ni jian guo ta qian wan bie han wo ming zi
Gao su ta wo jin de shou zhi neng yong ge ci huan yin zi

Wu yue de feng hai zai jing qiao qiao di chui
Ta zai liu yue li chu sheng ta shi tian shang shui
Gen zhe ta de dao lu ta de jiao yin
Zou chu pai wei hou xiang shi ta de jiang li

Xiao shi hou wo zui tao yan de di fang ye shi zhe li
She chong shu yi zai guo li wan li
Man shen shi xue de ren zuan jin si hu tong
Hou mian you ren zhui ta shen shang si ge ku lou

Shi bai yi mi bu de xia tian zai bai zhi deng xia
Jian bu de guang de ta men si zai shui pen li
Suo yi suo you de zheng chao wo dou jia zhuang ting bu jian
Wo xiang li kai zhe li wo yi ding yao qu xin shi jie

Dan shi qing chun qi jiao ni pin fu de cha ju
Wo tou na shi wu zai xiao mai pu li
Mei ren zhi dao wo pa diu ren
Shang xue lu shang you ge yu yi zai kao jin
Bei an zai qiang shang shi wo shi san sui de lian

Mei ren zhi dao wo pa diu ren shen me dou bu shuo
Suo yi zhi yao you ji hui wo jiu nie zhe jiao jian gou
Zhi dao mu yi cheng zhou le wo cai neng gou hui tou wang
Hui yi shi shuai bu diao de kou xiang tang zai kou qiang tang

Wu yue de feng hai zai jing qiao qiao di chui
Shi ta de yan jing zong shi gei wo an wei
Ru guo ni jian guo ta qian wan bie han wo ming zi
Gao su ta wo jin de shou zhi neng yong ge ci huan yin zi

Wu yue de feng hai zai jing qiao qiao di chui
Ta zai liu yue li chu sheng ta shi tian shang shui
Gen zhe ta de dao lu ta de jiao yin
Zou chu pai wei hou xiang shi ta de jiang li

Wu yue de feng hai zai jing qiao qiao di chui
Zong shi gei wo an wei
Han wo ming zi
Neng yong ge ci huan yin zi
Hai zai jing qiao qiao di chui
Ta shi tian shang shui
Ta de jiao yin

Shi ta de jiang li

[English Translation:]
I dream of the hidden corners in Paiwei Back Alley,
Where this narrow street by the water plant became my ghetto
My father was born among these old bricks and wooden beams,
And I grew up with my home hidden behind this street

Grandma shucked oysters while dad fried them into pancakes,
Selling them for fifty cents each just to buy enough rice
Sitting on that rooftop, I still didn’t understand,
Why people compared you and me to tiny ants

The neighbors said girls were useless and destined for the clubs,
Claiming we might finally earn more than what was spent on us
I remember the cheap goods loaded in my mother’s tricycle,
Selling three items for fifteen yuan just to afford our meals

She carried me on her back, pedaling as hard as she could
She pedaled past the second bridge until we found a place to rest
She pedaled through the endless seasons, year after year,
Until I was old enough to fend for myself

The May wind continues to blow quietly
Her warm eyes always bring me comfort
If you ever see her, please don’t call out my name
Tell her I can finally trade my lyrics for silver

The May wind continues to blow quietly
She was born in June, pure as the rain from the heavens
I have been following her path and her steady footprints
Escaping this dark alley is the ultimate reward for her sacrifice

As a child, this was the place I hated the most
Pests would crawl through our pots and bowls
I saw a bloodied man rushing into the dead-end alley,
Hunted down by someone carrying the threat of death

We couldn’t hide from the sweltering heat under the harsh lights,
While creatures of the dark met their end in our washbasins
I pretended to ignore all the endless arguments,
Because I desperately wanted to leave and find a better world

Growing up quickly taught me the bitter divide between rich and poor,
Forcing me to steal food from the local corner store
No one knew how much shame I carried inside,
When a creepy man approached me on my way to school,
Pinning my thirteen-year-old face against the cold wall

I kept silent because I was too terrified of the shame
I had to stand on my tiptoes to reach for any chance of escape
I couldn’t look back until my destiny was firmly set,
But these memories are like burning gum that I can never spit out

The May wind continues to blow quietly
Her warm eyes always bring me comfort
If you ever see her, please don’t call out my name
Tell her I can finally trade my lyrics for silver

The May wind continues to blow quietly
She was born in June, pure as the rain from the heavens
I have been following her path and her steady footprints
Escaping this dark alley is the ultimate reward for her sacrifice

The May wind continues to blow quietly
It always brings me comfort
Please don’t call out my name
I can trade my lyrics for silver
The wind continues to blow quietly
She is the rain from the heavens
I am following her steady footprints,
And this is her ultimate reward