In a remote age, within a river bend surrounded by green mountains, there lay a beautiful, uninhabited island.
In spring, the small island teemed with life—lush green grass sprouted, flowers bloomed on branches, water birds spread their colorful feathers, and sparrows frolicked without a care.
On a radiant morning when the sun cast golden rays, a small boat glided out from a village nestled at the foot of green mountains. Aboard this leaf-like vessel stood a handsome young man, heading to a beautiful island to gather fresh water vegetables. Drifting through the serene landscape, his heart leaped like a joyful fish, light and carefree.
"Tall and short water plants, I pick with my delicate left hand; sparse and dense water plants, I pick with my right hand." Suddenly, a moving song drifted through the thin morning mist, like a gentle breeze skimming the jade-like water, reaching the young man's ears.
“Who is singing with such a captivating voice?” The young man, drawn by the girl's magnetic song, instinctively pulled harder on the oars, eager to go ahead and see for himself.
He discerned a small patch of soft floral fabric ahead, then noticed one or two tiny flowers tucked askew in her hair. Perhaps the sound of his approaching oars startled a snow-white arm and a pair of deep, slightly surprised eyes into view, and the maiden's song fell silent.
This is the first spring harvest, the first time a young man and a young woman meet by chance.
Returning home at dusk, the young man seemed to hear the ospreys calling and saw countless drifting water plants; he felt no fatigue, despite having toiled all day long.
Lying on the hard wooden bed, he replayed the day's events. When he saw her, he was stunned by her beauty. He couldn't bring himself to speak to her—the villagers would mock him. He rowed away, not daring to glance back. As he thought about tomorrow, he tossed and turned, shifting from left to right, then right to left, even moving his pillow to the other end of the bed, but sleep still eluded him.
In the third spring, he and she became husband and wife, building a small wooden cabin on that beautiful island as their home.
Later, the idiom "tossing and turning" came to describe being unable to fall asleep, often due to heavy worries or longing for someone.
Source: *Book of Songs*, "Zhou Nan"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "辗转反侧" came to describe being unable to fall asleep, often due to heavy worries or longing for someone.