租購 – Bilingual Lyrics Chinese/English

• By: 薛之謙

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on an emotional journey with Joker Xue's "租購" (Rent and Buy), a poignant song that beautifully captures the universal struggles of love and reality in Mandarin Chinese. Through its evocative lyrics and heartfelt melody, you can delve into contemporary Chinese culture and language, learning vocabulary related to urban life, relationships, and deep emotions. The song's realistic narrative and relatable themes make it a powerful and special piece, offering a unique window into the nuances of Mandarin expression and the human experience.

[English]

The setting sun amid the clamor

Stains the curtains red

Swipe the card a few times

Squeeze into the subway and drift home

The rented building

Saving up for years

Only then can we stay

Don’t think about moving again

Happiness has no rules

Renting isn’t necessarily short‑lived

It’s just

I wish

to give her

a home that never changes, no matter how long

to shelter all wanderers so she won’t feel scared

How many people have lived in this room, how many dreams have been chased

Did the stories ever collapse?

Did she eventually find them all?

The home she once yearned for

That person must be unlike me

Feeling insecure, I blamed her

Blame me, right?

Her dream isn’t small at all

Just a roof to shield herself

Through spring, autumn, winter, summer

If none of it counts as home

Listen, I’ll tell you where tomorrow goes

Happiness has no rules

Renting isn’t necessarily short‑lived

It’s just

I wish

to give her

a home that never changes, no matter how long

to shelter all wanderers so she won’t feel scared

How many people have lived in this room, how many dreams have been chased

Did the stories ever collapse?

Did she eventually find them all?

The home she once yearned for

That person must be unlike me

Feeling insecure

Blame me, right?

Her dream isn’t small at all

Bought

Not necessarily forever

Renting isn’t necessarily cheap

Even if we move into a central building

It’s still not as cheap as a few hundred

It’s only a home with you here

Without you, it’s just an empty room

Who can hold the thoughts in my heart?

We probably found them later

The home we once craved

Maybe the story isn’t twisted

There’ll always be another him

But

My heart was left in the house we once rented

But

Can’t rent again a place that has her

home

[Chinese]

落日在喧嘩

染紅了窗紗

打幾次卡

擠地鐵漂流回家

租住的大廈

攢幾年籌碼

才能留下

不去想下次搬家

幸福啊沒有規章

租的未必不漫長

只是

多想

能給她

一個不管多久都不會變動的家

收留所有的流浪不讓她覺得害怕

這間房住過多少人夢過了多少理想

故事有沒有倒塌

後來她都找到了嗎

曾經渴望的家

那個人一定不像我

自卑到責怪她

怪我吧

明明她的夢一點不大

為遮身片瓦

付春秋冬夏

若都不算家

聽我說明​​天去哪

幸福啊沒有規章

租的未必不漫長

只是

多想

能給她

一個不管多久都不會變動的家

收留所有的流浪不讓她覺得害怕

這間房住過多少人夢過了多少理想

故事有沒有倒塌

後來她都找到了嗎

曾經渴望的家

那個人一定不像我

自卑到責怪她

怪我吧

明明她的夢一點不大

買來的

不一定天長

租的不一定就廉價

就算搬進中心大廈

不及幾百租下

有你在才叫一個家

沒有你只是空房

心事有誰能收納

後來我們都找到了吧

曾渴望的家

也許故事不曲折

總會再有一個他

可是啊

心被丟在曾租來的家

可是啊

再租不到能有她的

家

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
home /hoʊm/ A1	noun - the place where one lives permanently, especially as a member of a family or household
rent /rɛnt/ B1	verb - to pay for the temporary use of something, especially a house or land noun - a regular payment made by a tenant to an owner for the use of land or property
happiness /ˈhæpinəs/ B2	noun - the state of being happy; feeling of contentment and pleasure
move /muːv/ A1	verb - to change residence or location; to go from one place to another
room /ruːm/ A1	noun - a part or division of a building enclosed by walls, floor and ceiling
ideal /aɪˈdiːəl/ B2	noun - a principle or value that one strives to achieve adjective - perfectly suitable; representing the most suitable example
dream /driːm/ A2	noun - a series of thoughts, images, or emotions occurring during sleep verb - to imagine or aspire to achieve something in the future
wander /ˈwɒndər/ B2	verb - to move about without a fixed course, aim, or goal
fear /fɪər/ A2	noun - an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous verb - to be afraid of someone or something
inferiority /ɪnˈfɪəriˌɒrɪti/ C1	noun - the feeling that one is lower in status or quality than another person
blame /bleɪm/ B2	verb - to hold someone responsible for a fault or wrongdoing noun - responsibility for a fault or wrong
center /ˈsɛntər/ A2	noun - the middle point of a space or area
empty /ˈɛmpti/ A2	adjective - containing nothing; not filled or occupied
thought /θɔːt/ A2	noun - an idea or opinion produced by thinking
story /ˈstɔːri/ A1	noun - a description of events, real or imagined, told in words
collapse /kəˈlæps/ B2	verb - to fall down or give way suddenly, often because of structural failure
longing /ˈlɔːŋɪŋ/ C1	noun - a strong desire or yearning for something far away or unattained
cheap /tʃiːp/ A2	adjective - low in price; inexpensive
shelter /ˈʃɛltər/ B2	verb - to protect or give refuge to someone or something noun - a place giving protection from danger or the elements