Jiǔzhuō shàng tándào wǎngshì, tā gǎntàn gǔjīn duōshǎo shì.
At the wine table, speaking of the past, he sighed, 'How many affairs from ancient times to now.'
Tips
history
From 杨慎《临江仙·滚滚长江东逝水》 (Ming dynasty), later adopted as the opening theme of the 《三国演义》 TV adaptation. The closing couplet runs 一壶浊酒喜相逢，古今多少事，都付笑谈中 (one jar of cloudy wine at the joy of meeting - how many affairs from old to now, all passed into laughing talk).
usage
Nearly always paired with the closing 都付笑谈中. 多少 here is rhetorical/exclamatory ('how many!'), not a real question. One of the most-quoted philosophical ci lines in modern Chinese.
