Zài zhòngduō hòuxuǎnrén zhōng, tā de biǎoxiàn zhēn kěwèi wéi yǒu mǔdān zhēn guósè.
Among all the candidates, her performance truly proved that 'only the peony carries the imperial color.'
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history
From Liu Yuxi's (刘禹锡, Tang dynasty) 《赏牡丹》: 庭前芍药妖无格，池上芙蕖净少情。唯有牡丹真国色，花开时节动京城 — 'The peonies in the courtyard are gaudy without grace, the lotus on the pond is pure but cold; only the peony is the true color of the nation — when it blooms, the capital itself is moved.' This couplet cemented the peony's status as China's 'flower king.'
usage
国色 (guósè) means 'national beauty / color fit for the imperial court' and is the root of the compound 国色天香, another peony epithet. The line is quoted to argue one rival stands head-and-shoulders above the rest.
