Stories in poetry

A Tree Awaiting Spring

Ku Wuji · AI Writing · A Tale of Marvels in an Ancient Setting · Complete · 1 chapter · 0 reads

Nineteen-year-old An Huai takes over his father’s post as a gardener. His first assignment is to coax the imperial garden’s early plum blossoms into bloom within ten days. The charcoal fire burns fiercely, yet the roots crumble at a touch. The steward asks only when the flowers will open; the fine silk his father sends seems to offer another way out. As the banquet draws closer, one word on the flower inspection report still awaits his brush.

This work was created by AI, inspired by the poetic imagery of He Xun’s “咏早梅 / 扬州法曹梅花盛开” (Ode to Early Plum Blossoms / Plum Blossoms in Full Bloom at the Judicial Office in Yangzhou). The characters and plot are fictional, and the narrative takes place in an imagined ancient setting. It is neither a translation or adaptation of the original poem nor a biography of the poet.