虞儔《柿熟園夫不採可嘉》“Persimmons are ripe but not harvested by the gardeners – a good theme for praise” by Yu Chou [fl. 12th century]

飛鳴爭啄頳虬卵，

木杪斜陽幾點鵶。

紅葉堪書收拾取，

不妨分付鄭虔家。

Flying and crying [as they] compete to peck at the crimson wyrm eggs,

Several crows speckle the treetops against the setting sun.

There are red leaves that make fine writing paper – collect some up,

And perhaps send a few to Zheng Qian as well. [1]

* From Yu Chou, Zunbaitang ji 尊白堂集, Yingyin Wenyuange Siku quanshu 景印文淵閣四庫全書 (Shanghai: Shanghai guji chubanshe, 1987) edition, vol. 1154, 4.35b.

[1] Zheng Qian (691-759) was a poet and artist from the Tang dynasty. Wary of the cost of paper, he used to hoard persimmon leaves collected from a Buddhist temple for practising calligraphy.