Change is bad

"Will, sit down. Let me tell you a story," his father's face grows serious, "back when Arburg's system of government had finally reached stability, a certain, well, man," he clears his throat and glances at his wife, "took over as king. He was a visionary, and had much in store for Arburg. Whether or not these... ideas... were good for the kingdom; that is debatable. Many, many years before this man's rule, when Howard I was on the throne, it was decreed that the first-born son of the royal family would marry a young maiden of the land on his 21st birthday, chosen by his parents. But, well, you already know that. The man of this story, unfortunately, fell in love with a woman that he had met by accident in the streets of Eflaria. This was before he had ascended to the throne. One week before he was due to marry a different woman; one that his own parents had chosen for him from the kingdom, he ran off and got married that other woman in secret. The kingdom went into a frantic panic looking for him. After all, he was due to marry adn become King. Ten days later, he returened with his bride. His father was terrribly ill, and he was an only child, so Arburg had no choice but to crown him king, even with his unplanned wife.
"After this unnerving event, he managed to rule peacefully and level-headedly for a few years, until another incident occured. Back then, our beloved orchard actually had a row of almond trees! However, that king decide that he didn't want them anymore, and he ordered a group of men to cut them down. He then instructed the palace gardeners to replace the trees with grapevines. The kingdom was extremely shocked by his actions, but nothing could be done. The grapes started to grow, but one year, a horrible disease destroyed the whole vineyard, and it left that section of the orchard infertile and barren. Many gardeners have tried to plant new plants there, but nothing has proved successful yet. And that, my son, shows us that change is bad, very bad for this kingdom. All it brings is confusion, destruction, chaos and innfertility to our thriving land. So always follow the rules that have been set from the beginning. and if you do so, all will be well.
Now, off to bed with you!"

Spread

It is a story told mainly in the royal palace. Higher class children get told it, but lower class people tend to mock it in private.

Variations & Mutation

The almond tree sometimes changes to other fruit not found in the orchard, but the grapes always stay the same. Sometimes, a name is given to the two characters.

In Literature

There is no known written recording of it, but some poems have been written about it.

Date of Setting

between 1600 and 1615 (approx.)