PUBLISHED ONApril 02, 2026 6:42 AMBYKristy ChuaIn this age of technology, it's not uncommon to come across at least one AI-generated video with every scroll on social media.
But recently, a particular trope of short-form videos took the internet by storm - in the form of snowy mountains, a wood-chopping man, braised duck and a mystical woman draped in white.
"Did you save a fox on a snowy mountain?" is a question that has made its rounds with the release of a Chinese AI-generated microdrama. Created to appear like a period drama made in the 1970s, it follows a traveller on a snowy mountain who saves a dying fox with an offering of braised duck.
When he is back home cutting wood, he is interrupted by a mysterious and beautiful woman who boldly asks him if he had saved a fox on a snowy mountain. Hopeful, he takes her for the spirit of the fox - until she angrily reveals herself to be "that braised duck" he had sacrificed and vengefully shoots him with a gun.
@moyouyuwen 你是否在雪山上救过一只狐狸是什么梗？ 看完这个连续剧你就懂了#你是否在雪山上救过一个细菌 #你是否在雪山上救过一只狐狸 #你是否在雪山上救过一只酱板鸭 #分享有趣的ai视频 #搞笑视频 ♬ 原創音樂 - 蚂蚁啃大象
According to China media reports published on March 31, the microdrama is created by the media team from the company Guizhou Heshun Qiansheng Chuanwa Braised Duck and published on Feb 27 with the sole intention of promoting their products.
The team of four, led by a 32-year-old operations manager surnamed Ai with the remaining members in their 20s, reportedly only took five hours to produce the first episode of the viral microdrama, from brainstorming to its release.
Their original idea had begun very simply - earlier this year, they noticed a surge of AI-generated videos following the narrative of a snowy mountain fox repaying a debt of gratitude.
While the content was "novel", they felt the plots were all cliche and predictable. "Since it's all about repaying a debt of gratitude, why not do it the other way around?" said Ai .
Subsequently, they set out on a narrative of revenge as opposed to kindness, and swopped out the wild game used to save the fox with their own product.
They spent around 40 yuan (S$7) which mostly went to trial-and-error attempts of generating the AI videos, with each video costing about six yuan.
Their efforts have paid off handsomely. Ai told reporters sales of their braised ducks have increased by 70 per cent month-on-month since the microdrama's creation and are still growing.
"After seeing our first microdrama, many netizens went to our store to buy our products, hoping to try and taste our braised duck," shared Ai. When placing their orders, customers reportedly like to ask if the braised duck is the same as the one on the snowy mountain in the microdrama.
Driven by the demand for more, the media team served even more content centred around braised duck.
The microdrama won the hearts of netizens due to its interchangeable format and ever-so-expandable plot, and has inspired countless spinoffs across social media platforms like TikTok, Douyin and YouTube.
Some users have replaced the original characters entirely in some instances, including one featuring those from Japanese web manga Chiikawa.
There are multilingual spinoffs too, with the traveller and mysterious woman conversing in different languages.
On Douyin, the microdrama has been lifted from its original plot, with the braised duck becoming a sentient character leading the narrative in various videos. Other businesses have also altered the storyline to promote their own products.
@mediacube_n_wellness 如果你在雪山救了一只狐狸，你会送她什么？ 在线等，挺急的! 我看这位大哥送的“黄金籽”效果挺好，狐狸都变仙女了😻 #mediacubenwellness #easyway #thegoldenseed #organicsachainchi #健康养顏 @Anthony Productions @MediaCube Anthony Wong @Kisorai @Rogan @Nicoe @Grace Tan @NEO_EASYWAY CMO @cynthialem @ARon_Easyway ♬ Short dramas ancient comedies - 王港
Even celebrities have hopped onto the bandwagon, including Taiwanese singer Jolin Tsai who took to TikTok to promote her Pleasure world tour.
In a reel posted on March 22 that has since garnered over 1.5 million views, the 45-year-old immediately cracks up as she questions whether one of her staff members saved a fox on a snowy mountain, to which he asks if she's said fox or a braised duck.
@jolin_cai Baby it's a piece of 醬板鴨 #雪山救狐狸 #甜蜜蜜 #pleasure世界巡迴演唱會 #changsha #jolinpleasureworldtour ♬ 原聲 - Jolin 蔡依林
Jolin counters: "Absolutely not! I am singer Jolin Tsai who is waiting backstage at my concert in Changsha to eat braised duck."
The reel cuts to Jolin seated deadpan at a table, banging her cutlery as she awaits her braised duck served sloppily on a glass lid.
Netizens took well to it, with one user remarking: "AI is truly amazing." Another joked: "Even the queen of pop is going for abstract art."
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