ESL Blogs

Once upon a time, there was a king in a small country who had three sons. Because he couldn't decide which one he should resign his throne to, he said to his sons, "I will resign my throne to a son who brings me the most worthy treasure." So the three sons went off in quest of it. 

The eldest son went toward the west. After he walked for a month, he found a thick vine growing toward the sky. He climbed it until he arrived at a cloud and got down to the cloud. He wandered about until he found a big house where a ferocious giant lived and entered it. There seemed to be nobody in the house, so he looked for something worthy. After a few minutes, he found golden eggs on the table and a beautiful hen that sat up next to them. He thought that the hen must have laid them, so he decided to take it back. 

The second eldest son went toward the east. After he walked for a month, he arrived at a big village. He heard an interesting rumor there, which was that a dragon lived in the mountain at the east end of the village and if you ate a scale of the dragon, you could live forever. He had confidence in fighting, so he decided to fight the dragon and take his scale. After the fierce battle which lasted for a whole day, he beat the dragon and succeeded in taking a scale from it. 

The youngest son went toward the south. After he walked for a month, he arrived at a small village. He was very hungry, so he knocked at the door of a small house to ask for something to eat. An old man lived in the house. He invited him in and gladly gave him some bread and warm soup. After eating them, the youngest son noticed a beautiful girl sleeping on the bed. He asked the old man who she was. He said that she was his only daughter who had kept sleeping for a year. He approached her and looked at her face for a while. She was so beautiful, so he kissed her lips gently, and the girl opened her eyes slowly. The old man was so glad and asked him to marry his daughter. He gladly accepted the offer and decided to go back home with her. 

About three months later after the sons went off, they gathered at their father's palace with a treasure that they thought was the most worthy. They eagerly explained the worth of their treasures to their father. 

The eldest son said, "My treasure is a hen that lays golden eggs. Father, if you have this hen, you won't have trouble with money for life. You can buy everything you want."  

The second eldest son said, "My treasure is a dragon's scale. Father, if you eat it, you can live forever. You don't need to be afraid of death."  

The youngest son said, " My treasure is my beautiful wife. Father, if my wife gives birth to a child, your descendants will prosper for a long time. Your royal family will continue in the future." 

The king thought for a week about which son should be the next king. He thought that even if he had a lot of money and could buy everything he wanted, he would lose interest in a luxurious life someday and that even if he could live forever, he would be tired of living someday. He wanted his descendants to prosper for a long time and wanted his royal family to continue in the future. So he decided to resign his throne to his youngest son. The youngest son became the new king and his wife gave birth to a child. The former king's hope came true and his descendants prospered for a long time.