In a kingdom filled with sunshine and singing birds, lived a King who, well, he worried a lot. One day, a wise old woman came to the castle. She looked into her sparkly crystal ball and said, "Your Majesty, your son, the Prince, will marry a very special girl!"

The King frowned. He wanted his son to marry a princess, not just any "special girl." So, he had a not-so-nice idea. When a baby girl was born to a simple family nearby, the King secretly put her in a cozy, wooden box and set it floating down the river. "There," he thought, "problem solved!"

But the river was kind! It carried the box safely to a friendly miller and his wife. They opened it and gasped! "A baby!" they cried. They named her Lily and loved her as their own.

Years flew by. Lily grew into a kind and clever young woman. One day, the King was riding by the mill. He saw Lily and thought, "She's lovely... wait a minute! Could this be the girl from the prophecy?" He felt that old worry bubble up. So, he wrote a secret letter to the Queen: "Dear Queen, when this girl arrives, make sure she is... taken care of immediately. And not in a good way!" He gave the letter to Lily and said, "Take this to the Queen, my dear."

Lily set off. In the forest, she met some cheerful campers who were actually very playful robbers! They saw the royal seal on the letter. "Ooh, what's this?" one whispered. They sneakily opened it, read the King's grumpy words, and giggled. "That's not very nice!" So, they wrote a new letter: "Dear Queen, this wonderful girl is to marry our son, the Prince, right away! Hooray!" They sealed it up and gave it back to Lily.

When Lily arrived, the Queen read the new letter. "A wedding! How exciting!" The Prince met Lily and thought she was the kindest, smartest girl ever. So, they had a big, happy wedding!

The King came back and... surprise! His son was married to Lily! He was NOT happy.

The King grumbled. "Fine! But if he wants to stay married, the Prince must bring me three golden hairs from the beard of the big, grumpy Giant who lives on the other side of the world!"

The Prince, brave and true, set off. On his way, he came to a town where the fountain was dry. "Why is our fountain dry?" they asked. Further on, an apple tree stood bare. "Why does our tree have no apples?" sighed the gardener. Finally, he reached a wide river. A tired ferryman rowed him across. "Why must I row this boat forever?" the ferryman groaned. The Prince promised to find answers.

At last, the Prince reached the Giant's gloomy cave. Luckily, the Giant's kind Grandma was there. "Oh dear," she said, "my grandson is very grumpy. But I'll help you!" She hid the Prince when the Giant stomped in.

That night, while the Giant snored like a thunderstorm, Grandma gently plucked one golden hair. "Ouch!" mumbled the Giant.
"What's wrong?" asked Grandma.
"I dreamed of a town with a dry fountain!"
"Oh," said Grandma, "that's because a big toad is sitting on the spring under a stone."

She plucked another. "Ouch again!"
"What now?"
"An apple tree with no apples!"
"A little mouse is nibbling its roots," said Grandma.

One more pluck! "OUCH!"
"And now?"
"A ferryman stuck rowing!"
"Silly ferryman," said Grandma. "He just needs to give the oar to the next person who wants to cross!"

The Prince thanked Grandma and hurried back with the three golden hairs and the answers.
He told the ferryman the secret. The ferryman was overjoyed!
The Prince told the gardener about the mouse, and soon the tree was full of juicy apples. They gave him lots of gold.
He told the town about the toad, and water gushed from the fountain! They gave him even more treasure.

The Prince returned to the King with the golden hairs and all the treasure. The King saw all the gold. "Where did you get that?" he asked, his eyes gleaming. The Prince told him about the ferryman and the treasure he received for the answer.

The greedy King thought, "I want more treasure!" He rushed to the river and got on the ferry. "Take me across!" he ordered. The ferryman smiled, handed the King the oar, and hopped off.

And so, the grumpy King had to row the boat, back and forth, back and forth, for a very, very long time.

And the Prince and clever Lily? They lived happily, ruled wisely, and always remembered to be kind.

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