A long time ago, there lived a wise king. He had a strange habit. Every day at lunch, there would be a covered dish on the dining table. Nobody knew what was on the dish. Even Gregory, the king’s servant, did not know what was on it. The king would lift the cover only when no one was around. One day, Gregory found a tiny piece of white meat left on the dish. He put it into his mouth. Soon, he heard soft sounds at the window. The young man went over to the window. The young man went over to the window and listened. The sparrows outside the kitchen were chatting with one another! Now Gregory knew why the meat was special. It gave him the powder to understand the language of animals. One day, the queen’s ring disappeared. The king was sure that Gregory had stolen the ring. “You must be punished,” said the king. Poor Gregory! He went into the garden, feeling sad. Some chickens were pecking away at the ground. “While I was looking for worms this morning, I swallowed a ring. Now my stomach feel so heavy,” said one chicken. Gregory at once grabbed the chicken and hurried to the kitchen. When the cook cleaned the chicken, she found the queen’s ring in its stomach. Gregory took the ring to the king. The king realized his mistake and wanted to reward Gregory. Gregory asked for a horse and some money. “I want to see the world,” he said. The king granted Gregory his wish. Gregory then set out on his journey. On the way, Gregory passed a stream. He saw three fish stuck in the weed. He freed them and they swam off joyfully. “We shall remember your kindness,” said the fish. Further along. Gregory heard voices from the ground. It was the king ant. He was afraid his little ants would be trampled by Gregory’s horse. The young man moved away and let ants pass. “Thank you,” said the king ant. “We shall remember your kindness.” Gregory rode on. He entered the forest. He heard soft cries. He saw three baby ravens under a tree. They could not fly back to the nest. Gregory climbed the tree and put them back in the nest “Thank you, Thank you,” said the grateful ravens. “We shall remember you.” Soon Gregory came to a large city. The people living in the city seemed excited. The king wanted a husband for his daughter. But first the young man would have to complete three difficult task. Gregory saw the king’s beautiful daughter. He fell in love with her and wanted to marry her. He approached the king. The king took Gregory to the sea. He then threw a golden ring into the water. “Find the ring,” said the king. “If you can’t find it, you shall die.” The young man did not know what to do. As he stood there, the three fish he had saved swam up to him. Gregory looked at the fish carefully. One of them had a ring in its mouth! “Thank you!” said Gregory with a smile. Then he took the ring to the king. The king gave Gregory his second task. He threw a sack of grain across his garden. “Pick up all the grain by tomorrow morning or you shall die.” Gregory sat on the ground and wondered what to do. Nevertheless, he picked up the grain. Night fell. He was so tried that he fell asleep. When the sun rose the next morning, the sack of grain was full! The ant king and his army had come during the night to help Gregory. “Thank you very much,” said Gregory to the ants. The king decided upon one last task for Gregory. “Bring me an apple from the tree of life,” said the king. “Then you can marry my daughter.” Gregory did not know where the tree of Life was. He spent three months searching for it, but was unsuccessful. One day, he heard some sounds above him. He looked up and saw the three ravens he had helped. They dropped a golden apple into his hands “Oh, thank you,” said Gregory. He then took the golden apple back to the king. When the king saw the apple, he knew that Gregory was the right man for his daughter. The princess had also fallen in love with the brave and king young man. Not long after that, There was a grand wedding celebration. Gregory and the princess lived happily to a ripe old age. …The end