The Blue Fairy Book

In a kingdom where the royal garden remained barren, a wise old adviser persuades the king to hire a gardener whose family has tended soil. The new gardener transforms the grounds into a riot of flowers and fruit, earning the monarch’s gratitude and the affection of the young princess, who confesses she loves the gardener’s handsome son. When the king arranges a marriage with the prime minister’s heir, the princess refuses, prompting the court to devise a race: whichever suitor returns first from a distant land will win her hand.

Both young men set out, the minister’s son on a fine horse and a purse of gold, while the gardener’s son is given a cracked, lame pony and only a modest pouch of copper. Along the road he encounters a rag‑clad old woman begging for food; instead of turning away, he shares his meager coins and invites her to ride behind him. Their humble partnership carries them to the bustling capital, where the richly equipped rival enjoys luxuries in an inn while the compassionate pair seek shelter among the city’s poorest.