One, two, three, he passed on the news to the owl. So the owl told the sparrow, the sparrow told the bloodhound, the bloodhound told the gopher, the gopher told the squirrel, the squirrel told the tree frog and the tree frog told the bull that King Icicle offers his kingdom and his daughterls hand in marriage to the one who will c’ean the palace of all the garbage in it.
The news spread swiftly as an arrow and reached the ears of the Poor Lad. Well, since then, the lad had no rest day and night. He constantly thought of the singing palace. He thought and thought and one day he threw some food for the road in his knapsack and set out to look for the palace from the cave.
He walked and walked, beyond the fields, beyond the hills and beyond the woods until he got lost. The road led him to a stubble field, where the Sheafer was binding a sheaf.
-“What are you looking for, lad?” the Sheafer asked.
-"A deep palace made of ice
Where the icicles all dance…
You tell me what road to take
So a bride for me Ild chance."
- “Well, my dear friend, I am the only one that knows where this palace is.
It is in a cave whose mouth is under a white mushroom and is very hard to spot. But ever since the world began, one hand washes the other and they both wash the face, said the Sheafer. If you repair my reaper, Illl tell you how to get there.”
The Poor Lad made the deal. He worked with screws from morning till night till the reaper was fixed. The Sheafer was an honest man. Word by word he explained to the lad which way to take, turn right, take a left and then keep going. Moreover, he took out a circle of rope, pulled it up on the ladls shoulder then let him go.
The Poor Lad walked and walked, turned right then took a left and darkness started to fall. He noticed a small light nearby.
