The lost princess

Once upon a time in the kingdom of Eritrea lived the most beautiful princess named Hiranmayi. She was doted upon by her mother and father, the king and queen. It made her vain and vacillating. When she came of age, the king organized a ball and invited princes from the neighboring kingdoms. The princess refused everyone and retired to her room. This went on for almost five years. Finally, the king could not tolerate her vanity and banished her from the kingdom. The princess walked and walked for two days reaching a dense forest. Since she only cared about her looks while she was in the palace, she did not learn any skills that life bestows in general. She began to feel hungry after walking and searched for food and water with no luck. By chance, she stumbled upon an apple tree.

She liked her lips upon spotting the delicious apples. But she didn't know how to climb the tree. So she started crying. A woodcutter from the nearby village spotted her and after enquiring about her, he climbed the tree and plucked the apples and gave it to her on the condition that she should work for him. She agreed and received the apples, feasting on them with joy. After she ate, the woodcutter took her to a thatched house and asked her to clean it. She cleaned the house with difficulty and rested afterward. The woodcutter also taught her to cook, wash, and iron clothes. She passed a year under his supervision. After she finished the chores, she went with him to the forest to help him and learned to plant crops for food and weave clothes from yarn. After some days the woodcutter took her to a palace where she had to work as a cook. She was busy with cooking and washing utensils for about a year. One day there was a ball in the palace, and she was asked to get ready and join everyone at the ball. The woodcutter came to her wearing the most fabulous dress befitting a king. He also gave her a beautiful blue gown embroidered with golden thread. She wore it and attended the ball where she discovered that the woodcutter was the prince of the kingdom. She thanked him profusely and he proposed to her. She accepted his proposal, married him, and lived happily ever after.