Translated by Khidir M. Yazir (Kid Haidér)

Once upon a time, in ancient China, there was a boy who possessed a magical pen. Despite his family's poverty, with his parents working as rice farmers on a small plot of land, the boy's crops often yielded little due to floods. Nevertheless, they persevered through life's challenges.

Once again, the flood season came around and wrecked their crops. Despite feeling devastated, they didn't give up. They saw it as a test from God. The boy was heartbroken for his parents. In the afternoon, he went to the farm to see if there was any rice left. He searched and was overjoyed to find some undamaged rice stalks. Without hesitation, he gathered them up and brought them home.

"My parents must be thrilled because this rice can be stored for later," he thought. He also thought about using it as a seed.

As he walked down the road, he came across an old man with tattered clothes.

The boy couldn't help but think that the old man must be very poor. "Help me!" the old man pleaded.

"What can I do for you?" the boy asked.

"I'm starving. I haven't eaten in days," the old man replied. "But I have no food."

Then, the old man pointed out, "Aren't you carrying some stalks of rice?"

The boy explained that he wanted to save the rice as seed. But the old man insisted, "Give it to me. I can turn that rice into a meal."

Feeling sorry for the old man, the boy decided to give him the rice. The old man thanked him and went on his way.

A few days later, some of the king's guards showed up at the boy's house. The guard told his parents, "Tomorrow, get ready ten sacks of rice. This is an order from the king. If you don't follow it, you'll be sentenced to be beheaded."

His parents were scared when they heard the warning. They knew the king in that land was really mean. Anyone who didn't do what he said would be in big trouble. "Please, help us!" the boy's father begged. "It's the flood season right now. Our crops aren't growing. We can't give that much rice." But the guard just said, "We don't care. You have to do what the king says."

The guards left, and the boy felt really sad. They couldn't think of anything else to do. "Let's face this together as a family," his father said.

That night, they couldn't sleep. They were waiting for the guards to come and take them away in the morning. But before the guards showed up, a poor old man came to their house.

"Oh, you're such a kind boy! You helped me when I was in trouble. Now it's my turn to help you. Take this magic pen! I'm giving it to you as a thank you for your kindness," the old man said. "You can draw whatever you want with it," he added.

After the old man shared his story, he quickly left. The boy pondered the mysterious event, leaving his parents equally surprised. "Could this pen really be magical?" his father inquired.

"I'm not sure," the boy replied.

"Well, why not test it out by drawing something?" His mother suggested. The boy eagerly grabbed some paper.

"I'm hungry. I feel like eating duck," he said as he attempted to sketch a duck.

"I want a lemon. Try drawing one," his father chimed in.

"And I could use some new clothes," his mother added shyly.

The boy sketched a lemon and a set of clothes. They were shocked when the drawing magically transformed into a duck, a lemon, and a pair of clothes.

"Wow, that was truly magical!" they exclaimed with joy. Shortly after, the king's guards arrived at their doorstep.

"Have you prepared the ten sacks of rice?" The guard bellowed.

"Not yet!" Replied the boy's father nervously.

"I'm going to punish you now!" Threatened the guard.

"Wait, hold on!" The boy interjected.

"What are you waiting for?" The guard snapped.

"I'll get the ten sacks of rice ready for you," the boy assured.

The boy wasted no time and quickly sketched ten sacks of rice. The guard was not impressed and said, "Do you think I'm dumb? What am I supposed to do with rice on paper? You're asking for trouble."

But then, like magic, the drawing transformed into real sacks of rice. The guards were shocked by the unexpected turn of events.

"Wow, your pen is like something out of a fairy tale!" Exclaimed the guard.

Without hesitation, the guards unloaded the rice and rushed back to the palace to share the incredible story with the king. The king was left speechless by the news.

"Head back over there and tell the boy to draw a hundred sacks of rice for me," commanded the king. The guards wasted no time in carrying out his request.

The guard told the boy that the king wanted him to draw a hundred sacks of rice. If he didn't, he would be punished.

Soon enough, the boy and his parents brought a hundred sacks of rice to the king. The king was amazed by the sight of so much rice. It was then that he truly believed in the magic pen the boy possessed. Ever since then, the boy and his parents have been living happily together. Thanks to the magic pen, they can pretty much have whatever they want. But the boy hasn't forgotten about the less fortunate people in his village. He's been drawing all sorts of food and farm animals for them. And every day, a bunch of villagers come asking for his help. Before they knew it, the king summoned the boy to his palace.

"I want to go to war. Draw me a hundred thousand soldiers, a hundred thousand weapons, and a hundred thousand horses," the king demanded.

"Sure thing, Your Highness! But I'll need ten days," the boy replied.

"Why's it taking so long?" the king snapped.

"There's a lot to draw, Your Majesty. I can't whip up all those pictures in just one day," the boy explained.

"Fine, take your time," the king agreed. The boy headed back home and shared the news with his parents.

"We better draw those pictures or we'll be in big trouble with the king," his father warned. But the boy wasn't keen on the idea.

"Why don't you want to do it?" His father asked.

"Too many people will get hurt if we go to war," the boy replied.

His mother was terrified. "We'll definitely be in trouble with the king!"

"We need to get out of here," the boy declared.

"How are we going to escape?" His father wondered.

Without wasting any time, the boy quickly sketched a picture of a ship sailing on the sea. As soon as he finished drawing, a ship and the sea appeared right before their eyes. Without hesitation, they climbed aboard the ship and made a swift escape from the country, successfully evading the tyrannical king.

The guards informed the king that the boy had fled, which made the king furious. However, he was powerless to stop them. His Majesty had no idea where the boy and his parents had escaped to.