One sunny morning, an old woman was washing clothes by the river when she spotted something very strange floating downstream. It was a gigantic, golden peach, bobbing and glimmering in the sunlight. "What a lucky day!" she said, pulling the peach onto the riverbank and carrying it home to share with her husband. But as soon as they sliced into the peach, they got the surprise of their lives. Out popped a tiny, giggling boy!

The boy stretched his arms and said, "Thank you for rescuing me! I’m Little Peachling, and I’ve come here to be your son." The old couple was overjoyed. They took him in, fed him rice balls, and hugged him tight, promising to always love him.

Little Peachling grew up fast—so fast that before long, he was stronger and braver than anyone in the village. One day, he heard some troubling news. "Oh no!" said the neighbors. "A gang of mischievous ogres has stolen all our food and treasures!"

"Don’t worry," Little Peachling said with a confident grin. "I’ll bring everything back." He packed a knapsack of rice balls, waved goodbye to his parents, and set off to find the ogres.

Along the way, Little Peachling met a talking dog. "Woof, woof! Where are you going?" barked the dog.

"To fight the ogres," said Little Peachling, sharing a rice ball with him. "Want to come along?"

"Of course! Let’s show those ogres what we’re made of," said the dog, wagging his tail.

Soon after, they met a cheeky monkey swinging from a tree. "Oo-oo! Where are you off to, little boy?"

"To fight the ogres," said Little Peachling, handing the monkey a rice ball. "Want to help?"

"Count me in!" said the monkey, munching happily.

Not long after that, they came across a bright, chattering pheasant. "Tweet-tweet! Where are you going?"

"To fight the ogres," said Little Peachling, tossing the pheasant a rice ball. "Care to join us?"

"I’d love to!" chirped the pheasant, fluffing up his feathers.

With his new friends—dog, monkey, and pheasant—Little Peachling marched straight to the ogres’ island. The ogres were big and scary, with wild hair and booming voices, but Little Peachling wasn’t afraid. "Return everything you stole!" he shouted, standing tall.

The ogres laughed, "Ha! What can a tiny boy like you do?"

"More than you think!" said Little Peachling, and his team sprang into action. The dog barked and chased the ogres in circles. The monkey swung from their noses and pulled their hair. The pheasant flew above, pecking the ogres and making them yelp. Amid all the chaos, Little Peachling gathered the stolen treasures and food into a big sack.

Finally, the ogres cried, "Stop, stop! We’ll be good from now on! Just take everything and go!"

Little Peachling and his friends returned home as heroes, carrying the treasures back to the village. The neighbors cheered, the old couple hugged him tight, and even the animals got extra rice balls for their bravery.

From that day on, the village was peaceful, the ogres stayed out of trouble, and Little Peachling and his friends became legends. After all, as Little Peachling liked to say, "With a kind heart and good friends, you can tackle anything!"