Long, long ago, King Hung the Sixth looked after a green and peaceful land full of rice fields, rivers and bamboo villages. The King had many sons. Some of the princes lived in grand houses filled with shiny things. But the youngest, Prince Lang Lieu, liked a simple life. He lived in a little house near the fields, and every day he planted rice, pulled weeds, grew green beans and chatted with the farmers, just like a farmer himself.
One spring, as Tet was coming, the King called all his sons to the palace. "My dear children," he said, "this Tet, I would like each of you to bring a dish for our ancestors' altar, to say thank you for this beautiful land. The dish that shows the most love for our land and our people will help me choose who will look after the kingdom with me."
The princes bowed and hurried off, whispering with excitement. One sent boats far across the sea to find rare seafood. One climbed high mountains to gather wild honey and unusual fruits. Another ordered sweets from faraway lands, tied up with silk ribbons.
Lang Lieu sat on his doorstep and scratched his head. "Hmm. I have no boats. I have no silk ribbons. I only have rice, beans and leaves from my garden. What can I make?" He thought and thought until the stars came out, and then he fell asleep.
In his dream, a kind old man with a long white beard sat down beside him. "Lang Lieu," he said softly, "nothing is more precious than rice. People eat it every day, and it grows from the earth under the sky. Use sticky rice to make two cakes. Make one square, like the earth, and one round, like the sky. Wrap them with love, and your father will understand."
Lang Lieu woke with the sunrise and a big smile, and he got to work right away. He washed the sticky rice until it shone white. He soaked the green beans until they were soft. He picked big green dong leaves and wiped them clean, one by one. He folded the leaves into a neat square, like a little box. In went a layer of rice. In went yellow beans and a little pork. In went more rice on top. Fold, fold, fold, and tie with bamboo string: one, two, three, four.
He put the square cakes into a big pot of water, and the pot bubbled all night long. Blub, blub, blub. The neighbours came to sit by the warm pot with him. They told stories, sang songs and took turns keeping watch, while the children dozed on straw mats nearby.
Next he made the round cakes. He steamed more sticky rice and pounded it in a stone mortar. Thump, thump, thump! Thump, thump, thump! The rice became soft, smooth and stretchy. He shaped it with his hands into round white cakes, as round and gentle as the sky on a clear day.
On Tet morning, the princes brought their dishes to the palace: shiny seafood, golden honey, sweets with silk ribbons. Everyone said "Ooh!" and "Aah!" Then Lang Lieu stepped forward with his simple leaf-wrapped cakes. The King looked curious. "What are these, my son?"
"Father," said Lang Lieu, "this square cake is banh chung. It is square like the earth, and the leaves wrap around it the way parents hug their children. This round cake is banh giay. It is round like the sky. They are made from rice, beans and leaves, the things our farmers grow every day."
The King unwrapped a banh chung and tasted it. Then he tasted a banh giay. He closed his eyes and smiled. "Delicious," he said, "and they tell the story of our land. You have remembered what matters most." The other princes tasted the cakes too. "Mmm, so good!" said the eldest. "Little brother, will you teach us how to make them?" Lang Lieu laughed. "Of course! Let's make them together next year."
The King chose Lang Lieu to help look after the kingdom, and his brothers cheered and promised to help too. And from that day on, every Tet, families wrap square banh chung and make round banh giay, sit together by the bubbling pot, and say thank you for the earth, the sky and each other.
Parent tip: When Lang Lieu shapes the cakes, draw a square and a circle in the air with your finger and ask your child which shape is like the sky.
Ask your child: After the story, you can ask: “Who was kind in this story, and what did they do?”
This is a gentle retelling where the brothers stay friendly and everyone happily shares the cakes.