At the Market of Green Abundance, Minli admires the colorful, plentiful produce. She bids goodbye to the buffalo boy and offers him her remaining copper coin in gratitude, but he refuses it. When a poor old man begs a peach vendor to give him something to eat, Minli uses her coin to buy him the biggest peach available. The beggar plants the pit from his peach in the ground and sticks his walking stick in the same hole. It grows into a magnificent peach tree before the townspeople’s disbelieving eyes. Minli notices that the beggar isn’t actually an old man, and when she grabs his sleeve to talk to him, she discovers his gold dragon bracelet, an indisputable sign of royalty.

Minli follows the king through a secret door in the Inner City wall that leads to the Palace Garden. In the safety of his home, the king wipes away his disguise and discards his rag clothes. When his servants come running to greet him, the king orders Minli to hide. His servants are worried about him, but the king lies about his recent whereabouts, saying he’s been in the garden the whole time.